keithb7 Posted February 20, 2022 Report Posted February 20, 2022 (edited) Today was my first pleasure cruise of 2022. My 1938 Plymouth is back up with her newly rebuilt 237 ci 25” long engine. “How’s it drive with the new bigger engine?” you might ask. Fantastic! The is the best performing flathead powered car I’ve driven. The improved power to weight ratio seems quite good. There’s noticeably more torque. I rarely need to use 1st gear any more. I’m working her a little harder on the local hills today. Where others passed me before, i can easily overcome them if I want to. Without down shifting, up hill, in several examples. 3rd gear at 1:1 with a 4.11 rear end and a 237 engine is a sweet little package. I reset the valves this morning. I dialled in the timing and dwell. She’s smooth! Holy man, she starts right up very quickly. Smooth running, clean, no smoke. Very good power and performance. Cool running temps. Great 6V generator and throttle performance. I rebuilt the steering gear box while I was waiting for the machine shop. It steers good, better response. Hard to find much to complain about. I do confess, it appears I may have forgotten to put thread sealant on the rear main oil galley plug. I have an oil leak below this area. It’s in there pretty deep! Tranny would have to come out. Clutch off. Flywheel off. Support rear of block. Remove bell housing. Then remove the galley plug. Apply thread sealer and reassemble all. Phew! Maybe next winter. Maybe in a month. We’ll see. The odometer is just about to roll over 100,000 miles. Good timing. Long may you run…. Edited February 20, 2022 by keithb7 12 Quote
maok Posted February 20, 2022 Report Posted February 20, 2022 Yep, being able to drive off most of the time in 2nd gear is great, even with a small 218" (25") engine in my '37 mc Dodge. Quote
TravisL17 Posted February 20, 2022 Report Posted February 20, 2022 Congrats on the successful rebuild. It's an incredibly rewarding experience. I'm happy for you! Quote
RobertKB Posted February 20, 2022 Report Posted February 20, 2022 Great news, Keith. I watched the video on your blog too. The engine is performing great! Now, put lots of miles on it. Once you get 1500 or so miles on it, if will be running even better! Quote
Bryan Posted February 21, 2022 Report Posted February 21, 2022 4 hours ago, keithb7 said: I do confess, it appears I may have forgotten to put thread sealant on the rear main oil galley plug. I have an oil leak below this area. It’s in there pretty deep! Tranny would have to come out. Clutch off. Flywheel off. Support rear of block. Remove bell housing. Then remove the galley plug. Apply thread sealer and reassemble all. Phew! Maybe next winter. Maybe in a month. We’ll see. The odometer is just about to roll over 100,000 miles. Good timing. Long may you run…. If it's not that bad I wouldn't let it bother you. I've only seen brand new cars that didn't drip a little oil. Catch pan slid underneath, voila, problem solved for now. I hope mine runs without problems, will be about a year. Quote
Doug&Deb Posted February 21, 2022 Report Posted February 21, 2022 Great job! I’ll be watching your videos as I rebuild my 230. Quote
rrunnertexas Posted February 21, 2022 Report Posted February 21, 2022 Keith, The photo of your car with the background is really nice. You sure do have a great place to drive your car and enjoy it! Your YouTube work has been most helpful and sure is appreciated! Quote
p15-1948 Posted February 24, 2022 Report Posted February 24, 2022 Congratulations, always fun to get one back on the road. Enjoyed all of your FB videos. Enjoy the car! Quote
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