Very nice Mike! I have the bumpers off my 40 I'm not going to use and would make you a deal on one if you wanted?
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Very nice Mike! I have the bumpers off my 40 I'm not going to use and would make you a deal on one if you wanted?
I got the rear bumper and exhaust taken care of over the last week. As far as I can tell these trucks didn’t with a rear bumper but I was hoping to find something from that era that I could use. I didn’t find anything at the local wrecking yards that I liked or would work. I really appreciated Ryan’s offer on the 40 bumpers, but I found some metal out in the iron pile that would work so I just built one. It really needs a rear valance/roll pan so one of these days I’ll get around and make a template and take it to one of the local heating and cooling places to have one bent up.
I still don’t have a local muffler shop I like so I got out my pile of exhaust pipes and built my own.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psgwrovko1.jpg
I seemed like I spent almost as much time going to town for parts as I did building the exhaust. I went in Saturday morning to get mufflers, hangers and clamps. I ended up going to one store for the clamps and hangers and then another store for the mufflers. Of course they only had one of the mufflers in stock so I had to make another trip in the afternoon to pick up the other one. I got home and promptly ran out of wire for the mig.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psj7exfuaf.jpg
I haven’t decided on what to start on next but there is still a pretty long to do list.
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Your bumper looks great! Your luck sounds like mine. Spend more time gathering supplies than getting the work done. Keep at it!
Thanks Ryan, I think it fits the truck pretty well.
Unlike some states Arizona doesn't have any bumper laws on the books and I wasn't planning on running a front bumper at all (I do have an original front bumper and brackets). After doing the rear bumper I’m reconsidering a front bumper. Once I get the front fender back on I’m thinking this might look good on the front. I’ll have to build some brackets to space it out to where the original bumper set (about 8” ).
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psz6u6r8ud.jpg
If I don’t like it I’m just out a bit of time and I will come off with 2 bolts.
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I think that will look sleek on there!
One of the remaining jobs on the truck is going to be rebuilding the front suspension. The Mustang II suspension was already installed when I bought the truck years ago and as far as I can tell they used all the stock components from a V6 Mustang II donor car including the springs. Those springs actually gave a pretty good ride height with the mockup motor and transmission ……..with a complete motor and full transmission case, not so much.
Knowing new springs are going to be required I started looking thru the Speedway catalog and have pretty much settled on either the 400 or 425 rate springs, leaning pretty much toward the 425s (I really don’t have a problem if the ride is a bit harsh).
Mustang II Suspension Front Springs
Reading the description on the springs reminded me about the spring settling issues you normally run into with new coil springs (and makes me miss the torsion bar cars I’ve built in the past :LOL: ).
In the past on coil spring cars I’ve usually put in OE style springs and then drove the around with a nose high car for about a year until the springs finally settled to their final (and usually) correct ride height. I figured on the 37 Dodge I’d have a couple options;
Cut the springs a n 1- 1 1/2” taller than I want and let them settle (and hope I guessed right)
Cut them to the ride height I want, knowing that at some point I would have to go back in and add the hard rubber spring cushions/spacers to bring the ride height back up.
Then I came across these ride height adjusters
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psau2nqdh0.jpg
Their a bit pricey and add some more work but I like the concept and am seriously considering them.
I was wondering if anyone has any experience (good or bad) with the Speedway springs or these adjusters.
Thanks
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Those adjusters look pretty slick. Probably a bit of a bear to make any large adjustment, but surely easier than swapping springs.
I thought about installing those on my 40 but then decided to go air ride. Sorry, can't help you here. :LOL:
In between maintain the other vehicles in my fleet (especially the wife’s car and truck LOL) I’ve started sorting out the cooling system. Of course that dovetails with a few other parts of the project that will be addressed at the same time. Before hanging a radiator and fan I will need to; rewire the headlights, install front turn signals, build brackets for the horn and install the trans cooler and hoses. I also had to decide if I was going to install a heater or not. After going back and forth I finally decided that I would.….mostly to have defrosters for some of the winter cruises I do.
I happened to still have the original radiator for the truck, so getting measurements and seeing how it was originally mounted was where I started.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psmnadycyv.jpg
Nobody lists a replacement radiator for a 37 Dodge so it was more time spent doing a computer search for something that would work. I wasn’t having much luck finding anything that would fit or was affordable. After an hours or so looking at various radiators I remembered the post here on the site from a couple of months ago from the guy who had used a first generation Mustang radiator in his 37. The width is right but it could stand to be a few inches taller. I really debated about whether to keep looking for something bigger or to go ahead and order one. I eventually ended up deciding to take a chance on a 2 row (1 inch tubes) and see how it does. My thinking is the engine is only 341 cubic inches, it will have open hood sides and it will not have AC (and without the AC it will stay in the garage on those 100 degree days we have :LOL: ).
The radiator has a built in transmission cooler but as the fittings are only ¼” NPT so I won’t be using it. When Chrysler designed the 518/46RH they went to 3/8” lines and fitting and a bigger cooler to keep the transmission temperatures down and recommend they don’t be downsized. So I also ended up ordering a remote transmission cooler.
While I was waiting on the radiator and trans cooler to come in I decided to get started on the heater. As I’ve been trying to keep the majority of the things I put on the truck pre 1970, I happened to have the perfect candidate, an old Arvin unit that I had pulled from a 1950s truck.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psic0t07ns.jpg
The motor and switch were good but it needed a new core. Fortunately a little time with the catalog at the parts store and I found one that could be adapted.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psxottrumo.jpg
It mounts up out of the way but the switch is a bit difficult to get to so I’ll leave it set to high and use a switch in the dash to turn it on and off.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psir8vbg9n.jpg
I decided to use an old style water control valves that most of these add on heaters came with. I remember these from couple of the old trucks we had on the farm when I was growing up…….turn them on in the fall and off in the spring LOL.
Naturally the water pump I’m using doesn’t have a fitting on the inlet side for the heater return hose and none of the radiators I was looking at had them either so I picked up an inline adapter with a 3/8” pipe fitting.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...ps6wpzlvjx.jpg
I’ll probably get started on rewiring the headlights, horn and turn signals first and then get the radiator and cooler (which came in today) fitted in the nose. The electric fan in the picture is a left over from another project and I’m still kicking back and forth about whether to use it or a mechanical fan.
Of course now that I dragged out the electrical stuff, doing the rest of the wiring will probably be the next project.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psklfmacby.jpg
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Are you going to use relays on your headlights? I did on my Vette and it does make a difference and since the battery is behind the seat I hooked up at the alternator, same electrical point.
".....Are you going to use relays on your headlights?......"
I really hadn't even considered it until I read your post. I probably won't on the 37, but it is something to consider on the Ram 50 and El Camino (the ones I'm most likely to take cross country).
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I used 2 of these on the Vette and I have 2 more I'm going to put on the Mustang I gave my grandson. I changed the wires around some and used the black wires for ground.
12 Volt Relay Socket Car Alarm 40 30 Amp 40A 30A 12V Automotive Ships from US | eBay
With the radiator in hand I was able to get some actual measurements and figure out how I’m going to build the mounting brackets. From the looks of it I’ll be able to run a mechanical fan (my first choice). The mechanical fan means I also want to use a fan shroud. The radiator is set up for an original style shroud, so I took the easy way out and ordered a new reproduction (which are readily available and cheap).
While I’m waiting on the shroud to get here I went ahead and got the grill shell wired. I’ve always enjoyed building my own harness. It’s probably not a whole lot cheaper than buying a ready made harness but like I said I enjoy doing it. Of course when I checked my box of terminals I needed to restock that and I only had about half of the colors and gauges of wire I needed.
I was actually planning on using the headlights that were on the truck but my luck was holding true and it turns out they were 6 volt. Knowing that the truck is going to be taken apart for paint and body at some point I decided to go ahead and use plugs for everything so the harness won’t have to be cut and spliced back together to get the lights out.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...pslxcaogtt.jpg
The harness itself was fairly simple (headlight, turn signals, parking lights and horn) and really didn’t take that long to build. I terminated the harness with a 6 circuit plug just a little bit past the grill shell so that if I ever need to take the grill shell out it’s just unplug the one plug.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psjkhfs6ve.jpg
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[QUOTE=Mike P;558109]
I happened to still have the original radiator for the truck, so getting measurements and seeing how it was originally mounted was where I started.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psmnadycyv.jpg
Nobody lists a replacement radiator for a 37 Dodge so it was more time spent doing a computer search for something that would work. I wasn’t having much luck finding anything that would fit or was affordable. After an hours or so looking at various radiators I remembered the post here on the site from a couple of months ago from the guy who had used a first generation Mustang radiator in his 37. The width is right but it could stand to be a few inches taller. I really debated about whether to keep looking for something bigger or to go ahead and order one. I eventually ended up deciding to take a chance on a 2 row (1 inch tubes) and see how it does. My thinking is the engine is only 341 cubic inches, it will have open hood sides and it will not have AC (and without the AC it will stay in the garage on those 100 degree days we have :LOL: ).
Are you planning to build a shroud? I ask cause my car has a hood only, no side curtains, pretty much open.
Sitting in traffic the water temp would climb towards 200+ . Get moving it would drop rather quickly to 185-190. The water temp was unstable as hell, put up with it for a few years cause it never got seriously hot. But I found myself fixated on the temp gauge.
Got a wild hair and pieced together a shroud ...... I can attest to this, it totally stabilized the water temp I can feel the air blasting all the way back on the firewall.
".....Are you planning to build a shroud?....."
Definitely!
"......With the radiator in hand I was able to get some actual measurements and figure out how I’m going to build the mounting brackets. From the looks of it I’ll be able to run a mechanical fan (my first choice). The mechanical fan means I also want to use a fan shroud. The radiator is set up for an original style shroud, so I took the easy way out and ordered a new reproduction (which are readily available and cheap)....."
With any luck the shroud should be here Tuesday or Wednesday. I figure I'll get into town tomorrow and pick up the steel I need to build the radiator brackets and maybe by the end of the week have the radiator in.
You did a nice job on your shroud Pepi! It also looks like your using the same fan that will be going on mine.
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Very nice job!
The radiator and fan shroud got in so I spent the last few days getting the cooling system done.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psmlcxuodg.jpg
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...ps9q3hepyh.jpg
I was pleasantly surprised when the shroud came in to find out it was metal (I was pretty much expecting fiberglass). It fit the radiator well and except for having about a 1 ½” gap at the top (which was easily remedied with a strip of metal riveted in ) couldn’t have been better for the project.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...ps5a1ljpar.jpg
I got the grill out and was working at a pretty good clip on Saturday afternoon.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...ps49csqkak.jpg
Then the electrical substation up the road decided to go out. It was 103 degrees outside when the lights and coolers went down. Fortunately the last time the power went out for any length of time a couple of years ago I got around and wired my generators in. This time it was just hook up a battery to the generator throw a couple of switches and I had power again. My generator is enough to power the house but a little too light for the welder and compressor so I just kicked back in the house for the next 14 hours until the power came back on.
The radiator and shroud is a tight fit in the grill shell, but it does fit, along with the transmission cooler.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psv1jojen7.jpg
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psmu01ktgb.jpg
It would have gone a bit quicker (and would be a bit easy to service if I have to in the future) if I had set the engine back a couple of inches further or used the short BB Chevy water pump instead of the long one, but it is what it is. I’ve got enough room to get to everything and I’m very happy with the depth of the fan in the shroud.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...ps7ozcdmjd.jpg
There is a lot of room between the top of the radiator and the grill shell (that I wish I could have found a taller radiator). When I get some time I will probably find or build an overflow tank to fit up there.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...pslfxwg9oo.jpg
I’ll probably get around and order the controller for the transmission later this week so I can go ahead and do the wiring next.
Lookin' good there Mike. And an expansion tank on top should be an ideal piece!!
Nice work Mike! I might be able to give you some feed back on the compushift mini in a couple of weeks. My trans works in my 72 now and I'm trying to drive it on July 2nd. The compushift is one of the things i'm going to check off my list before I drive it. :LOL:
Thanks Ryan, I’d appreciate any of your insights and opinions about how you like it. I got started on my electrical a couple of days ago, and pretty quickly figured out that that I needed to have the Compushift unit on hand so I could incorporate that wiring into the harness I’m building and figure out exactly where to mount the controller.
I also pulled the trigger on an Autometer electronic speedometer as long as I had the card out. When I initially set the dash up a few years ago I bought a mechanical speedometer……I could still run a cable and use that, but was running into problems finding the recommend driven gear for the 4.56s (and knowing that the recommended one would probably still be a tooth or two off to actually get the speedometer to read correctly). The electronic speedometer I put in the ram 50 kind of spoiled as far as calibrating the speedometer by just pushing a button.
I’ve got the components outside the cab installed (lights, horn, senders, relays etc) so I’ve been plugging away at some of the wiring. The work bench currently looks like a bomb went off, but I got a couple of minor changes made to the fuse box to make it compatible with the Chevy turn signal switch in the steering column and all the wires labeled. I also got some of the wiring on the turn signal plug done.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...pszx60g3ku.jpg
I decided a while back that I would mount the fuse box, ignition box and transmission controller inside the glove box to make it more convenient. There was no glove box liner in the 37 when I bought it but surprisingly they are being reproduced. The original style glove box liners are extremely deep however and they wouldn’t clear the heater I installed. My solution is to make a liner out of some old stainless I had left over from doing the floor.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psd3y4c3vk.jpg
Hopefully I’ll have the liner built this weekend and at least some more of the wiring done before the transmission controller and speedometer get in next week.
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Nice work! Sounds like you're making great progress on it for sure!
I spent the last couple of days getting most of the wiring taken care of before I go into surgery. Knowing that I’ll be taking the truck completely apart at some point I made it so the wiring looms could be unplugged for easy removal and reinstall. Having just 2 plugs to undo to get the gauge cluster out will be especially nice.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psf70ygnua.jpg
I ordered the Compushift mini to control the lockup and overdrive and also got the electronic speedometer in……cause you know what’s a few more wires.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...ps3zcegltc.jpg
Actually the hookup on that was pretty straight forward. The only minor issue I had was getting the three pin plug that goes into transmission to go in. When I contacted the company I was told the correct plug is no longer available and they supply a GM plug (I did some checking for the correct plug and couldn’t find a source either…… and my buddy at the tranny shop didn’t have one and couldn’t source one for me either). Anyway I finally wiggled it just right and it did go in.
The Compushift also uses a throttle position sensor (in my case cable operated). I was able to find room under the dash to mount that and connect the cable to the gas pedal instead if adding one more thing to the carburetor linkage.
In the back of my mind I figured this one would be pretty simple to wire (and relatively speaking I guess it was). Jut the handful of circuits I needed to run still ending up being a pretty good size pile of wires by the time I got everything pulled into the cab.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psgdmeb0i9.jpg
The glove box I built turned out to be quite bit shallower that I had planned in order to clear the heater. There was still enough room to mount the ignition control box in it but I elected to mount that on the inside of the firewall up under the dash (it’s still relatively easy to get to). At least getting to the fuses and the control box for the Compushift will be a snap.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psjnw74lsa.jpg
I’ve still got to get the fuel pumps mounted (the wiring is already there and switch installed) and hook up the alternator and ignition but that’s pretty much just 4 or 5 wires that are already run.
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Looks nice Mike.
Well thought out and reasonably neat.
Nicely done, I like the ease of quick disconnects to get to things like the speedometer, and behind dash area. Really like the fuse in glove box design. Was planning to put an old Blaupunkt pull out stereo in dash and locate fuse panel on back fire wall or under seat. But in retrospect, the dash box is a perfect location for fuse box, and pull out radio could go under seat!
Great work Mike! I put my compushift on the top of a control center I made, but I may change my mind and Velcro it to the side. I haven't decided yet. Hopefully I can get it installed and test drive it in the next couple of weeks.
Good job on the dash layout, noting the oil pressure cool, electrical fits with good access another plus. That shroud looking good, has all the correct clearances. Tight and up close will really pull the air thru the rad.
Thanks Pepi. The oil pressure gauge in the old windshield crank hole makes it the easiest one to read.
My arm is healing but not quite to the point where I can crawl under the truck to run the cooler, fuel and brake lines so I’m getting some of the other things taken care of. I did find a source for headliner and interior panels and I’ll be ordering those in the near future. In the mean time I figured I’d at least get the stereo mounted. There is not any real good place to mount the unit in the dash (a previous owner had mounted one in the glove box door at some point…..at least he didn’t butcher the dash but I still need to find a new door). Anyway in keeping with the late 60s early70s build theme I found a shaft mount AM/FM/Cassette player with analog tuning. I had bought some overhead consoles 25 years ago when I was going thru my Ford Truck phase and had one left over so I used that to mount the radio in the roof. It’s not my first choice, but it shouldn’t look too bad once I get the headliner in it. While finding a place to hang the radio was a bit of a challenge, finding places for speakers was pretty easy and when all was said and done I installed a total of 6 throughout the cab. It doesn’t have the sound of some of the higher end systems I’ve installed in my other vehicles but at least I’ll be able to hear it over the exhaust.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psmcc1bcs2.jpg
I also finished up getting the keg gas tank ready to install. I had already built the cradle for it and installed the fitting for lines and gas cap but still needed to make hold down straps and get a sender for it. Rather than use a sender with a swing arm (that would have put the float directly under fill hole) I ordered a vertical float sender.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...ps79tyepbl.jpg
Everything was pretty straight forward. Once I get it back in the bed of the truck I’ll drill holes thru the cradle and bed and run the bolts thru the bed cross-members. When I take the truck apart for paint and body I’ll purge the tank and send it and cradle out for powder coating but for now this is good enough.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psdchn37sh.jpg
It also gives me an excuse to use an old decal I had.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...psovl0c0fh.jpg
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Very nice work Mike! You better check your compushift wire harness to make sure the valve body solenoid pack connector plug is correct. Mine was incorrect. Luckily I have a few from OEM rides we cut off in a you pull it. My harness was made over a year ago so maybe yours will be correct.
I did run into the same thing on my compushift Ryan. I posted a little blurb about it in a previous post hoping you might see it.
".......The only minor issue I had was getting the three pin plug that goes into transmission to go in. When I contacted the company I was told the correct plug is no longer available and they supply a GM plug (I did some checking for the correct plug and couldn’t find a source either…… and my buddy at the tranny shop didn’t have one and couldn’t source one for me either). Anyway I finally wiggled it just right and it did go in....."
A quick update on it....the supplied plug does go on, but it does not completely seal the receptacle it plugs into (meaning it's not water tight). Dave over at the machine shop did eventually come up with a source for new correct plugs (at about $40 a pop...... ouch). If you can keep finding them you might be able to make a few bucks on good used ones.
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If you need one I can happily drop you one in the mail Mike. I have a folgers can with around 4 left and 8 or so neutral safety switch connectors as well.
So your the guy who cut off all those wire ends at the yard?
The last time I went to the Upick yard for an electrical connector I cut off 4 just to make sure I got a good one.:) When I got home 2 worked:) and 2 were bad:eek:. Never hurts to have a spare:3dSMILE:
Jack.
Sorry, but ain't none of them yards I do business with-------The people with no idea of how to do anything removing something usually will wreck/damage/completely destroy way more stuff-
I see what Brent meant about losing some data and going back in time….appears a few posts are missing but at least most of it’s still here (and I’m very glad the sites back).
In between a couple more trips to the VA and keeping the grass mowed down I did manage to get a few more things checked off. I got the transmission cooler lines built and new rear brakes on the rearend so I could get the emergency brakes sorted out.
I’ve really wanted to hear what the exhaust sounds like, get the transmission and cooling system filled along with checking the power steering (and get those pesky leak checks done). So I got around yesterday and hooked up some temporary battery cables and fuel lines, filled the radiator and fired it off and filled the transmission. On the plus side the rest of the electrical checked out, there were no leaks and the PS worked. I was a little concerned about the size of the radiator (which is a good deal smaller than the one on the test stand) but the temperature held steady right at 180 (the thermostat temp).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLTrliBppmY
I found and joined this site 13 years ago shortly after I bought the 37 and at the time it was the hot project I was working on. Somehow it kept getting shoved into the back shed over and over again as I built 9 personal cars and trucks plus 2 motorcycles for my wife and me. I was really beginning to wonder if I would ever actually hear it run (and so was Bob :D ). Anyway still a ways to go ( brakes, front suspensions and fuel system ) before it’s actually on the road and then the body work starts. At least I haven’t bought any new project cars in a while so this should stay the center of attention.
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I seem to recall you even let it go away briefly, but now it's getting there bit by bit. Yay!!!
I have seen his project lineup in real-time over the years. Some sit so long, he looses interest and changes his mind... :)
'.... Some sit so long, he looses interest ....."
Never lost interest, just changed priorities :LOL:
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Me too Mike, the divorce tied up where to house my truck, and most of my finances. Luckily I'm moved into a new house I purchased in March, and as soon as I can clear up the garage the 48 will be coming home after many year hiatus in storage. For me I work on whatever is the current highest priority. This year it was purchasing a new home and fixing it up. Soon all of that will shift to getting the truck HOME!
I here you Steve.:) Between getting a house ready to sell, selling, buying a lot, moving to a new state, finding a builder and then building a new house the 34 has been sorely neglected.:HMMM::(. We have been in the new house, and shop, for a bit over a year now and we are still ironing out in the yard but the 34 is moving closer to the top of the list.:rolleyes:;) Hope to be posting some progress pics in the not too far future.:3dSMILE:
Jack.