help i'm lost

[scottyv47]

howdy scottyv here, 40 year mopar vet, had them all, darts, dusters, chargers, gtx's, but this is my first old mopar, 47 ply special deluxe 4 door sedan, its got a flattie in it, and i was going to swap in a 360 crate motor, but have had second thoughts, the flattie was locked up when i got the car over the weekend, but i shot some pb blaster in to the cylinders, and she freed up, i want to crank it over, but the starter is shot, it apears to have had a half assed 12 volt conversion, it has a newer seloniod, and negative ground, but other wires just hanging everywhere, my question is where can i get a new 12 volt starter, do they make them, can i swap in one from a slant 6, or other mopar, i'm missing some other stuff to, no coil, and no carb, i have a 70's gas pedal, and cable, and i was thinking, that i could throw a two barrel off a 318 on it, with the help of the adapter that clifford reserch makes for the slant six, as it appears to have the same one barrel flange as a slant 6, and as far as the coil, i'm sure i have a 12 volt mopar coil around, i also plan to swap out the rear, and was told that 96 and up ford explorer has the same width rear, plus it has disc brakes, does anyone have any idea's for me, on the starter, and other stuff, thanks, scottyv

[Captain Neon]

Plymouth used the L6 through 1959. A starter from a 1955 to 1959 L6 equipped Plymouth will work just fine. I've read from several sources that a 6v starter works without issue on 12v converted L6. 12v coils are easy to come by at AutoZone. I've even read that 6v coils work fine for quite a while, esp. if you are planning on going back to 6v.

[Don Coatney]

Welcome to the forum. Not sure where you are located. You might want to

add a bit more information in your profile. The folks at the location below can

convert your starter to 12 volts. I have had good results dealing with them in

the past.

I have installed a Desoto flathead 6 in my 48 Plymouth. I have driven it over

25,000 miles to date on some very long road trips and it has proven to be

very dependable.

[greg g]

basically any coil will work, unless it says internally resisted wohich would be a 12v application only. If it is not so labled running a balast resistor will assure its proper operational voltage in a 12 v system. Most any single barrel carb that fits the studs and you can hook up to the linkage will work, at least to get it fired. The stock carb should be a Carter B-1-B, however they changed over to the BBS style (slant 6 type) in 54 or so so if you hanve those laying around it should be fine. If the 12V has been swapped over to negative ground, make sure you coil is wired to reflect that, ign to pos neg to dist. The 6 V starter will take the 12V o problem however the Bedix engages twice as fast and might experience accelerated wear betwee the starter teeth and the rig gear.

Before starting you might want to do a compression test. Most of us have found that when these engines sit for long enoughto be stuck, at least a couple valves will be stuck in the open position. The compresion test will show which ones. Usually he fix is to remove the head and tap on them with a rubber mallet till they free up. Most mopar B body diffes fit without 2 much rouble as do jeep cherokee rears.

[Cpt.Fred]

most guys over here use their old starters after the swap, they seem sturdy enough to take the 12V. sure they might wear out faster, but how long will that take? i'd keep it for start and fix the rest first.

... and welcome here, it's just the right place for 40-rookies like us:)

[steveplym]

I've been using the 6 volt starter in my car and have just converted it to 12 volt. It starts so fast now I hardly have to push to the starter button to get it to start. With the HEI I installed it fires up easy.

Like the others have said, you will need a 12 volt coil that is not internally resisted. It will say on the outside "External resistor needed." Then all you need is a ballast resisitor. You can get one for a few bucks from any auto parts store. Just put it in series between the ignition switch and the positive side of the coil. Then you should be set on the ignition. I'd buy an extra one though as they have been known to fail at inopportune times.

[scottyv47]

my main problem as i said, my starter is fried, does anyone know where i can get a new one, or do i have to rebuild mine, thanks, scottyv

[greg g]

have you tried to find new brushes??? that and ovaled bushings are usually the problems.

[scottyv47]

i took it out today, theres a local shop that rebuilds alts, and starters, so i'm going to take it to him tomarrow, i'm glad that i decided to swap out the rear, and to put a disc conversion on, because i finaly got to take a good look at the car today, it had no brakes, so i was looking for a bad brake line, and found that the car has no brake parts at all, on the front there are old drums, but no backing plate, or cylinders, or any brake parts, on the rear there are drums, and backing plates, but no internals at all, it was quite a surprise, i can't complain, i paid $500 for the car, and the body is solid, but it was still quite a shock, the guy i bought it from, never even said anything, he said it had a bad line

[JerseyHarold]

It can't hurt to call the seller and ask him what's going on with the brakes. He may have the parts you need or know who does.

[scottyv47]

thats ok, i was planning a disc conversion in the front, and to swap in an 8.8 explorer rear, there the exact width, and they have discs also, and they make a kit to adapt the yoke to the old spicer style, so i can use the original driveshaft

[Captain Neon]

Sounds like a good excuse to do a disc brake conversion. Were the know-how available to me 17 years ago when my P15 had its brakes redone, I would have gone with a disc brake conversion myself. The only things that weren't replaced were the master cylinder and drum, and the MC was rebuilt.