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the mysteries of dipsticks

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tomj View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tomj Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: the mysteries of dipsticks
    Posted: Feb/24/2018 at 7:51pm
so there's a difference in dipstick length, 1963 vs 1965, the 195.6 OHV.

'65 (and maybe '64) at least California cars the dipstick does not have the "breather" business inside the cap, it's not vented, for PCV engines (sucks air in the holes int he valve cover). i just installed an new PCV system (with mist condensor can) and so i'm running the '64 dipstick.

but it's longer by about 5/8". it's also got a quarter twist about halfway down, that seems to make it easier to insert (not that there's a problem with the older ones). but in a '63 engine it makes the correct oil level (4 quarts, "full") read over-full, by exactly the distance between the FULL and ADD marks.

i just filed a new notch at the new FULL location, no big deal.

i guess this isn't a question, just weird trivia. why on earth would AMC mess with dipstick tube and stick length? the thing is so long it practically pokes out the hood as it is.

1960 Rambler Super two-door wagon, OHV auto
1961 Roadster American, 195.6 OHV, T5
http://www.ramblerLore.com

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ramblinrev Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb/24/2018 at 8:18pm
One known variation in 196 OHV dipsticks and tubes is whether the car had power brakes from the factory or not. To clear the booster, the tube has a different curve and the dipstick is a different length.
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62 American Convertible (still worth the $50 I spent in 1973!) AMCRC #513, AMO #384
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tomj Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb/25/2018 at 11:16am
ha! thanks for that! lol talk about trivia. a very old world solution... you'd think they'd work up one for all/most and be done with it. but i guess it keeps us amused (and occasionally frustrated :-) now.

1960 Rambler Super two-door wagon, OHV auto
1961 Roadster American, 195.6 OHV, T5
http://www.ramblerLore.com

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pacerman Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb/25/2018 at 11:43am
I have maybe six of seven OHV 195.6 dipsticks here at home.  Most of them are in engines.  I will measure the lengths today and provide whatever information may be useful.  Joe
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pacerman Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb/25/2018 at 5:51pm
Ok a did some measuring.  I only measured 195.6 dipsticks installed in OHV engines. In some cases I could not read the date code (unreadable or obstructed).  Total length and length to the full line are measured from the base of the filler cap/breather cap.  For cast iron engines.

CAR            Date code Total length             Length to Full

64 Classic     Obstructed 26.5 25
62 Classic     Unreadable 26.5 24.5                  
06C09 28 26

Aluminum engines
1963 and 1964 date codes 19 17 3/8   (measured from the wafer on 
the handle of the dipstick).

Joe
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ramblinrev Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb/25/2018 at 6:49pm
Thanks, Joe! That shows we do have some variables out there....not if we can figure out what that all means!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Ollie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb/25/2018 at 8:21pm
I always mark my dip sticks when I know I have the correct amount of oil in the engine. Hacksaw blade mark works great.

When The Rambler is full dipstick reads 1 qt over full. At full its a qt low.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tomj Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb/26/2018 at 1:22am
thanks joe for that. my original dipstick read FULL when 4 quarts with filter. this sounds like a Nash thing, leftover. i am getting the sense that nash had accumulated a lot of "deferred decisions" that were bitign them in the butt coming out of ww2 and found they were too far behind to complete, hence the merger.

hudson must have been a mess; it seems all hudson tech was just dropped on the floor and forgotten. i've never got any sense of one single hudson item or knowledge brought into the AMC fold (the HORNET name; others?). just the dealer network i guess.

side by side, the old and new sixes are a study in OK I AM PAYING ATTENTION NOW LETS GET THIS RIGHT and they certainly did with the new six. lasting 40+ years speaks volumes.

1960 Rambler Super two-door wagon, OHV auto
1961 Roadster American, 195.6 OHV, T5
http://www.ramblerLore.com

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote farna Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb/26/2018 at 7:13am
Well, the 195.6 was a stop-gap design. The 1940s era (well, late 30s tech) L-head is pretty good compared to other L-heads. When the OHV conversion was engineered in the mid 50s AMC was hurting for development money -- the "merger" had cost a great deal with not a whole lot of return, but they needed an updated six cylinder engine. The rushed development of the Gen1 V-8 was being accomplished at about the same time as well. So they did what they could with what they had. They had a lot of time to work things out on paper (and a few prototypes) by the time they had the resources to build a new engine. That fact goes for both the 64 six (232) and the 66 V-8 (290).
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tomj Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb/26/2018 at 10:08pm
good points, all.

i hadn't thought of the flathead in terms of other flatheads, probably because i've not had one for 30 years. did think one would make a fun foolish project, but you ruined that by pointing out the reality of even with a turbo, it will barely reach the power of the stock OHV! damn you. lol

you're right -- all of the problems with the OHV are non-existent on the flathead. (the one dread would be adjusting the valves, ugh).

and they sure did right with the new six and eights.

1960 Rambler Super two-door wagon, OHV auto
1961 Roadster American, 195.6 OHV, T5
http://www.ramblerLore.com

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