MBF

I live in a rural area, but I still stick to the back roads whenever possible. To many tailgaters, phone talkers/texters that aren't expecting a 45 mph truck.

If you're talking about the knurled bushings that fit into the front eyes of the front springs, yes, they are very tight and need to be. I had to press mine in. Mike

Bought a parts car for my old Blazer in '88. It had a great running 350 that was in a Monte that had been in FL most of its life. Last owner apparently didn't believe in antifreeze as all of the freezeout plugs were paper thin due to rust. Replaced them all, put the engine in the Blazer and been using as a plow vehicle for 28+ yrs. Still runs excellent, and never had an issue w overheating or crud in the radiator after the flushing I gave it before replacing the plugs.

I bought shackles/bushings for mine last year from ESPO Spring. Very pleased. I've done business with them before-very knowledgeable and helpful folks.

It looks like the speedo is 2 1/3 off (mph and odometer)- probably due to the gear reduction caused by the size of the sprockets driving the tracks. They're not much larger than the brake drums.

Measure the diameter of your steering shaft and splines. There is a difference in size (at least in the B series) between the 1/2-1 tons and the larger trucks. I had a really nice horn ring wheel from a 1/2 ton that I wanted to put in my 2 1/2 ton last week-wouldn't fit over the threads, so I restored the original larger wheel. Mike

I think I'd use a stud and a nut with never seize. I'm not sure, but I think the wire mesh has the opening in the bottom of the cap so in order for the cap to be able to vent anything the crankcase gases would have to travel up the fill tube, and then make a 180 turn and head back down the outside of the tube to exit through the cap. If the PCV system is functioning properly I wouldn't think that would be a concern. Both my trucks, and my 36 Plymouth emit an Ode De Garage fragrance whether they're running or not which is a true bouquet compared to the plastic smell of newer vehicles!

I don't have a closeup photo, but the outside lip should cover the pinchweld surrounding the windshields. If you've lot a large lip outside, and a small one inside it's been installed inside out. Mike

Yup a bee, mosquitos, and rain fit just fine. My 36 Plymouth, and my Dad's 40 Plymouth has a screen. I thought something was missing on mine, but I've never seen a screen on a PH.

If it's the cannister type, two bolts to mount the bracket on the head, and two oil lines. Do a search on this site, there recently was a post showing the correct routing of the two oil lines. Mike

Roads were dry. Took the B2JA out yesterday for a spin. Started right up, good heater. Think Spring!

Thank you Dpollo for your assistance. I'll give that p/n a shot. Not sure what is so peculiar about the 36 Plym rears, but no one has them. If I remember correctly they are stepped. Mike

Does anyone have a parts manual showing the original p/n's of these wheel cylinders? Better yet-has anyone replaced them, and what did they use? These show as not being available at the aftermarket suppliers. The mounting bolts center to center are 1.9" and the flange opening is 1.37". They've both been rebuilt in the past. Is there anything that can be used other than having mine resleeved? Thanks. Mike

Bach4660-those rims are interesting and have a nice looking offset. Did they build them for you or did you send them your centers? What size radials are you running on them? A friend of mine had them build rims for his 52 Power Wagon. They were flat centers, no vent holes and were $250 ea. He uses them just to load his restored truck to an enclosed trailer w smaller tires. I have seen guys running 16" radials on the Budd locking rings, but the two truck tire dealers that I spoke to when I replaced all of my tires last year advised against going that route due to the width of the old rims. I think Mark is running radials on his truck w/o problems but I went the bias ply route w new 7:0-16's all around.

I've got the fronts (still w springs attached) and I think they're good. Yes-those rivets really took a liking to their homes and didn't give up w/o a fight, but what a difference having unworn rear brackets made in the handling of the truck. Great idea about fabbing up new ones, but those threaded bushings-one of the driver's side shackles is left hand threaded (can't remember if its the spring eye or shackle mount end) but it is shown in the service manual. Mike

The only difference that I found in the pump was the length. They both used the same gasket, and the backing plate was identical too. I would imagine one of the previous owner's had replaced the pump sometime in its 50 yrs history, so maybe that's where the initial swap was made.

I replaced the rear front spring mounts in mine this past fall. Had a parts truck that had a good set. Pain to remove by drilling and chiseling the rivets, but I got it done. I would think a machinist would be able to bore out the worn ones and sleeve them to fit if you can't find replacements. ESPO Springs and Thinks has the shackles, bushings, and pins for the rear if you need them.

I'll second what Mark said. Clean them good, make sure that they're not rust jacked between the riveted centers. As long as the rings / channels are in good shape with a straight lip and no distortions you should be good to go. I did mine myself with chains, but if you're not comfortable doing them, any truck tire shop should be able to do them for you.

The water pump I got from NAPA for the 251 in my 2.5 ton was the same as the one for the 230 in my 1 ton, but there are long and short versions of the pump. I was able to make the longer version work in the 251 by having a pulley with an offset that lined up with the crank pulley and gen from a parts truck. Don't know about the other items.

On all of my flatties (218, 230, and 251) the heater is plumbed that way. I'm not aware of another way to route the flow. Mike

Yup-I agree with what Jerry said is correct. I pulled the 5 spd out of my 2.5 tonner to replace the clutch by just removing the floor cover so I'm assuming it'd be the same for a 3 spd which is a much smaller transmission but with the same sized removable panel.

Darkrider, GRAVELY L model tractors used to use a bracket to replace the sealed canister type filter to allow you to use a spin-on type. That can be remotely plumbed and either mounted in the same location as the canister you have. If it's mounted to the head like the original, you can use fixed tubing, but if your mounting it on the firewall or another area of the body you should probably use something that can flex. As far as brakes, NAPA sells the cylinders, and any relining shop should be able to reline your shoes for you. I'd also replace the 3 rubber flex lines while I had it apart along with any of the steel tubing to avoid problems down the road. Mike

Took one of mine for a short ride today to get it out of the garage. The 2.5 ton goes tomorrow.

I've always done mine by feel like Merle says. I'd also pack the wheel bearings while you've got it apart. These normally get lube from the differential oil, but I've seen a guy with a motorhome burn these up i less than a mile after assembling them dry. If you're trying to reuse the inner seals, be careful when removing the drum assembly from the axle. The lips on the seal don't like those axle stub threads. If you need p/n's for the 1 ton inner seals let me know, I think I have them written down. Good idea to check the surface that rides on the outer seal is clean and nick / pit free. I've made my own outer gaskets.

You may also want to check to make sure that the heat shield over the fuel pump is in place, and insulate the fuel line between the pump and carb. If I'm running ethanol gas I've had times where the vehicle would start to vapor lock after sitting when hot-even idling. The insulated fuel line seemed to help a great deal-but I've also tried to run non-ethanol gas in the older stuff that sit in the garage.