martybose

I would have said in Corrigible ............. Marty

Don't assume that the temperature gauge is accurate! Take a candy thermometer with you, and some time when the gauge says it is really hot pull over, take the radiator cap off (not a problem in an unpressurized system), and stick the thermometer in the top tank and find out what the water temp really is. In my case, I found that the gauge was reading 20 degrees hotter than the actual temperature, so I stopped worrying about it. Marty

Well, I drove it about 5 miles this afternoon, with no signs of my problem reoccurring. One thing I did note, however, was that it was idling quite a bit higher, which is a good sign; earlier in this thread I had commented that I had to turn up the idle screws to get it to idle, so I turned them back down when I got back to the garage. I did note that removing and reinstalling the carb messed up the synchronization of the linkage a bit, so that's next, followed by reinstalling my HEI and wide gap plugs. Then maybe I'll be back where I was about 3 years ago! Don, yes, I did complete my installation of the dual master cylinders, so now I have front disk brakes and the dual master cylinder. It stops much better now! Marty

Thought I would put in an update to this long-running thread. I've been so annoyed with this issue that I have literally left the car sitting for about four months since the rewire job proved not to be the answer. Since I had confirmed that the problem is the back 3 cylinders, my suspicions had turned to the back carb, which looked fine the last time I took it apart. This week I decided to bite the bullet, so I ordered a new Carter-Weber carb to try a shotgun approach to my problem. I decided to pull off the rear carb yesterday in preparation for the pending arrival of the replacement carb. I took it off and set it on my workbench. Just for giggles I pulled off the top of the carb to see if there was anything foreign inside, and everything looked clean as a whistle. I pulled out the jet carriers and they looked fine, just like the last time. Then I did something different. For those that don't know, the main jet system in these carbs is a three piece affair about 2" tall that press-fits together. I took it apart, and to my surprise found something that looked like a 1/16" diameter hairball sitting in the middle section on top of the lower jet! I can't figure out where it came from, or how it even go in there, but it certainly isn't supposed to be there! So I spent the rest of the day going through the jet system and the carb body with carb cleaner and compressed air trying to flush out anything else that might be hiding in there (I didn't find anything else). Today I'm taking apart the power valve system to check it, then may put it back together, charge up the battery and risk taking it out for a spin again; wish me luck! Marty

Melrose Missile actually, and yes it is. I've hung around with Cecil for over 30 years, and had more adventures than I even remember. He's "retired" now, and moved to Washington, where he is building a recreation Melrose Missile #6 (I think); whatever the last Plymouth was before he cut the top off and made it a roadster. I might just have to fly up there when he is ready to fire that baby up; a 482 ci injected Hemi on 75% should clear the old nostrels just fine! Marty

I'd be careful about using that fan, Rodney. I had one that had a slightly bent blade st the hub, and I put it in a vise and carefully straightened it. A few months later I was driving down the road when a blade departed at high speed and sliced through both the fender and the hood on the right side. I switched over to an electric fan and removed the OEM engine fan just after that! Marty

About 10 years ago I had the pleasure of going with my buddy Cecil Yother to pick this car up at the SF airport and deliver it to Monterey. A truly strange vehicle, and difficult to transport; did you notice how close the rear wheels are to each other? It was very difficult to get a ramp configuration to deal with it. The owner powered it up and drove it around on the golf cart paths! Marty

My impression is that Plymouth's generally don't have panhard bars, but Dodge's often do have them. I know my 47 Plymouth doesn't have one. Marty

Close, but not quite it. Try www.butchscoolstuff.com Marty

The butchscoolstuff.com website that is being discussed in another thread lists some rear shock relocation kits for our cars; I've been wondering about them ..... Marty

I came in too late on this one; I would have guessed Ogle GT....... Marty

I'm with James on this issue. I've got Fatman uprights, and I'm waiting for the time to pull them so that I can get the lower bolts replaced with countersunk allen head bolts to get some of my turning circle back. Marty

You need either an electronic flasher or an extra load across the LED to make the standard flasher work. Most of the LED manufacturers can supply the load resisters. Marty

LOL!! Every time I read about anything that is being voted along party lines I get mad, because the politicians seem to have stronger ties to their party than to their constituents. And they wonder why the Tea Party has gained traction! Marty

If you're interested, I've got an ignition switch that I replaced recently, thinking it might be the cause of my intermittant ignition. It wasn't, so I guess it's okay after all! I took the key and cylinder out to use in the new switch, but those are available. Send me a snailmail address and it's yours! Marty

It's both, because it is the factory accessory that was dealer installed. Marty

I didn't check the intake temperature, but I don't think it ran long enough to ice up, and it does have a working hot water pipe running though it, and it was already warm. It is an Edmunds manifold that has a plenum for all six cylinders. I haven't pulled the sparkplugs yet, I was too annoyed to work on the car any more. Thinking about the last few trips, the change to 3 cylinders almost always happens as I am shifting gears; 1st to 2nd yesterday, 2nd to 3rd the last time. Maybe something to do with higher fuel rate or higher vacuum as I lift off the throttle to shift? Many things to think about ...... Marty

No separate filter; there's two inline to a Y-block that feeds both carbs. A while ago I pulled the tops off of both carbs after one of these episodes, and the fuel level was the same in both. No obvious smoking gun, but I'll look inside for something awry. Marty

Well, I had a theory that maybe the ignition switch was having a problem because of all of the electrical stuff that I have added. So I bought a new ignition switch, then made up a panel that had a pair of 70 amp relays feeding fuse panels, one for the ignition side, one for the accessory side. This way there is no additional load on the switch at all. Finished all of the wiring today, checked it all out, started the car up, everything seemed fine, so went for a drive. I made it one block before it went back to 3 cylinder mode, so clearly my theory was wrong. But this time I had a laser pyrometer with me, so I now know conclusively that the back three cylinders went dead, as the exhaust header temps were down a bunch, while the front cylinders were fine. So I guess I'll pull off the back Carter-Weber and tear it down. I didn't see anything wrong when I looked in it before, but what the hell. Damn, this is really getting to me. Marty

It really depends on how modified your motor is. Mine is fairly well modified, and I started using manifold vacuum instead of ported vacuum when I started experimenting with different carbs. I did this with a stock distributor, way before I tried the HEI. What most people miss is that with the stock single carb and ported vacuum you reach a point where higher speed necessitates more throttle, and with the ported vacuum you get a lower signal, retarding the ignition at higher throttle. Effectively with ported vacuum you get no advance at idle, strong advance at small throttle openings and less advance with larger throttle opening. Anyway, I'd try both, and see which one works best for you. Marty

Are you sure the firing order is correct? Several people here have found that you can switch two leads at the distributor and have it still run, but with a vibration. Marty

McMaster-Carr lists a small (4mm=0.17") push button switch that can be had in either NO or NC configuration. Only rated at 1/4 amp, so needs a relay. http://www.mcmaster.com/#miniature-push-button-switches/=cx084c Marty

And if you have both a short and a long adapter, use the short one! (Corollary to the above) Marty

I'm attacking the electrical system this weekend; wish me luck! A weekend meet and great would be a nice thing to do! Marty (who actually lives in San Leandro and works in Alameda)

Not sure if it applies in your case, but the biggest mistake when installing a new head gasket is not going back a few times to retorque headbolts after it has been through a heat cycle or two. I generally find that I have to retorque headbolts 2 or 3 times after the initial installation before they stop moving. Marty