iowa51

Just got done reading the "thermostat question" post and reminded me of my "running hot or not" post from awhile back. Where is the best place to take the coolant temperature with the digital heat gun to compare to what the gauge says? Obviously the hottest place you can read but where would that be? Thermostat housing? Where the temp gauge goes in to the block? Few weeks ago bought a digital temperature gun and would like to try it out next year as the car is put away for the winter.

He has a part I need. At the moment his price is a little steep for what I am willing to pay but the part isn't critical to the operation of my vehicle. Keep checking eBay, Craigslist, etc... to see if I can find it cheaper. He is a little "short" when it comes to communication with him but if I got a bunch of emails like he probably does I wouldn't be too chatty either. P.S. Anybody have a silver faced 1982-83 Chrysler/Dodge/Plymouth AM/FM or AM/FM/Cassette radio for a K-car on the cheap to replace mine?

It was the incompetent shade tree mechanic who put a "hazardous" to Mopars fluid (Ford use only) in the air cleaner and the engine choked to death on it.

Have my mom's '50 Plymouth convertible in my garage to fix the overdrive cable. Thought I would do an oil change while it was here. My dad had several Fords (1964-65 T-Birds) and on the shelf is a 2 or 2 1/2 gallon container of Type F transmission fluid about 3/4 full. We have no use for it and probably couldn't sell it as it is opened so I thought about using it in the oil bath air cleaner instead of motor oil. Any reason why I couldn't use transmission fluid in the air cleaner?

Thanks for the reply and help. Is it OK to drive it like this? Would rather work on it in my own garage than out at the farm.

Maybe longer than 6" out. The metal rod is all the way out and the cable is exposed. Mason City. I see you have a 1957 IH My dad also had (It is my mom's now) a 1957 IH, it is a "Golden Jubilee" model with the gold/white paint and fancy box. '

It is pulled out just hanging there, how do I get it back in? Tried pushing the cable back in but it won't go.

My dad passed away earlier this spring. He had several old cars and my mom asked my 16 year old nephew to try and start the ones we knew that ran and drive them around the farm as they haven't been started since last year or longer. One of the cars is a 1950 Plymouth convertible. Under the dash to the left of the steering column is a chrome T-handle (not the parking brake which is more of a curved handle) that he pulled out thinking it was the choke. Pulled on it as it was a little stuck according to him and he pulled a little harder. It is now pulled out as far as it will go (6"?) but not so the end of the cable came out. We have tried to push it back in but it won't go. This car has overdrive and my '51 convertible does not. My car does not have this handle. Does it have something to do with the overdrive? How do I get the cable back in? Ok to drive? I went out to check on it and a splash of gas down the carburetor and it started fine but didn't drive it not knowing what the T-handle did.

Oil leak in my recently (less than 500 miles) rebuilt engine. Oil spots not in the center of the car but near the front edge of the driver side door about a foot in. Don't know where it is leaking but seems to be running down the frame rail to the lowest spot and dripping there.

51 years old. Bought my 1951 Plymouth convertible when I was 9 with money from raising chickens. Still have it. My dad and a friend fixed it up in the farm shop in the winter of 1975/76.

My parents found this out a number of years ago when they wanted us kids to drive some of their old cars in parades in the late 80s. Put "regular" insurance on the cars so under 25 could drive them. A Chevy Chevette pulled out in front of my mom when she was driving her 1965 T-Bird. Totaled the Chevette (literally and figuratively) and bent down the hood and busted the grill on the T-Bird. Insurance company looked at the latest "blue book" value available for that model/year (1976?). Insurance company decides that the car was worth about $750.00 and totals the car. Car had a MUCH higher stated value that was approved by the antique car insurance company before but that didn't matter as it was just a 20+ year old car to the regular insurance company.

I would love to have a recreation/clone of the Ramcharger's 1949 Plymouth "high and mighty".

My 1st thought as I was reading this post.

Thought of another question before I go back and look. Should I have power to the POS side of the coil when the points are open or when closed?

Thanks for some things to check out. I think the next step is to take the points set out and reinstall to see what I find.

So what parts of the points are "grounded"? The thing that rides on the cam or the stationary part? There is a bolt that passes through the side of the distributor base that the coil wire and condenser attach to on the outside. On the inside the solid metal band (provides the tension to close the points) that is part of the points that move attaches to this bolt. This metal band also touches the inside of the distributor base wall. Is this part supposed to be isolated? The part of the points that doesn't move is a screw that turns in/out to set the gap. This is attached to the same base as the part that does move. What part should be grounded to the distributor and what part should be isolated if any?

"Should" be so simple but why do we have power to both sides of the coil? Even pulled the 6V coil out of my car and tried it with the same result. If I stick the test light on the points themselves where should I have power all the time? On the part that moves or the stationary part that the points break away from?

Helping out a guy working on an old Nash with 6V positive ground. Can't get it to fire the spark plugs. Using a test light we have ignition/key power on the NEG side of the coil and power on the POS side of the coil, that wire goes to the distributor. When cranking the engine we always have power to both sides of the coil. New points and condensor put in by another guy that was helping and they are opening/and closing with supposedly the correct gap. Should there be power to both sides of the coil all the time? Or as I thought whenever the points open/close the power stops to one side of the coil. Thoughts on what to check next? I would compare it to my '51 Plymouth but I have a Pertronix system so I can't compare apples to apples.

For the naysayers criticizing my post regarding STP... 3 pieces of information from the original poster's 1st post in this thread. 1. Asked what kind of oil people were using, nothing more that that. 2. Lives in Texas so cold weather (32 deg. F or less) starting with a little thicker oil is probably not an issue. 3. States his project car is a 1951 Meadowbrook. Nothing was said about a rebuilt engine in his question so that leads me to believe his engine has not been rebuilt and may not be as "tight" as a new engine due to the years and miles. I answered with what I used and have had good luck with in cars with (maybe) similar situations, high miles, sat for a long time, possible compression issues with stuck or broken piston rings. Before my engine was rebuilt it smoked a little and oil pressure, when hot, would drop way down even if not at idle. STP worked for me. Some people claim pouring water down the carburetor while the engine is running "losens the carbon". I am not going to try it. So I may suggest STP because it worked for me in my situation, you are under no obligation to use it.

I see your location is Texas so I would assume it doesn't get too cold. I would use straight 30w detergent oil with a bottle of STP replacing one of the quarts of oil. Oil and filter change once a year even if you only drive it 500 miles per year.

I also raised chickens when I was a young kid on the farm. One time I lost my bubble gum in the chicken coupe and thought I found it 3 times. How many doors does a chicken coupe have? 2, if it had 4 it would be a chicken sedan.

Had problems with hard starting/weak spark a few months after my rebuilt engine was put in with a Pertronix unit that also cranked just fine. Ended up being a bad wire from the relay on the firewall to the coil. Had been spliced several times but taped over so I didn't see the "bad" spots plus with moving the wires around when taking the engine in/out added to the wire breakage problem. Try hot wiring from the battery directly to the coil (be careful) and see if it helps. New wire and no more problems, at least this problem anyways.

I had a Visio big screen also that popped and smoked when I was walking by it one day in my basement when it was shut off. Was used only for gaming as the remote didn't work and the button to change channels on the TV would either not work at all or keep changing channels until it was unplugged. Didn't want to burn the house down so took it out to my dads and the kids used it for target practice. Not as much fun as the 1st shot at a tube type TV. The power sliding door on my wife's 2004 Dodge Grand Caravan quit working. Dealership said the motors are known to go bad and it was an $800.00 estimate to get fixed as they had to remove the door. Searched the internet and found a common problem was a wire in the bundle of the flexible track would stretch and break. Mine was broke in the same exact spot as the video. 1/2 hour of my time and some wire/black tape/connectors and problem was fixed. Wonder how many "motors" this dealership replaced when it was actually a broken wire. The dealership is no longer in business. Brother-in-law had a 2003 with the same problem. Showed him what I did to our van and he fixed his.

I have found gasoline/brake cleaner/lacquer thinner/acetone the best to clean oil/grease off my hands. Does leave my hands a little dry though. On a more serious note, my dad is a big believer in Cra-Z bar hand soap. One of my wife's Bath and Body Works foaming hand soap also does a great job, surprisingly the "mens" scents of B&BW foaming soap is worthless in removing grime and oil from hands. I could see the Armour All as being a pre-cleaner but definitely rewash with normal soap right after to remove any of the chemical residue.

Growing up on the farm the tractors and vehicles we used during the winter had a "tank type" heater that was plumbed into the heater hoses. Circulted hot water through the engine block and heater core. Almost instant heat to defrost the windows and easier starting. Thinner oil than normal (10w-30) also helped. Home / Auto & ATV / Auto Maintenance & Parts / Engine Heaters / Kat's Circulating Tank Heater KAT'S CIRCULATING TANK HEATER Online Item #: 0000000047511 $49.95 Type 1000 watt 1500 watt Qty: ADD TO CART Express Checkout Description More Info Heats & circulates the coolant in an engine for easy cold-weather starting Helps protect your engine from damage Made of die-cast aluminum to resist corrosion Thermostatically controlled 135-175 degrees F Uses versatile strap-type mounting CSA Approved 120 volt Made in the USA Weight: Approximately: 3 pounds Shipping Dimensions: Approximately 13 x 7 x 4 inches to 13 x 8 x 4 inches depending on size selected.