Waking up a Sleeping Beauty, 1934 5 window

[Brian]

The underside of that car is very clean!

[koates]

Love your car. I have a 34 sedan and had a coupe for 49 years. As for your ignition system The original Ford ballast resistor is the ONLY one to use. By using a modern ballast resistor (with different specifications) you are messing up the system, so refit the old ballast. The voltage readings you have tested are all correct for your Ford. You tested voltage at the coil 2.4 volts with the timing points in the dist closed and the engine not running. If the engine running at idle the voltage would be higher.. When the ballast is cold for a cold engine start its electrical resistance is lower which gives a higher voltage and spark for engine starting. As the ballast warms up after a couple of minutes running its electrical resistance increases which reduces the voltage and current draw (in amps) of the coil primary which has the effect of insuring the dist points will have a long life. The old Ford engineers knew what they were doing and by changing out components you are messing up the original design. My cars are all original and start straight away hot or cold. The message here is . leave it alone. Regards, Kevin.

[The Art Doctor]

Originally Posted by Brian

The underside of that car is very clean!

I know, I am still amazed that it is in my garage! It has its issues and probably more Bondo than we would like to see used today but I just have to get over that. I told a few old guys that I got it and what was going on and they told me ALL of the old steel bodies outside the southwest are rough under the shiny paint and not to worry about it.

Originally Posted by koates

Love your car. I have a 34 sedan and had a coupe for 49 years. As for your ignition system The old Ford engineers knew what they were doing and by changing out components you are messing up the original design. My cars are all original and start straight away hot or cold. The message here is . leave it alone. Regards, Kevin.

I have an original Ford ballast on order it will be going in as soon as it arrives. Don't want to mess up that newly rebuilt Haney coil nor mess with the points and timing more often than I have to. At this point I have the rebuilt coil, tested good condenser, new NGK plugs, wires from Brillman for original distributor, cleaned ignition switch, rotor, points and inner caps that look like they were all new 3700 miles ago. My only concern is one inner cap is an Argentine replacement with aluminum contacts and one is an old stock unmarked service part with brass terminals. I'd like them both to be the same for fear of uneven electrical transfer. Going to look for a single to match up with the brass one.


Posts aren't much fun without pictures so here is one just for the fun of it.

[Terry,OH]

The clevis are threaded and backed with a nut. You are correct the nut should not be welded to the clevis. If they have striped threads Michael at Third Gen Auto in Tenn or Fred at Southside Obsolete in Minn. should have them NOS. Michael should also have the clevis pins and lots of hardware.

[The Art Doctor]

Originally Posted by Terry,OH

The clevis are threaded and backed with a nut. You are correct the nut should not be welded to the clevis. If they have striped threads Michael at Third Gen Auto in Tenn or Fred at Southside Obsolete in Minn. should have them NOS. Michael should also have the clevis pins and lots of hardware.

I just grabbed a pic of the ugliness. I wonder if this was done when he had it worked on 15 years ago, the welds are not rusted at all. Definitely going in the trash can. I am sure the brakes are maladjusted too, but one hurdle at a time. I am up in Tennessee in November and will be stopping by third-gen to get the clevises and a lot of smalls that will add up to a big pile of new parts and pieces.

[petehoovie]

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Originally Posted by The Art Doctor

I know, I am still amazed that it is in my garage! It has its issues and probably more Bondo than we would like to see used today but I just have to get over that. I told a few old guys that I got it and what was going on and they told me ALL of the old steel bodies outside the southwest are rough under the shiny paint and not to worry about it.





I have an original Ford ballast on order it will be going in as soon as it arrives. Don't want to mess up that newly rebuilt Haney coil nor mess with the points and timing more often than I have to. At this point I have the rebuilt coil, tested good condenser, new NGK plugs, wires from Brillman for original distributor, cleaned ignition switch, rotor, points and inner caps that look like they were all new 3700 miles ago. My only concern is one inner cap is an Argentine replacement with aluminum contacts and one is an old stock unmarked service part with brass terminals. I'd like them both to be the same for fear of uneven electrical transfer. Going to look for a single to match up with the brass one.


Posts aren't much fun without pictures so here is one just for the fun of it.

[petehoovie]

Originally Posted by The Art Doctor

I just grabbed a pic of the ugliness. I wonder if this was done when he had it worked on 15 years ago, the welds are not rusted at all. Definitely going in the trash can. I am sure the brakes are maladjusted too, but one hurdle at a time. I am up in Tennessee in November and will be stopping by third-gen to get the clevises and a lot of smalls that will add up to a big pile of new parts and pieces.

[al's28/33]

Now that you have an new tank, it's the best time to calibrate a later style mechanical gauge with corresponding sending unit, Drake has those too. I had help from a local mechanic to use a 1949 (?) round gauge for my '33 pickup, and it's been working great since installed in 2006.

[Planojc]

I used a 36 gauge in my 35 with a perfect fit,

[petehoovie]

Originally Posted by Planojc

I used a 36 gauge in my 35 with a perfect fit,

[The Art Doctor]

Originally Posted by Planojc

I used a 36 gauge in my 35 with a perfect fit,

That is the one I am leaning towards. I hope to pull the oval 34 gauge and somehow take out the hydrostatic part leaving the rest and put a '36 gauge behind to show through the slit. I do not have one yet to try but a few are available on the auction site.

[Terry,OH]

The brake rods most likely were not long enough for the adjustment so to lengthen and make the clevis fit the clevis was lengthened by welding on the long nut. The 34 rear brake rods should be 40-2499-A 61-3/8" long, The front 40-2495-A is 50-7/8" long

[The Art Doctor]

Originally Posted by Terry,OH

The brake rods most likely were not long enough for the adjustment so to lengthen and make the clevis fit the clevis was lengthened by welding on the long nut. The 34 rear brake rods should be 40-2499-A 61-3/8" long, The front 40-2495-A is 50-7/8" long

Ok, thanks, going to check on those measurements!


New stuff- While waiting for fuel system parts to arrive I confirmed that the wiggly RF wheel is due to the lower king pin bushing and not a loose wheel bearing. Before I tear it all apart I wanted to ask a few questions. The brakes all looks brand new to me. New National made in Spain bearings. It has modern riveted shoes; should I pitch them in favor of woven? The wedge and rollers look new as well. They are dry, no lube to be seen; should there be some? I had the wife push on the pedal and they only went out on the bottom, should I go for a Floater kit while I'm in there? Bruce never like the way it stopped, I have no experience with mechanicals but hear they are fine if adjusted properly and the car driven as if it were 1934 not 2034, problem is everyone here thinks they are Dale Earnhardt and if you leave more than 1-1/2 car length from the car in front they think it is for them not for a poorly braking antique.

[Terry,OH]

IMO leave the shoes as is, take the rollers off and lubricate their post and inside the rollers so they roll. Lube the wedge where it touches the rollers and where the pin depresses. Just a little bit of lube is all that is necessary. Grease the cross shafts so they move smoothly by hand. anything that moves even slightly should have a small bit of lube even clevis pins. I like synthetic grease since it does not harden or absorb moisture.

[The Art Doctor]

OK, stupid question time. On the back of the head of the new king pins are an R and an L. I removed the passenger front spindle, this should be the one with the R, correct? The one I took off had the head with the same offset of my new L marked one. Did they put on the wrong one? Would it even fit up? Another reason the brakes were reported bad? I know they were not too bright as the king pin was ruined because they did not line the holes in the bushings up with the grease zerks.


On a side note: The new king pins are killing me. Both were not perfectly round. They kept hanging up in the bushings. Each had the exact same issues an ever so slight hump about 3/32" wide and several inches long along the back (closed side of the cup) and a second area on either side of the vertical slit near the top about 1/4 wide on each side but in a narrow area. I had to keep marking and test fitting and filing to get them round enough to actually slide in and not chatter or rub the bushing material off on them (how I figured out what was going on). I thought I was going nuts, but they were not round and probably slightly tapered too. I don't have a mill or fine measuring tools but delicate hands could feel the friction points and good eyes to see the color of bronze on the shafts were it was interfering. Going to pull these bushings as I'm sure they took a beating trying to get these pins to slide in and put in a new set. These came with the car and were bought two years ago, tired of junk new parts. Took hours to make them both right. NOS where possible only, damn the cost, from here on out.


In the photo the one on the left with a black painted top was removed from passenger side, next to the one in the middle marked L that matches it and the on the far right the one marked R which I think is the one that belongs on the passenger side, correct?

[petehoovie]

[QUOTE=In the photo the one on the left with a black painted top was removed from passenger side, next to the one in the middle marked L that matches it and the on the far right the one marked R which I think is the one that belongs on the passenger side, correct?[/QUOTE]

[Model51]

You have it right. R is passenger side and L is driver side. If, like I did, you forget to check and install them incorrectly, the brake rod connections won't line up properly. After getting over my embarrassment, I unassembled everything and swapped the pins.

If you are installing new king pins, you should also install and reem new bushings to provide a snug and proper fit so there's no slop and the pins rotate smoothly. This is easier done with the spindles off the car.

[The Art Doctor]

Originally Posted by Model51

You have it right. R is passenger side and L is driver side. If, like I did, you forget to check and install them incorrectly, the brake rod connections won't line up properly. After getting over my embarrassment, I unassembled everything and swapped the pins.

If you are installing new king pins, you should also install and reem new bushings to provide a snug and proper fit so there's no slop and the pins rotate smoothly. This is easier done with the spindles off the car.

Perfect, thank you so much. This explains the extended brake rod clevises too, they put the king pins on the wrong sides and thus the rods were too short.


I had installed new bushings, that I will now be pulling for yet another set of new ones now that I have the pins filed to round. I have the correct long style reamer that will do both bushings and stay in alignment. I could not separate the tie rod end so I just loosened the clamp bolt and unwound it after marking where it went. Two forward, one backward....but ever onward.

[petehoovie]

Originally Posted by The Art Doctor

Perfect, thank you so much. This explains the extended brake rod clevises too, they put the king pins on the wrong sides and thus the rods were too short.


I had installed new bushings, that I will now be pulling for yet another set of new ones now that I have the pins filed to round. I have the correct long style reamer that will do both bushings and stay in alignment. I could not separate the tie rod end so I just loosened the clamp bolt and unwound it after marking where it went. Two forward, one backward....but ever onward.

[alchemy]

Those kingpins sound like poorly manufactured parts to me. I wouldn’t trust them. Can you find another pair?

Also, you will need a large tanged socket to work on the tie rod ends. Might as well start looking for one now. Then it will make it much easier to take them apart, as well as adjust them.