RobV

On the actual Dodge part, the round piece with the 'DB' in it. Are those the ones that suffer from pot metal disease? Is there any chance someone has one in one piece that I can make a cast from? Minor surface pits aren't a problem as I can fix that once I have a mold of the original. Thanks, Rob

It's been a while since I checked in with the forum, but I'd like to be on the list also! Rob@Dragondark.us '29 DA coupe

Richard, As far as I know they were positive ground, at least all of them I have seen. The guys to ask are 1930 and nearchocolatetown, they have helped me immensely.

34 texan, Which model is it? I've got a '34 PE that a 'street rodder' cut the front frame rails off at the firewall and discarded that section. So I need the measurements too. Rob

You guys crack me up. Jason, you should know your original part, lol. Well, the pieces that have molds and forms for are almost complete. You see the button and the retaining ring (fibre washer), and Jason has a pic of the hand wound reproduction springs. Oh, and I found a distributor for the cheesehead screws that look like the original. I have one last piece to make reproductions of, and that's the spring cup that screws to the horn button. I've started on the dies but have a problem with tearing the brass plate when I'm pressing a piece to shape. I'm beginning to think they used progressive dies to make the spring cup. I'll keep you informed. Rob

Ok, you guys have prompted me to take this past the 'functional' area that I always aim for. Here's a pic of the final repro's next to the original item.

ok, thank you Dwollam

If you can't find them, they look like they would be a simple part to machine.

What year is that? Look similar to the '22 touring I saw at the concourse over the weekend

Lol, it's not that hard guys. In fact part of letting me borrow the parts for a pattern is that I'm filming all of the steps and mistakes so that 1930 can learn to do it. One of the things that has to be fixed is that air bubble in the lower lip. Is it easier for people to watch the videos online or on a dvd? Let me know and I will try to accomodate.

Yeah, Harley was big on the military 1/4x24 thread for quite a while. If you need something tapped, die'd, or a screw check with your local dealer. Rob

Mine has the double wire.

Jason, thanks. I'll look through the left over pieces in the crate and see if I have any of them. I didn't know what to look for until now. I'll get back to you if I need a piece to copy. Rob

DodgeKCL, Thanks for the info. I think I got it all. I don't understand though why 15 amps during the day with everything off now is too much, yet you said I should set the generator for 15 amps <span style="font-style: italic">slightly above idle</span> with everything off. How does setting the amperage at 15 amp slightly above idle get me to seeing 5 amps driving down the road? Does the charge rate vary with battery charge? If so, then perhaps my new battery is faulty and it is requiring the generator to supply too much. I keep the battery on a tender whenever it is not being used I have a question about the ammeter itself. The previous owner disconnected the original ammeter for whatever reason and it is running on a 'new' ammeter like you would buy from a local parts store. Being as our cars are a positive ground while the gauge was made for a negative ground car, and given the workings of an ammeter, isn't it possible that the meter could be reading backward if improperly installed?

Everything is starting to make a lot more sense. With all of the pieces missing including the long rod, the return spring was never put in the right place. Funny how it makes sense when you see how its done correctly.

1930, once again a big 'Thank you!'. So the rods end up connecting to the pedal or somewhere nearby the pedal then. I would have gotten it completely wrong and guessed that it went to the carb. lol.

1930, in the pics you posted of the light switch at the bottom of the column, one of the pics shows the hand throttle lever arm. it looks like there is a rod attatched to the arm and not a cable as I would have expected. Is the stock hand throttle connected by rod? Mine is missing and I am curious.

Thanks for all the great help on this. All of the guage 'windows' for the light cleaned up, except for the speedo, which had old packing tape with the strings in it for a window. The switch looks like just a basic toggle. Is that about right? Does the lampholder that goes in the bracket 'snap' into the holder or does it bolt in? Early Harley's had a lamp holder with little 'fingers' around the lamp that snapped into holes like the one in the bracket. I'm going to try to adjust the generator tomorrow. Wish me luck. LOL

Thanks, I think I found the light bracket mounted on the back of the oil gauge. The previous owner primered the backs of the gauges and covered the little windows, but thankfully the primer is coming off with a little rubbing compound. Now I just need to find the right style switch and a lamp holder.

Could you please post a pic. The instruction book only says that the instrument panel light is controlled by a switch at the base of the panel but the front compartment diagram doesn't show where the switch or light should be. Thanks!

Ok, thank you all for the answers. Seems I'm doing about right then.

I've got a question kinda related to this. What kind of top speeds are you guys getting from your cars? I know first gear is real low on these things, second is a little better, and third is all right but when I think that I'm winding the motor about mid RPM in third everyone says Im doing around 40 MPH. Any '29 da owners got input on this? Thanks

Well, i finally took it out at night and other than the fact I realized there are NO dash lights (how do you guys deal with that) it was pretty fun. One thing I noticed is that my generator usually is showing 15 amps charge when Im driving during the day and it drops to 0 when I am stopped at a light. At night when I turned on the headlamps the amperage dropped to 0 or a little below. That made me a little nervous. If I turned on the cowl lamps then I was at a continuous 3 amp discharge. More nervous. When I came to a stop at a light it was showing 15 amps discharge. Is that normal in your experience or do I need to rebuild the generator and set the regulator?

It might not be applicable here, but on a small single cylinder motorcycle case with a .005 crack in it I melted old body filler lead and poured it into the crack. I then filed off the excess and painted the case. It's got some miles on it and hasn't blistered the paint or leaked yet.

Thanks for the info. I have a rectifier and the solutions for plating various metals from previous projects, so I'll have a go at it. Thanks again! Rob