JerseyHarold

I bought a set of 4-door rockers from Mill Supply years ago for one of my '52s. They were heavy-guage steel and made well. They did not have the contersunk holes for the rubber sill plates, as some repros do. This may have changed by now.

My cheapskate (and maybe harebrained) method for remote MC reservoir: Gut an old Ford 'Mason-jar cap' master cylinder, then thread the hole where the pushrod goes in and install the proper-sized plug. Bolt to firewall. Run a line to the original master and you're good to go. (Haven't tried it but should work)

How about one of those 'juice can' vacuum reservoirs that Ford used in the 1970's-80's with a one-way valve from a power brake booster?

Norm's comment about new car dealers sending cars to Maaco is right on the money. Back in the mid-'80's, I worked as a service writer at the local Ford dealer and there were problems with the black paint on Escorts and Thunderbirds. Ford was quietly authorizing dealers to have the affected cars repainted under warranty. We had our in-house bodyman prep each car, then send it to Maaco. Worked out fine. Funny thing....one woman came in to see if her Escort was ready yet, and when I told her it wasn't, she smiled and asked "Oh, it's not back from Earl Scheib?" I gave her a shocked look and told her we'd NEVER do anything like that. Little did she know.......

Try this link: http://www.perfectfit.com/default.asp

I paid $2.02.9 for regular this morning here in beautiful New Jersey.

I get garbage like that almost every time I throw something on an internet classified site. If they look fishy to me, I just delete 'em.

Welcome aboard. Good looking Cambridge. I have a four-door. You'll be amazed at all the knowledge and information you can get on this forum.

Just found this website and thought I'd pass it along. Anyone ever use this company? http://www.perfectfit.com/default.asp

If you get the car painted, let us know how it turns out. Maybe even a before and after photo.

I had my cars painted by the Maaco in Staten Island (on Richmond Terrace) before I moved to New Jersey (I'm in Freehold, by the way). I was at the Maaco in Tinton Falls a few months ago and liked what I saw. At the time, they were in the process of painting a '55 Pontiac that I later saw at Cruise Night and it looked really nice. I've seen other cars painted at the Lakewood and Toms River locations (same owner, I've heard) and they weren't bad, but in my opinion Tinton Falls does better work. I was also at the Neptune shop a few years back and wasn't impressed with the work there. Again, just my opinion. When you're ready, the best thing to do is tour each location to judge for yourself.

Many original Mopar keys were made of aluminum that wore down rather quickly. Brass is much better.

T'was the Fourth of July in 1969, the car was our '65 Dodge Coronet 440. Drove it around the empty parking lot of a discount department store near our home. I was 15 at the time.

I've got two flathead sixes taking up space in my garage. One is the original I removed from my '52 Cambridge and the other came from a '51 Cranbrook I parted out years ago. Both are sitting on cut-down supermarket shopping carts so I can move them if needed. My wife occasionally nudges me to get rid of them, but so far they're still here!

Check your local newspapers (usually the sports section) or the Maaco website for sales prices. Here in New Jersey the local Maaco's are running a half-price sale right now. This is an annual event and has happened for many years during the winter months so they can increase business during their slow season. The slow season in the southern states is in the summer, and the sales take place that time of year in those areas. I've had 6-8 cars painted by Maaco over the years and was very pleased with the results. As others have said, good prep work is very important. Another thing that worked well for me was to bring in coffee and donuts on the mornings I dropped off a car....the shop personnel appreciate your consideration and that translates to a better paint job.

Looks interesting. Yonkers is just north of the Bronx for you out-of-towners. If anyone looks at/acts on this car, please post the details! http://newyork.craigslist.org/wch/car/256521512.html

That was neat! I'm forwarding it to my friend in Western New York who owns a '37 P4 Touring Sedan. Thanks for posting.

My wife and kids got me a fairly large Craftsman rollaway toolbox so I can organize my stuff better. I have a smaller rollaway that I outgrew years ago, so this new one is a big improvement.

For what it's worth, I used to work for a Saturn dealer and we sold quite a few of the plastic caps for L-Series oil filter housings. They were/are quite easy to crack.

I've derusted a number of items by soaking in vinegar with good results. The only time I had a problem was with a bicycyle chain. When I pulled it out it fell apart because the pins between the links shrunk a bit with the acid action.

Jeff, The radio comes out much easier than the instrument cluster. After removing the four mounting screws, there is a wire with an inline fuseholder (connected to the ignition switch...open it and pull the fuse)and the antenna wire (plugs in just like a modern car). The instrument cluster has the armored wire out to the horn relay, the pipe/hose for the oil guage, and the pipe for the temp guage, plus a lot more wires. I've been in and out of the dashboards a number of times! It won't be too bad a repair once you get into it. Best wishes for the Holidays. Harold

There is a small bolt holding the ignition switch into the dash cluster at about the 6- o'clock position. I think it's a 5/16 or 3/8. If you can't get under there to look at what you're doing, you can remove the radio (or cover plate if no radio) and you'll have lots of room.

I found out today that a co-worker's father is restoring a P15. He is searching for chrome rear fender welt to continue his restoration. I'm sure this has come up before, but where can he find some?

I have to chime in here. The car was a '52 Plymouth Cranbrook. I've got the movie on tape....part of my P-23 collection.

Reg, I deal with water damaged homes on a fairly regular basis. It's good that you got the carpet out and dried things up BUT there is moisture trapped in the walls and insulation and that could result in mold. I don't want to alarm you, but there is more to this than meets the eye. I recently managed a repair/remediation project on a two week old home where a fitting burst in a second-floor bathroom....similar to your situation. The homeowner came home and said it was raining in the dining room. The water travelled over a large area in the walls and even flooded the basement. We ripped out all the sheetrock, hardwood floors, insulation, and cabinets (remember, this was a new house!) and had a remediation company come in with forced hot air driers to 'bake' the gutted section of the house to dry the moisture before mold set in. We also cleaned and disinfected the heating system ductwork to make sure no mold would grow due to the combination of moisture and dust. You may want to consider having a local industrial hygienist or remediation contractor take some moisture readings and/or samples to make sure everything is really dry and mold-free. I know it can be expensive, but the health of your family (and also the resale value of the home) is at stake.