Messages

1

Kaiser Forum / Re: coolant recovery system

« on: July 04, 2020, 10:11:18 AM »

Sorry for being unclear.  Here's what I mean: in the pic I attached, you're looking at the underside of a radiator cap and a filler neck.  The radiator cap has two seals, one outer, which seals against the top of the filler neck, and one inner, which seals against the lip on the inside of the filler neck.  It was mentioned earlier in the thread that older radiators often had taller necks, which meant that using a modern cap on them will allow for a seal against the top of the neck, preventing leaks, but won't seal against the lip (because it won't reach down far enough to touch it), which means that the radiator won't be pressurized.  The inner seal is pushed against the lip by a spring (seen between the inner seal and the top of the cap), and the spring strength determines the pressure rating of the cap -- the stronger the spring, the more pressure it takes inside the radiator to force the seal up and off the lip and allow coolant to escape and travel to the reservoir.

As for returning from the reservoir, see that metal button-looking guy right in the middle of the cap, centered in the inner seal?  That looks like it holds the whole thing together, but is actually a return valve.  If you pull gently (gently!) against that button, pulling it away from the seal, it will pull out against a much weaker spring and open a passage so coolant can bypass the inner seal and get pulled into the radiator from the neck (fed by the hose from the reservoir).  However, I believe that some of the older radiator caps did not have that ability -- they did not have a built-in return valve.  So I was recommending that A) you verify that your cap reaches the lip and is long enough to pressurize your radiator, and that B) that you use a modern 7lb cap that allows coolant to be pulled back into the radiator through the valve that's centered in the inner seal.

Hope that helps!

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Kaiser Forum / Re: coolant recovery system

« on: July 02, 2020, 12:45:29 PM »

7 lb caps in the modern standard dimensions are not hard to find at local auto part stores, although they often don't list by application and they might not have one in stock the day you go.  I run 7 lb modern caps on all my old cars, but I've also upgraded all of them to aluminum radiators since it gets hot where I live.  Even if you upgrade the radiator to a modern design, you still want to use the low-pressure cap, since the heater core remains original.  Haven't had any of them fail yet, so 7 lbs seems pretty safe.

If the radiator cap has a metal center in the rubber seal, try pulling it gently away from the seal.  If it pulls out, the cap should allow for coolant to be pulled back into the radiator when it cools.  If if stays with the seal, the cap will only release coolant when the radiator is hot.  Also, be sure that you have a good seal of the hose to the nipple off the filler neck on the radiator -- if air can get past the seal, you'll have coolant getting pushed out and into the reservoir when hot, but when the radiator cools the vacuum will pull air past the seal instead of pulling fluid up from the reservoir.  I use the plastic aftermarket reservoirs, mostly, but have had awful luck getting the clear plastic hoses they provide with the kit to seal (even with a hose clamp!), which leads to exactly your problem.

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Kaiser Forum / Re: Kaiser Video

« on: April 26, 2019, 11:40:58 AM »

I don't think I've floored mine yet, other than for an instant to kick it out of OD.  The oil pressure in these guys scares me a bit too much for those shenanigans, at least until I change the oil for the first time and go to something heavier than the 10w30 the previous owner was using.   

4

Kaiser Forum / Re: Kaiser Video

« on: April 24, 2019, 07:11:29 PM »

Thanks for the link, and beautiful car!  I thought it was interesting that the host had not much good to say about the car's acceleration -- mine is a manual, and I'm actual pretty impressed with how much pep it has.  Is the automatic so different?

Also, he mentions the weight of the car, but I'm not under the impression that these cars are any heavier than modern cars (probably lighter) -- not sure if he's off base or if I am.

I do love the grill and the tail lights on the '54s!

5

Kaiser Forum / Re: Brake shoe adjustment

« on: April 24, 2019, 07:08:07 PM »

Well, that's embarrassing!  I absolutely failed to recognize that as a lock nut, despite wondering how the posts were secured from backing themselves off!  Thanks a bunch for the tip, that should do me a world of good!

6

Kaiser Forum / Brake shoe adjustment

« on: April 24, 2019, 04:22:50 PM »

Hi.  I have recently acquired a '53 Manhattan and am working on it.  One issue I'm having, thus far, is adjusting the shoes.  I can see that they're moved by a post that is turned by a stud coming out of the backing plate which fits a 1/4" wrench, and I can see that by turning the stud the post would move toward the inside or outside of the wheel, bringing the shoe with it, much like a similar-year Studebaker.  My problem is that, thus far, none of my studs want to turn, and I'm afraid of stripping or breaking them if I start cranking on them with my little 1/4" wrench -- clearly, they aren't supposed to require that much effort or they would have made the stud larger.  I'm wondering a couple of things here: 1) do they only turn in one direction, and if so, which way should I be trying to turn them?  2) Has anyone else experienced this, and if so, how did they overcome it?  I figured I'd better ask before I broke something, and hope someone has some guidance for me on this.

Thanks!

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Cars For Sale & Wanted / Re: 1953 Kaiser

« on: April 20, 2019, 01:41:55 PM »

Thanks for the responses, guys.  I'll try to get some pics uploaded soon, but first gotta get her back on the road.  Planning on replacing the master cylinder tomorrow and hoping to get the starter back from the shop in a couple of days, then we'll see what we've got!   

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General Discussion / Re: Front Wheel Cylinder on 1953 Kaiser Manhatten

« on: April 13, 2019, 11:02:20 AM »

So, I just bought a '53 Manhattan and blew the passenger front wheel cylinder a few days ago.  In trying to find information on the brakes, I come across this original post, which is quite helpful.  After a few minutes I realize that it was created by the guy who sold the car to the guy I bought it from -- this is my car he's asking about!!  I wonder if Lee ever did redo the wheel cylinders or not -- either way, I'm off to NAPA to pick up the rebuild kits any try again.  Wish me luck!

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Cars For Sale & Wanted / Re: 1953 Kaiser

« on: April 13, 2019, 10:58:50 AM »

Hi, folks.  I'm the new owner of this car, and it now resides in (mostly, but not so much today) sunny Albuquerque, NM, where it won't rust.  The Craigslist post was written somewhat in Textese, but when I spoke with the owner (whose nephew, I believe, had created the post) he was quite informative and very honest.  The car just rolled over the 60,000 mile mark, and I can't find any hint of rust on the underside.  Took some time to transfer hands, but I'm now a proud Kaiser owner, and it looks awfully nice in the driveway next to my '51 Hudson Pacemaker and my girl's '51 Studebaker Champion!