Jeff Balazs

Thanks Don; Assuming the 23" block bearings are similar it does not look as though the rear main bearings have a thicker flange on one edge. It also looks like they index into the block and cap and can only be fit one way. Is that correct? Jeff

Hmmm. It doesn't look to me as though the rear bearing has a different thickness for the thrust surface in Don's photos? Or maybe I am missing something. Jeff

Joe; Did you mean to say incorrectly? Is it possible that these were put in wrong way around? Jeff

Huh? The one I saw in my manual looked as if it was a M/C with a built in solenoid. I will have to look at it again. Maybe there were different variants of this option? Jeff

Yes I can certainly see how accelerated wear could happen as a result of this end play. It is definitely a concern I have. And I have never seen any main bearings available for these engines with a wider than normal thrust surface. Not sure if something like that exists for one of these engines. I am not enough of a machinist type/ engine builder to know what my next move is. I do know I don't want to tear into this and get in over my head. One of my thoughts since early on in this reclamation project has been to find another more or less identical engine and have it professionally rebuilt. Do a swap and eventually have the first engine worked over as a spare. Might be a bit over the top but I am not going to buy any other vehicles again ....so it may make sense in the long run. Jeff

Dave; That is interesting......maybe it is a mopar thing? It is funny as I have just never run into anything like this before. My last truck had a 4 bolt main bearing sbc in it. 565,000 miles on the original bottom end and still going strong. I guess what I am trying to ascertain is if this condition is likely due to wear of the thrust surfaces? or if some error was made with the crank work when it was rebuilt? I had a machinist friend measure the bores when I had the head off and they were all spot on for the overbore that had been done. Just judging by the lack of wear we kind of thought that perhaps this engine had very low hours on the rebuild. That theory has been backed up by the way it runs. Other than this end play it seems very solid. If it didn't make this odd noise I would have never thought anything was wrong with it. Jeff

I don't have any experience at all with this type of thrust wear. Is it extremely likely that the thrust shoulder on the crank itself has worn badly? Maybe I have lead a charmed life but I have never run into this condition on any of the other engines I have owned over the years. Jeff

Hey Guy's; I have a situation that I think I would like to correct. The engine in my truck has some end play in the crankshaft. It is visible at the front engine pulley when the clutch is depressed. When the engine is cold and for at least the first 10 minutes of run time there is a kind of squealing or soft rubbing sound that goes away if I spray some lube behind the pulley or step on the clutch. The engine is a 54 T342 230 mated to a fluid drive four speed. I did not rebuild it but I did have the head off to inspect the bores and it was in excellent shape. I also dropped the oil pan to make certain there wasn't any metal etc...lurking there. All looked good and I found a tag that indicated that it had been bored 30 over and the crank was at 10 under. I just cleaned everything up and buttoned it up. It runs really well and does not leak oil at all. Compression, oil pressure and manifold vacuum are all right where you would expect them to be on a fairly fresh rebuild. I also put a new timing chain and front seal on when I had the head off. It has a plain engine pulley not the dampening type. The sound I am hearing is definitely coming from the seal. I did not use a speedy sleeve but chose to polish the hub/seal surface as it was not heavily scored. In retrospect I probably should have sleeved it. So here is my question for you very savvy L6 guys....... What do you think about just dropping the oil pan and replacing the rear main bearing? Does this have any chance of being a fairly long term repair? I am just not familiar enough with the type of wear that would cause this to make a judgement call like this. What say you fellows who have done more than one crank and know what to look for? Thanks for your thoughts in advance. Jeff

Hey Mike; Section 4 of the parts manual has a decent exploded view of this assembly. It is all pretty simple and I am not even sure there is any significant difference between the column shift and the floor shift versions of the later trucks. Note: the earlier trucks had a floor mounted actuator and the linkage for these is another animal. Maybe Hank or one of the other guy's who have a column shift could take some close up photos for you? Some of the small bits would be pretty easy to make or cobble together if they are missing. Also you are welcome to look at the one on my 4 speed if that is of any help. Btw....Roberts can re line the shoes if needed. Jeff

There is an explanation and drawings of how this option worked in the B series Workshop manual. I had no idea they had something like this until this topic came up. The stuff you learn when you read all of these..... hey.?.... Jeff

Paul; I think it stands to reason that most of the rapid "evaporation" that occurs at the carb is actually caused by heat induced percolation due to the proximity of the exhaust manifold. This why lowering the fuel level in the float bowl can help reduce gas fumes. It gives the gasoline a little more area to expand into before it leaks out of the float chamber. All the other evaporation that occurs pales in comparison to the effect that heat from the exhaust manifold has. IMO the standard manifold arrangement on these engines leave a lot to be desired. Jeff

Mark; That's a cool truck. Looks like a real brute. But I have to ask......are things that bad in your neck of the woods that a guy has to take his steering wheel with him to lunch? Holy smokes! Jeff

For those of us who are "vocally challenged" it is good thing to have Neil Youngs' voice to try and emulate. I will definitely read this book. Thanks for the heads up. Jeff

The real danger here is walking away from the car and having this happen a few minutes later when you are not present to do anything about it, Size of fire extinguishers won't matter then. I felt like the best solution was one that effectively eliminated the potential for this to occur. With what I did I don't get any gas fumes at all......at any time. If you get used to smelling gas fumes whenever you use the car there is a chance you won't pay attention to them when you should. Jeff

FWIW; I have always felt that this was one of the more spooky aspects of having one of these cars and trucks. As I started sorting out my truck a correction for this condition was high on my list. We all know that the manifold design retains a lot of heat after shut down. My solution was to remove the mechanical fuel pump and install a vane type electric pump back at the tank. I have it wired to a separate switch. When I am ready to shut off my engine I have a procedure. First I shut the fuel pump off then I allow the engine to idle for about 30 to 60 seconds. This brings the fuel level down in the float bowl enough to eliminate the effects of percolation. As long as I remember to do this I get no gas smell or hard hot starts. Added benefits are no chance of fuel entering the crankcase if the original fuel pump diaphragm ruptures and it is a decent anti theft feature. Jeff

Congrats Barry! It looks amazing. Jeff

Mike; Hey there you go. Having a better understanding of how these carbs are put together should help quite a lot. Now you know what to concentrate on when you rebuild yours. I am sure you saw the vacuum passage from the base of the carb up into the step down chamber. That has to be clear and the step down piston needs to function smoothly. And of course the jet must be clean. This circuit is completely controlled by variations in manifold vacuum. Jeff

You are welcome. I think you will enjoy the Bunn book. It is not a manual but offers a good overview of the entire Pilothouse production. Has a lot of useful information that you don't see highlighted anywhere else. Lot's of charts and specification notes. I found a good read of this really helped me understand what to look for in the other manuals. As an example the section on the chassis explains the differences in the various models. I have talked with some owners who seem to think that there is little or no difference between the components used on a 1/2 ton - 3/4 ton or even a 1 ton. That is simply not true.This book along with the parts manuals and the frame drawings can help you understand what specific parts should be present and avoid the pitfalls of false assumptions. Jeff

Buckaroo; I believe there are several things you should consider when putting one of these trucks into use in modern traffic conditions. First and foremost you should never assume that the people you share the roads with will make any allowances in the way they drive just because you are driving a vintage vehicle. Some might .... but others couldn't care less and will make their driving decisions as they always do. What this means is your truck needs to be in tip top shape and perform as close to the way a modern vehicle does as is possible. How far to take this is really up to what the driving conditions are in the area you intend to use it. There has be a ton of discussion here on the various mods required to raise cruising speeds. Rear end swaps are certainly the easiest. Because of the traffic in the area I live in......Los Angeles Basin.....I chose to go with a 3.55 Grand Cherokee rear end with 12" discs. I also added a Rusty Hope front disc kit along with a M/C from a Grand Cherokee. For me this set up made the most sense. Acceleration and cruising speed is fine and the 4 wheel discs can slow it down very quickly indeed. This is a must to operate safely here. You should also do a complete inspection of the suspension and steering. It all needs to function as it was designed to and new shocks and radial tires are a big improvement. There are lots of other items you should consider as well. Lighting and seat belts to name a couple. And of course making certain of overall reliability which should be at the top of all of our lists. Jeff

One of the more complicated aspects of getting to know your truck is understanding just how much of it is stock or unaltered and what if any modifications have been made to it over the years. There are 4 readily available printed sources to help with this. The Workshop manual, the Parts manual, Don Bunns B series Trucks book and the Chrysler Industrial engine manual. All of these are very useful and in my opinion every Pilothouse owner would benefit from owning them. Because our trucks are 60+ years old few are truly bone stock and many have modifications or alternative components installed in them. Getting familiar with what is in these books ( and comparing it to what you actually have) helps make the whole experience much more productive. Sure you can chose to "wing it" but all this is going to do is slow you down and increase the potential of costly errors. If nothing else these books will help you ask the right questions. Jeff

There is a wire from the ammeter to the VR. You can run the single wire from the alternator directly to that same terminal on the VR. Disconnect the other wires to the VR. All it is doing now is serving as a terminal block. Jeff

Is that Pyrotechnical Paul? I will go stand in the corner.......

Thats' nuthing.... I clearly remember laying on the parcel shelf in Dad's 56 Chevy looking at the lights and stars as we drove across LA at night. Ya think they were trying to get rid of me? Jeff

Sure Mark. Hard to say if the original poster is interested in any of this.? He did ask about keeping it original versus modifying it. Jeff

I have never had any luck wishing them to be quiet. I will agree though that some of the modern diesel trucks are fairly quiet inside the cab. I put a ton of work and insulating material into my stock engined truck and it was very effective. I seriously doubt it would be adequate for a diesel engined version. I am not saying it can't be done......but I think it will take extraordinary effort and thought to make a diesel engined pilothouse into a truck you would want to spend any serious wheel time in. One of the biggest potential drawbacks facing an owner of any old truck is excessive noise and heat in the cab. I just recently went for a short ride in a fellows modified 53 chevy truck. Honestly I couldn't wait to get out. Granted it was a hot day......but the sound and heat level in the cab was ridiculous. I can't imagine what a long drive would be like in that situation. And it was just a built sbc. Quite frankly it sucked.....and I won't even go into the way it rode. No wonder he can't get anyone in his family to go for a ride. Maybe I am coming at this from a different mind set than many of you? I have never considered putting this old truck back on the road as my hobby. Obsession maybe.....but not a hobby. I just want to get it right for me. Then I will be happy to just drive and maintain it till I keel over. All I ever wanted out of this experience was an old truck with some real character that I could keep running myself. Honestly I don't even go to car shows or care if the general public likes it. There have been plenty of challenges with what I have done. And I am not at all against sensible modifications. I have done quite a few on my truck. Most of these worked out very well and are a distinct improvement over the stock arrangement. The things I tried that didn't work went bye-bye. All through the process I have tried to retain the basic design and character of the truck. My feeling about it has always been that if you change too much at some point it will no longer have the charm of a true Pilothouse. Then what is the point? Just because you can build something doesn't always mean you should. Out here we already have a "Bridge to nowhere" to prove that point. Jeff