We just may do it! Denver-to-Bucksport...

Ralph

Considering all I would wait to your arrivial to Denver
to purchase a set of tools from any place as Walmart -
Costco or the like.

Spare Parts for The Carry-All are the same spare parts
that you would need for an 1950 De Luxe. They both use the
same Fuel Filter - Battery - Fan Belt - Lights - Water Hose
- Carburator - Brake Fluid - Engine Oil - Points/ other like
parts and etc etc etc.

Because this is "The Shake Down Trip" I would stick to
any Inter-State because they are traveled more that what
you may see on US 24/ US 6 or US 40. If you should have
an need to "roll to the side" most will realise that you are
not an local out for an ride. On U.S. Some-thing Another it
is easy for another motorist to assume that you just came
from that last place not to far back and you are waiting for
Johnnie to come get ya. An hand held CB is great for such
drives because it is another means to speaking with other
motorist than waving your arms.

From Denver direct to Maine using Google is 36 Hours. You
will be humming along more like an steady 55-60 MPH so add
much to the 36 hours of driving time. To me this sounds like
pure fun.

We live in Colorado Springs and I would be happy to aide you.
Items like five Tires Mounted & Balanced - an 6 Volt Battery -
That working Positive Ground 6 Volt Generator - Oils/ Oil
Filter and the such could be aquired and waiting for you when you
arrive. An full written account of this could then be given To The
Adventure's Magazine Editor so that others could read about the
fun ( or drama ).

When we purchased out 1947 Desoto Suburban Sedan I drove it back from Coeur d'Alene Idaho to San Francisco. I did however have my wife behind me in a rental as we picked up the car while on a vacation driving trip.

The only thing that failed was the speedometer cable.

Check the bolts on the universal joint before heading out.

Pick up a set of brake shoes. If a cylinder should fail they tend to drop fluid on the shoes making them junk. Also, take any new cylinder apart and check the seals. I had a new one with a seal that had a molding problem and after a few days of driving it failed. These days with crapto-plastic parts, always check never assume.

Buy a couple of jugs and carry some extra water and gas.

Make sure you can take all 4 tires off with a lug wrench before you head out. It is not nice if you need to change a tire and find out some idiot used 120 PSI to put the lug bolts back in. Remember, one side is left hand thread!

Take an extra fan belt.

Have a great trip!

James

#1 thing to pack...........DeSoto Club roster.

Hi Roger!

I'll reply to each paragraph in bold type:

Ralph
Considering all I would wait to your arrivial to Denver
to purchase a set of tools from any place as Walmart -
Costco or the like.
I plan to bring some of the more exclusive tools in my luggage and buy some more good-quality tools to add to my inventory at home. (Airlines allow 50lbs Max. for a bag).

Spare Parts for The Carry-All are the same spare parts
that you would need for an 1950 De Luxe. They both use the
same Fuel Filter - Battery - Fan Belt - Lights - Water Hose
- Carburator - Brake Fluid - Engine Oil - Points/ other like
parts and etc etc etc.
Yes, I think I am planning to put in an order with Rock Auto and perhaps Andy Bernbaum in time for the parts to be waiting for me at the place where the car is currently located. I had spoken with NDC member Ferd in MD some months back and he re-iterated the need for good brake components; so, I will make sure to have either 6 new wheel cylinders or will kit those I have; the same for the master cylinder and will replace the hoses as well.

I bought the car from Wayne Maddox in Commerce City (great guy by the way), and he is good about letting me have the parts shipped to his location.

Because this is "The Shake Down Trip" I would stick to
any Inter-State because they are traveled more that what
you may see on US 24/ US 6 or US 40. If you should have
an need to "roll to the side" most will realise that you are
not an local out for an ride. On U.S. Some-thing Another it
is easy for another motorist to assume that you just came
from that last place not to far back and you are waiting for
Johnnie to come get ya. An hand held CB is great for such
drives because it is another means to speaking with other
motorist than waving your arms.
Alina (my bride) and I did this same trip in July 2011 in a '65 Marlin that hadn't run since 1978; we actually bought that car from the Wayne as well and we decided to go with Interstates once we had reached Omaha, but the state highways through Kansas and Nebraska were so much more fun.
I drove truck for 20 years and have radios but I also have ham radio and of course we carry cell phones. Hmmm, you brought up another good point re: CB radios; I will need a 12V battery or some such system for those items.

From Denver direct to Maine using Google is 36 Hours. You
will be humming along more like an steady 55-60 MPH so add
much to the 36 hours of driving time. To me this sounds like
pure fun.
And if we go slower, we'll be able to wave at more people! We're going to give ourselves around 10 days, plenty of time to even have a few minor breakdowns. If we can afford to do it, we'd like our trip to take us across I-40 so that we can catch the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway during the fall colors. I think if we can get the car safe in 2 or 3 days, we should be able to still have the ~10 days for the trip.

We live in Colorado Springs and I would be happy to aide you.
Items like five Tires Mounted & Balanced - an 6 Volt Battery -
That working Positive Ground 6 Volt Generator - Oils/ Oil
Filter and the such could be aquired and waiting for you when you
arrive. An full written account of this could then be given To The
Adventure's Magazine Editor so that others could read about the
fun ( or drama ).
I believe Colorado Springs to be right on our route!
We are searching our resources for a comprimise between looks and performance re: tires. The result of our search so far has led us to some expensive tires so, we are considering but hesitating to go with something from Walmart to et us home. But that would detract from the appearance of the car. We are sure that we will find a new 6-V battery when we arrive to Denver.

We are keeping a journal of the trip and all whom we will have met (as we had done with the Marlin)

Alina and Ralph M Bohm

Hello James!

When we purchased out 1947 Desoto Suburban Sedan I drove it back from Coeur d'Alene Idaho to San Francisco. I did however have my wife behind me in a rental as we picked up the car while on a vacation driving trip.
Wait! She didn;t get to drive the cars???

The only thing that failed was the speedometer cable.

Check the bolts on the universal joint before heading out.
Sure will, and we will go through and change out some rubber parts, oil change, tune up, etc.

Pick up a set of brake shoes. If a cylinder should fail they tend to drop fluid on the shoes making them junk. Also, take any new cylinder apart and check the seals. I had a new one with a seal that had a molding problem and after a few days of driving it failed. These days with crapto-plastic parts, always check never assume.

Buy a couple of jugs and carry some extra water and gas.

Make sure you can take all 4 tires off with a lug wrench before you head out. It is not nice if you need to change a tire and find out some idiot used 120 PSI to put the lug bolts back in. Remember, one side is left hand thread!
Oh yes, thanks for that tip. Will most certainly chack on the torque and the reverse threads.

Take an extra fan belt.
Oh alright.

Have a great trip!

James

Ralph

Hello Tim!

I remember your name! I am sure we chatted before!

#1 thing to pack...........DeSoto Club roster.
I sure will. At the moment, I am away at sea in Brasil but as soon as I get home in 10 days, I will be looking it over and hopefully we will do the trip.

Ralph

Alina, walking past her car. This photo shows that we need a rioght-hand parking light lens and if it's available, the Desoto emblem for the hood.

Ralph

I'll start off with saying Gabby and I have known Wayne for some
time since we are all in The Rocky Mtn Regional WPC Club.

Most common sized tools to reak havic on any 1950 De Soto is 1/4
to 3/4 inch. This is why I mentioned why not purchase an set
of something from Denver. Add a Hammer and a Adjustable
Wrench ( aka Georgia Socket Set ).

These will remove an Generator ( so that you may add new brushes
from NAPA before you leave) - an Starter - an Master Brake
Cylinder - an Engine Cooling Fan - Water Pumps - Spark Plugs
and etc etc etc.

If the new Fan Belt ( from NAPA ) breaks from going round and round
- so will those new tires which have many more types of "road hazard's".
Will you need the thin or the thick/ wide version of Fan Belt
( ours uses the wide Fan Belt ) ?

**********************************************
Dis-Count Tires or an like place may have some wide white walls
if you prefer them over Black Walls.
**********************************************

When you leave this area I will "shadow you" to the State Line just
in-case you may need some assistance.

Rodger & Gabby
COS

Hi Ralph, I see you are considering a southern route and that might make sense in Oct.. But, our favorite route from Denver to MI. is US 36. We pick it up just East of Denver and it goes straight East across Eastern CO,through Kansas and Missouri to Springfield, IL where we head North. Route 36 goes on East through Indiana into Ohio. I think it is the most direct route East from Denver and is easy driving. It is mostly rural driving through a lot of small towns. My kind of traveling. If you decide not to do the Southern route, take a look at route 36. Les

Hi Ralph, I see you are considering a southern route and that might make sense in Oct.. But, our favorite route from Denver to MI. is US 36. We pick it up just East of Denver and it goes straight East across Eastern CO,through Kansas and Missouri to Springfield, IL where we head North. Route 36 goes on East through Indiana into Ohio. I think it is the most direct route East from Denver and is easy driving. It is mostly rural driving through a lot of small towns. My kind of traveling. If you decide not to do the Southern route, take a look at route 36. Les

I am plotting it right now and like it as far as Indianapolis.
From that point, and if both money and time hold out, we could start dropping south to get into southern VA and the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway (http://www.blueridgeparkway.org/).

Or else, just head due east to get home. This route, http://goo.gl/maps/G5y1J, is ~2500 miles.

The last few trips we made out West we have taken US 36 rather than the Interstates. If you haven't been to Hannibal,MO (Mark Twain country) it is a good place to take a break and spend some time or stop for the night. Nice little city on the Mississippi.

I like your plan to do the Blue Ridge Parkway. We haven't done it in the Fall but I would think there should be some good color in Oct..

I just bought a set of 235 75 15 whitewall radials off of Ebay for 340 shipped (they are called Golden Fury and have a period correct tread pattern). They are the narrow whitewalls but look ok. I also found that Pep Boys has a pretty good price on whitewalls.

Cheers
Matt

Hello Matt,

Let us know when you get them mounted and balanced how they turn out. I am sure we'd be interested to learn about their quality. In the meantime, I will look at Pep Boy's tires.

Thanks again, Matt.

Hi all,

Ok, we've arrived to Commerce City and started working on our Carryall.

We've pulled the wheels and got a chance to look under the hood. She looks pretty good for not being driven in many years. Looks like we'll need a heater duct from the heating core housing to the firewall. Anyone happen to have one?

Is this what you mean?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/49-50-Plymouth- ... es&vxp=mtr