Oldfart
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M43 Resurrection
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Oldfart
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Some photos of Ghostdriver's work today. Included pulling the front crank pulley and mounting plate again to install another "new" motor mount. She made a pass at putting together a military manifold instead of the civilian one on the old engine. Tried to drill the broken bolts in the intake manifold until we found the manifold we had surface honed when Ghostdriver first ordered up the reuilt engine. She needs a gasket for the heat riser and a water thermostat bypass elbow, but the parts list is getting smaller. It took my breath away to have to pay NAPA almost $15 for an oil pan plug. Almost as bad as $20 for a motor mount that got replaced before it got used.
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Oldfart
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Oldfart
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Ghostdriver
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Kind of feel like I'm making a little progress, finally. Have most of the attachments off the old engine and on the new one. I'm learning a lot with this remove and replace. I have a basic understanding of how an internal combustion engine works, and I have more specific knowledge of certain things I have had to do as a result of not being able to afford a mechanic, but this is my first attempt at an M37/43. So it's great that I have somebody standing over my shoulder that has actually worked on these things, and more than once. Plus I get to spend time with my Dad.
That being said, I/we had a Keystone Cops event in our excitement to move along and put oil in it. We put the pan plug in, and the fill tube, and the dipstick. Tried to attach one of the oil lines to a little brass elbow on the new engine, and it just disintegrated to the point where it could not be removed with a wrench. Meanwhile, Dad buggered off with my brother to deal with the Sherriff because we had just discovered a trespass/vandalism/theft. I hunted up a good pair of vise grips and eased the stupid broken thing out, stopping every turn or so to wipe the brass fragments away so they wouldn't fall into the engine when the fitting came out. Then, I swapped the fitting from the old engine over, which was in good shape. Dad came back, and we proceeded to pour almost six quarts of expensive oil into the new engine. Hooray, and all is well, until Dad notices a drip that becomes a trickle in the vicinity of the new brass fitting. Thought I screwed up and didn't get it tight enough, so I grab the empty oil bottle to catch the drip. Got to looking closer, and there is a small hole along the top of the oil galley, and the plug that should be in it is in the old engine. (Insert audible here). So Dad says, "stick your finger in it" and hustles over to get the plug out of the old engine. He's doing that, and oil starts running out of a second hole in the galley, which was heretofore unnoticed. Of course, I had to stick a finger in that hole too, and I felt like the little Dutch boy. Got the holes plugged, and everything tightened, so we're good now. But we were too busy to take pictures of any of it.
That being said, I/we had a Keystone Cops event in our excitement to move along and put oil in it. We put the pan plug in, and the fill tube, and the dipstick. Tried to attach one of the oil lines to a little brass elbow on the new engine, and it just disintegrated to the point where it could not be removed with a wrench. Meanwhile, Dad buggered off with my brother to deal with the Sherriff because we had just discovered a trespass/vandalism/theft. I hunted up a good pair of vise grips and eased the stupid broken thing out, stopping every turn or so to wipe the brass fragments away so they wouldn't fall into the engine when the fitting came out. Then, I swapped the fitting from the old engine over, which was in good shape. Dad came back, and we proceeded to pour almost six quarts of expensive oil into the new engine. Hooray, and all is well, until Dad notices a drip that becomes a trickle in the vicinity of the new brass fitting. Thought I screwed up and didn't get it tight enough, so I grab the empty oil bottle to catch the drip. Got to looking closer, and there is a small hole along the top of the oil galley, and the plug that should be in it is in the old engine. (Insert audible here). So Dad says, "stick your finger in it" and hustles over to get the plug out of the old engine. He's doing that, and oil starts running out of a second hole in the galley, which was heretofore unnoticed. Of course, I had to stick a finger in that hole too, and I felt like the little Dutch boy. Got the holes plugged, and everything tightened, so we're good now. But we were too busy to take pictures of any of it.
M715VFD405
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Sounds like a fun day in the shop to me 
Glad you got your leaks fixed.
Glad you got your leaks fixed.
Stan Leschert
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I don't have to tell you that you do good work .... you already know that.
Thanks so much for providing us with the MV porn that we hunger for.
I am sure that once this beastie is ready,
you will post tons more pics, of it running and having fun.
Thanks so much for providing us with the MV porn that we hunger for.
I am sure that once this beastie is ready,
you will post tons more pics, of it running and having fun.
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Ditto on what Stan said above.
I am headed off to court to deal with another matter in a few and stopped in to get my SS "fix" so I would not have withdrawl syndrome during the case.
Its a man made (woman) as well let me make sure that is straight - so that means man/woman can fix it. You just have to have interest - then be willing to learn from someone experienced like your father - and be able to handle however his style of training is - to sit there and take it and learn. Its basically all common sense stuff.
Everything has it own little idiosyncrocies - but it can be figured out.
The "twister" game of pluging oil galley holes of missing plugs - I ma just laughing with you - I never laugh at anyone because seconds or minutes later I know that something will come back to bite me for such an act of stupidity as well.
I learn something new everyday - especially on this one, as this is my first time.
You are doing great work - keep the pics rolling in and the great story of building.
I am headed off to court to deal with another matter in a few and stopped in to get my SS "fix" so I would not have withdrawl syndrome during the case.
Its a man made (woman) as well let me make sure that is straight - so that means man/woman can fix it. You just have to have interest - then be willing to learn from someone experienced like your father - and be able to handle however his style of training is - to sit there and take it and learn. Its basically all common sense stuff.
Everything has it own little idiosyncrocies - but it can be figured out.
The "twister" game of pluging oil galley holes of missing plugs - I ma just laughing with you - I never laugh at anyone because seconds or minutes later I know that something will come back to bite me for such an act of stupidity as well.
I learn something new everyday - especially on this one, as this is my first time.
You are doing great work - keep the pics rolling in and the great story of building.
1943ht
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Doing my engine rebuild right now... and like you have 2 complete engines to work with... very helpful pics...thank you .
Did a rebuild on my 1st fuel-pump yesterday ... been a while since I worked on one of these baby's (2007 rebuilt my Half-track AC Fuel-pump) and found it to be a major pain in the A$$. Is there a tool or a trick to getting the fuel pump diaphragm hooked onto the cam driven levers? Just seems that we were missing a trick to doing that portion of the rebuild. The vacuum side goes on fairly easy as you can see the rod from the diaphragm and work it over the operating cam... but once it’s in place and you install the fuel pump diaphragm, it’s a blind instal... worried about snagging both sides of that cam lever.
Any suggestions would be most appreciated!
Did a rebuild on my 1st fuel-pump yesterday ... been a while since I worked on one of these baby's (2007 rebuilt my Half-track AC Fuel-pump) and found it to be a major pain in the A$$. Is there a tool or a trick to getting the fuel pump diaphragm hooked onto the cam driven levers? Just seems that we were missing a trick to doing that portion of the rebuild. The vacuum side goes on fairly easy as you can see the rod from the diaphragm and work it over the operating cam... but once it’s in place and you install the fuel pump diaphragm, it’s a blind instal... worried about snagging both sides of that cam lever.
Any suggestions would be most appreciated!
1943ht
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Have spent some time at Wolf Creek Pass skiing back in the day... last trip was before my 1st OEF Deployment to Afghanistan in 2003... Would zip down to Pagossa (sp) Srings at night to soak the aches and pains out from all the days fun...
Your engine rebuild looks great! These engines are a thing of beauty regards design and simplicity!
Your engine rebuild looks great! These engines are a thing of beauty regards design and simplicity!
Oldfart
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The military versions of this engine are really almost idiot proof. It's like the distributor only going in one way because of the offset tang on the distributor shaft. The only real design flaw in my mind is the offset connecting rods. This tends to side load the rod bearings and shorten rod bearing life particularly if the engine is run at higher RPM's very much. However, the military in its wisdom uses a throttle governor to limit RPM's and the carb itself has bumps in the throttle bore that keep the throttle plate from opening much beyond 2/3rds. One of the reasons people "discover" increased performance upon installing a civilian carb no matter what kind. What they don't discover is the shorter rod life because it happens later. I am on my 3rd rebuild in my own M37.
1943HT (from around the world ~ neat recovery) I have rebuilt the M37/M43 fuel pump several times, but I have to confess that was a while back and I am trying to remember. I went to electric wipers in my own M37 and shifted to the single action fuel pump because I twice had a diaphragm split and fuel dumped into my oil pan (thins the oil.) It sticks in my mind that I used a pick with a hook or bend at the end. Sort of remembering that I installed the fuel side first on the cam link and then compressed the spring by pushing the diaphragm far enough to be able to see the link for the vacuum diaphragm from the other side. ~~~ Don't count on what I said; I will have to meditate a while to see if I can drag that memory back to life.
1943HT (from around the world ~ neat recovery) I have rebuilt the M37/M43 fuel pump several times, but I have to confess that was a while back and I am trying to remember. I went to electric wipers in my own M37 and shifted to the single action fuel pump because I twice had a diaphragm split and fuel dumped into my oil pan (thins the oil.) It sticks in my mind that I used a pick with a hook or bend at the end. Sort of remembering that I installed the fuel side first on the cam link and then compressed the spring by pushing the diaphragm far enough to be able to see the link for the vacuum diaphragm from the other side. ~~~ Don't count on what I said; I will have to meditate a while to see if I can drag that memory back to life.
Oldfart
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Back when I was young and nimble (before artificial knees); I used to spend all day water skiing around Grand Lake and Lake Granby. Then the old folks would crash and we younger sorts would head to Hot Sulfur Springs to swim and soak in the hot pool and relive the kinks and aches. Then we would stop at the Chuckwagon cafe for some of their homemade apple pie and ice cream before hitting the rack. Nowadays any one of those things would be an all day event for me. (Truthfully, it would take me all day to just find my skis.) There is nothing like a fun day followed with a soak in a mineral hot pool.
Ghostdriver
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Thanks for all the words of encouragement, they mean a lot to me. I am also happy and proud that I'm "keepin' 'em rolling," as our MVCC club motto says. Nothing like showing up at a parade or other event and seeing the faces of the veterans as we roll by. Those are the best days.
We have not rebuilt the fuel pump, and hopefully we won't have to. If we do, I'll post pictures (providing we're not using all fingers and toes to plug leaky holes while we scramble for parts).
Don't know about the carb yet, but I'd expect that I'll at least have to crack it open and clean it. Last time I worked on a carb was a Carter WCFB on my 1965 Impala, and that was over 20 years ago. But I do remember what a needle and seat looks like. Lol, I'll keep the "MV porn" coming.
We have not rebuilt the fuel pump, and hopefully we won't have to. If we do, I'll post pictures (providing we're not using all fingers and toes to plug leaky holes while we scramble for parts).
Don't know about the carb yet, but I'd expect that I'll at least have to crack it open and clean it. Last time I worked on a carb was a Carter WCFB on my 1965 Impala, and that was over 20 years ago. But I do remember what a needle and seat looks like. Lol, I'll keep the "MV porn" coming.
FrankUSMC
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Ghostdriver
I am hoping Oldfart will back me up on this, because we both hurt from doing things when we were young, and ....lets just leave it at young.
In the photos of you working on the motor. What are you thinking working on that motor with flipflops on? Have you lost your Marine Corps mind..civilain mind? One slip, and you could end up with half a foot or maybe the loss of a few toes. Even if it does not cut off or break any thing, that motor or tools is going to HURT when they land on your foot (back me up on this Oldfart). You can get steel toe boots or shoes today that are light wieght and comfortable. It is not fun knowing the weather is going to change because bones start hurting.
Ok, enough butt chewing, you are doing a great job on saving our history, I am just trying to save you. Now, go have fun.
One of the few, Frank USMC RET
I am hoping Oldfart will back me up on this, because we both hurt from doing things when we were young, and ....lets just leave it at young.
In the photos of you working on the motor. What are you thinking working on that motor with flipflops on? Have you lost your Marine Corps mind..civilain mind? One slip, and you could end up with half a foot or maybe the loss of a few toes. Even if it does not cut off or break any thing, that motor or tools is going to HURT when they land on your foot (back me up on this Oldfart). You can get steel toe boots or shoes today that are light wieght and comfortable. It is not fun knowing the weather is going to change because bones start hurting.
Ok, enough butt chewing, you are doing a great job on saving our history, I am just trying to save you. Now, go have fun.
One of the few, Frank USMC RET
jets1959
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I would have sworn that was an Engine in that 43 and not a motor.
Aside that factor - safety is an element to take into consideration when demanding.
Aside that factor - safety is an element to take into consideration when demanding.
Ghostdriver
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Butt chewing is well deserved, especially since I have had horses since I was 5 and I know what heavy things can do to feet. I even thought that looking the pictures, "Good God woman, what are you doing wearing flip-flops!" Not to mention my good Liz Claiborne shorts. And I should really know better because I can predict weather based on the ache around the plate on my collarbone (greenbroke Friesian-Thoroughbred mare).
And yes, it is an internal combustion engine, not an electric motor, so I have never understood why we have to buy motor mounts and take the engine to the motor shop. Perhaps it is colloquial.
Hopefully Dad will post the pictures we took tonight soon - there are pictures of two different exhaust manifolds, and one of them (the one on the old engine) is civilian, because the exhaust outlet comes straight out of the bottom of the manifold, but angles out of the back of the military manifold. I'll probably have to rework the exhaust a little, but only a little.
And yes, it is an internal combustion engine, not an electric motor, so I have never understood why we have to buy motor mounts and take the engine to the motor shop. Perhaps it is colloquial.
Hopefully Dad will post the pictures we took tonight soon - there are pictures of two different exhaust manifolds, and one of them (the one on the old engine) is civilian, because the exhaust outlet comes straight out of the bottom of the manifold, but angles out of the back of the military manifold. I'll probably have to rework the exhaust a little, but only a little.
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Oldfart
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Photos including the maifold dance in riding boots and Jods ~~ Better protection than the flip flops.
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Oldfart
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Ghostdriver used stainless steel bolts to put the intake and exhaust together. Maybe they will not freeze up as badly as the originals.
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Very nice - that tone of nail polish (and how does she keep them from getting marded up is beyond me) is almost the same color red as the CROSS - is she testing "tones" ?.
The purr of that engine is almost in sight.
The purr of that engine is almost in sight.