Bobacuda

9’ Box - One thing I am not short on is projects. I am in the the very final stage of gremlin chasing on the 67 Barracuda convertible. Meanwhile, the 54 Chevy wagon has its drivetrain in operating order. I won’t pull it apart till I am confident the Barracuda can leave the shop. After the Wagon, it will either be an e-body Barracuda (I have 2), or the 51 truck. BTW, truck originally had a blue cab and a black bed.

We had a 1951 Dodge 1/2 ton on the ranch when I was a kid. It’s the truck I learned to drive. In the ‘70’s, the truck was sold by uncle to a local kid that drove the wheels off of it, then parked it on their ranch. I found out that the truck has been sitting outside for the past 45 yrs. I got to talking to the current owner, and he agreed to sell it back to me - it needs everything. But, no major dents or rust throughs. For $400, I got another project, and this one has sentimental value. Now I have to lube the doors and hood to get them opening, break the brake shoes loose from the drums, and drag it home - only about a mile.

Brent - Good to hear you are making it to retirement. ? I retired about 6 yrs ago. I am busier now than I was when I was working full time. I still design septic systems for two installers that are my friends. No idea how I got everything done while I was working full-time. Bob

That would depend on the species of bear. A griz or a polar bear would outweigh a black bear… ?

The 50 model

the newer truck

Door tag was the only file less than 3MB. Wish I could show the rest. Maybe I can figure out a work around tomorrow.

And it says the photo files are too big and won’t let them load. Door tag on the ‘50

The SA PnP on Applewhite Rd. Not mine, no idea on prices or anything. I do know the Classic section is only open Sat-Sun, 9-12. I just want to alert anyone chasing parts. ‘54-‘55? (No idea) front sheet metal. Grille is not crunched. There is also a ‘50 1 ton. Nose and grille are gone. Everything else is there and not rusted to pieces or dented all to hell. Has all 4 split rims. Due to size, photos will take a couple of posts.

Filled the truck with gas about 10 miles from the house. Checked with rubber hose, way up near top. Due to its recent problems, I kept it running while I filled it. It was then I noticed it was dripping oil in the area that rear main seals leak - that was new. As I got near home, oil pressure dropped below 40 and would go down to about 10 or 20 at a fast idle- that was new. Parked in shed, can’t smell or see gas. Used the rubber hose and the gas was much lower. Oil is full on the dipstick, does not smell like gas, but looks and feels thinner than 40w. I am starting to think the fuel pump is leaking into the engine at speed. There, it thins the oil and either leaks out the rear main (or other seals), or is evaporated off. Other than that, I’m stumped. I have an old fuel pump to try next, as soon as I fix its “drift pin” issue. PITA.

Before I go the Roadkill method with the small gas can, I’m going to see how much difference fixing the weep in the fuel line makes. It’s possible the weep was stronger when driving 50 mph for several hours. Anyhow, the weep is fixed, the float was set correctly and the float’s needle valve is working properly.

Tank was empty. Put 4 g in, primed carb, it started. I gues. It is just trying to keep life interesting.

No large, observable leaks. I did find that small weep on the input side of the fuel pump. Can’t see anything obvious. Oil smells like oil - can’t smell gas in it. I’m going to reflare the steel line, reattach the brass fittings that allow the rubber hose to fuel pump and replace the rubber hose. After that, I am pulling the top off the carb and checking the float level (I noticed the top gasket was fuel soaked, but no major outside leaking.) Back to snipe hunting.

ggdad1951 - For the record, my responses to Dan have not been to sale or trade parts. Read them and you will see that. He is missing some carb small parts and I have a couple of parts carbs. If I valued the parts to sell them, I would probably keep them. However, I am giving him the carb small parts. Member to member, paying it forward, no strings attached. I like the idea of helping someone get another of these trucks going. Hope this clears things up. Bob, aka “Bobacuda”

Los - your story is why I’m trying to find if anyone has experienced the fuel pump on a Mopar flathead dumping fuel in the crankcase. I have no symptoms of gas in the oil that I recognize, but since that may be a possibility, I figured I would ask. I plan on putting more gas in the tank, checking the oil level, then going to the gas station (20 mile round trip) to fill up. I will check level with a rubber hose. As soon as I get home, I will check the oil level and look for leaks. I will check gas level with a rubber hose.

A friend of mine that lived in Alaska told me they would put diesel or kerosene in the crankcase to thin the oil in winter. As the engine warmed, the diesel or kerosene would burn off. On this, I only know what I was told. But i also know gas would burn off faster. I will gas can it enough to get back to a gas station (using non-alcohol gas) and will keep working on it.

I filled my B4B, drove about 150 miles and ran out of gas. The truck has been gettin about 15-18 mph, so this should not have happened. I found a minor weep at the rubber line from the steel line to the fuel pump. Fixed that. Float working fine, can’t find any other leaks and it’s hard to believe that could have weeped about 7 gal unless it was really squirting out at 50 mph. Another thought - I have never experienced a Mopar fuel pump diaphragm leaking back into the crankcase. Have any of you experienced this? What symptoms did you observe? I checked the oil after the truck had set a couple of days. No gas smell and about the level is about where it normally is. I would assume the engine heat would vaporize gas if it got in the crankcase. Otherwise, if that weep was not the culprit,I’m stumped. Thoughts?

I passed on buying one several years back for $850 (if I remember correctly). The bed needed all sorts of metal work, the door windows (sliders, not roll up) needed rebuilding, clutch was frozen, and it didn’t run. The whole thing needed a rebuild. The deal killer for me was the grille and nose are fiberglass, and these were quite rotted. Try finding those. Still, I have often wondered if I should have bought it. Anyhow, looking under it, you couldn’t miss the Powell body was cobbled on to a ‘41 Plymouth frame.

Loaded my clan into our ‘53 Dodge for the local celebration. Grandson really enjoyed tossing candy to the crowd.

Got the replacement fuel gauge from Kevin, then spent several hours contorting to get far enough under the dash to disconnect the oil pressure line and make sure that I did not break the heat gauge line and replaced the faulty gauge. The fuel gauge is once again functioning. (Thanks again, Kevin) What better way to spend a 100 F day with 80% humidity?

Finding a new clutch saga... Tried the local parts stores, could not get one that fit. Seems everyone can get heavy duty Chevy truck clutches, or clutches that fit newer Chevies. Ordered two "exact fit" clutches from Rock Auto - had to send them back because they did not fit. Ordered one "exact fit" clutch from Parts Geek - had to send it back because it did not fit. I started missing times past when I could have ordered a clutch for a old car from JC Whitney. Feeling nostalgic, I looked them up online and discovered they had morphed into Carparts.com. Went to their website and ordered an "exact fit" clutch. IT FIT! And, it cost about $50-$75 less. If ordering parts online, might want to check with tehm as well as the usual sources.

And that's what happens when I use my cell phone rather than the computer - the klutz in me really comes out. Sorry about that Kevin. Bob