201 hop up project

[Andydodge]

Fred, the tank only has the 2 straps but don't forget the filler tube, fuel sender unit and also the fuel line itself.......be careful undoing the fuel line as there should be a very small "olive" at the end of the line where it enters the tank and it may fall off..........not easy to find sometimes......also the nuts inside the trunk on the floor that hold the straps are easily water filled and rust........use LOTS of WD40 or similar to lubricate the threaded nuts and "bolt" as whilst you may think the nuts are undoing and NOT check underneath in reality the nut is frozen onto the threaded strap end and you end up twisting the thread and breaking the strap...........ask me how I know this........even after nearly 40 yrs I still can remember this little bit of mopar fun.........lol...........andyd

[Cpt.Fred]

thanks, andy!

i cut the metal fuel line off quite near to the tank when i installed the electric pump, so i guess i can just take off the rubber tube there.

i have a new filler neck on the shelf, and all the cables are new, too.

good point on the screws, though.

i'll be careful.

[greg g]

A tip before you try to remove the tank. Stabilize the strab near the botl end with vise grips wedged in such a manner as to keep the retainint bands from twisting when you try to loosen the barrel nuts from above. Also use and impact wrench rather than a breaker bar, as the torque will be applied through the impacts rather than the full twist of a breaker bar. Use lots of penetrating oil.

This tip provided by Mark Aubuchon based on his experience

[hkestes41]

Fred,

When I took my tank off to clean it I took a piece of chain about 7 feet long, fed it through the sender hole secured one end to the top of the tank (so I could get it out when done) then shook the hell out of the tank in all directions. The chain banging around inside the tank will knock off all the loose flaking rust / crud stuck to the inside of your tank.

Once my arms were tired of the shaking and I figured I had knocked everything loose I flushed it several times with the garder hose with a spray nozzle attached. Then blew it out real good with the air hose and left it set in the sun several hours to insure it was dry.

Got all kinds of gunk out of the tank. Over the next month or so I had to change my disposable fuel filter a couple of times but since then I have had no issues with debris in getting through to my carbs or causing fuel starvation due to clogging the in tank filter.

[Robert Horne]

The way I cleaned my fuel tank for my 49 Plymouth, was to strap it to cement mixer. I put in a small chain, a few lug nuts, a gallon of soap solution from the auto parts store, and let it go round, and round for about an hour or so. Plenty of rust came out of it. I rinsed the tank out a couple of times with kerosene. Never had any problems out of it after that.

[Andydodge]

Robert............you win the prize............lol...........thats gotta be the most original idea i've seen..................lol............brought a smile to my face...........lol...........andyd

[Robert Horne]

I was thinking of using the cement mixer to paint a narrow stripe on my wheels. The mixer turns slow. Just strap the wheel on, and round and round and round.

[Andydodge]

Just when you think you've heard it all..........lol.........it gets BETTER!!...........lol............just pee'd meself.........lol.........needed the laugh.........regards, andyd

[Cpt.Fred]

thanks, guys!

actually my dad did the same thing to his motorcycle tank when he restored it:

he wrapped it in cloth, put screws and gravel in there, and dumped the whole thing into the cement mixer for a couple of hours.

worked so well he had to braze quite a lot of holes afterwards:rolleyes:

great idea for the pinstriping, Robert! i think i read somewhere this was the way they did it in the factories (most likely not with a cement mixer, of course:D).

i discovered my tank seems to be made from aluminium.

is that normal? i was amazed...

tried to get the drain bolt out but it's a brass screw and it won't move a bit.

since the carb cleaning took too much time i didn't take the tank out yesterday,

this will have to wait till after the race on the weekend.

but then!

[Andydodge]

Fred, the original tanks are made of steel with, I think its a zinc plating or some such silvered finish........if yours really is aluminium then you probably have an ex nascar plymouth........lol..........seriously tho' I'd recheck the alloy idea.......and re the drain bolt........is it a square brass bolt?.......if so, lots of luck getting it to undo........good luck in the race........lol.............andyd

[Niel Hoback]

Its called Ternecoat and is an alloy mostly of zinc and lead. It looks like a real smooth galvanize coat but of a different alloy.

[Andydodge]

Neil........that Ternecoat is still just a coating isn't it?..........the tanks are made of mild steel.......andyd

[Niel Hoback]

Yes its much like a galvanize coating applied by melting the alloy and coating the steel strip by immersion.

[Mark D]

Very cool car he's building. The Russian crate engine looked cool.

[Cpt.Fred]

thanks guys... galvanized seems more likely, you're right.

one way or another, it has to be cleaner than now.

right now it's pouring down here, same yesterday.

why is it that every race is flooded this year?

i got some rainex (wipers don't work at the moment)

and a big tarp cover, but still...

this summer just isn't right.

[P-12 Tommy]

When are you racing? Tonight, tomorrow or Sunday? How many hours difference are you?

Tom

[Cpt.Fred]

the race was planned to be on saturday, sign up and tech inspection on friday evening.

the rain didn't stop from wednesday to saturday morning, so we left here

on early saturday and hoped for better weather.

the race was canceled due to the mud (it was incredible there),

but we stayed anyway and it finally stopped pouring in the afternoon.

*yaaay*

the car ran alright, still some trouble at lower speed and acceleration, but

16mpg and good cruising at 55-60miles was all i needed to be happy.

the 3rd carb developed a nasty habit and flooded 3 times.

i'll take everything apart again and get rid of the dirt,

new metal lines and everything.

that will keep me busy for the next weeks.

here are a few pics from Majo, a friend who owns a 51 Chrysler Windsor

(and who was smart enough to leave it in the dry garage at home):

these were all taken on saturday afternoon after the rain stopped,

but you get the idea...

Edited July 25, 2011 by Cpt.Fred

[greg g]

boys and their toys playin in the mud... looks like fun.

What kind of coments did you get about your set up???

[Cpt.Fred]

well, the reactions are quite mixed.

most people liked the looks and were curious about the effects,

but i think there are quite a lot of people looking down on the car

because in their eyes it is too slow and will stay too slow

if i don't install a V8 of any kind. these people don't understand why

i put so much work into this engine. and it's not even in a coupe.

sometimes even i think they are right, but i'm far too deep into this project

now to quit that easy.

besides it would be a huge pile of work to put a V8 in there in a decent

way, not just chop chop hack hack, plus there would be quite a rat's tail

of other mods following such a move, like tranny, rear end, brakes etc.

i just doubt it would be that much cheaper.

sure it would have double the power, but i just don't know...

it would change the character of the car completely.

and sometimes i like the idea of having a unique setup, even if it's slow.

these engines are very rare here.

the one and only frankenmopar...

[Robert Horne]

Capt.Fred, your hopes and desires of your car is what is important. Some people will never understand why or what we do in our hobbie. Your car is unique, slow or fast.

[Niel Hoback]

I am quite jealous of your car. I think of what its been through and survived all these years in such good shape. I feel it would be a shame to do anything to it that would be unalterable. I don't think you should pay any attention to what others think about YOUR car. Your opinion is the only one that counts. That means you should ignore this post.

[Cpt.Fred]

I feel it would be a shame to do anything to it that would be unalterable. I don't think you should pay any attention to what others think about YOUR car. Your opinion is the only one that counts. That means you should ignore this post.

thanks, Niel. this was my first laugh this morning!

[meadowbrook]

Hi folks.

I was looking for sources or actual part numbers for a muffler that would fit a stock 1950 dodge Meadowbrook exhaust but that would give it a slight growl.

Not too loud or obnoxious mind you, just a little more than the 'nothing' I hear from the engine currently

[dmulally]

Danke for the write up Fred.

I will be doing pretty much the same as yours but with SU carb/s so when it is all up and running I'll let you know how it goes.

Just waiting for parts to arrive at the engine shop now. Thanks to Andy for helping me out there!

[Don Coatney]

Hi folks.

I was looking for sources or actual part numbers for a muffler that would fit a stock 1950 dodge Meadowbrook exhaust but that would give it a slight growl.

Not too loud or obnoxious mind you, just a little more than the 'nothing' I hear from the engine currently

Have you checked with a local (to you) muffler shop and told them your needs?