Jeff Balazs

JD you have every reason to still be excited by that find. It must have been like the proverbal needle in the haystack. And Paul you should tell your friend to bring what Mopar stuff he has.......as there are people looking for it. Does he ever go to the Long Beach meet? If not maybe he would do better there. Jeff

Paul; Well if he is at Pomona? he doesn't bring any old Mopar stuff...... 'cause it just aint there.

Don; What you say is true in so far as it goes. Water is certainly the most common lubricant on the planet. But I think we can agree that it ain't always at it's best when we are talking about metal to metal contact and high temperatures. And you are correct in saying that it is very hard for us as home mechanics to prove which oil is best for a given application. We really have to rely on our own experiences and independant testing when it come to making this sort of evaluation. Years ago when I had an interest in high compression air cooled racing two strokes I was able to see the difference using an ashless oil made in reducing bore wear and increasing ring life. It made a dramatic difference and is now the norm for two stroke oils. But it wasn't in those days and was only available through a very few innovative refiners. In fact it went unhearalded for quite a while....until it couldn't be ignored any longer. I believe this same premise holds true today. I think there are some lubrication products out there that work better than others .... for given applications. How much better? It is hard to say. But if we are talking about my truck and my money I will stick with Castrol GTX. I have yet to have a lubrication related failure in any engine I have used it in and I have been using it a long time. I got more than 560,000 miles out of a 4 bolt main bearing 350 using it (and STP during the later stages) with nothing more significant than a couple of valve jobs. Pistons,rings and bottom end were all original and working when I finally sold it. You can't really ask for more than that. And I seriously doubt anyone has ever put that kind of mileage on a L6 without a full rebuild. Can you get that kind of result using something else? Yes I think it is probable......I just can't say with any confidence what product that might be? But I do know it is possible if I use a specific product. And I got to go with what I know. Jeff

Geekay; I need to put this into perspective. The Pomona Swapmeet is the largest event of it's kind in the western US and less than an hours drive from the Greater Los Angeles area. It is huge market place with literally thousand of parts booths and around 2500 cars & trucks for sale. So to see nothing in the way of parts is a bit disheartening. And to see one old beater priced the way it was is the height of absurdity. I for one wouldn't mind seeing a few more of these trucks out on the road. In fact it wouldn't bother me a bit. They stand out (or not) on their own merit. Besides there is absolutely no chance they will ever be as common as say the GM trucks of that same period. There seems to be quite a few non runners for sale in my area. I think though that for the most part they will stay that way....non runners...for quite some time to come. I think that is because of the lack of aftermarket parts and general awareness or exposure to these models. It might also be because there is no real restoration guide either. Let's face it ....as things stand right now they are not a project for anyone that is less than fully committed. Jeff

Mike; It is all part of a valid discussion. If you want a very good understanding of how well a particular brand and type of sparkplug works then there is no better test platform than a single cylinder motorcycle. If you think about there is no place to hide or mask the performance of the part in question in this platform. That isn't the case once you have 6 or 8 cylinders to run on. Our L6 engines can mask or hide a multitude of actual running conditions from us. The ISDT and facilities like MIRA have contributed significantly to the overall reliability of the products in use today. Far more than most of us North Americans appreciate. Many of the innovations that are standard today have actually got there start in field testing during this sort of competition. And like it or not quite a bit of it came here from developments made overseas and in the old eastern block countries. One point I would like to bring up from the single cylinder motorcycle side of this discussion is that there is often a standout plug for a particular engine. By that I mean one very specific plug that outperforms all others in this application. Quite often it will be so specific that only one (or perhaps two) manufacturers have a product and model that works this well. So all products are not created equally. And finding this example can be transformative. Someone brought up the example of what oil was best as a way of downplaying this discussion. I have heard all sorts of arguments on that topic too. One of the common arguments are that all oils available today meet or exceed the API standards. And that those standards are much higher than what was in place at the time these engines were made. That is true.....but thinking that there isn't one product out there that won't do the job a bit better than some of the others is not. These standards are set as a minimum requirement and are subject to change. Innovations by specific refiners are what has determined the bar for these standards over the years. To me saying all oils are the same is kind of like saying all beers taste the same. Clearly that isn't completely true. Jeff

Sorry Bob.......but it was under the title "the sad state of things here". While we were there looking at it a potential buyer offered him $3900. It was relisted in C/L this week at 8k so I have to assume he turned that down. IMO he would be doing better than great to get that much. Jeff

Went to the Pomona swapmeet last Sunday. As usual there was nothing much there for an old Dodge truck. In fact as far as parts and goodies go nothing specific. My buddy was actually blown away by the lack of literally anything Mopar truck. And we took our time and walked the entire event. Now any of you who have been to this swapmeet knows that you could easily build a couple of hundred vintage Chevy trucks from the parts laying about. And that was true again......that stuff was everywhere along with an equal amount of trucks for sale too. Heck even the literature booths leave most of their Mopar manuals back at the shop...... And then we came across the one forlorn Pilothouse at the event. I wasn't sure whether to cry or laugh.....but thought I would share this with the rest of you. Jeff

Sorry Don. No sound clips. You probably would be very disappointed though as these engines are very quiet. Back in the day these bikes were essentially the standard road going offering from the manufacturer. Daily commuters if you will. The Six Day Trials were a way to judge the reliability...versatility.....and riding characteristics of each bike that was offered to the public. Not a race but a seriously judged contest of all the designs and qualities of each bike. Some of it is run on pavement but the real technical sections are off road. These section include items like stream crossings and about every type of terrain imaginable. The Scottish SDT included a hill climb called the Devils Post pile that was essentially a centuries old sheep trail up a extremely craggy cliff. In these tech sections points were taken away every time a rider took his foot off the pegs and touched the ground. Maintaining controlled forward progress was the key to success and any faltering was usually met with disaster. Points were also deducted for breakdowns....and the riders had to carry enough kit to make them on their own. Road sections are timed to stay within posted speed limits and could be as long as a couple hundred miles a day. The entire event is closely monitored by skilled observers and every mishap is reported. In Europe this form of competition was taken very seriously. We have never really had anything like it here. It is a shame too as there really is nothing else like it. Jeff

Bill; I think you will find that due to the engine design we are dealing with all you are going to need is a plug like the Autolite 306. I have the 6 V Pertronix set up with a matched coil in mine. They suggest that you run a slightly larger gap... .040" but other than that nothing else is needed. I played around with some NGK's but settled back on the 306 as optimum. Gives a very easy start on the 6 volt system. The bike I use an Iriduim plug in is a 49 AJS (Matchless) 500 single that has been built to 6 day trials spec. In the period from the late 40's until the early 60's these bikes by AJS were a dominate force in these events. In those days motorcycle sales were focused on the results in these 6 day events. All the european manufacturers placed great importance on these results. Most of the AJS and Matchless winners were powered by the 350 version of this engine which had a square stroke. These engines could be lugged down to under 200 rpm and still produce usable power and good throttle response. This characteristic is especially useful in the technical off road sections considering the weight of these bikes and the limited suspension systems available at that time. The 500 I have is a long stroke engine which produces more power but is harder to keep running at these low engine speeds. It took a lot of experimenting to get the results I was after. In the end the swap to an Iriduim plug made all the difference. I know most Americans have little or no idea about the ISDT or the other great six day events but to me they will always be the greatest and most valididated motoring events ever run. To this day the best score ever set in the Scottish Six Days Trials was one point off for 6 days and over 1200 miles of judged riding done by Gordon Jackson in 1962 on a 350 AJS. Jeff

I have used Iriduim plugs made by NGK in an antique motorcycle I have. They work really well in old Ignition systems that have less juice going to the plug than modern systems. They will produce a real good spark with less pushing them.....in my application a 65 year old chain driven Lucas magneto. NGK's tech center used to be around the corner from my shop.....wish they had not moved.....they were very knowledgeable and helpful problem solvers. Jeff

Begins the first time the stuff really hit's the fan. or (depending on your sense of humor.....or hers)

You are a maniac! I like it a lot.....I see the makings of a really cool motor home there if you need ideas. Jeff

My experience with Champions is they seem to foul much easier than the equivalent NGK or AC plug.. I've heard a lot of explanations for this.....and the one I have heard most often and makes the most sense to me is that Champions don't actually run within the specific heat range they say they do. I have seen a fair amount of evidence in the form of severely fouled plugs to support this. In two strokes and high mileage four strokes. Jeff

I was wondering about the operating temperatures that Merle saw with his.....vs what you saw.going into a head wind. Seems like something is going on there with his? Maybe the early grill design? I know with the desert cooler type radiators I have had air temp and grades had very little effect on operating temps. Literally a few degrees and that was with air temps over100 and pulling grades like the one from Brawley up to Julian. I always found that if everything else was in reasonable condition these larger radiators were extremely effective at handling adverse situations. I think those bumper stickers are frowned upon these days......mainly because the outsiders are in the majority. Jeff

Barry; Ditto.....holds the handbrake cable away from the exhaust. Jeff

I reckon this thread has an appropriate title for you now. You know it's funny here we are in what can only be described as an irrigated desert. And we have hockey .....and here hardly anyone cares about hockey. Seems very odd to me that we even have teams. It is not like any of us grew up playing the game. I suppose hockey is here because we have so damn many transplants? Go Ducks?......nah that is just not going to happen. Unless they go.....and take a few million people with them. Did you get a rise in temperature as you were running into the headwind? That is the real question. Jeff

Wow......did I miss something here? Or are you guy's back there just very easily excited? Must be those long winters you got. And Ed......if I see one more slammed truck I am going to puke. Jeff

Ok........but you have to promise it is just truck pictures. Jeff

I would But I know what you mean.

sorry.....I meant the whole thread. Seems like it ought to be in events or summat like that.

Isn't this sort of super off topic?

Joe; Glad you got the clearance issues figured out. It sure is looking good. Jeff

Autolite 306 is a good plug in these engines. Jeff

Can't answer your question......but I have another. Will you be adding some kind of intermediate supports or substructure? Seems to me if you lengthen this cab you are going to have to have a very stiff floor structure or you might end up with a funny looking roof line over time. Just curious if you had given this aspect any thought? The upper cab structure seems to me to be a lot more robust than the floor in these trucks. I am sure it is more than adequate in it's stock form but I can't help wondering how it would all behave when lengthened. Since you are putting this on a diesel chassis I imagine it will get a fair amount of use. Jeff

Thats 'cause you won't be the one yelling ":HeyAbbott" If it does happen please...please make a video. Jeff And be sure to put the tranny and chain well out of reach of your vehicles