hendo0601 Posted May 2, 2014 Report Posted May 2, 2014 So I figured it was time to start a thread about the build on my 1950 Chrysler Windsor sedan. When I say "build" it isn't going to be some massive restoration simply because it doesn't need all of that. It just needs a lot of attention and TLC. The body is extremely sound and rust free, the paint is decent for what it is, the interior is in serious need of help, some wiring needs to be addressed, and a big handful of issues under the hood. I will be posting pictures as I go, and I will be asking a lot of questions!! To kick it off I will start with what she looked like when we got her, and then I will get into what all I have done to her thus far. Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 2, 2014 Author Report Posted May 2, 2014 The first thing we did after replacing the ancient crusty tires was add a little "zing" to the flat black paint. She was originally this really nice dark maroon color, but the previous owner thought it would look cool flat black...ugh...but that can be addressed later, but while it is flat black we decided to make it a little cooler. We found a really rad lace pattern at the local fabric store and I laid out a custom design on the hood, scallops on the fenders, on the roof, and a big heart on the trunk lid (that was the wife's idea, and I gotta say I really dig it now). Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 2, 2014 Author Report Posted May 2, 2014 She went into hibernation for the winter, so fast forward to spring (last week) and I have really begun digging into getting this thing looking and running good. I pulled the carburetor off to clean some of the gunk off of it, and after reinstalling it I noticed it was leaking gas from the gasket below the bowl, so a rebuild was in order (I mentioned this in another post and included the NAPA part number for the rebuild kit). It took a few days for the kit to arrive, but when it did everything came apart and went back together really easily. In my haste to get things done before it started raining on me I only took one picture of what I found when I took the top of the carb off...it is a miracle this thing even ran at all! There was at least 1/4 inch of mud in the bottom of the bowl....here take a look. Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 2, 2014 Author Report Posted May 2, 2014 Now that it is warm enough to want to stay outside more than 10 minutes I decided to dig into the interior, and first up on my list was all of the door window frames and the front and rear windshield frames. They were originally grey, but after 55 years they have turned this nifty shade of red called "rust." I took them out one at a time, stripped them to bare metal and then sanded each one until it was bright and shiny. A few coats of primer and then a few coats of argent silver paint and they look better than new! Each door window frame took me about 3 hours from start to finish, and the windshield frame along with the mirror and its upright took me about 5 hours start to finish. Lots and lots and lots and lots of sanding.... Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 2, 2014 Author Report Posted May 2, 2014 Here are the front door frames. 1 Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 2, 2014 Author Report Posted May 2, 2014 Driver's side rear and front door window frames done and reinstalled. Windshield frame before and after (it started raining right before I went to reinstall it...life in the great pacific northwest!) Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 2, 2014 Author Report Posted May 2, 2014 We ordered a carpet kit earlier this week and it is supposed to arrive on Monday, so today I took it upon myself to pull the seats out and yank the old nasty carpet. The seats came out with relative ease, and I found some really neat surprises underneath them! I found a very graphically illustrated swingers magazine dated April 1985, 11 cents, a rusty razor blade, an unfired .22 caliber round, a few toys, a fake iPhone, and some other trash. A pretty good haul if you ask me!!! Here is what it looked like when I was just getting started. The carpet was supposed to be red but had faded to this awful shade of pinkish orange from sitting for years in the sun. Here is all the fun stuff I found under the carpet. Since this is a family friendly place I folded the swingers magazine so as not to show any nudity (of which it is filled with!!) Start to finish it took me about an hour to get the seats and the carpet out by myself. It would have been a lot easier with a second set of hands to wrestle that big front seat out of the door, but I managed to do it without damaging the vinyl on the seats. Here is a section of the floorpans after I got done vacuuming up a lot of junk. The only place with rust-through is the bolt-in panel around the pedals on the driver's side. The rest of the floor is extremely solid with only surface rust in some places. Before the new carpet goes in this will all be treated with a rust inhibitor to hopefully prolong the life of the metal. I can only hope that I look this good when I am 55!! After I get the carpet installed and the seats back in I am going to fabricate some new kick panels and get those installed (there will be pictures of that too!) Next week once the carpet arrives there will definitely be pictures of the install, so stay tuned for that! Quote
Lumpy Posted May 4, 2014 Report Posted May 4, 2014 The trouble with red interior...it fades to...PINK. !! That carb should get some kind of prize for being able to run in that condition. I hope that's not coming from the gas tank. Hope you have plenty of fuel filters in the lines! You may have to name that car, "The Swinger"! Whatever her name, looks like you came along just in time to save her. Looks like you are going to do right by her. ken. Quote
deathbound Posted May 4, 2014 Report Posted May 4, 2014 Can you post a link to the carpet kit supplier? The window frames turned out great. Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 4, 2014 Author Report Posted May 4, 2014 I pulled the sending unit out of the tank and shined my flashlight down in there and it doesn't look too bad really. I am guessing that sludge in the carb is just a result of it sitting for so long and the fuel evaporating out and dust moving in. I have two filters, one before the electric pump and one in front of the carb now. Still looking for some help on wiring the dashpot on the carb as well as the Sisson electric choke. As for the link to the carpet kit I will be posting an update on that when the kit arrives and I see the quality/fit so I can write a review on it. I would hate to post the link now if it's a crappy product. I kinda took a gamble on it so we shall see how that turns out. My next endeavor will be refinishing the instrument cluster surround and the steering column. Is it possible to remove the gear lever from the column without having to take the whole column out of the car? The threaded end where the shift ball screws on is all chewed up and stripped and I would like to repair it on the bench, not in the car. Quote
Ulu Posted May 4, 2014 Report Posted May 4, 2014 The shifter should come off pretty easy. On the Plymouth there's two nuts & a couple cotter pins under the hood & two screws to the steering column, then it just pulls through the dash bracket into the car. 1 Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 4, 2014 Author Report Posted May 4, 2014 If it stops raining in the next few days I will go out and see what it takes to pull that thing. Thanks! Quote
Dodgeb4ya Posted May 4, 2014 Report Posted May 4, 2014 There should be a chrome phillips head screw at the shifter arm base. Remove that and push out the chrome slotted tube screw. Remove shifter arm. 1 Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 4, 2014 Author Report Posted May 4, 2014 I moved further up north around September last year to North Bend...it pretty much doesn't stop raining until late May...which sucks. I just went out to see these screws I need to remove and I got soaked...and didn't see any screws...lol Quote
Dodgeb4ya Posted May 4, 2014 Report Posted May 4, 2014 The rain is not preventing me from seeing my 1950 Chrysler shifter screws.... BoB in Woodieville----wet and wetter! 1 Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 4, 2014 Author Report Posted May 4, 2014 So I see the big slotted screw on the top of the shifter arm at the base...but I don't see the philips screw you mentioned...the only other thing I see is the big pivot pin... Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 4, 2014 Author Report Posted May 4, 2014 Ok so....I'm an idiot...I took my flashlight out with me this time and looked at what I thought was a rivet on the very bottom of the shifter arm...turns out it is the philips screw mentioned earlier...I removed the philips and the slotted screw and boom...shifter arm is now laying on my kitchen counter. Quote
kented Posted May 5, 2014 Report Posted May 5, 2014 When are the meets in the washington area? Would really like to cross the boarder to check them out! Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 5, 2014 Author Report Posted May 5, 2014 The All MoPar Sunbust is in august, the Rat Bastard Infestation car show is on June 15th, there is the kustom kulture festival going down on May 31 (my birthday!). The only one I know I will be at for sure is the kustom kulture show. The rat bastard show is also the day I'm getting married.....so I doubt I will be there lol!!! Quote
Dodgeb4ya Posted May 5, 2014 Report Posted May 5, 2014 Ok so....I'm an idiot...I took my flashlight out with me this time and looked at what I thought was a rivet on the very bottom of the shifter arm...turns out it is the philips screw mentioned earlier...I removed the philips and the slotted screw and boom...shifter arm is now laying on my kitchen counter. Don't loose the 2" anti-rattle thin shim plate that falls out as you remove the shifter lever! 1 Quote
hendo0601 Posted May 5, 2014 Author Report Posted May 5, 2014 Good looking out! I definitely bagged all the screws/shim as soon as it hit the floor pan. Quote
Ulu Posted May 5, 2014 Report Posted May 5, 2014 I have some little magnets which came from a computer hard drive. They're very strong compared to common magnets. I stick them on stuff like this where there's a chance screws will fall under the car or get lost inside things. Don't put your finger between one and any steel. They are STRONG. Quote
kented Posted May 6, 2014 Report Posted May 6, 2014 The All MoPar Sunbust is in august, the Rat Bastard Infestation car show is on June 15th, there is the kustom kulture festival going down on May 31 (my birthday!). The only one I know I will be at for sure is the kustom kulture show. The rat bastard show is also the day I'm getting married.....so I doubt I will be there lol!!! Awesome I'm going to try and make the sunburst one in August. Quote
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