[DeTomaso] Pantera water pump bearings

[JDeRyke at aol.com]

In a message dated 11/27/09 1:31:25 PM, Thomas.Tornblom at Hax.SE writes:

> Does anyone know where one can get shorter waterpump bearings?   I've 
> been thinking about the possibility to drasticly shorten a pump so that one  
> can eliminate the hump.
> 
> I tried mailing Edelbrock, but they don't do support over email and 
> I haven't mustered the energy to call them.
> 
When disassembling a water pump to modify it, the danger is in cracking the 
carbon seal behind the bearings during press-on or press-off. These 
spring-loaded carbon seals are incredibly fragile and replacement seals are (or at 
least, used to be) hard to locate. Weiand rebuilds their water pumps so 
presumably they have spare bearings, seals etc. 
Street rodders use an adapted waterpump on custom backplates to make up a 
short water pump. Snow White Eng. sells the converted waterpump (from a 
NIssen turbo V-6? Can't quite remember....) but I doubt if one is made for a 
351-C. But the idea is maybe worth exploring during those long cold winter 
nights. 
Another method is used in adapting Chev V-8s into Porsche 914s and 911s: a 
self-contained water pump is side-mounted and driven off the crank pulley. I 
did this in swapping a 215 Buick into a 914 in the last century. The 
Buick/Rover block was modified with right-angle hose bibs and connected to the 
waterpump mounted under the right exhaust header.   Whether this would work in 
a tightly wrapped Pantera, I don't know. Keep us posted on what you discover
, Thomas. Thanks- J DeRyke