Bloo

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1) Get a shop manual. Do you have a lot of slop in the wheel bearings? Can you move the wheel up/down by hand indicating bearing slop? A little in/out slop at the axle is normal. You'll see why when you take it apart, if you take it apart. Short version of wheel bearing replacement: Drain axle, remove pan at center, remove whatever is holding the spider gear shaft in, probably a pin/bolt thing with a smaller head, 1/2" approx. Rotate differential case as necessary and slide spider gear shaft out, catching any spider gears, shims, etc that it is holding in, and also the center block. I HIGHLY recommend keeping track of any shims and keeping them isolated with the gear they came from. Remove block (if it didn't fall out) and any remaining spider gear parts. With block out, slide axle(s) *in* a little for clearance at the center. Remove cotter pins (if used) and nuts from axle(s), slide axle(s) out. Side gears are loose now, and can be removed if you want. I'd just slide them back in all the way because there are probably more shims you would need to keep track of if you removed them. Now with the axle(s) out of the way, you can see the seals and bearings. They are "Hyatt" style bearings as used by GM clear into the late 70s and probably more recent than that. Not exactly the same bearings though. You should have new correct bearing(s) and seals for this car in your hand before you go any further. Bearings from that era might be a problem. There may be replaceable inner race(s) on the axle(s). Look closely. See if the bearing runs directly on the axle, probably not in 1936, but on later Hyatt bearing equipped cars it definitely did run directly on the axle. Obtain new inner race(s) or usable axle(s) if necessary. Fashion some kind of a puller or *maybe* use a 3 legged expanding slide hammer attachment to get the bearing(s) and seal(s) out. Drive new parts in with correct size bearing drivers. Reassemble. Refill with gear oil. If there were brass or bronze bushings in there, get some oil that is safe for "yellow metals". That is a detail the shop manual won't cover. No brass/bronze in there? Then just get some ordinary "GL-5" rear axle type oil. And get a shop manual. Yes I said that twice. I hate to be like that, but it matters. Now the important part. That "scrape" doesn't really look like wheel bearing trouble to me. Are the wheels stock and the tires the correct size? If so, look at whatever holds the axle in the car in the side to side direction. It is probably the spring shackles. Unlike most cars, there are probably shackles at both the front and the back of the leaf springs on this car. Likely at least some of them are greasable screw bushings that might be worn out. Others could be rubber, and that is even more likely to be shot. If(?) the car has a panhard rod, a sideways bar behind the axle with one end connected to the frame and the other end to the axle, check it's bushings very closely. I don't think you have this, but if you do, it is the first place to look. With more information about what is going on, maybe we can help. Good luck with your project.

Are there new hood hinges available for these cars somewhere? I could use some...

Assuming 40s-50s-60s-70s American cars with ordinary drop center 13-14-15-16 inch rims, Ignore it and put in 35 pounds. You can go a little higher if the tires maximum rating will allow it. Never less than 30 pounds.

Extending a rod is unlikely to do much. It is the angle of the fork that matters. If the angle is wrong so that the outer end of the fork is further away, the rod will push less and less the further it pushes. If that is the case, I would suspect you need a thicker throw out bearing, or need a taller fork ball. This article is for Jeeps with engine swaps, but you may find it interesting. https://www.novak-adapt.com/knowledge/clutches-etc/ In particular, this bit of sage advice applies to a lot of things that are not Jeeps...

You have to break the following circuit somewhere... The normal current path for charging is as follows: Generator post >> "GEN" terminal [[regulator box]] "BAT terminal >> existing ammeter post [[ammeter in car]] other existing ammeter post >> post on starter >> battery cable >> battery post [[battery]] other battery post >> other battery cable >> body/frame/engine/straps/whatever >> generator bracket/case Think if it as a big loop from the generator to the battery and back. If you want to measure current while charging, you have to break the circuit somewhere and insert your (second) ammeter. There shouldn't be any alternative path from the generator to the battery and back other than through your ammeter if you want useful results. I suggested at the "BAT" terminal of the firewall mounted regulator because it sounded like an easy place to break the circuit, but I haven't seen your truck. Anywhere in the loop would work. Or to test the ammeter you could just do what @Frank DuVal and @Ben Bruce aka First Born said, and use a battery and a headlight. A 6v headlight draws about 8 or 9 amps or so at 6 volts. For example: battery post >> ammeter terminal [[your ammeter]] other ammeter terminal >> headlight bulb terminal [[headlight bulb]] other headlight bulb terminal >> other battery post Headlight should come on and ammeter should read about 9 amps charge (or 9 amps discharge, depending on which way the current is flowing through it).

Well, since you have an external regulator, I don't think it will turn on and start charging. That's why I asked. I would disconnect the wire at the BAT terminal on the regulator. Hook the wire you took away from the BAT terminal of the regulator to one post of the ammeter. Hook the other ammeter post to the BAT terminal. That should work.

That should work. Yes, so the current has to go THROUGH the ammeter. No. Don't ground it. A good ammeter is a dead short internally. They run with both sides hot. The battery being used for the test must have the other post grounded to the car as normal. I am making the bold assumptions that 1) the car's charge wiring is disconnected from the generator (tape it, it's hot). and 2) the cutout/regulator box is still on the generator, as it would be in a mid 30s Dodge, and you are connected to the cutout/regulator where the car's wiring would normally connect. I don't know how many amps you will get, but it should sure show you which direction is which. Regarding item 2 above, I think I remember from some other thread that you have a newer generator? If so, you'd best tell us what you have, because if there is an external regulator box on the firewall you would have to turn the generator "on" by "full fielding" it. In that case a different hookup might be easier.

I believe most of the new production ones are 8-wire. What models have you found so far? I don't consider the feature very useful for most cars, but I don't know your individual car or situation. As you probably know if you were reading a thread that discussed them in length, they just share the parking light bulb in front like a 7-wire switch shares the brake light bulb. The issue is this. Parking light bulbs are tiny in light output, often 1.5 candlepower, compared to about 16-21(?) candlepower for a brake light. Some jurisdictions in the 30s required you to leave a light on all night. It sounds crazy now, but in the interest of not running the battery dead, the automakers used the dimmest bulbs commonly available. No way are they good enough for signal lights in the daytime. If you up the candlepower to something more like a brake light bulb, it ups the wattage. Used as a parking light, that is going to run really hot, probably melting lenses if they are plastic, possibly blistering paint if the housings are painted. You could potentially solve the heat problem by using bright LED bulbs in front, but the parking lights won't look like parking lights anymore if they are extremely bright. In some cars it is practical to change the socket to a dual contact one and run a second wire, but then you don't need an 8-wire switch. In my opinion, for most cars, I would just abandon the park light function altogether. Sorry for the short hijack, but it least it is a thread bump. Good luck on your search for an 8 wire turn signal switch.

Yeah, that's not going to work well with a resistor. A klaxon is a DC motor, and DC motors make maximum torque and draw the most current when they are stalled. That means the horn has a much lower internal resistance when the motor is starting than when it is running. The resistance of any resistor you use will be more or less constant. There is no way to cut it back to a constant 6 volts with a resistor. It is electrically impossible. The voltages will divide according to the resistances, but the resistance of the motor goes up when it starts spinning. That means most of the voltage will be across the resistor when the motor is not turning. When the motor needs a bunch of power to start, its probably getting 2 volts or something and the resistor is getting the rest. You can't fool mother nature. The best you can do in a situation like that is choose a resistor with a low enough resistance to get enough voltage so that the motor starts good, and hope the motor does not burn up. As soon as the motor starts it will be running on quite a bit more voltage than it is designed for. Maybe it will work acceptably without burning up and maybe it won't. I don't know. The only good way to fix it would be to rewind the motor for 12 volts.

This is complicated. The short answer is either "none" or "the one it came with". There was little interchangeability in those years. There are probably versions of both the Cast Iron Torqueflite and 2-speed Powerflite that could be bolted to the engine, I think. Major changes came every year during those times. It would have to be real close to the same year and model as what is already there, and if it was not exact, there would likely be problems. The longer answer is that with the bellhousing spacer removed from the block, the bellhousing of any 1962 or later aluminum torqueflite, 727 or 904 (including 998, 999), or the overdrive versions of any of these would PROBABLY bolt to the block, as long as the transmission was one that was originally bolted to a 318 or an "LA" engine of any displacement (no B/RB engines or slant sixes). The bellhousings are not removable from any of these transmissions, they are cast in place. The big problem is the crankshaft. It is not compatible. I mean not at all. If you were to rebuild the engine with a later crankshaft, like one from a 1962-66 318, or with a rebalanced crank from a LA273, LA318, or LA340 of any year it would PROBABLY bolt up. Maybe even a crank from something later like a 318 magnum (no 360s). There are other things to think about. 1957 era Mopar transmissions had no "Park", so you had to use the e-brake, and it was mounted on the back of the transmission. Removing the transmission leaves you with no e-brake. Pushbutton transmissions were cable operated, and the aluminum Torqueflites that might bolt to your block (but not your crank) were only cable operated 1962 through 1965. Those transmissions have park, but the pushbuttons in the 1957 car do not have park. With a 1966 or later transmission, you are stuck with a linkage. Aluminum Torqueflites with an e-brake on the back did exist, but only for huge Dodge trucks, and anyway I don't think aluminum Torqueflites like that existed in the pushbutton era. Maybe, but I have personally never seen one. Another gotcha with the overdrive versions of the aluminum Torqueflites specifically is the size at the back. They are huge. I don't think there are many if any older cars they fit in without a bunch of cutting.

There's a leek? I only see a seal....

If you know where the spot is, maybe you can separate the short and apply a little varnish.

Now that we know it has a voltage regulator (thanks @Lee H !), make sure the voltage regulator points have not stuck.

If this is a third brush generator with only a cutout, and I think it probably is, check for a bad connection in the wiring somewhere in the circuit from the cutout, through the ammeter to the battery. You might also want to drag a small file (once, very lightly, with battery disconnected) between the points of the cutout. Could the generator be badly grounded? New paint on the mountings? That might do it. Offhand I don't recall what your generator is like on that car. Is it third brush? A peculiarity of third brush generators is they absolutely must be connected to a load, usually a battery, while charging. It is because voltage supplied to the field (the electromagnet) by the third brush is a percentage of the generator voltage. If the generator voltage rises, the field voltage rises (it's a percentage!) and makes the generator charge even more. The voltage runs away, and the field soon gets more voltage than it can handle, draws more current than it can handle, and burns up. Here is an example, voltage is unregulated, so it is hard to predict what it will be, but probably 7 or 8 volts or so normally while charging. Just pulling some numbers out of the air, lets say it is 7.5 volts, and lets say the field is running on 70 percent of that, or 5.25 volts, and lets say the field draws 3 amps. It's resistance is 1.75 Ohms (Ohms law). If the battery gets disconnected, the generator voltage can go up because there is no voltage regulator holding it back. It will go as high as it can until it meets some physical or electrical limit. Lets say it instantly goes to 30 volts. It could be even higher. Since I am pulling these numbers out of the air, lets just go with 30. The field runs on 70 percent of that or 21 volts. The 1.75 Ohm winding will now draw 12 amps (Ohms Law) through magnet wire that was sized for 3 amps. The smoke will come out. I am guessing your fuse is probably in the field circuit to prevent this exact scenario. If they put a fuse in the charging circuit, a blown fuse would cause this scenario rather than preventing it. It's also possible that your field could be shorted to ground inside the generator somewhere, but I think a bad connection in the charging circuit is much more likely.

That is a thing in Pontiac, it is interesting to learn that it is a thing in Buick, too. The literature says that the daubs are on the axle ends, and I have seen it there, but there is a daub on the bottom of the pumpkin that isn't mentioned. I doubt the colors cross over, but apparently the practice does.

Pontiac used a Large Chevrolet-based transmission (Master, Eagle, etc., not Standard) from 1933 to early 1935. It is likely a lot of parts interchange. This part may be different? I could not cross it, but that doesn't necessarily prove anything.

That link leads to a blank page. The 3800 block of Sullivan Road is in Spokane Valley, WA, not Spokane. The city of Spokane Valley was incorporated in 2003. Before that, it would have been unincorporated Spokane County and had a Spokane address. 3808 N Sullivan Rd. is a LaQuinta hotel. I wonder how long they are staying, and I hope they haven't checked out by the time you get there. How convenient. Maybe you can get a room on the same floor. https://www.wyndhamhotels.com/laquinta/spokane-valley-washington/la-quinta-spokane-valley/overview

That ploy has been so overused in scams in recent years that it has become a meme, and most of the scammers have to abandon it for fear of getting laughed at. Run, don't walk. Don't look back.

Should be able to get some in through the center cap hole. If the center cap is *not a reproduction* it pries right off. These wheels do have a problem with swelling and getting stuck, usually more around the lug nuts than the hub, but I have experienced both. A long soak and some judicious use of a leather or other soft mallet might do it.

Yep. I don't think so. Everyone who has a wheel for sale will tell you that though. These are either Kelsey Hayes Magstar or Magstar II, I forget which. One has much bigger vent holes than the other. There might(?) be other differences, but that is enough to separate types of Magstar at a glance. If I remember correctly, the Shelby wheel is neither but looks similar to both. 235-70-15 since 1985....

Now THERE'S some rose colored glasses... The issue with these wheels is when someone does manage to get them on a tire machine, the pressure from the bead breaker will bust out the aluminum in the center where the cap goes. As i recall they weren't the only aluminum centered wheels with that issue. No problem today. Rim clamp machines are in every tire shop. You hardly ever see a 20-20 anymore.

It could be, but if it is drawing enough current to do that I would expect something to be getting hot. That condenser, being effectively hooked to the "live" side of the coil and not the points side, has nothing to do with the ignition. It is just to reduce electrical noise, probably for an AM radio. You can disconnect it and see. It won't hurt anything. I would be suspicious of the contacts in the ignition switch, and that is where I would look next if disconnecting the condenser doesn't do anything.

Interesting. The Coats 40-40A I had access to at work at the time (~1986) looked exactly like that at the center post. As I recall the hole in the center of the Marauder wheels was too small to fit. The 20-20 must be a little smaller.

There are some Sprague IC catalogs on Internet Archive. One of the type of chips they manufactured were "relay drivers". These mostly consist of 4 logic gates driving 4 transistors. Logic gates and pinouts vary. Unfortunately the part number on that chip 8917242C appears to be custom (not a Sprague part number). It would open all sorts of possibilities if we knew exactly what was inside the chip. I imagine you have already seen these catalogs, but here they are just in case you haven't. 1972: https://ia801701.us.archive.org/27/items/sprague/sprague.pdf 1982: https://ia800608.us.archive.org/7/items/bitsavers_spraguedatagueIntegratedCircuits_67590575/1982_IND502_Sprague_Integrated_Circuits.pdf