idrjoe_sandiego

Ply33 - My bad. I deleted my incorrect info on my earlier post re: bulb base on headlamps. Thank you for making that correction and sharing the correct information. Sorry for picking the wrong nits! Apologies to the forum, Joe

Gotta love a good guessing game!

To Ply33: Not to belabor this point, and I am not disagreeing with your information, but at least in the 1929 Dodge headlamp system, which most definitely is a High Beam/Lo Beam setup, how does one get the bulb to operate properly without indexed pins? Do you just guess which way to insert the bulb?

So are you saying that the engine won't turn over with the starter motor or it wont turn over even when you hand crank it? The first thing that comes to mind in this situation is the engine is hydro-locked. Easy to figure out. Pull all the plugs and see if it will turn over with no compression resistance. If hydro-locking was the problem, usually the engine turns freely after the plugs are removed. Additionally fluid will shoot out from the affected cylinder(s) as you turn the engine over. Another possibility is the engine is truly seized from lack of oil or water in the crankcase oil. What is/was the oil level and how does the oil look/smell? Does the oil look like chocolate milk?

Hey Rick: Sorry to hear about your beautiful DeSoto. I love that car! Help me understand your situation. Are you saying that you had not started the engine for 2.5 yrs, but when you recently tried to start it, it started up ok and ran for 15 minutes and you smelled varnish? Then you cleaned the carb, but when you tried to restart it, suddenly the engine was seized? If I am getting your story correct, no question, over time, unSTABILized modern fuel turns to varnish and will muck up the fuel tank, the carb, and anything in between. The varnish usually is trapped in the fuel line, the carb or the fuel filter, preventing the engine from running very well or at all. I just don't see how a running engine would seize because of the varnish. As Doug points out, it is possible the valves are affected, but if that were the case, the engine would have never run for 15 mins. IMHO something beyond varnish is to blame.

Quote from Ply33: "I bought some Ba15d LED replacements that looked very much like those on your link but from a different vendor and could not get them to focus in my 1933 Plymouth." Ply33 makes a valid point about focusing LED lamps. The vastly oversimplified short story is that factory headlamps utilize a parabolic reflector. The beam of the headlamp is "focused" by moving the bulb's filament (a theoretical "point-source" of light) to a point which is coincident with the parabolic reflector's focal point. This results (theoretically) in a relatively bright parallel headlamp beam. The problem with an LED headlamp is that there is no single "point-source" of light. The lamps contain a multitude of "point-sources" which can differ dramatically in space, by sometimes an inch or more. I question the LED vendor's claim that these bulbs can be "focused" like the original filament type bulbs without some optically engineered reflector. LED's have their advantages, but a good focus is not one of them. Some vendors more accurately describe their LED headlamps as a "soft focus". For example see http://www.classicandvintagebulbs.com/

Found 'em. http://www.logolites.com/products/led-headlights/ LED headlamps: direct replacement for 1929-1935 Dodge Brothers. Features: Dual Hi/Lo Beam / Pos or Neg ground available /6V-12V For use with Generator or Alternator/ Draws minimal current Results look like Matt's but no socket changes needed. Focus is same as OEM. Downside is price --around $30 each.

Matt- No question- safety first. I don't know about Oz, but in San Diego most drivers are preoccupied with texting and earbuds. Anything you do to wake 'em up is a good idea. Kudos to those nice bright LED's. My '29 DA Phaeton has 35-50W halogens on the original BAY15D base. They are nice and bright, but not like your LED's. On my '29 DA Sedan, I have the original 6V (#1000) BAY15D headlamps. You need a match to see if they are lit. If anyone knows of any LED headlight bulbs on the BAY15D base for sale, please come forward. P.S. I love the color scheme on your Victory 6 !

SOLD

stakeside- "Not sure how to remove main shaft. It is frozen solid." Trying to understand the problem. Are you referring to the shaft that your speedometer cable connects to? If so, I am correct in assuming you were attempting to rotate that shaft manually (with a small screwdriver or whatever) and it refuses to rotate? I am also assuming you have soaked it in your favorite penetrating oil and it still wont budge?

Kenendcindyc: Nice forensic axle rundown. It makes sense that it happens over some time and would tend to explain why my axle broke without a sound.

It's the main odometer numbers that are all moving together. I agree, that pin needs to be inspected. But after seeing the bloody wreckage in the above photo, maybe I should reconsider any further investigation!

That's the exact place where the axle broke in my 1929 Dodge Brothers. It happened without any fanfare or warning. I was driving about 20 mph less than a block away from a car show, stopped at a stop sign and then nothing. No movement or sound other than the engine. You might expect that snapping a hunk of steel over 1 inch in diameter would create some excitement. AAA to the rescue.

I have an issue with a 1929 NE Speedometer wherein the odometer numbers want to rotate as a group. This doesn't happen all the time, but it is interesting to watch as it happens. I haven't dissected it yet, but does anyone have any guesses as to why this might happen and how to repair it? RichBad's disassembly of a nearly identical unit seen here might hold the clue:

Nice looking Pontiac. I have the roadster version. I would love to see you post some more pictures of your long lost family treasure. And by all means, do tell: How did you finally find it and what did it take to get it back in the family?

SOLD...

Chudwah- Thanks for the diagrams. Sorry for the long delay to acknowledge, but I only check in 1-2x per month. Interesting and fun facts! Depending on the travel of the sedan's seat, the sedan looks like the winner here.

JD- Thanks for the quick reply. I may take you up on that offer. The truck is beautiful. I was unaware of the urban legend, but happy to see it dispelled.

JD - Quick question on a Model A truck vs. a Fordor with respect to "creature comforts." My Dad is 90yrs old and drives the heck out of his '31 Town Sedan. Getting in and out is somewhat challenging due to the relatively narrow gap between the seat and the side panel. (The seat is in its rear most position). Is there any difference with a truck?

John- You are worth a hell of a lot more than the price of this truck. Your wealth of knowledge and generosity is absolutely amazing. I am grateful to have become friends with you and Cherrie over the years. It is always such a hoot when we get together. You two are the best! I am always impressed with the support everyone on this forum gives. That was an extra special move making that offer to John. It couldn't go to a better recipient.

Edinmass- Agreed! Not a big fan of that color scheme either, but I think one could learn to live with it considering the outstanding detail and condition.

Back to the $125K Cadillac that started this discussion... Isn't that the same vehicle which recently sold at Amelia Island for $84K? $41K for a quick-flip! (or Needless Markup). Such a gorgeous car!! https://rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/am20/amelia-island/lots/r0042-1931-cadillac-v-8-convertible-coupe-by-fleetwood/841086#

Not far from me there is an auto repair shop that caters to older cars from the 40’s to the 70’s. Whenever I pass this place, it is always fun to see what’s sitting on the lot. Last week, I decided it was a good time to take advantage of the “no- traffic” pandemic situation and take one of my old cars for a spin. As I drove past the repair shop, I noticed something was amiss. Apparently there was a catastrophic land slide on the business just adjacent to the shop. The landslide collapsed one entire side of the repair shop’s lot, flattening a bunch of the old cars into automotive pancakes. Two amazing things about this: (1) thankfully no one was injured and (2) not one word was mentioned about this on the local news. If this happened three months ago, Fox News would have been all over this; but the story was not even on their radar! They are too busy reporting about the end of the world if you don’t wear your face mask.

I have this mystery (to me) item hanging in my garage and can't figure out what it is. I have a few ideas what it could be used for (Whomper, Billy-club, attitude adjuster) but I am pretty sure it has another purpose. That is where you, the AACA experts, come in. The item you see in the pictures is essentially a 36" long pipe made of 3 individual sections of aluminum tubing or pipe threaded together. The OD is 1 inch. On one end there is a small threaded cap about a 1 ¼” long. The threaded cap has a small hole drilled in it's the end so it is not meant to be water or air tight. The main body or center portion is about 30" long with male threads on one end and female threads on the other. The third section is about 5" long. The 5" section has 4 small holes cross drilled near it's the end. I threaded a zip-tie through two of the holes in order to hang the pipe up. The 5" section is filled with about 30 steel rods maybe 3/16" diameter. One end of the rod bundle is captured inside the 5" section of tubing with two set screws. On the opposite end, the steel rods are left unbound and flap in the breeze. There is a number (T91001393) stamped on one end. I have Googled that number many times with no joy. I also submitted the images for a Google reverse image search. No luck there, either. There are no other markings, trademarks, logos or numbers anywhere. The only thing that even remotely comes to mind is a very short oxygen lance or "burning bar". Most oxygen lances have a bunch of small rods packed inside of a larger rod and are usually about 10 feet long. Lances also have a pipe thread on one end to hook up to your oxygen tank and valve. I suspect this is not a lance. Anybody want to guess?

Hi Peter Pan- We shopped around a little, but no one else had the answers like the Brassworks did. (BTW No relation here , just a satisfied consumer). The staff were very knowledgeable and familiar with this honeycomb style radiator. We sent the original radiator to them so they could strip off all the soldered bits and the tanks. Afterwards they even returned the old core to us. The downside: You can't be in a hurry. We were told there were 27 jobs ahead of us! The ETA was approximately 3 months. They beat their own time frame- it was on our doorstep in two months. It was well worth the wait. The radiator is a work of art! The price... about $3100.00 USD including tax and shipping. -Joe