The Time Has Come

The time has come to pull the engine and transmission. We want to tear down the engine and replace all the gaskets top to bottom. Todd would also like to re-ring the pistons. We are working with a 383 block with 35o heads. This combination will offer us a decent power range and a wide rage of parts companies to choose from. The latter will be important when we get on the road. I am sure we are going to have a breakdown or two along the way. After inspecting the MOPAR radiator we decided that it might just be best placed on the wall as a decoration.

While Todd was tearing the front end apart I was working on the drive line. We removed the prop shaft and inspected the transmission a bit. We are thinking that it must not be original. The original engine was a six cylinder with a different bolt pattern. We found some pretty shifty engineering but figured out that it wasn't a hatchet job. Mostly our problems are making sure that we plan some smart mounts for the transmission and engine. Luckily the original frame was not turned into swiss cheese. The floors however are a little bit of swiss cheese so eventually those are going to have to go. There are some really good resources out there for sheet metal. The floors should be mostly a labor and time issue. Luckily Todd is a welder too.






I am finding out that working on really old cars can be simple. With out all the technology, most of the parts are mechanical in nature. With this simplicity we had the engine and transmission prepped and ready to be removed for inspection and maintenance.







The prop shaft comes out. It was a stubborn little guy. Getting underneath her and messing with those u-bolts reminded me of working on my old Jeeps when I was a rambunctious youth. The shaft is in good shape I think we can use it when we get the new rear end.





There January Birthday sits. A little naked but looking sharp and ready. The next step for us is to drop the transmission with the forklift and then pull the motor and get it on the engine stand for breakdown and gasket replacement. I think the project has settled in a bit and I can feel some of the magic all ready. We keep plodding along like the tortoise and eventually we will cross that finish line.