'51 Chieftain - relay location

[PhilAndrews]

Howdy, all.

 

I'm beginning to get dug into my Chieftain, trying to undo years of people messing with it.

 

The car's been "converted" to 12 volts, and a bunch of original bits are missing, presumed eBay-ed or binned.

 

I bought a 12V repro horn relay to fit, where was it originally located? Under the dash or on the firewall by the horns?

 

Thanks

 

 

Phil

[Pfeil]

What you really need is a genuine service manual, However I have seen the relay behind the horns but that doesn't mean cars haven't been tampered with. Sure would be nice if you went back to 6 volts.

[PhilAndrews]

I have the 51-52 manual but the diagrams are limited. That photo is a bit fuzzy, is that the relay hiding down by the horn?

 

Yes, 6V would be good but I'm going to keep it 12. Not to annoy anybody, more for practical purposes. 12v simplifies things like short-journey charging, low RPM charging (with addition of alternator), finding bulbs etc at any parts store, and the eventual addition of things like air conditioning are easier with 12v clutches and so forth. Also, abundance of parts means a single failed, difficult to source part doesn't keep the car off the road.

I've owned cars with dynamo generators and agree that yes, correctly set up there's nothing wrong with the systems for regular use with exception of long durations at low engine speed and the occasional dirty regulator contact.

 

However, the car will never be original. I do know that- the frame has been notched, the original paint is long gone, as is the original interior but what I plan on doing is try to keep it running, useable and fun for both myself and enjoyable for others to see.

 

The current alternator conversion is going in the bin, in favor of one in a housing that looks like the original generator. The air conditioning will not be a big old box sitting under the dash, I plan on implementing it into the existing heater ductwork. 

 

I choose this car to be sympathetic in its looks and engineering, retaining what makes sense and either altering or finding suitable alternatives for that which doesn't. The pieces which do not will be as well hidden as they can, to at least try and retain the original ethos of the vehicle. Build it as if it were a viable option when it was built. That's my aim.

 

I'm just trying to unpick the badly done bits, and the rest that has deteriorated to being unsafe. There are very few swap-meets around here and what there is often brings slim to nothing. Finding parts relies upon places like this and other Internet resources.

 

In short, the car's been hacked about enough but not so much that it's unrecognizable. I'm going to leave the beautiful concours vehicles to those who have the means. I am not, however, going kustom, radical or any of those directions. I like it the way it is. I just want it reliable as it can be so I can enjoy driving it.

 

 

...not a rant, more a thinking-out-loud.

 

Regards

 

 

Phil

Edited October 19, 2018 by PhilAndrews (see edit history)

[PONTIAC1953]

on your plans to implement the a/c into the existing heater ductwork, that will be interesting since the black box on the driver's side of the firewall above the steering column is the defroster for the windshield, and your car's heater is floor mounted underneath the driver's portion of the front seat. i'm fortunate enough to have a 1953 pontiac chieftain, which dash was reused in 1954, and pontiac was the first car in the world to offer up front, in dash, factory a/c in 1954. you might consider a rear trunk mounted a/c system, coming in through the rear package shelf inside the rear windshield.

[PhilAndrews]

Yeah, there's a couple ways, most of it involving new ductwork in the inner fender. The cooling would be via the screen (not much use) or in greater volume from under the seat, and depending on how it can be done, via the duct proper under the dash that blows up quite well towards the driver.

 

Also that would allow for good condensate drain.

 

Phil

Edited October 22, 2018 by PhilAndrews
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