Spinneyhill

According my 1936 Mackay "Silentruba" catalogue, all Plymouth 4s 1928-31 used Tryon spring shackles. I am not sure what that means, but pictures of later ones found on the 'web show they consist of a steel bush, threaded on the inside, that pushes into the spring eye (and another for the chassis eye), a bolt that threads into the bush and a pair of more or less flat metal hangers into which the bolts fit. Other bits finish it. The bolts are drilled for grease with a nipple on one end. Mackay list bushes with "rubber" sandwiched between steel inner and outer tubes for 1933-on Plymouths.

Hello David and Happy New Year, Maybe and no. There is a plate that shape high on the firewall RHS but it is almost all grey = paint (or transfer) free. I understand all RH control DBs were built in Canada. I think I read it somewhere in a book about DBs. My unreliable memory says 86 RH control were built. Regards Graham

Xclnt. Thanks Bob.

Hello Everyone, I have diff oil in the brake drum mounting tapers both sides. Is there a source of the rear axle seals? For what it is worth, the factory part number for the inner seals is 43049, a steel-felt originally. The outer is 43053, a steel-leather originally. According to the 1940 FeltPro catalogue, the inner is 1 7/32" ID, 2.322" OD, 13/32" thick. The outer is more difficult because the brake drum hub it seals against is tapered and it is a bolt-on job. One shop I went to said I could buy sheet felt and make a new felt sleeve for the inner. Maybe - but how to make the join? Even the size for the inner is not listed in the catalogue we looked in. Thanks for any ideas anyone may have. Regards Graham P.S. These seals also fit... Inner Dodge DD-DH-DL 6, DC-DG 8; Dodge truck F10 half ton to 8102771; De Soto K-CK-SA-SC 6; CF 8; Fargo KC half ton packet Plymouth 1928-32 4 cyl; Chrysler 66-SJ-CM-CI 6; 1930 8 cyl CD-CP; Outer As above plus Dodge DK; Dodge Truck UF10 4 Cyl; Chrysler 30-33 8cyl CD-CP-CT-CQ.

I am afraid there is a lot of mis-information out there about oil. I have just looked at ZDDPlus™ - ZDDP for Classic, Muscle Cars & More. There are a series of technical articles on oils and ZDDP. Their conclusions in TechBrief14 " ZDDP and Pre-WWII Engines" are attached. Obviously they are attempting to sell their product, but the tech briefs on the web site read very well. There is a fair bit of research behind those papers. They describe the friction of flat tappet lifters compared to modern (post about 1996) roller lifters. There is an argument about tappet pressure on the cam; you would need to work out what the spring pressure is in your old engine before accepting the comment earlier that valve springs in old motors are pretty weak. They use a fairly colloquial term for the spring pressure (x pounds): is that force on the entire lifter, or pressure per square inch (psi), and is it a force (i.e. pound-force, which is sort of a weight when vertical and includes gravity) or a mass only? One conclusion is that using an old-style non-detergent oil is a bad idea. The dispersants only affect particles smaller than 5 microns, and they take a long time to settle in the sump. The purpose of the dispersants is that these suspended particles come out at oil change time. There is a remote possibility that sludge mobilized by a change to modern oil may build up around the pump intake. But if the engine is that full of sludge, it is rebuild time anyway. At least remove the sump and clean it out before changing. Modern full flow filters don't remove these sub-5 micron particles. Remember that Ford recommended Model T oil be changed at 500 mile intervals in summer and 300 miles in winter! Enuff! The sun is shining. Time to take a DC wheel off and change the tyre or tire. Groan - it is not a pleasurable job. Graham

Stewart and Dave, John Rumbery at Replicore tells me that the company in UK that makes the core similar to ours is the The Vintage Car Radiator Company. He says "Email Robert at The Vintage Car Radiator Company email@vintagecarradiatorcompany.co.uk tell him I have passed you on and you should be able to get a core from him." Regards Graham

Thanks very much Dave. Well that's that then: mine is not like that. I'll ask around here and see if anyone says they can do it. Edit: An outfit called Replicore advertise in the local Vintage Car Club magazine. www.replicore.co.nz. They say they manufacture radiator cores for vintage cars and warbirds. [The warbirds they refer to are probably the ex-military aeroplanes that are thriving in this country. BTW, the first Mosquito to fly for decades has just flown in Christchurch, where it was rebuilt for a US owner.] They show an "expanded square diamond" 7 or 8 mm in the "Cartridge core" catalogue on the web site. 2nd Edit: I emailed them and the response is that "although that type of core is on our tooling list to make we have yet to get there sorry". They recommend ADRAD in Auckland, who make a hexagonal pattern. They say our local repairer may be able to access the same core from ADREASD, which looks like a subsidiary of ADRAD. Regards Graham

Good move! Any particular years and models Buick? I'll look into that one. Thanks. Graham

Does the CF have two sets of points in the distributor? Fiddly thing to set up on the DC. Hard on the back too, leaning over it. My car probably has a higher compression too, due the head being shaved more than once. On one of those surfacings I think it was taken to about 6:1 deliberately. It still likes "stale" petrol though! I have seen National Radiators advertising. That is my fall-back plan if the sealant doesn't work. I suppose mine has a later core but I don't know when it is from. Thanks for the size info. Regards Graham

I have a tiny leak in the radiator. I am trying the cheap option first: "Soldrit". Probably a bad idea, but we might get a little time before the radiator job. I would like to know the original radiator pattern they had for when it is rebuilt. That carb rebuild wasn't cheap! I did something similar to a Studebaker (Stromberg) carb. Haven't had it on the vehicle yet. I like the dyno idea too. I note the power at the wheel is about two thirds the quoted flywheel power! My DC runs very poorly when cold, but once warm seems to go well. Another project is to get the exhaust heating valve to work, which should improve cold performance. When I lived in Wellington it would freeze around the carburetor venturi when started in cooler whether, so I would idle it for 5 or 10 mins, shut down, go inside and get my lunch etc. and it would drive away perfectly after a few minutes rest to warm up the carburetor. Harrumph. After its 3-yr rest all the brake cylinders are gummed up around the pistons, so that is my other job while I play with the cooling. Then I will replace the brake fluid. Graham

Stewart: thanks very much for your help. I am a bit nervous about attempting to undo the drain stud in mine. Maybe... As far as I can see, there is no drain plug or tap on the block listed in the chassis parts book. Does your DC have the Stromberg carb? I am running an adjustable-jet Tillotson of the period; it gives about 13.5 mpg on average, whereas the Stromberg will pull tree stumps but I only get about 11 mpg. (This is the "Imperial Gallon" or 4.546 litres; US Gallon is 3.79 litres.) 1930: Thanks for your response. I could "pull the bottom hose" as you suggest, but it is such a pain - a serious pain - and won't drain the block anyway. Also, the car is inside after a 3-year rest and I don't want to flood the garage with cooling water. The cross member and bottom pan result in water flooding uncontrollably. BTW Stewart, I have a 1980-81 Commodore 4 cylinder top hose (110-120 mm removed from top end) as the lower hose instead of the two short straight hoses plus steel tube bend. It makes it a bit less pain when working on it: fewer hose clips to undo in very tight spots. I put this on when I was having trouble with the water pump and taking it off frequently. Graham

Thanks very much Stewart. I have drained the radiator (put a wee hose on the tap through the hole in the cross member), but only got about 9 L out of it and it should hold 11.9 or so. I have a stud in that hole you show. Is that tap on yours a Dodge one? Please use black braided spark plug wire! The yellow checked stuff is used by everyone here, including me in my younger days, but I believe it comes from later. Graham

Thanks very much Stewart. I have drained the radiator (put a wee hose on the tap through the hole in the cross member), but only got about 9 L out of it and it should hold 11.9 or so. I have a stud in that hole you show. Is that tap on yours a Dodge one? Please use black braided spark plug wire! The yellow checked stuff is used by everyone here, including me in my younger days, but I believe it comes from later. Graham

Thanks Stewart. I used Marston Hylomar gasket goo on the cork. I'll try the loctite one. It sounds like I'll have to do the job properly. Again. Sigh! Photo attached. Do you have one of yours? I saw the image you posted on my other thread and thought "right hand control, YAY" before I saw where you were from! We have one cabriolet in NZ and one "coupe" cut down DC sedan, plus a CF coupe, from memory. Mine is very early in the run: body SED 545. Graham

Thanks for your reply Terry. I had thought of copper washers, but there are two problems. Firstly, good paint over and around them is essential - otherwise they promote rust in steel nearby due to galvanic action. Secondly, tightening them up is not really very good because the diff cover is not very heavy. It just deforms under the bolt and squeezes the cork gasket out, making the leak worse. This is how it was before I tidied it up. I was thinking of something more crushable. Not sure what though; I even thought of those red fibre washers. I have tried thread seal - PTFE tape to be precise. It didn't work. It works for water, but I have never had success with it for oil. That is why I used a cyanoacrylate thread sealant from Loctite. I am fairly certain the leak is along the bolt threads. There is oil around the two bottom bolt heads and on top of the lip on the bottom of the diff cover - it couldn't be there if the leak was from the gasket, unless it was right at the bolts and came out at the bolt. However, I was trying to be cheap. Probably, as you say, replacing the gasket and putting in new thread seal on clean threads would be the best, perhaps with soft washers too. Thanks again. Graham

My DC drips oil from the diff. I think it is coming along the thread on the bottom bolt. All the cover bolts have one end in the oil and one in the air - dumb idea. How do you seal it to keep the oil in? When I swapped the crown wheel and pinion about 15 years ago, I went to a great deal of trouble to first clean and then seal the bolt threads with Loctite Thread Seal. I got four years of clean floor then the flood gates cracked open and have gradually opened further since. I was thinking of trying another clean and thread seal, this time with a soft washer under the bolt (something like a spark plug washer) as well. I suppose the steel must be spotless under the washer too, i.e. no paint or rust. Help! Any experts out there? Graham

I need to drain the engine cooling system. I am not sure where the block drain plug or bolt is. There is a bolt behind number 8 at the rear of the motor, behind the starter motor. This bolt is low down and looks like it would work. Is that the drain? Thanks for your help. Graham :confused:

A very important aspect of your oil is that it must be suitable for flat tappet engines, which means it should contain ZDDP or similar. If it does not say on the pack it is good for flat tappets, look for one that does. I use Penrite, which is formulated for older engines (but still meets the latest SAE standards). I am using 20W-50 in my DB 8. SAE 30 is a very low spec: good for lawn mowers and the like and perhaps as a running in oil.