Burtbaccarat

So it’s been a while since I’ve posted in here so I’ll try to get it all out in one shot…. changed out the entire brake system (with oem stuff, not upgraded/converted). wanted to do an oil change, so dropped the pan and cleaned the sludge out, and changed the gasket, and rear main seal. took it for its first ride and immediately regretted leaving the bias ply tires on..lol so swapped to radials….which was fun finding valve stems to fit in the oval holes…but found some Milton ones on Amazon, and had to ream out the edges a little bit…but got them in and all is well…night and driving experience..which I’m sure you are all aware of. The most recent project was trying to get the rust off the bumpers….got the rust off, but still have a lot of pitting…so it is what it is and I polished them anyway…still looks significantly better then before…. Car even went to her first show on Father’s Day so that was fun and my 7 year old daughter loved being able to sit in the front seat and drive through registration. A lot of folks like the ratty looking old thing and came over to bs with us while we were there with it. Next in the list is getting the dual carbs and split headers put on…which I’ve read through here and have seen the tips (like welding the plug in the bottom of the intake manifold so it doesn’t leak) now I’ve got to figure out the linkage and had it mocked up with just the carbs on the manifold…so still a long way to go… my question is, with the 2 carbs not being original, and being a hydrive …will NOT having that extra pot in the carb for the hydrive system be detrimental to it staying running when I’m in gear and not moving? Has anyone got any experience with dual carbs and hydrive? I’ll do a photo dump for posterity…lol

I’ve got some oval ones coming tomorrow…tracked down a single oval bolt in today and it seemed like it would work swimmingly….but of course unless I wanted to drive an hour each direction I would only have the 1….i could start a small tire business with the number of stems I’ve bought and have stock of in the past 24 hours…lol

That is kind of the issue….I’ve been using 5/8 stems and they are still kind of loosey goosey in there….put a fat Milton stem in today, pulled though hard like it was supposed to…held air….then after 10 mins I sprayed it and it was leaking out of the base of the stem

I’m going to hit an old timer shop on my way home, and if I strike out there I’m going to do Napa which is a couple blocks from my house….I’ll update with my luck

Is there a particular size? Or is my best bet just going there and bringing the wheel? I’m assuming the latter is probable easier

So I’m at the point where I’m trying to rid my 53 of the bias ply and put radials on. So I take it to the tire shop and course they can’t put valve stems in that seal… 2 of the tires had tubes and 2 did not….the two that did not seemed to have normal valve stems in them, but I’ve read and can see these holes are oblong/oval….. where the hell do I find oval valve stems without waiting days for a delivery? just call every tire shop in the area? Truck service centers? I’m assuming there’s different sized ovals, so where do I look to find the appropriate part? Honest to god this car wants to fight me on every single step…lol…I guess that’s the fun though…

That’s my understanding . I know when I first installed my new cap/rotor/points/ condenser……cylinder 1 is at 7oclock ish for the start of the firing order

I’m sort of dealing with the same thing….I have no markings on the balancer and want to put a TDC mark on it for reference….and in the instance it may be SLIGHTLY out of time, I’d like to be able to adjust with some form of accuracy…. anyhow, I read in the manual about finding TDC on #6, but couldn’t we just find it on the compression stroke of #1? Aren’t 1 and 6 up at the same time? Or do we use 6 just because there’s a port there for a feeler rod?

On a 53 they are rubber oem, correct? I’m about to pull my pan and change it as well, I’ve read it’s not a total nightmare to change them while everything is still in the car if the pan is off, of course…

So I bought a couple ham nuts, and chased the marred threads with the 3/4-16…..worked like a charm……now that the new wheel is on, I still have to make it pretty, but I’m getting a lot of slop….i must’ve omitted a bushing of sorts when I wanted to mock it up….that’s now what im worried about…..now that the new wheel is on, I still want it closer to the dash…. is there a tech thread on shortening the column? Or finding a suitable substitute? From what I understand, the column is built into the steering box, no?

Yeah, it’s gotta be 10 then….I tried the column nut on the axle to make sure the nut wasn’t the problem….it happily started but came to a screeching halt after half a spin or so…. so I’d assume I could use a 3/4 10 die and hope for the best…at the very least buy another nut 3/4 10 and have it just in case

Lol funny you say that….a red wheel sans glitter will be going on this one….lol…but my interior has been done in black and red…just wanted a smaller, retro LOOKING wheel

So I found a NOS premier brand 3 bolt steering wheel adapter. Pulled original wheel and I think somehow either marred the top thread with the puller. Unless it’s egged by the SLIGHTEST amount, but I doubt it…. move reied filing a cone into the top just to get the steering wheel nut back on but no joy… it looks to be 3/4” , but what’s the pitch? I’ve contemplated running a 3/4” die up and down the thing, but have a 10 and a 16 die…. or you know….going nuclear and tac welding the stupid adapter to the column…lol

Yep, replaced all 6 cylinders on the car….I pulled off the caps when I had to attach the new “push rods” that connect to the pads….but didn’t take notice of any rust on the concave piston head inside……I certainly didn’t remove them for further inspection…so I guess I can’t be 100% confident that isn’t the issue…. thanks for the heads up

no doubt…I vacuumed to get the fluid through the lines…once I got it there I did it the old fashioned way with holding the pedal and cracking the bleeder….I’m wondering if since I don’t have the drums on…if the top cylinders actuate and unless there is resistance from a drum…it doesn’t force as much pressure into the lowers? Who knows… I’ll have to do the lowers first the old way and try to see if anything changes

So I’ve searched on the site briefly as well as YouTube… just changed the entire brake system in my 53 Cambridge…master cylinder, lines, and wheel cylinders….. I’m awful green when it comes to drum brakes…is there a specific procedure for the fronts specifically since there are 2 cylinders on the wheel? The reason I ask is I vacuum bled all the cylinders and have fluid everywhere…. However, when I depress the brake pedal only the top cylinder actuates on the front brakes….this MAY be normal ….again, I’m green to drums….. but saw read somewhere that bleeding the fronts could get tricky…… and I didn’t find it tricky whatsoever…,so I wanted to make sure I didn’t do something wrong….

Is the 1904 a suitable replacement for thr b&b? I'm looking for 2 matching and having a hell of a time...when I searched 1904 I found s couple repops.... any thoughts?

Now I'm in the carb market. Looked at langdons and saw those 32/36 carbs they had and was going to grab one, but they are OOS. Oh well, I will still grab the headers. Then I started nosing around and found a offy (probably reproduction) dual carb intake for a pretty low price. Which had my gears turning....I would still need to buy another oem carb, or a 1bbl substitution that would work, and if they were affordable enough, just buy 2 so they match. The performance gains are not of my main concern, im not interested in spinning tires...but leaving the hood open for oohs and aahs at the shows would be fun. So the question is where do I find another oem carb, aside from a beat up one on ebay.... OR Find a replacement that would bolt on to the offy mani and I could just run 2 of them. Side note* this is my first venture into the world of carburetors. In all the many cars I have run and zipped up....they were all injection. So I may sound like a bit of an idiot when asking questions about what carb will work in what situation....

Whew...that was a close one...lol.. didnt even cross my mind....thank you for thinking for me...dodged that bullet.

Im sure some folks here have changed steering wheels, but I can't seem to find any info using the search for adapters and/or spline to look for. My wheel is cracked and I'd like to swap for a 9 bolt that I found, but don't know how to make it happen.

So I did manage to find a potential motor....its a 47 L6....waiting to see what it's out of to make sure it's a 218 or 230 and not something bigger.... Would that be a sufficient motornto tear down to rebuild? I can get the motor with trans (he won't seperate) for pretty cheap IMO....

So as I'm waiting for brake system parts to arrive ( ordered basically all new parts , wheel cylinders, brake lines, master cylinder.....figured if I have to go over it all, I may as well just replace it all so I know when it was done) I'm planning out my winter to do list....the top of that list is build another motor in the garage so I can drop it in for next season. That being said, within the flathead 6 world. What are my options...218 and 230? I know any 228 can essentially be turned into a 230...but are there any other options? I'm not looking to go fast...if I go by too fast, they won't be able to see who is driving that badass car...lol.... My main reason for asking, is I want to know if I find a flathead motor...what will be a "bolt on" that will work with everything that's already there. I've seen some flathead 6s that were out of military vehicles from ww2...but it ain't easy finding a 218 in my area or 100 miles within my area. (Northeastern PA) . So when I find see a motor for sale, I need to know if it is a viable option. I plan on tearing the motor apart and rebuilding, with the addition of dual carbs, and the split headers for dual exhaust. I've also read there is a "bolt on" rear end with a gear ratio that will allow for highway speeds without a screaming motor...is that accurate, or am I mistaken.

So I want to check out thr master cylinder to start the process of getting the car to stop, now that it runs and moves. I've seen vids that you access through the right side of the driver's floor. Of course when the floor was recarpeted they didn't leave a way to access it...so I felt around for where the cap was, but didn't feel a lump....I DID find what felt to be a circular hole, though...id say it was a couple inches in diameter..possibly up to 3" ....could that be it? Or is there something else that can be accessed through the floor? That being said, where can I find a new cap one I have to inevitably cut the carpet so I can get to the fluid fill? I looked a bit online, but didn't find any reproductions of it. Would it be better just to order a grommet once I measure the hole?

Ok that makes sense...im assuming the manual will indicate which of the adjuster screw to adjust?