Hi CartRich,

You sound like you have a pretty good handle on the 'order' of things and when I say 'involved', I only mean time-consuming and finickity. Keep track of the bolts as they come out of the pump as to which go where, as they both differ in length and, on mine, there were a couple with a special copper washer and they need to go 'back where they came from'.
Sometimes with the front motor mount, if it is really old, and the engine has 'sagged' a bit, it will interfere with the sealing surface of the bottom of the pump. You can support the engine with some wood under the oilpan and a floor jack and remove the 2 engine bolts from the mount and then jack the motor up another 1/4" to 3/8" to give you good exposure to the mating surface of the block. You obviously want to get it perfectly clean to preclude leaks. I scraped mine with a razor scraper and then gave the area a light block sanding with some 150/180 grit paper in a cross-thatched pattern. This will expose any nicks or corrosion pits, or any high spots in the surface and help you get a good gasket seal. Good lighting is key and I'd also check out your upper and lower rad hoses during the swap-out, as there's no better time to replace them if needed! Good luck. Chris.

CartRich,
My only 'thoughts'/advice would be to watch how much pressure you applied with the hand pump if you DO get one. I know my cooling system is a 'zero-pressure' circuit and depending on the condition of your rad (if the '41 is also 0-press.) it might not take much positive pressure to make it leak! Re, replacing the water pump, again, a fairly involved task, I would sure confirm the leak is coming from there before getting the sockets out or phoning your mechanic. As Dave (Owen_Dyneto) says, there is a weep hole in the back of the pump and coolant coming from there should be relatively easy to confirm. If you do end up removing the pump, it's always a good idea to pull the brass water distribution tube, but only possible if the rad is removed as well. Personally, I find working on these cars, leaning over the big fenders to be physically arduous and somewhat of a PITA. I built a fairly large plywood box about 10" off the ground, and standing on that helps. Although removing the front end clip is a task, it sure makes any of the aforementioned a WHOLE LOT easier! I've had mine off twice and the second time, it only took me a couple of hours to put it back. Just MY take though.... Chris.

Hi CartRich,
I'm coming from my experience with the '39, but one thing I found was, if one filled the rad up to the neck bottom, as you said you did, once the engine warms up that became 'too full' on my car and it would leak out via the overflow tube, until it reached it's 'own level'. When I had my rad re-cored I noticed the shop moved the overflow spout (inside the rad) up, a good inch. That allowed me to carry a little more coolant without any overflow, but I STILL can't have it to the bottom of the fill neck. If I stand on something and look down into the rad I can see coolant but it is still a ways down when cold. I am wondering if maybe your overflow rubber spout is cracked or not appropriately affixed to the exterior rad connection and is leaking down the side of the rad?? I would at least eliminate that as a possibility before the expense and work of R&Ring the rad as it is a big job, and expensive if you can't do it yourself. Bottom line, if your rad is over-full, it will do some overflowing when the engine is warmed up. Chris.

Wow, that looks gorgeous, John!! Chris.

Crin,
1929Packardguy beat me to the punch with his post, but I sure couldn't have said it any better! At any rate, I echo his sentiments and take my hat off to you as well. Chris

David, can I ask how the bell housing is different? Do bell housings generally have to be changed out when converting to OD?? Chris.

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Hi Wat_Tyler,
I've said for years that one could go door to door, handing out brown manila envelopes full of hundred dollar bills and someone would be offended!

You make a good point on 'opinions' and, at the end of the day, we all should 'go our way' and let the chips fall where they may. I guess I would classify myself as a 'semi-purist' where I like to keep everything as original as possible and practical, but when the situation at hand dictates a diversion, I'm okay with that. I'm with you on the other 'Car Guy's' pursuits, and while I'm not a fan of rods and the like, I can appreciate the work and craftmanship that goes into some of their work and customizations. To each, his own, right?? Chris.

Hi Olebusted1,
Thanks for letting us have a look. It certainly does the trick for now. Not sure if you ever plan to have a radio in the car, but if not, the next time you have any bodywork done, a guy could get that welded over and it could really disappear! In the meantime, your fix sure works and I like the way you have it conforming to the body line on the lower edge. Chris.

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Tim,
FWIW, I don't either. Maybe I am 'out of the loop' up here in Canada, but I didn't see anywhere in the CCAD preamble, that it was designated for chopped and rodded
vehicles only. There are, and always will be the from/to of old car enthusiasts, those who want to chop and hotrod everything they touch, to the dyed-in-the-wool purists, who wouldn't put an aftermarket part in their car to save their lives; and, of course everyone in between. I do think the point is being distorted to 'blame it on the greedy guys from Summit Racing'. Having a national day set aside for the hobby can do a lot of good, maybe get some young people interested in 'different' old cars, showcase the importance of preserving history, and possibly even the bringing together of the different factions of old car restoration. The purists, the rat-rodders, the hot-rodders, the extreme custom guys - are we all really that different?? Divisiveness can be our undoing, if we let it; might be time to take stock on what we share in common. Chris.

Fish'NJim,
I always read your posts and comments with interest and respect your opinion. My comment on 'the eventual end of fossil fuels' isn't 'self-defeatist'; its just reality. As a race, we will 'use up' fossil fuels, just like they're draining the aquafers in California and decimating the forests by over-logging. Like air and fish and trees, there is a very finite amount of EVERYTHING on this rock, and as we gorge the earth with billions more people, and the usage redlines, the curve on that graph is going to become pretty acute. Someone posted on here a while back that the biggest threat we face on this planet is over population and I couldn't agree more. World Population has doubled since I was a teenager in school 50 years ago, and that means we've been growing globally by 200,000 people a day!! Every day, for 50 years. That's mindboggling when you think of the food to feed, getting rid of the waste, and all the 'consumed resources'. Having said that, there's probably a good 50 years left for fossil fuels and most of us will be long since dead when the last gallon of gasoline is pumped at a gas station somewhere! So, 'the end' isn't going to 'defeat' any of us!! Chris.