austinsailor

There is a '53 Plymouth engine and transmission on Ebay, a hi drive model. In the picture I notice that there seems to be a couple fittings coming off the oil pump. I knew that engine oil is used in the transmission. Does it have it's own lines from the oil pump to the transmission? I had the idea it went through the motor block and required the correct block. I don't have one, but I'm curious how it works. Gene

Guess I was lucky - I filled mine 3 weeks ago at $2.29 - and was pissed it had gone up from $1.69. I have a heat pump in both the shop and house, in winter electricity is about 4.5 cents per kw hour for the heat pump. (Metered seperately) Below 15 degrees it shuts off electricity and goes to propane. Unless I'm there, then it goes to wood. I think heat pumps running from deep wells are going up become much more popular! Gene

There are numerous ways to get a title when there is none. On an older vehicle in many places they just rely on information from the person registering it. I've registered a number of them from the 40's and 50's and have never had to provide any proof. It just came from the paperwork that either the seller or myself provided. The seller's information was usually what I told them to write. The real question is "How do I fix it" if that is your desire. In Missouri I have a pretty good idea how to do it but that would vary state to state. Gene

If I ever get mine assembled I'll find out. It should be about 10:1 with a pretty long duration cam. Course, all it'll cost me is a different head if it goes south, so it's not too big a deal. Gene

Why is it they have all these really cool concept cars, then lose the whole concept when they put them in production?? Gene

When I was 16 I worked in the local Dodge dealer's garage in central Missouri. My uncle brought in his 48 Dodge 4 door to have overload springs put on it. He'd loaded it with all his tobacco crop to haul to Kentucky to the auction house and it was grossly overloaded. I installed some coils above the axle (a common add on in those days), he went back home, loaded probably a ton of tobacco in the back and trunk and took off. Cars served as whatever you needed them to be in those days.

You will probably have to disassemble it anyway, so take off the head and pan, remove as many rods and pistons as you can. Then soak the remaining one (s). Drive them up or down as you can. Move it a bit up, then down, or drive it all the way out if possible. All the ones I've done have had only one or maybe a couple pistons stuck. If it's stuck very bad at all it'll be difficult to get the pistons to go up and down like they should by just turning on the crankshaft ends. Chances are if one is rusted bad you'll need to sleeve it anyway. You can usually get the crank out even if a piston or two is stuck. Then it'll be much easier to get the remaining ones out. I should say, though, that you wouldn't be making a mistake to gently try to get it loose before tearing it down. I bought a t bucket last spring that had been sitting for 13 years. Seemed pretty stuck. I put a lot of PB blaster in each cylinder, then kept trying the crank both ways with a breaker bar. After about 2 days I got a bit of movement, kept up and got it to turn over. Got it running, runs great, fast, powerful, no oil burning. So there is hope. Gene

In all fairness, you can take your time and find one cheaper. A couple years ago someone posted an ad like I did for a $350 one 100 miles from my house. 2 hours later it was in my trunk. Another time I passed on a 54 Dodge hemi with an OD for $250. It was 4 hours away and I'd just made a long trip. I regretted it, called later and it had gone to the shredder. Sickening. Keep your eye open. Gene

I find it interesting that in the first link they tell how difficult and expensive it is to import one of the old vehicles, and how much hassle it is to register. I bought my old Fargo in Canada, with a notarized bill of sale and nothing else, it came in with no tax. With the bill of sale and the paper they gave me at the border, I had a title in my hand in 5 days. Gene

You could have an OD today, buy this car: http://rockford.craigslist.org/cto/4292057037.html Keep the OD, part out and scrap the rest. Or this transmission for $750: http://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/pts/4259832917.html Or, get a car with a Hemi and an overdrive, $2000: http://bham.craigslist.org/cto/4265756464.html Gene

Napa part # is 2621231. There are 2 sets at the manufacturer in Pennsylvania. Cost is $106.98, plus about $12 shipping. You can call my NAPA guy, 573-449-2637 in Missouri, ask for Dale. Tell him these are the ones Gene asked about. He can order them, or you might get your local NAPA guy to do it. They are expensive, but they are not that common. You might try Mitchell Motors (or whatever they are called now) but past experience says they'll be at least as high. Gene

You can find overdrives with very little effort. It's the price that is the stopping point. If you're willing to pay the price you could have one today. Column shift linkage is the same, they swap directly. If you have a floor shift conversion from back in the day, they have a few differences due to where they mount on the transmission. I can't answer for all cars, but on my 40 Dodge, I was able to remove the bolts that mount the lower inner A frames to the car frame, then let it down with a floor jack. I could put the springs back and raise it back up with the floor jack. No spring compressor was used. Gene

The talk of losing 50 hp with the automatic is interesting. I had a 55 Plymouth years ago with a powerflite. It's listed as 118 HP. The 2 speed automatic wasn't as good as a 3 speed standard, but I could nearly keep up with them. It certainly didn't take nearly half the power. I can't imagine that there is that much difference in gear mass between them, as there are quite a number of gears and shafts in the standard. They are always turning, and once they are turning, it's a wash. Besides, the ATF is much lighter and should have less resistance than heavier 90 weight. Except for the inefficiencies - slippage - of the torque converter, and the lack of a 3ed gear to take advantage of staying in the power curve better, I can't understand why it would be less efficient. I've read reports and tests of modern automatics, and many get better mileage and performance than the standards in the same setup. But then, you might ask, why do I have standards in everything I have, new or old? Some things just can't be explained with logic! Gene

I don't think Scuffy's remarks were directed at me, but more general in nature. But I'll comment that I've matched the ports, ported it, have it at about 9 to 1 compression and a set of tube headers for it. It should push my '42 Plymouth 2 door just fine, if I ever get time to assemble the whole mess! Gene

I just watched the first 6 episodes of the Buick restoration. Very interesting. I have two comments, though. First, I would have thought they would have removed more rust and old paint. I'm surprised at the things they covered. Would probably last for years, but if it was mine I'd not sleep well painting over so much rust and old paint problems. Then, maybe if I was in their business, I'd go broke pretty quick trying to overdo everything. Second - I can't believe those guys sand paint all day without even a dust mask. At my age, 67, I'm watching many people I grew up with die off. I can tell why a lot of them are gone, or will be soon. Much of it is simple things like that. You can look at what they did in their lives and see the results. Too bad people in their teens and 20's can't see it so clearly. Oh, well, they probably wouldn't think it mattered to them anyway. But - the series - pretty good. I drive by there occasionally, maybe I'll have to stop by and join the other tourists who are probably doing the same thing. Gene

This is really good news. I have an Edmunds dual 2bbl for my 251, with 2 progressive carter webers and a very lumpy cam. I still have to assemble the whole thing. It sounds like it has a chance of being a good ride. Gene

Usually people can pull the plug over piston #6 and measure the stroke, but the bore is unknown. If you really do know the bore, pull that plug, use a thin screwdriver or stiff wire and measure the stroke. Then you'll know it all. I am curious, though, how you determined the bore. I might learn something here. Gene

I have an NOS long shaft but I won't be back until the first week of Feb. and won't know until I get back what it is for. If you haven't found one by then let me know and I'll figure out what mine is. I'm pretty sure it had part numbers on it so it won't be hard to tell. Gene

James, you missed the most important thing about the reground cam - It sounds so cool! Gene

Let's hope you don't have an "explosion", big or small. That would be spark knock, and can destroy an engine pretty quickly. In reality, a burn without an explosion is the goal, and you go to a higher octane fuel to avoid explosions. Just a fine point. Gene

Tim, this Wikipedia entry verifies what you are saying. (Assuming you can trust it) I had been wondering what to use in my OD. Thanks for posting. Gene http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gear_oil

Actually, I typed before thinking. It's really 9 liters, which is about 550 cubes. Still a little bit of displacement. Strange thing is, it seems to have about the same power as my previous dump truck which had a 427 gas V8. I lost the transmission in the older one - really. Bell housing shattered with a big load on and the tranny disappeared through the floor! Ok, enough distractions - let's hear more about the turbo flathead. Gene

Just a minor thing, has nothing to do with what he's trying to do, but not all newer trucks have turbos. I bought a 1987 international dump truck recently to use around my place. Darn thing has 900 cubes of old fashioned non turbo diesel power. Better for my use, no turbo to worry about caring for. But - not all are turbo powered.I sure would like to see a flathead powered with one, though! Gene

I had no idea those existed. I thought the only option was the massive expensive books at the junk yard. I didn't know there were versions that were practical for us. I just ordered #1 and #2. I can tell a great tool when I see it! This might even be better than the visor I bought for my '53 Plymouth today! Thanks a lot. Gene

I only have a new gear set. I know they won't work on my 40 Dodge carrier, I'd like to get a better idea what they will fit. I got it off the Milwakee list, but probably the same ad.