Projects Mild custom '51 Pontiac Chieftain

Bought a couple brushes.

Old, broken at top.
Modified new, center.
Unmodified new, bottom.

Waiting on my soldering iron to heat up.

Also, bought a 5 gallon pail of 20W transmission oil; drained the DEXRON out and will refill in the morning when it's light.

Phil

 

Okay. So that's not broken any more.


Phil

 

It's making me dizzy......

 

When it's done, it'll blow you away!

 

Hmmm, run a hose to the carburator and ... sorry, got blown away

 

Bought a pail of this

Filled the transmission up. 20W hydraulic transmission oil, suitable for wet clutch operation.

$60, Tractor Supply.

It definitely behaves better. I'll give a fuller report once I've got some miles on it.

Phil

 

Took the car for a high speed (55!) run down the 4-lane to Walmart tonight.

Observations:
1) Transmission is much quieter at 55
2) 1-2-3-4 shift works fine unless car is switched off for a while. Then if it does the 1-3 it's much softer.
3) 4-3-2-1 now much better, does not 4-3-1-2-1 so much.
4) Shell Rotella T4 engine oil, when it burns, smells like bacon bits (offtopic).
5) "Universal" oil isn't.

Perhaps 30W may be a little better, particularly for summer or slow speed cruising and traffic. Next flush I'll order some TO-4 30W and put that in.

But, as a budget option for weather up to 70F, this oil seems to be pretty good.

 

No more Hydra-jerk!

 

Sounds pretty good....fond memories of my grandpa's 53. thanks Phil!

 

Okay, so hot idling it still acts up but hot driving it's significantly better.

I might just bump it up to 50W for summer, see how it does. That would be too much for winter but we don't get much of a winter down here...

 

New heater motor. Permanent magnet type, 12V. Made in Canada, surprisingly.

Heater now blows nicely and is nearly silent.

Phil

 

After you had repaired the heater motor what was the reason you went for a new motor.

 

The commutator wasn't round any more, and I have no means here to bring it back into true. Meant that the brushes bounced, arced and the thing overheated, melting the solder that connects the commutator pads to the armature winding, effectively disconnecting the windings from the brushes.

After the third time it threw the toys out of the pram I'd had enough and just bought a new one. It's a permanent magnet one so runs a fair bit cooler.

 

Looking at the big freeze headed your way you may need that heater!

 

It's not forecast to reach here. It might get a little bit chilly for two days. 78 here right now.

Aircon would be nice right about now, but I'll have to do with 2-55 instead.

 

A bit chilly here, too .... 31 below Sunday.

 

I had 17 below last night in Wisconsin.

 

It's a foggy, breezy 56f here today, sat waiting for the school bus with the heater on. Cleared the glass and warmed the cabin up no trouble.

This is the coolest it's been since I put the heavier oil in the transmission; even after idling 10 minutes it changed correctly, so I'll bump the weight up again, I think. That should handle warmer weather. I may need a bucket of summer and a bucket of winter oil.

Phil

 

What's next... summer and winter air for the tires?

 

Until I cut a hole in the lower part of the seal, I had blinker fluid, too.

 

Also don't forget to repack your muffler bearings.

 

Toasty warm with the heat on.

Headed out to get a milkshake after spending the day fighting with OT Plymouth.

 

It would seem I spend all my time with transmissions.
On a positive note the 20W oil has particularly improved the shifting on the Chieftain; 30W will certainly be better for summer.

 

Chilly afternoon, breeze blowing in.

Just the time to adjust brakes.

 

You get much more out of your car then most people will ever get out of there's. Gotta put a smile on your face when you tinker with something that isn't up to par, take it for a drive and see/feel the results. This, to me is one of the most enjoyable things about owning an old car. On the other hand, I bet that transmission has pissed you off a time or 2!

 

Very much so.
Particularly as making changes often has quite a significant effect on the way it drives.
Changing the engine oil makes a dramatic difference on how quietly the engine runs; adjusting the brakes makes the pedal feel better and the brakes more sharp. These things on newer vehicles make less of an impact when undertaken.
The gearbox has been frustrating, but with the logic that they sold them and kept on selling, the design must at least have worked well enough for the public to continue buying it so I have been determined to obtain that level of operation from it. Real close now- hampered by the promises that modern oils have made.

I didn't buy the car to sit it in the garage. I want to drive it and have fun.

Phil

 

It's gotta be better now.....milkshakes can fix anything

 

*


*Does not apply to engine oil pans....

 

Or transmission pans. Especially when dead insects are added.