Uncle-Pekka

Cool trip, great pictures! - Thanks for sharing, Linus. p.s. We do have similar autumn colors up here. Only this week I am afraid the last leaves will drop off. Tim, Quite the opposite: Our hobby is to help mother earth to burn off the fossile fuels! (Just kiddin', but here in Finland it seems the worst criminals for man made climate would be the hobby car folks! The gas is 8 USD/gallon, there's an annual tax you have to pay for each car you have (registered), the bigger engine the bigger tax (over 2 liter is considered big! -110cid!), and then the insurance!) Compare my D24 to average commuter Toyota: D24 takes 12...14 liters/100kms, I drive 2000kms/a = 260 liters Toyota takes 6 liters/100kms, driven 30 000 kms/a = 1 800 liters gas burned Which one is more hostile to environment? I also love nature and love pure, clean crisp country air like in Linus' trip. However, in my mind my car hobby is in harmony with the nature! Do not argue for something else. /Pekka

Thanks RoadKing & Tim! Interesting idea that it could be 3.54:1 - keeps me dreaming of illegal speeds... I'll keep up-dating when I get to inspect the gear again. It's in my winter garage, 180 miles northwest from my home.

Sorry to break your heart Mark, but I recall she's running on ford V8 & gear... Sort of "rodded"... I may be old fart, but somehow I find it hard to understand, what there is to gain to put "a hot V8" into such majestetic war time cruiser? But yeah the body is gorgeous - would be fun to find the straight 8 and fluid drive for re-fit. Cheers, Pekka

My old friend in next door gave me a rear axel with wheels, that has been sitting on his back yard for almost 50 years. Well, the car, 1954 New Yorker, was parted out by his father 50 years ago and his grand dad used the axle for horse carriage for some 10...15 years. Then the carriage was left in high grass and the bed rotten off. This summer my pal decided to clean up the meadows and found the remains. There's oil in the 3rd member and the odds are it's good for use. I found, that the rear end of a New Yorker 4D sedan should be 3,73:1 ratio (?) Will it be possible to use the rear end gear in my D24? - will it be interchangeable? Thanks, Pekka

It's been a sunny September, but in October weather is bound to rot away here up North. Yesterday it was the last big cruise night in Lahti -town, some 50 miles north from Helsinki. Unfortunately I had to store my cars for winter already a couple of weeks ago, thus I was not driving here. However, please enjoy some of my favourite picks from Lahti:

Little did I know when I copied the photo from Pinterest... A WW2 RAF crewbus built by Mulliners on a chassis brough over by US Army - converted to a racing car hauler by racing pilot Mr. Dennis Poore after the war. Carried Mr. Poore's Alfa 8C-35 to races in early 50's... The Dodge truck has been a famous sight at the English racing venues in the 50's. A proud vehicle and a fashinating story, indeed. Thanks Ed, once again, for the links to the story of this great truck.

Congratulations Linus! You've got what you wanted, that's what counts. Some people are pissed with the price tag on 3-five chevies, well, that only reflects the law of the business: When want is more than supply the price tends to go up. Yes, it's true that they are not that superior as cars, but we have to admit they are smart looking sons of the beaches (=surfs up). The pest is the way some people tend to cram a SBC to every other old car; You know; You spot a 1950 Hudson on a car meet, exited of it you go to chat with the owner. Then he opens the hood and instead of the big flathead six there lies a SBC under a chrome plated air cleaner. Conversation dies down and the moment ago warm wind feels now chilling... Personally, I just love old cars. comma. all cars but russian and japanese cars. three period signs. some overpriced german cars may be also excluded from my fond likes. However, I love GM cars as well, only not as much as MoPars. (You know I also have a 1960 Biscayne.) Thus I wish you well and best of luck. Uncle-Pekka

Speaking of Concours d'Elegace: I need . . . "to complete my car" Edit by moderator: Please see http://p15-d24.com/topic/33410-wanted-and-for-sale-ads/

Well, they do not - that's the way the rocker sills are from factory. They are supposed to be covered by the stailless rocker mouldings from rear fender to front wheel opening. Old Dad, you're right, we're tough - Tough, but rightenious This is like concours of elegance - or miss pageant contest - prepare to be torn in pieces if you dare to participate!

Wow - Much more exciting that I could ever imagined - Thanks for sharing, Ed. I'll start reading... -unkka

Look at the hood lines of the red custom, also the front fenders and the way head light are mount - It's a S11. Cruel but true.

I don't think it ever was a Dodge. I fear she was a DeSoto before captured by the MadMetalButcher... In her youth she looked like the one in below: Must be a madman totally lacking sense of aestetics who wasted the beautiful waterfall grille to replace it with a botox smile...

A stylish camper - photo found at Pinterest

Thanks Jim, I'll do it some time during the winter. OFF TOPIC: The past weekend was probably the last weekend of this summer here in Finland. It was warm & sunny just like the beginning of September this year had been. However the forecast told the rains will come in Sunday afternoon, they did. Last night, btw. Monday & Tue., temp. actually drop below zero Celsius and it snowed for the first time for this autumn. Luckily I drove my cars up to my Dad's garage in Friday and stored them there in Saturday night. Here they are now...

Thanks for sharing Jim, The indicator light is what I also planned to do for my R10 set up next. As you may have read on my thread "Does a 1953 Savoy OD fit to D24...", I managed to install & hook up the R10 past spring. My set up is acc.to the original factory spec, only difference that I mounted the kick down switch on the dash instead of throttle linkage. I have the original governor, NOS OD relay, aftermarket kickdown switch, connected as per factory wiring diagram. It's now working great, I love the smoothness the governor operates the OD based on cardan rpm. I almost never need to hit the kickdown, only rarely in case I need to shift down for passing or prepare for a steep up hill before the speed will stall. However, I'd like to have an indicator to show when OD is on. Not that I would not feel and know it when I'm driving, but merely for fun and show off for the passengers Do I need two lights the same way as you or can I just wire one bulb through the terminal #6? Cheers, Pekka

Thanks, Dan. I hope I'll have time to try it next weekend. /Pekka

I missed to install the stainless steel trim which goes in the groove in the rubber seal when I put the car together after the paint job. Now as the summer turns to autumn and it is time to put the car in the garage for the winter it would be great time to install the trim. However, I am uneasy with the job. The rubber seal appears tight and stiff. May be also that the glass is still not in proper position, is it too deep in? see below photo? Is there any trick to get it there? Soap to lubricate the rubber for sure, but any helping tools or special way to work it? Which end to start with...? etc.

Great build thread! - I've been waiting to see something like this, period custom build. Will follow for sure. Great start, too; I enjoyed so much reading the list of the features you plan and agreed each & every. The best, however, are your engine options. Those units are the all time classics and full of character each. So glad it will not be SBC nor 440. My vote would be the Cadillac flathead V8 or the '53 Hemi as second option. The caddy would be really exotic and creative choice nowadays, would be my personal dream to get a car powered by flathead caddy & OD auto trans. The hemi would be the 2nd choice mostly because it's the best unit available for gearheads in the 50's and also MoPar family. EDIT: You've selected the original 201 six after all - Nothing wrong with that either, the soul of the car is saved as it was. Would be the 1st choice, then Caddy flathead, 3rd the Hemi. Best of luck for the build! /Pekka

I posted a step-by-step instructions with photos of the vent window glass replacement job here in 2007. Could not find the thread any more, may be administrator can help? This should have been the old link to my thread; http://p15-d24.com/topic/6922-replacing-the-vent-window-glass/?p=57916 However, you will find the basic instruction in the Dodge factory shop manual, at least in D24 manual there is a section. I might try to scan a page in next weekend. The hardest part is to get the old glass off the chrome frame without bending or scratching the frame. To install the new glass and seal you need to have a wooden jig to support the frame. Soap the rubber strip to get it smoothly in. I used a strip cut out off tire inner tube. Any black rubber of suitable thickness will do. It must be excess when installed, cut to size according to chrome frame when in place.

IMHO: Spray painting is something you just cannot learn by reading. You have to DO it, fail some times and learn as you go. Reading and video tutorials help some to avoid the pitfalls and pick some useful tricks, but still you have to do it yourself to get the feel. It's easy to say "Too close = paint will run,/ too far or too hot = paint will dry in air causing rough surface pattern", but you will not get it before you try and see it happen. "How close is too close?" - depends very much on the air gun, settings, paint, thinner, surface temperature, prepping, etc... Painting can be great fun, it can also be most torturing pain in the *ss... Taking good care of your equipment, working space & knowing your paints help along the way. (That's what I say, not what I did...) Good luck, have fun! /Uncle-Pekka

The first picture could as well be 1950 chassis. The body was the same from 1950 to 53, only changes to brightwork. Below 1951 factory marketting photo:

Without a doubt excellent craftsmanship and flawless finishing... but... I'd like to see more of custom builts with real inspiration, taste and sense of style of their own. Seems that it's an art defined by strict rules and in the end they all look different the very same way, if you know what I mean. It's a must to use non original headlights, must to loose bumper guards, must to chop the top, must to lower the stance to ground... In this case the front end is not improved from original, but on the contrary I bet you'll get bored with "the new look" much faster than the factory original. To me it looks like front end of late 50's truck pasted on a coupe... The modern side view mirrors look like aliens in family manor. All this effort and skills could have brought about much more of result if only better taste and sense of period correct style. IMO.

I took these shots last Saturday in a local meet here up North... I presume it's 1951 Superior Cadillac? Most likely quite recently imported from over the pond.

Thank for the kind words all of you. I hope I'll get more pictures soon to post here. Mark, thanks - She sends kind greetings to you as well. Cheers, Pekka

The Dodge served as wedding limousine for my wife's nephew last Saturday. The below photo's are Friday night rehearsal, the lady posing in the last one is my own sweetheart. Saturday, I was too busy as wedding chaffeur to shoot good photo's. I trust the "official wedding photographer" will send me some good shots on the action, I'll be posting them later on.