bkahler

Black certainly seems to be the predominate color used. Since mine aren't installed yet I'll go yet I'll go ahead and paint them black. Thanks for all the responses! Brad

I just finished up the restoration of the distributor on my 218 and ended up building one distributor out of two. One of the distributors had some sort of cork seal around the shaft where it meets the block. The parts manual does not show any sort of seal. Having a seal makes sense and I'm tempted to find an o-ring that fits and use it as a seal. Any thoughts on this Thanks, Brad

When I got my truck many years ago it appeared that the brake and clutch pedals were painted silver. So when I was painting various parts I painted the two pedals silver. However in browsing through Don Bunn's book Dodge B-Series Trucks he indicates that the clutch and brake pedals were painted black at the factory. Needless to say this has me a little confused. Anyone else have silver clutch and brake pedals? Thanks, Brad

The brake tubing was the answer I was looking for. I picked up a 5' piece of 3/16" brake tubing with the fittings from O'Reilys today and it should work just fine. Don, I like the way you wrapped yours around the front of the head. Gives it a clean look. I'm going to be running dual carbs as well so I just might give that a try. Thanks for all the responses! Brad

It appears from all the pictures that I've looked at that the vacuum advance tube from the distributor to the intake manifold is either steel or copper. The diameter seems to be about 1/8" id and 3/16" od. Any suggestions on where to get tubing and fittings that size? I'm hopefully within weeks (maybe a month) of starting up my 218 thats been sitting for the past 8 years freshly rebuilt but never ran. Thanks! Brad

Reg, my 218 has been bored .060" oversized unfortunately I have not started the engine yet so I can't report on over heating issues. I'm with the other guys however in that if they sell pistons to .090" and more then .060" should be no problem at all. Brad

Ok, I've used the search feature and tried to find some info on installing the pedal draft seals on my B3B. The few that I found implied that you use vaseline or soapy water and force them over the top of the foot pedal. Well I tried that until my fingers got so tired from stretching, slipping and sliding that I finally gave up . The pedals are not installed in the truck yet. I was doing this work on the kitchen floor. Is there some secret thats not being discussed openly on how to get these seals in place . I got my draft seals from restoration specialties. Don't know if thats the best place to get them. Any insight, photos or prayers would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, Brad

Kevin, in my opinion the guys trying to screw you. No way soldering the side back on should cost that much. I've had radiators dismantled, cleaned and soldered back together for $75. I think you're on the right track by doing it yourself. Do some googling for information on sodering on radiators and you'll probably find all the info you need. Good luck. Brad

Agreed, a dedicated path would be ideal. I also agree with you that the engine to frame mounts are rubber isolated enough to make any ground path suspect. I can't deny however that obviously the electrical systems worked for years and years as they came from the factory but I will still feel better knowing that there is a true uninterrupted path to ground from the engine to frame & body. Great discussion and thanks for all the feed back! Brad

Reg, that makes sense as far as "current" carrying requirements for the starter. But as Merle brought up, how do the lights get their ground? I realize there are several places with metal to metal contact between the engine and the frame but none of those should be considered as "current" carrying paths. As Merle suggests I'll probably add some kind of ground wire between the engine and the frame or from the battery to the frame. Since I'm wiring the truck myself I might be able to add something from the regulator down to the engine that blends in adequately. Thanks! Brad

Ok this one has me stumped. Most vehicles have a bonding strap between the engine and the frame. I haven't been able to find any reference to an engine bonding strap in my documentation. On the B3 series trucks the positive battery terminal goes to the frame and the negative cable goes to the starter solenoid. So what is the ground path for the engine? Hopefully not the temperature gauge sending tube . I've seen that happen before and the tube starts glowing cherry red before it melts. Thanks! Brad PS, I hope all of you have a happy and safe Thanksgiving.

Bryon, Thats a good point about the defroster door. I like your idea using spacers. I would think you would want to compress the pad just enough to make a seal around the fresh air opening so spacers seem like the ideal solution. Thanks for the excellent idea! Brad

Harvey, Nice looking interior you've got there! Where did you get the seat covers for your truck? Thanks, Brad

Jim, at the moment I can't remember if I bought the pad from Roberts or Bernbaums. I'll have to check my records. Another issue I just realized has to do with the heater. I have the deluxe heater and need to know whether the firewall pad is cut away where the heater goes or whether it goes between the heater and the firewall. Mine has the fresh air intake so I'm going to have to cut the pad anyway. First reaction is the pad gets cut so there is nothing between the heater and the firewall. I'd be concerned about having to compress the firewall pad enough to make sure it didn't cause problems down the road from compressing more allowing the heater mounting bolts to loosen up. Its a real bear trying to reassemble a truck that was taken apart 11 years ago Thanks, Brad

I'm trying to figure out if the firewall pad goes in before the parking brake assembly that bolts under the dash. The hole in the pad isn't large enough for the parking brake assembly to fit through but I'm sure its not supposed to be bolted to the firewall on top of the firewall pad. My best is I'll need to cut a slot in the pad to fit it over the brake assembly. Thanks, Brad

Dave, I'm one of the fortunate ones in that my heater came with the rectangular duct that goes between the heater and the firewall. I hadn't realized they were so rare. One of these days I'll have to check out my favorite junk yard in Nebraska and see if there are any in the parts trucks there. Brad

Hmmm, I have a small pond I would like dug at the back of my property. With a bucket that size it shouldn't take more than an hour or so As they say the only difference between men and boys is the size of their toys..... :D Brad

Merle, I like your resourcefulness.... I've got a backhoe but the bucket is NEAR that large Brad

Mike, were you possibly thinking of http://www.141.com/dodge ? Thats my website for my 51 B3B restoration. I haven't had time to update my website in a LONG time Maybe sometime in the next few weeks I'll try and put some newer pictures on the site. Brad

Some how I managed to accumulate 5 different front windshield sections for my 51 B3B. Unfortunately of those 5 sections I have 4 different profiles I can't tell if any of them are original pieces so I'm not really sure which one I should as a pattern. As near as I can tell none of them actually fit through the frame opening. Each of them has some kind of interference along an edge or a curve. I do know all of the sections came from pilot house trucks but I'm not sure what years (I don't think that should make a difference however). Any words of wisdom as to which section I should use as a pattern? Thanks! Brad

Dennis, for our newer vehicles we've got a TomTom One which we enjoy using immensely. However there is something to be said for when times were somewhat simpler and you didn't have to worry about your high tech gadget being ripped off by some low life who doesn't want to work to get one. As for the TomTom, we're still getting used to it but its definitely handy, especially when driving the motorhome in unknown places! Brad

I finally found the appropriate model of GPS for our Pilot House trucks I had been wanting one of these for quite a while and finally took the time to look for one on eBay. I think it will look good in my old B3B. Brad

Jim, My 51 B3B has 3.73 and came from the factory that way. You might also consider looking for a B3 series rear that has that ratio. I believe 51 was the first year 3.73 was offered. I don't know how it drives as I've not yet had it on the road. Someday I might be able to report on that! Brad