wallytoo

the original 6v starters will handle 12v just fine. i recently replaced mine because i went with a shorter-nose starter in order to clear the mounting boss/location for the full flow oil filter on my 251. the truck had been converted to 12v when i purchased it in 2007; the starter still works fine. if you are running one of the 23-inch blocks, you don't have to worry about a full flow filter, and any of the truck starters will interchange. fwiw, i purchased a wilson starter, mch6106, which is a short-nose starter like your 6103. the wilson 6106 starter installed my original long-nose starter next to the shorter wilson they look the same length because of the camera, but the old starter is about 2 inches longer. you can see that they have slightly different profiles and arrangement of the lever, but they work without any modification when installed. the nose cones are clocked slightly differently. you might also note that my original starter had the external return spring around the lever mounting stud, and that the wilson does not have that spring. no matter, it works correctly with the foot-pedal mechanism. the wilson installed with the full flow filter

i used to be a fan of optimas, but the quality suffered in the last 6 years. the batteries seem to fail at 3 to 5 years now, vs the 10+ i got with two earlier optimas (same exact batttery). i’ve switched to a duracell agm, but i won’t know about longevity until it fails, or lasts for at least 5 years. edit: the first optima red top i bought, back in 2004 or so, i used in my cj5 for 9 years, then placed it in my 4runner when i took the cj off the road in 2013. it went another 3 years and finally died. i replaced it with another red top, which promptly failed in less than 4 years.

the wilson starter had the same issue as far as the distance the pinion gear protrudes and travel distance. i hedged my bets by adding a thin washer between the bellhousing and each of the starter mount ears to shim it out just a touch. it is working without grinding; it releases from engagement (no run-on). is it possible i didn't need to shim it? of course. but i looked at the same thing you noted and decided i only wanted to install it once. re: the cork gasket - yes. there are two used on the filter boss. one for the inlet, one for the outlet. they are relatively small diameter, and perhaps could have been a smidge thicker (which would have prevented the leaks), as it is just a compression fit between the boss and the filter housing. it's also possible they are paper, not cork - i installed them back when i put the engine back in the truck 2 years ago, when i didn't realize the starter was going to interfere with the placement of the filter. so, those gaskets have been there and i don't specifically recall what they were made out of...

why? if you cannot figure out how to set your distributor/timing in your flathead, how are you going to manage an engine swap, with the accompanying bellhousing change, transmission change, rear mount change (with new bellhousing), etc.? that undertaking is far more difficult than correctly setting the timing in a dodge flathead. this is one of the easier engines to set the timing on. not trying to rain on your parade; just a dose of reality.

added a new wilson mfg starter. the old starter was fine, but it was too long to allow use of the full-flow oil filter assembly that came with my 251 engine. the wilson starter is ostensibly a replica of the mch6106 prestolite starter. it fits just fine in the b-series trucks; the bendix lever aligns just fine with the foot pedal starter shaft. the starter is probably different from oem. i already voided my warranty, because i wanted to see what the inside looked like. this one uses helical cut grooves at the end of the starter shaft for the bendix assembly to ride on, whereas the original (at least for my long-nose version) uses straight cut grooves. the lever shoes inside are probably cheaper, too. the original brass ones were perhaps 5 times larger than the new ones (i should have taken a picture to show exactly what i'm describing). bottom line - it works, and allows me to use the full-flow oil filter.

pics of the two starters, my original longer version vs the new wilson mfg short-nose version (similar to mch6106). a little different mechansims. external return spring being obvious. the arms are a bit different shape (i was worried about that). even though they appear the same length, the new starter is about 2" shorter. the difference is solely in the nose cone length, as the body of the starter is the same (and of course, the starter shaft is shorter in the new version). again, note the different angle of the new lever... the new starter will clearly accomodate the full-flow oil filter. better view, the end bearing cover/shaft is clearly not extended to the full-flow boss area. turns out i need not have worried about the different lever shape. the starter nose cones are clocked differently. the new lever is directly under and in-line with the foot stomp button, same as the original starter. i did add a light spring to the top of the lever leading to the floorboards to help with pulling the bendix assembly away from the ring gear (may not have needed this, but it probably won't hurt). installed starter and full-flow oil filter. resolved the oil leak by using a thin circle of permetex blue where the cork gaskets seat on the filter. final verdict - the wilson mch6106 does work in the b-series trucks, and will allow for installation of the full-flow oil filter assembly on the trucks that have that capability.

why not stick to one thread, rather than creating a new one about virtually the same thing?

as far as swapping the levers, the starter has to be opened up to do so. the business end inside the starter has two prongs that hold small shoes (brass) which ride in a cup attached to the bendix. this is how the foot-stomp works; it slides the gear forward in the nose cone to engage with the flywheel teeth. as far as the full flow filter, it fits with the starter i ordered from filter pro. i used two cork rings supplied in a gasket set at the mounting boss, but oil is pumping out. i need to solve that.

it really doesn't matter which terminal on the distributor is #1. just make sure that the plug wire leading from #1 leads to the terminal on the distributor where the rotor is pointing on the compression stroke, and arrange the remaining wires as you stated, firing order of 1-5-3-6-2-4. #1 cylinder is the front cylinder, #6 is the rear.

i would guess that being new england yankees, they sought to use what was available and cheap to construct the plow. not so surprising for depression-era stuff.

a few more pics of it... i'm pretty sure it's a V-plow, used for snow removal on these old town roads. guessing it dates from the 20s/30s originally, but probably abandoned here in the 50s, perhaps after its municipal road clearing duties were long over, and it finished its days for a logging outfit to clear the roads (because the town no longer plowed these roads by that time).

sounds like you got a good score on one. i’ll update with details when mine arrives as far as fit with the full-flow filter, etc.

came across an interesting relic from the past yesterday. first one i've found in the woods....

the bigger trucks had painted grille bars in all three years, 1948-1950. the bars were painted body-color and for ‘48 & ‘49, there was a small white pinstripe along the bottom edge of each bar. the bars fit all of the trucks, b (half-ton) through the biggest.

forum member B1B Keven used to make decals for the speedos. you could contact him to see if he still sells them.

take it to the machine shop, let them measure it. then you can decide. in my truck, the shop said my crank was just out of spec to machine it straight, but i am running it as-is with all new bearings and no machining. it’s been 3 years since i put it back together; i use my truck hard (1.5-ton) and load it. it’s an engine that runs at 3000 to 3200 rpm max for me. these engines are tough. as long as the internals are clean, run it.

matt, i went ahead and ordered the 1821 (mch6106) from the filter pro site today. it was free shipping, and the total with core charge is $265.10 i got tired of looking for a decent used short-body starter, so i am willing to pay for new. this should allow me to install the full-flow oil filter - the original topic on this thread......

jeff's truck is a dually.

i forgot the pics from the rear, so......

jeff - the bed on mine runs 7'-11" from the outer rail to the outer rail. it runs 8'-3" from stake pocket to stake pocket.

could be a slow leak from the master. if it has been sitting, the leak might be dry (and the master).

going back to the escutcheons, my '52 b3c has the brown plastic version for all four handles. by b1fa has the chrome version at all four.

i don’t know how your dual carb setup will influence your mileage, so you could be right as far as a bit closer to 12 mpg. my b3c has its original engine and single carb, but hasn’t been out of my dad’s garage since 1988.

the b3c that i drove in high school got about 15 to 17 mpg. three speed fluid drive.

oh, yeah. you should easily get 15+ mpg.