soth122003

Have you stored the car with the tank empty, full, part way? Condensation builds up slowly over time. May have some water in the tank. That is one of the reasons they put the plug in the tank, to drain out water and crud that will settle at the bottom. Had a 66 vette that loved to attract water in the tank. Used to drain out about a quart or two every year. Joe Lee

This might seem like silly question, but did you check under the seat for an access cover to the sending unit? I mean they put them in the cars so you wouldn't have to drop the tank to troubleshoot wiring problems. Make sense they would put them in the trucks as well. Joe Lee

I just changed the sender in my tank 3 days ago. The tank was empty and before I installed it I checked it with the 2 wires hooked up and GROUNDED. It was spot on read empty and as I moved the sender, read it went to full. Installed the sender and it wouldn't read past 1/4 of a tank. Installed a ground wire from on of the sender mount screws to the cover plate in the trunk and the sender read 1/2 tank with a full tank. I need to adjust the float arm down about 1 inch to fix this, but the tank is full to the max, so I have to use about a gallon of fuel to remove the sender without spilling gas everywhere. Point being is the sender needs to make a good ground to the car to work right. Joe Lee

3-5psi is the pressure most of the flatheads run at, but I think Vintage hit the nail on the head with his answer. Joe Lee

Was it made in Canada or was it assembled there? A lot of companies outsource parts and assemble in their country so they can say Made In (insert country of choice). Joe Lee

Hey Sniper, If you taunt those english kinigit piston rings a second time it might just work for you. LOL Joe Lee

When you do your compression check, do a dry first, then a wet check. As far as the numbers, about 100psi is normal for a good engine. Since this one has been sitting for 10 years anything above 50 psi should get it started and once running the piston rings will start working better and the compression should increase. As far as the gas plug, back in the day they used to have square bits (think a 4 sided allen plug) ranging from 1/4" to 5/8". I think the tank was either 7/16 or 1/2" in size, but like some one else suggested, disconnect the line at the carb and use a boat tank or the like and just use that to see if the car runs. Since the engine spins, and has spark it should start fairly easily. It will probably run rough if some of the lifters are stuck, but that is easily fixed later. Joe Lee

Usually with these old cars the panel is removed and the sheet metal is hammered out with rubber mallets for the dents and metal hammers along the creases. It is mostly a lost art to fix them with out using a ton of Bondo filler. Joe Lee

Knew the answer but checked to be sure. It's one of my favorite movies. Joe Lee

These type of incidents are what we call self-correcting errors. But think what you elders would say, "It builds character". Joe Lee

Nice! The color photos are nice, but that last black and white really makes it seem authentic. Joe Lee

120 is low. Might be crud built up around the sensor area acting like a thermal barrier. Try a vinager flush of the cooling system to clean out the limescale and calcium in there. Joew Lee

Hey Los, you should be able to adjust the gage so long as the difference is not more than 30 degrees. Just bent the link that connects the pointer to the tube. Joe Lee

It's the sender. The gage will work somewhat and after checking the sender, it is toast. The coiled wire that acts like a resistor is worn and I resodered one of the thin wires and it worked a bit but was never accurate. Joe Lee

You usually see the steam/smoke in humid environments. These engines are not sealed so moisture can accumulate in the oil pan area and turn to steam when the engine reaches operating temp. Joe Lee

After I posted my previous statement, I went to Taco Town that afternoon to get some dinner. I drove my 48. The trip went well, until I was about 1/4 mile from the driveway, then buuupppa, buuppa and the car died. Pushed in the clutch, coasted on to my street, popped the clutch and restarted the engine. It sputtered and stalled, but gave me enough speed to coast into my driveway. Parked and then ate dinner. Next day went out and checked the car. Out of gas. Now my gas gage has not worked since I bought the car. When I drove it all the time I'd use the odometer to fill the tank every 200 miles. (17 gal x 16 mpg equals about 270 miles). Since retirement I don't drive it but about 2 times a week and only for short trips, hence I fill up the tank about every 3-4 months (and use stabil in the gas). As we get older we get forgetful, and I forget when and at what odo mark I filled up the tank. Also before I got my SS checks, I was on a limited budget hence the gas gage was not a priority. Now I make enough to start fixing the 48 up right, so I ordered the sender, carb kit and a float for the carb last night from Andy B's. It was either him or MoparPro and with the recent thread on MoparPro, Andy got the business. Well that is my "There I wuz" story. Hope it brings a smile as you read it. Joe Lee

Hey Bingster, The part that part that pushes the fluid and cup back in the cylinder bore, is the big honkin tight spring that is connected to each brake shoe. It has more than enough power to override that small spring in the cylinder. If you have ever changed the brake shoes, you have probably cursed trying to get that spring back into place. Joe Lee

There I wuz, WW Denang.... Joe Lee

Didn't think about that. I might need to get one now. Currently I'm using a corn cob to keep the pig moving forward. Joe Lee

Shows how good these cars were built. You killed that goat and no damage to your car, except the missing dodge logo. Also the with the red paint job, the blood blended right in. All kidding aside, I'm jealous of how good your car looks. The visor adds a very nice touch to it. Joe Lee

I have to say damn if that wasn't impressive!! You may be sacrificing some get up and go, but the run ability with the gas mileage is very impressive. Makes you wonder how it would work on a flathead? Joe Lee

Freshman year 5'7, sophmore 5'11, junior 6'3, senior 6;7. But i never was more than 150lbs. Stringbean, beanpole, strech, to name a few. Still got the big wheel in the car but thanks to bench seats I can spread my knees a bit and not have the problem of wheel jamming against my legs. (It also help mansplaining things. gives me a justification) Joe Lee

I'm 6'7" 220lbs and I feel you pain on the legs issue. Joe Lee

Hey Keith, wonder if a low speed drill (about 20 rpm) would save the back and shoulders? Your more or less cleaning up the seats, not cutting new ones. Just a thought. Joe Lee

You said that was a spare engine. When I first got my P-15, it hadn't run in a few years, the compression was low like that. I did a wet comp check and it came up some, about 75 psi or so across the pistons with one being about 50. Letting the engine run for a while, about an hour or so the compression started going up. Now it's about 115-120 across all the pistons. Your rings are probably stuck and just need some exercise to work them out to operate properly. As I recall in one of Keith's videos, he has those seat reamers to recondition the valve seats. Might hit him up and see if he'll come over and help you with that. Joe Lee