Bullfrog_eng

Thanks for starting this thread, Doug. I had come across bits of his story in various publications over the years, but was unaware of this book. It fills in all the bits that I did not know (and there were lots!). After seing your thread, I went looking for a copy of the book and found one on Ebay which I bought. Just finished reading it, bloody great. Again, thanks for alerting me to it. John

Good question, not one that I had thought about before. I do not recall ever seeing one and I could not see one listed in the Members Vehicle Register for the DBCA. All due to the depression no doubt, but someone may have more idea.

A few more cars from the rally. John

Sorry about the shortness of my reply. I was on the phone to our taxation department at the same time and things eventually got very complicated, but I was not going to let them go after waiting a hour or so listening to "on hold" music. I have reproduction rims on my DA, which are significantly different to original, too different to be of any interest to your situation. That was why I had to dig out some spares that I had. I actually just sat the felloe on a cardboard box, not on the ground, (so I did not have to bend down so far!!!) to see what would hapen. It worked out OK and did not damage the box, as I said, it went MUCH better than I thought it would.

No it was not. It was just a bare felloe sitting on the ground.

At the start of this thread, I thought this was impossible. But it obviously was not, as we have the photos. I said previously that my spares were not easily accessable, but the only way to put my mind at rest was to make the effort and get them out and try this for myself. I must point out that I did not fit a tire, just fitted the bare rim to the felloe, but I did make sure that the break toggle thingy kept the rim tight and together. I started by putting the rim , with that toggle and at the break point of the rim, onto the felloe so that the flat lip was on the inside of the felloe. Just like in HBergh's photo. Then, using a pair of large screwdrivers, worked my way around the rim, levering the rim through the slots of the flat lip, until I was directly oposite the break that I started from. I did that a couple of times and the flat lip slipped over the felloe relatively easily, so that it looked just like HBergh's photos. I was staggered that it went on so easily. OK, so now I had to get it off again. So starting oposite the break (where I finished) I again used the two screwdrivers through the slots to lever that side of the flat lip of the rim back over the felloe. I had to go back and forth a bit, but soon had it of again. I was even more staggered. Something that I thought to be impossible was indeed possible. DA rims are relatively flimsy, especially after being thinned down by rust over the years, and I believe that by doing what I have done, forces the rim to be streached slightly eliptical allowing it to be levered off. The screwdrivers I used were the largest I had, about 15 inches long. The key is work at it as though you were working on a conventional tire, rather than trying to lift it all off at once. Good luck. John.

Like the others, I am puzzled how this has occured, but it has so we must fix it. I agree with the other comments, but be aware that minibago's photos are not quite the same as a DA wheel. His are a bit earlier and do not have the slots for the four wheel clamps (or whatever they are called!) but more importantly they do not have the mechanism that 30DodgePanel showed in photo above. This is used to break the rim and most DA's have them, it does away with the tool for breaking the rim that minibago shows above, but more importantly it is quite bulky. If your rim had this, you cannot just drop the rim straight on the felloe, you need to the drop the part of the rim that has this on first, so that it drops into the well of the felloe, then it should give you enough room to drop the other side on. It follows that to remove the rim and tire, you must start at the oposite side to the rim join. It also occurs to me that it that mechanism could be jammed on a spoke where it protudes through the felloe. you may need to rotate the rim slightly to clear this. Sorry about this description, I hope it makes sense. I looked for my spares, but I cannot access them at the moment. I know a photo would be better. Good luck, John

Good luck Bob. I can't remember exactly how it all works now, but it was not quite what I expected at the time. Finished up OK though, if you are lucky yours may just need a good bit of lubrication and gentle manipulation.

Bob, you are quite correct. When in the "locked" state, the handle just swivels. When "unlocked", it engages with the mechanism to open the door. It does not lock to the escuteon plate. It is a while since I repaired mine, and can't remember exactly how I went about it, other than slowly and carefully!!! I think I used some heat on parts of it, but as you commented, it is pot metal, so be carefull. My photo below MAY help. John

I like Ron's solution. Can you borrow a stick welder frome someone? It will have the added bonus of heating the valve stem.

And the same from the middle of the continent. Have a happy and safe Christmas and new year.

Likewise, hope everyone has a great and safe festive season. And I hope Matt does not start something new. I know what he does is interesting, but it just makes me feel inadequate and lazy.

There was a bloke that worked at the local spare parts place that I frequent, not there anymore due to health problems. A hell of a nice bloke, a real old time spare parts man that could quote parts numbers from his head. But a very religious bloke and there is no way you could get him to say "Start Ya Bastard".

Could not agree more. Fantastic.

I have had a lot of success in heating and cooling nuts, bolts and things to make it easier to remove, usually with an oxy torch. That would not not be appropriate, in fact very dangerous, on a fuel tank, of course. But I recently had trouble removing a jet from a carburettor and for similar reasons, I did not want to use a naked flame near fuel (mate used to call it "bang water"). I used an big old 100 watt electric soldering iron to heat the jet and when cool it came out quite easily. Might be worth trying on the fuel tank bung to heat, then cool, to loosen the bung.

You may be right. I did not notice that "silver thing". A photo taken a bit lower may show it a bit better. If that is the case, I wonder if the internals of the vacuum tank has been modified? Maybe, maybe not. Like Bob, I use both, but normally run on only vacuum tank.

Like Bob, I have one too. Jim, I think you are on the right track, and I agree with previous comments, just take it one step at a time. Make sure you have fuel in the vacuum tank, and make sure it is then getting to the Carbi. It should then start and run. That may not be the end of it, as stale fuel can cause many problems, as Bob says. And I also agree with the others, a great looking car. John

Glad I am not the only one that forgets what I already have.

Gee, that brings back some memories. The Nissan Patrol was mine and that's me standing on the trailer behind the gantry. Was a great trip except for my hand slipping off the high lift jack, which clouted me between they eyes and broke my nose! A lesson learned. John

Also don't touch with bare hands till painted (use gloves). Your sweat will start rust almost immediately, even when your hands feel dry. But a bigger threat is visitors, they always want to touch your nicely cleaned surface. Looks like you are doing a good job. It's a bugger of a job, but has to be done.

Ron, and a mate of mine says "he who makes no mistakes, does no work".

Thanks Fellas. Yes, pretty pleased, but there is always things you wish you had done differently or better. Still learning!!!

Thanks John & Matt. Matt, I used a Beugler tool to stripe the wheels but had difficulty using it for some parts of the body, so used "Finesse striping tape" for all of the body striping (and also striping the imitation wood grain garnish on the dash board). They have a huge range of tapes and the paint does not bleed under the tape even when using a brush. I used signwriting paint (One Shot) and there are no brush marks even using silver paint. Best of all, there is no need to mask up the rest of the car as with spraying. The tape lays down two bits of tape and you paint beween them. Multiple striped tapes available too. I purchased mine from Jacksons Art Supplies in the UK, I think they have a presence in Australia but when ordering on line, it has always come from UK.

Because this post goes back over 12 months, I probably should let anyone interested what has happened and where I am an NOW. Firstly, the motor trimmer. Pretty well everyone said this would be fraught with delays, despite what he said. They were quite correct, there were delays due to a previous job giving him delays, them his house including his workshop sold unexpectedly and he had to move into a new house (in a town about 30 Km away) and set up his workshop. Then he dropped an engine gantry on his foot and put him out of action for a few weeks, then covid caused delays with materials. I got the DA back in November and proceeded to finish off a number of small jobs prior to getting it registered for the road. Then followed a few small problems to be sorted out. But all this took much longer than it should have, because my Mum went into Aged Care in the middle of last year. That meant that her house had to be sold, so my wife and I spent countless hours clearing that out and preparing it for sale, which actually went quite smoothly. Them Mum passed away in January (a blessing, really, at 97 years of age), so more delays for the Dodge. However, the Dodge is on the road and going quite well. I am still trying to sort my feet out and am getting better. I am currently working on the interior blinds and grab handles and that should finish it off, but it is not stopping me from using it of course. I am very pleased with it so thought I would include a few photos. Again, thanks for all those who have helped with advice, parts and enthusiasm. It’s been an interesting project. John

Likewise, sorry to hear Ian. I know where you are comming from, buried my Mum fortnight ago. Life (death?) gets in the way of our cars sometimes. Still in my situation, Mum is in a better place. John