struggling to resurect an m37

[Kaiser2boy]

Not to sound like Henny Youngman but ,funny you should mention that.
I was concerned about run out and I did just about what you said. I was surprised that there was not a lot of run out in either direction, front to back or side to side.

While I have you here , and not trying to Hijack the post but I read that you should not remove the drums without marking its rotational spot on the hub. The hand book says do this to prevent "PEELING OFF THE HUB BOLTS" ?
I did not know about this until after removing my drums for inspection. I looked and can see no such marks to indicate that anyone has ever done it. How important is that statment?

[Gordon Maney]

I should ad a disclaimer to my statment. When I got the truck I could see that a new tie rod assembly had been put on but not adjusted yery well because the wheels were sort of wall-eyed, out in front narrow in the back.
I made a gauge out of two sections of EMT and set the front about 3/16 ths closer than the rear. It made steering much better but it is not as good as it should be. Prior to that it was VERY hard to steer. There is very little free play in the system so I figure its tight.

55 MPH? was that down hill with a tail wind , snicker.

My wife got a new car and it feels like you are driving at 40 mph when you are actually going 65.
The M37 feels like you are going 65 when you are going 45.

It is not clear to me, but it sounds like you worked off the sidewall. If you did, I would discourage you because of runout in the wheel/tire assembly.

Raise a wheel off the ground and scribe a line approximately at the center of the tread width. Use a concrete block or similar item to steady your scribe/pointer. Have someone turn the wheel while you hold the scribe still. Do that on each wheel. This scribed line will give you a true line fro which to measure from, establishing the relative positional relationships of the two wheels.

Use your home made tool to measure between the scribed lines at front and rear of the tires. Do the math and you will have the toe-in.

Early toe-in measuring devices were exactly that method. It was just a manufactured bar that made it very convenient.

[Kaiser2boy]

I should ad a disclaimer to my statment. When I got the truck I could see that a new tie rod assembly had been put on but not adjusted yery well because the wheels were sort of wall-eyed, out in front narrow in the back.
I made a gauge out of two sections of EMT and set the front about 3/16 ths closer than the rear. It made steering much better but it is not as good as it should be. Prior to that it was VERY hard to steer. There is very little free play in the system so I figure its tight.

55 MPH? was that down hill with a tail wind , snicker.

My wife got a new car and it feels like you are driving at 40 mph when you are actually going 65.
The M37 feels like you are going 65 when you are going 45.

[Gsmith]

M37's don't have to handle that way. I would wonder about loose steering parts, wheel balance, and perhaps caster.

Several I have had would easily do 45-50 in a nice, predictable, straight line.

Mine handles fine, I've had it up to 55. It sounds better at 45 of course.

[gusbratz]

I eliminated the capacitor in the supply power wire and replaced the coil. I just didn't have a strong enough spark to get any power out of the engine.

I am sure between the home made reverese geared power steering and the homemade rims and the plow on the front that is why it doesent handle good. It doenst relly wander it is more of a feeling that at a higher speed things could get out of control very quickly and you relly have to be on your toes and pay attention to what you are doing.

[OLD DODGE]

parts came and I put them on yesterday in the snow.

So what did you do or replace to fix it?

[Gordon Maney]

M37's don't have to handle that way. I would wonder about loose steering parts, wheel balance, and perhaps caster.

Several I have had would easily do 45-50 in a nice, predictable, straight line.

[Kaiser2boy]

Squirrelly, that about sums it up for handeling.
I had mine up to close to 50 once and it was pretty interesting even on a straight away. Switch back turns are hair raising events at anything over 25.
I joke and say "this thing is better suited for strictly agricultural work". But its fun. Anyone can drive a normal PU truck, it takes a loonie to drive one of these things.

[Gordon Maney]

I don't want that snow to come here....

[gusbratz]

Its alive

parts came and I put them on yesterday in the snow. Here is a pic of my plowing this morning for the 3rd time. truck is running great and pushing hard. It is little loose on the big hill past my drive way so I think I'm going to put chains on the stock tires and put them back on when it gets Icy. I dorve it 3 miles down the road to a freinds house to show it off. It was like roading a tractor. good for plowing and stuff but when you get over 35 MPH it is squrilly and has no power. I don't think I'll do that again.

[gusbratz]

engine was at normal operating temp, throttle was pinned wide open, all plugs were removed during compression test.

[Kaiser2boy]

I went back and read the OP. If he is getting 95 to 100 psi on a cold engine and it starts and runs ok , let it be.
You are right .
The clattering lump of iron in the Dodge is probably better suited for agriculture use.
I had mine totaly rebuilt and it looks great , starts like it was brand new and runs as smooth as silk. It is still a whimpy motor that has difficulty on hills.
But its fun when not on a hill.

[gusbratz]

well being that it was operated by the highway dept. I can look at it 2 ways, one is it was used as a plow vehicle and must be beat as it is such hard service for a vehicle. or on the other hand a highway dept is better than a regular owner because they actually have a scheduled maintence dept that changes oil and seals and such. I don't know. there is a little rubber tube that drains that air vent in the firewall. it must have been cut because it was draining out on the top of the engine. the back 3 spark plugs were acually rusted off, but they still came right out. weird

[MoparFreak69]

I read the above post and I am not real sure of the relationship of a small Kawasaki modern engine and a clanking iron lump like the old dodge fit together.

I could have gone to the other extreme and brought up the old hit and miss motors that were often used to power industrial equipment in the late 1800's. How accurate do you think parts were produced and machined in that era?

The point I was trying to make is that even in more modern, tighter tolerance engines 100 PSI is plenty to run on. 50 PSI will get them started so the OP's 90 PSI ratings are not something that worry me.

[Kaiser2boy]

If you got the head off w/o snaping anything it may be because some one had it off not too long ago or you are one of the luck ones.
You are right about not wanting to sink a ton of money into a truck that at best is worth 6 or 8 K if it is in real nice shape. And you may not like plodding along at 45 MPH with your foot to the floor, Ok 50 MPH if you catch a good tail wind on flat roads. We wont talk about going up hills. If you hit a 15% grade that is more than a 1/4 mile long you end up in second gear and 20 mph.