MercMontMars Posted September 14, 2023 Share Posted September 14, 2023 Hi there everyone, I’ve posted my car on the General Discussion forum but wanted to start a new topic here mainly for showing progress and asking questions. Just in 2 days this car has come around very nicely, I cleaned the inside the best I could and tore out all the rat nesting and critter remains.. nasty! But now the inside is clean and workable. Treated all the rust I could find with Fluid Film to stop it until I can properly repair it. For anyone who might know, I have rust in some really tough spots such as through the roof on the passenger side. How might I go about repairing this when I get to it? It’s a curved area and seems really tricky.. but I know a good welder and even he was stumped. I will get pictures of the area soon. I also need advice on how to approach the drip rail rust, looks very tricky to repair but there’s still enough structure to hopefully repair it. Other than that, this car has pleasantly surprised me in all aspects. It is very complete, I’ve had a blast working on it and got a lot done in just two days, and I’m looking forward to trying the motor soon. Price: $1,000 Budget: $3,000 (as of now) Plans: As original as possible, eventual full restoration 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted September 14, 2023 Share Posted September 14, 2023 There ought to be someone in this club with parts....https://chryslerclub.org/ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted September 14, 2023 Author Share Posted September 14, 2023 @keiser31 Thanks! Guess I can officially join that club now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike "Hubbie" Stearns Posted September 14, 2023 Share Posted September 14, 2023 Looks like a great project. You might be a little light on your budget to make it a driver before you can do a proper restoration. Mike 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted September 16, 2023 Author Share Posted September 16, 2023 So far with this car I’ve made great progress in about 3 days, cleaned out the interior and I’m going to try restoring the seats enough to sit in the car. I put a brand new tight belt on the motor and discovered that the motor is free! The seller found the taillights and license plate lamp housing for the car along with some other bits and bobs. Car is coming along quite well and I’ve been pleasantly surprised with everything so far. Next goal is to put my new battery wires in and try to get some kind of electronic life. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted September 16, 2023 Share Posted September 16, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, MercMontMars said: So far with this car I’ve made great progress in about 3 days, cleaned out the interior and I’m going to try restoring the seats enough to sit in the car. I put a brand new tight belt on the motor and discovered that the motor is free! The seller found the taillights and license plate lamp housing for the car along with some other bits and bobs. Car is coming along quite well and I’ve been pleasantly surprised with everything so far. Next goal is to put my new battery wires in and try to get some kind of electronic life. In case it was not mentioned....you will have right-hand threads on the right side wheels and left-hand threads on the left wheels. Edited September 16, 2023 by keiser31 (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted September 16, 2023 Author Share Posted September 16, 2023 @keiser31 Yes thank you, that would’ve been really confusing if I didn’t find that out before removing the wheels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted September 16, 2023 Author Share Posted September 16, 2023 Got some work with the interior done today, pulled out some of the seats and got a little life out of them, enough to make them sittable. Looking at my dashboard, it appears my speedometer has… melted? No idea what happened here, but I also can’t see the mileage because a ring in there fell down. Will fix that eventually. Coming along quite nicely. Found some era correct trinkets still in the car. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted September 17, 2023 Share Posted September 17, 2023 On 9/14/2023 at 10:23 AM, MercMontMars said: For anyone who might know, I have rust in some really tough spots such as through the roof on the passenger side. How might I go about repairing this when I get to it? It’s a curved area and seems really tricky.. but I know a good welder and even he was stumped. I will get pictures of the area soon. I also need advice on how to approach the drip rail rust, looks very tricky to repair but there’s still enough structure to hopefully repair it. Well.... An old fashioned way of making curved patch panels is to use hammers and a leather sandbag. The leather sandbag was also used for banging dents out of hubcaps back in the day, so not uncommon, but probably harder to find now. You might have to make one. Additionally, a piece of wood like a stump to hammer on could be useful. Also, an anvil. You'll need to cut all the way back to good metal with your patch or it wont stay fixed. At some point you are going to need hammers and dollies if you don't already have them. Hint: NEVER buy hollow dollies. They don't work. The heavier the better. If you see a hollow dolly in a set, keep looking, because the hammers are probably crap too. You see stuff like this all the time in Harbor Freight, but you also see some really good hammers and dollies occasionally in Harbor Freight. The metal on these old cars is thicker and harder to bend, and so the heavier and longer the better on body hammers, and bigger is better with dollies. You might need a big ball peen hammer too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted September 17, 2023 Author Share Posted September 17, 2023 @Bloo Thanks! I will check that out and try to either find or make one. When you say cut back to good metal, how much should I cut? I don’t wanna take too much off. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted September 17, 2023 Author Share Posted September 17, 2023 Worked all day just tinkering and having fun with the interior, got it as clean as I can in its condition and made it sittable. I’m pretty proud of it, it’s nothing permanent but just for now I like it a lot. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted September 17, 2023 Share Posted September 17, 2023 When you start taking assemblies off and apart, take MORE photos than you think you will need from all directions and through each dissecting step. Maybe even draw some sketches. I assembled and took one of my 1931 Dodge coupes apart a few times when I was young and didn't mark or bag and tag anything thinking I will get back to it and remember how it all goes together. Well, life got in the way and guess what? NOT that easy to remember at 70 now. It's a good thing I have one assembled coupe for guidance. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted September 17, 2023 Author Share Posted September 17, 2023 @keiser31 Oh yeah, way ahead of you there! I’m very tedious with all of it, both of the cars I bought before this were torn up by previous owners, this is the first time I’ve had a relatively untouched car and I love it. Photos of every little bit and bob. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted September 17, 2023 Share Posted September 17, 2023 This may sound dumb, but be certain the car is titled to you PRIOR to starting your restoration. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted September 17, 2023 Share Posted September 17, 2023 5 minutes ago, MercMontMars said: @Bloo Thanks! I will check that out and try to either find or make one. When you say cut back to good metal, how much should I cut? I don’t wanna take too much off. I am no expert on metalwork, far from it, I am just telling what I know. That repair does look a bit over my head. I do know that to get rid of rust, generally speaking any deep pitted metal that is adjacent to the holes has to go, or the rust comes back, because it is down in there deep and might be impossible to get rid of clear to the bottom of the pits. Sealing it in is somewhat futile. I also know that I don't have a shop full of metalworking tools, and if I had to do it I would need to drop back to the traditional old methods to make a patch, like probably a sandbag. Maybe just the anvil and a ball peen hammer, but I think a sandbag might work better. That is assuming there is no parts car to cut a patch out of. There are people in this forum far better qualified in this area of repair than I am, but nobody was posting about that particular thing so.... here we are. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodneybeauchamp Posted September 17, 2023 Share Posted September 17, 2023 A temporary fix for the roof and gutter rust holes is to neutralise it with a rust killer then rattle can some primer and a top coat. Then apply some quality sticky duct tape or similar and lightly paint over to match. Only temporary but it will slow the rust and keep the water out until you are able to undertake a proper repair. Certainly makes it useable one it becomes drivable. My ‘40 Pontiac sedan was patched like that for a few years but was still able to drive it to swap-meets and car shows. (And a wedding! ) That way you can concentrate on the mechanical side. Enjoying your fun and your progress. Keep at it! Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted September 20, 2023 Author Share Posted September 20, 2023 Some glamour shots I took after filling her tires, looks so much nicer seeing her raised up and not so dilapidated. Slowly breathing life back into er’! 7 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodneybeauchamp Posted September 22, 2023 Share Posted September 22, 2023 Looking good. Those whitewalls will clean up nicely with some sand soap, or a soapy Brillo pad or scourer with lots of soft soap and water. A stiff bristle brush will help too! Always worked wonders with my whitewalls over the years. Much cheaper than store bought tyre cleaners. Certainly avoid chemicals and solvents. Enjoying the progress! Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted September 25, 2023 Author Share Posted September 25, 2023 THERE IS LIFE! Cleaned my connections and discovered that my starter is reasonably healthy. Turns well and sounds good, oil pump is pumping too. Not many steps left until I can make her run.. just waiting on my solenoid and some other parts. Seems I can’t post videos here at the moment, I’ll figure out a way to do that soon. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryB Posted September 25, 2023 Share Posted September 25, 2023 10 hours ago, MercMontMars said: THERE IS LIFE! Cleaned my connections and discovered that my starter is reasonably healthy. Turns well and sounds good, oil pump is pumping too. Not many steps left until I can make her run.. just waiting on my solenoid and some other parts. Seems I can’t post videos here at the moment, I’ll figure out a way to do that soon. You have to post a link to the video. Best way is to upload the video to YouTube and share the link. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted September 29, 2023 Author Share Posted September 29, 2023 Slowly coming to life.. Can’t get the starter button to work, I set up the wiring just as it was when I bought the car but I’m not sure what’s right or wrong as the car has the wrong solenoid setup and a later starter. Unsure of how to wire in the ignition, I also wired that in as it was when found but with an ignition cylinder I have the key to. Could be the original one.. still has a Yale key. Plenty of electrical gremlins to work out with this car. The amp meter actually works which is neat, wasn’t expecting any gauges to work. 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted October 5, 2023 Author Share Posted October 5, 2023 (edited) Tinkered around today with the motor, everything is coming together nicely. I wired up a temporary way to get spark from the coil and cleaned up the distributor/points. Threw in some fresh wires and I’m getting hot spark at the plugs now. Set up my firing order 1-5-3-6-2-4 clockwise. Tried to get her to fire with a little starting fluid/gas and she sort of wanted to but just wouldn’t. I traced down my problem to the carburetor, there was basically a hole in the lower gaskets and fuel was just getting right through them. I knew it was gonna need attention eventually. I’ve taken it off and disassembled it, all of its gaskets were shot. I’ve ordered a rebuild kit for it and will be getting that done soon. All around good news though, carburetor should be the final step then I can hear her run. Edited October 5, 2023 by MercMontMars (see edit history) 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted October 6, 2023 Author Share Posted October 6, 2023 (edited) Carburetor is partially assembled and settling with some gasket maker for now until I get my rebuild kit in the mail. I want the carb good enough to test with for now. Using 3 O-Ring seals I was able to get the accelerator pump to pump nicely. When I took the carburetor off I noticed the linkage was set up for winter weather. Interesting and makes me wonder even more about the car’s past. I also worked a bit on the cooling system today and found a horrific stew of rust and crud. Pretty bad, I cleaned it all up and flushed the coolant passages till it ran clear. I’m just thankful someone used coolant and not hose water, it would’ve been far worse. There seemed to be a lot of stop leak material around the thermostat housing, it always baffles me that someone would rather try that instead of just fixing the leak, especially on a system this simple. Edited October 6, 2023 by MercMontMars (see edit history) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparkEE Posted October 8, 2023 Share Posted October 8, 2023 (edited) In case you’ve not found it yet, the imperial club has owners manuals, service bulletins, etc. for your car available free for viewing: https://www.web.imperialclub.info/Yr/1939/index.htm Edited October 8, 2023 by SparkEE (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercMontMars Posted February 16 Author Share Posted February 16 (edited) Almost ready to blow the cobwebs out of this project, after working away at the little things I pulled the head and found stuck valves. Explains why I wasn’t able to start it. Since then I have freed them all up and am getting ready to put the head back on. Gave the head a quick paint job because why not, it’s not a factory colour and it’ll look a little funny surrounded by rusty parts but it’ll preserve it and look nicer until I can do a proper restoration on the motor. (Planned in the far future.) Edited February 16 by MercMontMars (see edit history) 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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