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1949 Dodge Wayfarer Project


rtferguson39

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One Panel Down, one to go. 

 

Hi all, 

I've finally completed the NOS LF fender refinishing for my Dodge. Wet sanded her up to 2k, then buffed to a pretty decent shine (I'm impressed with myself as this was my first ever, serious bodywork project). I was able to remove almost all the orange peel from my Nason single-stage spray can paint-job. Wouldn't you know it, the thing looks better than the rest of the car! I'll work on that soon enough. But, next plans are new tires, a carb rebuild, and a general tune-up. We'll do some buffing in between these adventures. Leaving the ugly driver door for later down the line. I need a break from sanding....Pictures below: 

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Edited by rtferguson39
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  • 1 month later...

Maintenance Update: 

 

One day she didn't start. So I thought I had it narrowed down to only a charging issue, but once I fully recharged my battery, the car still wouldn't crank for more than 1-2 revolutions before dying out. Traced voltage drops from the batt, to the solenoid, then to the starter. Found the starter motor to have a ton of internal resistance. Removed it and took it to a wonderful shop in Charlotte NC known as Carolina Auto Electric and had it rebuilt. I highly recommend this place in case anyone on here lives around that area. Anyway, reinstalled starter, car cranked and started, but of course I still had a charging issue. 

 

I tested the generator the redneck way, by removing a battery lead and running the car purely off the generator for about 0.5 seconds. It worked as it should. So that leaves the regulator.  I was nervous to delve into that "little black box" on the firewall, as I've never messed with one of these old 6v regulators before. So like anything else I've done in my life, I just started working and figuring it out as I go, with a shop manual and an old AutoLite regulator manual at my side. Ran some basic tests, and found that the cutout relay was bad. So I bought a new regulator from Standard Ignition. Seems like a good piece. I'm running an 8v battery (my choice, car has no radio), so I had to adjust my current and voltage output to match. Another first for me. She now outputs 9.5V and 20A at full charge rate under load! (and returns to a slight discharge state at idle, no load). I know this may seem stupid to be excited about, but I am a younger guy (only 30) who has never messed with 40's tech before. Somebody my age has to learn this stuff to keep these cars on the road! 

 

Anyway, one step closer to complete roadworthiness for Steel In Motion at Union County Dragway in SC, May 14th. 

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I had my generator rebuilt this winter and brought the machinist a Standard Ignitions regulator, I purchased. He also thought it was a quality unit. He also had to adjust the output voltage and the "kick in" amperage for 6v 35 amp. The setting are very low out of the box.

Edited by ccudahy
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2 minutes ago, ccudahy said:

I had my generator rebuilt this winter and brought the machinist a Standard Ignitions regulator, I purchased. He also thought it was a quality unit. He also had to adjust the output voltage and the "kick in" voltage for 6v 35 amp. The setting are very low out of the box.

Ah yes. I noticed (in regards to very low factory settings on the STD Ignition part). My voltage regulator output was actually OK for a 6v system at 7.9 volts, but the current regulator was basically putting out 0A right out of the box. I wonder how consistently the gaps, spring tension, and outputs are checked and set when those aftermarket parts are assembled...

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Another thing the machinist told me and its in the books, was that everything also need to be checked when the circuits warm up. That was when the readings really tanked, it was on the low side to start but drop to doing nothing after about 1 min. on the test bench running. 

 

7 minutes ago, rtferguson39 said:

I wonder how consistently the gaps, spring tension, and outputs are checked and set when those aftermarket parts are assembled...

The units probable meets there physical tolerances, but they don't do a dynamic test so little demand. Throw it in the box, ship it, and the customer can deal with it.

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41 minutes ago, ccudahy said:

Another thing the machinist told me and its in the books, was that everything also need to be checked when the circuits warm up. That was when the readings really tanked, it was on the low side to start but drop to doing nothing after about 1 min. on the test bench running. 

Yup. That's one thing I did do. I let her warm up for about 15-20 minutes before making any adjustments. The old AutoLite manual highlights that step. Also, always check readings with the regulator cover installed. I noticed as much as a 0.4V decrease and a 5A decrease with the cover installed vs. the windings exposed to the open air. 

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  • 2 months later...

The First "Long Drive"

 

After another oil change, one hour of digging sludge out of the oil pan with a coat hanger, full inspection and greasing, minor fuel pump leak fix, the car was ready to drive to Steel In Motion. I was nervous about how much sludge/crap would break loose during the 140 mile round trip as I am one of the unlucky bastards without an oil filter (currently). I've learned a lot about my 230 over this drive; highway oil pressure is stable at 38 psi, but at idle, we may not be in the best shape. Sitting in town traffic, there were a few instances were she dipped down to 5-10 psi. My rule of thumb has always been 10 psi per 1000 rpm, but 5 just seems low at idle. I might have to dig into the bottom end a bit.... 

 

Anyway, the initial miles were nerve-wracking, as the longest drive I had previously taken in this car was about 30 minutes. My journey this time was just under two hours one way. Temperature ran right at 170*, the charging system did its job (meaning I did mine properly), and the car tracked straight. 

 

We made it to Union County Dragway, where we enjoyed one of the coolest traditional hot rod shows in the southeast. I even took this old girl down the strip. I lined up against a friend's 1964 Corvair in an attempt to own the crown of the slowest 1/8 mile ET in recent history. I lost to the Corvair by a length. I blame this on my launch and the Fluid-Drive coupler. If the track were a 1/4 mile I would have come around and won the race. We were too busy with the sights to photograph more of the show, but here I am with the rest of our friends Sunday morning after most everyone else had packed up and gone home:

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Not A Bad Pass for a 72 Year Old: 

 

As a supplement to my above post chronicling the adventures from Steel In Motion, here's my hulk getting everything it can with a 3.9 rear gear against a 1964 Corvair: 

 

https://youtu.be/3LV94HUILzU

 

 

Edited by rtferguson39
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