FarmerJon

I have only installed a 2 piece flat windshield once, so I cant give specific advice, but I recall that multiple friends are a big asset to the task. Some pizza, cigars, beer, whatever you have to do to get some extra hands will be well worth it. Go slow and be patient, you can make it happen. Good luck!

For the sake of consolidating information, here is what I have found regarding the speedometer pinions. These were cropped from pictures posted by @keithb7 My '55 OD trans had a 18T nylon gear in it. It was sealed with a replaceable lip seal. The mid '47 trans I stripped for parts had a steel 17T gear, with the rubber seal moulded into the housing. The rubber seal would be difficult to reproduce. The housing could be machined to take the same lip seal as the later one. I found that Timken 311189 was a good fit as a replacement. I will add the dimensions for machining the housing, as soon as I find where I wrote them down.... Hopefully this adds to the good information that @Loren took the time to post.

https://p15-d24.com/topic/61169-1949-plymouth-transmission-fluid/#comments

I always use fuel hose, cut slightly longer than the rod bolts. Sized right, they stay on as long as you need them, and will keep the threads from dinging up the journals while you swap out the bearing inserts. Usually a couple feet of hose is more than enough.

Looks like it has stock hinges, but without the lift springs

Hole in shift rail bore is normal. Was there the gasket between the transmission and the bellhousing?

Glad to see you got it done! How does it run, compared to before?

I think it looks quite good. Matches the interior nicely, and appears well done. How does it feel while driving? Does it move around much when low speed steering?

We had a very pleasant, mild winter so there was only a few wet weeks that I left the Plymouth cooped up. Back in January a local college kid spotted and photographed my car parked streetside.

What seals did you replace? The "complete seal kit" I bought was missing many of the smaller seals. Did you use thread sealant on the bolts that are open to the inside? Did your bearing retainer have the cast in drain onder the threads? If not, did you check that the "threads"of it ended at the low point? As far as the countershaft, neither trans I have torn down had anything noticeable added to the shaft end to aid in sealing it. From the looks of it, both had been leaking from that area for some time. Now one interesting thing I found was that the '47 trans had lead or some sort of babbitt lightly dipped onto on the pads of the shift fork. If you did something similar to the tip of the shaft it might seal better. May also be a good way to get small bits of metal floating around your oil....

Homebrew brake fluid, now that is a good one! The master cylinder is under the floor, not much paint to ruin there. Usually when I have spilled DOT 3-4-5.1 I wipe it up right away, ideally with a damp rag. I have not had any major issues with paint loss. Yes it absolutely will turn paint to soft goo, but it takes more than a few seconds, and there is plenty of time to clean it up. Just run silicone DOT 5 if you are worried about it. At least it has a known boiling point and tested properties. I have always flushed Drum brake cars with DOT 4 or 5.1 and have enjoyed having less brake fade in the rolling hills and country roads of my area. I just flush it every 2 years or so. Not much work, and a cheap upgrade.

You have a hemi powered Desoto fire truck? Either I am confused, or really want to see a picture of this beast! What is the current engine doing or not doing that makes it a poor driver?

I can't fully answer this, BUT I have a pair of '52 desoto uprights I plan to install on my '48 in order to add the 12" Desoto brakes in place of the factory 10" plymouth ones. I havent finished the project, but what I have found is this: The uprights are bolt in. The Plymouth steering arms might need to be used. The Desoto kingpins use a needle bearing for the top bushing, so it must be tracked down NOS. But is supposed to greatly reduce steering effort, so not all bad. The 12" drums may not fit inside stock Plymouth 15" wheels. You likely have 16" wheels, so try and see if they fit. I was able to use my old bearings and seals from the Desoto to track down replacements, as part stores are pretty slim on listings, BUT everything was available affordablly and USA made. Hope this helps

Bore and stroke work out to 220.73 CI. I would say that it is a .020 over 218.

" Precision Springs" are made in USA # SP08160 Also available from MOoG, but are more $ and like all mOOg parts now, are made of Chinesium. May drop stance a little, I cut 1 coil before installing them, so I dont know. I like the stance and ride, but they are a bit too short of a spring and bang around over larger dips. (Once cut) Went from this: to this: