1949 Business coupe update

[MercuryMac]

Hi falconvan. It doesn't get any better than Hemi tappet covers and a five speed, man, and you've got it nailed.
Keep on tinkering.

 

[falconvan]

It kind of does look like a baby Hemi, doesn't it?

 

[falconvan]

I need some advice; I was planning on going with a hanging pedal assembly but the more I look at it I hate to fix what isnt broke. It has a nice new underfloor conversion with a dual MC for the brakes. Is there any problem on a hydraulic clutch with having both the pedal cylinder and the slave cylinder at the same level and just running a remote resevior? I dont want the fluid from the slave to run back to the pedal cylinder and cause problems. If I can make it work I'll just make an adjustable bracket for the pedal cylinder to mount up to the underfloor clutch pedal. Any thoughts?

 

[falconvan]

My wife and I had breakfast and a great visit with jfg455 this morning; he and his charming wife were passing through our area. John, I hope you have a safe trip and Bonneville is awesome!

Got motor mounts built today; not the prettiest things but it's solid and level. Once I grind a few crappy welds and throw some paint on them, they should be fine. For insulators I used the rubber biscuits that were the trans mounts for the flathead; worked out great. Tomorrow I'll build a crossmember for the trans and then the drivetrain will be self supporting.

 

[jfg455]

Don't sell yourself short Pat you are doing a great job with both yours and your wifes coupe! Thanks for breakfast. We owe you one.

Falconvan and his wife are great people and good down to earth hot rodders. You guys are welcome in our house or shop anytime.

 

[falconvan]

Thanks, buddy; we just mey do that. I'd love to see your part of the country; even if they dont have Bob Evans! Finished the crossmember and got it back on its feet tonight. Now I have to notch the oil pan for tie rod clearance, build some headers, and figure out how to mount the clutch cylinder.

 

[MercuryMac]

Hi falconvan, I'm the last guy you should listen to about hydraulic clutches because I have always hated them. Oh, they're alright when they're working, but when they quit, they're a pain in the ----around behind--. The old master cylinders had a residual check valve at their outlet, so if you had that you should be able to keep fluid in the line and slave cylinder. Also, make sure you have a bleed screw at the highest point in the system so the trapped air will work it's way to the bleed screw. The real thorn in my craw about factory hydraulic clutches is 'no real way to bleed them'.

 

[falconvan]

I hear you; I had the same deal with the clutch in my 51. I put a Dodge Dakota 5 speed in it and it got air in the system. Absolutely no way to bleed it, either. I had to buy a complete assembly with the clutch cylinder, slave cylinder, and line already put together; pre-filled and pre-bled. It wasn't that much but still....So this go around Im going to try the factory slave along with an aftermarket clutch MC that uses an AN line and has a bleeder.

 

[falconvan]

This was much easier than I thought; one wedge cut and the steering clears fine. No internal interference as far as oil pump pickup or dipstick; all I have to do is find someone that welds aluminum to patch in the notch for me. On another + note; it's really clean inside and looks like it was well taken care of.

 

[falconvan]

While Im waiting to get my header flanges back from the water jet guy I decided to address the fuel supply. Both the SHO tank and the Plymouth tank are the same depth so to simplify things Im just going to transplant the fuel pump from the SHO tank and fit it with the Plymouth sending unit. I'll also put this baffle from the SHO tank in the bottom. Today I took the SHO fuel filler with the overflow line and shorted it up so it will fit the Plymouth tank location; and I'll change the tank inlet to match the size.

 

[falconvan]

I got everything together and welded up today; just need to add the overflow tube and it's ready for a coat of paint.

 

[falconvan]

I finished up the welding on the tank and as a precaution I put a coat of All-Metal body filler over the welded areas. Also here is the Taurus fuel pump/level control assembly; I fitted it with a new Carter pump and replaced the stock level control with the one for the aftermarket gauges that are in the car.

 

[falconvan]

A buddy of mine and I were discussing the use of V6s in builds and does it make sense to do all the work over using a V8 when even a bone stock V8 makes a lot more power. The original 218 in the 49 was rated at 97hp and 170ft/lb. The 3.2 im using is rated at 230hp and 215ft/lb stock, and I think with headers and a free flowing exhaust, losing the power steering pump and A/C compressor, plus tuning I would think I could make it into the 250-275 hp range without too much trouble. On a car that's 500 lbs lighter than the Taurus, I'd think that would feel pretty respectable.

So just for fun I picked two arbitrary years of 1990 and 2005; comparing the base V8 specs offered in the trucks in 1990 to the base V6 specs offered in 2005. The idea was to see how far technology had taken us in 15 years and to look at a basic late model boneyard V6 as a swap option compared to picking up an older V8 for a few hundred bux. I figure for about $500 you could get either; a decent running older small block or a decent later model V6. Of course there are lots of convincing arguments to go either way but I thought it would be interesting info to look at.

1990 Truck V8 engine specs
Chevy Ford Mopar
Displacement 305 302 318
Horsepower 170 185 170
Torque 270 270 260

2005 Truck V6 engine specs
Chevy Ford Mopar
Displacement 4.3 4.2 3.7
Horsepower 195 202 215
Torque 260 260 235

 

[falconvan]

Got the tank finished and mounted today. Im not real happy with the way the filler came out; it's sticking out too far but I'll address that later. I cut a section out of the trunk floor and will raise that section a few inches to give me clearance for the sending unit, fuel lines and wiring.

I also bought a Wilwood MC for the clutch with a remote mount resevior. I built a bracket for it and have it mounted to original clutch pedal after putting a longer pin in the pedal arm and reversing the direction that the pin went in. Looks like it'll work; I threaded the pushrod, cut it in half, and put it back together with a coupling nut to give me about 1 1/2" adjustment on the rod.

 

[maverickmk]

Those HP numbers you posted up are interesting. 15 years makes quite a difference.
The gas tank looks really good, some good work going on there. It's coming along nicely.

 

[falconvan]

Thanks; I also thought it was interesting that the smallest displacement engine had the highest HP rating, but also the lowest torque.

 

[falconvan]

I got the firewall roughed in yesterday using 18 gauge sheetmetal. I ended up cutting a couple inches higher for more clearance. For now it's just tacked together; I'll make it neat and paint the firewall when the engine comes out for cleanup.

 

[bob w]

This is a super build. The technology involved is beyond me. I never would have considered that engine but it looks great in there.
When I was thinking about what engine to use in my upcoming Land Rover build I considered the GM 4.3 V6 like I had in my S10. It was an excellent runner and got good mileage. Enough power too. I'm using an early 283 with about the same horsepower as the V6 just because I'm more comfortable with it.
It sure makes sense for builders to consider the later model engines. Leave the old obsolete engines for the old, obsolete guys, like me.

 

[falconvan]

Thanks, Bob. That 4.3 is a good engine; I'm really looking forward to seeing your Land Rover build!

 

[I-R-POPS]

Nice fit. That motor looks right at home.