ajmac Posted June 26, 2012 Author Share Posted June 26, 2012 Gearbox is now complete to Loyd spec and awaiting storage at the farm, engine parts return from acid dipping on Friday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 1, 2012 Author Share Posted July 1, 2012 Flathead V8 Back from Pickling. Now cleaning all the internals, sould be getting a new std steel piston from the US soon along with a pack of NOS rings. Chassis booked in with the blasters, just waiting to borrow a trailer to transport it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 2, 2012 Author Share Posted July 2, 2012 Cracks, cracks, cracks! :mad: Zoom in on Flickr and you can see the blighter! Second chamber from the left on the lower head, upper head is from a 239c Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fesm_ndt Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Damn, you dont need to zoom in :-X What's plan B? My brother has a complete engine in his back yard but he's a rampant hoarder and he can be seen wandering around his hoarde muttering "my precious, my precious". Damn thing has been sitting there since 1984 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Barrell Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Alastair, I have a pair of 24 stud heads, not sure of their origins but they have a central water outlet. They are of no use to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 3, 2012 Author Share Posted July 3, 2012 Thanks Adrian, PM sent. Oh I thought you would all like to see the block crack too, oh did I laugh (what else could I do:-) ) It is quite common on Flatheads and speaking to some US Flathead guys it is an easy fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ferrettkitt Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 How was the engine 'pickled'? Stupid question but one has to ask Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 3, 2012 Author Share Posted July 3, 2012 (edited) Hydrochloric Acid I would Imagine. Part of a series of chemical imersions, paint strip, rust removal, passivation bath... this is who I used: http://www.surfaceprocessing.co.uk/ My Cousin is the MD. I dropped off a batch, including all the engine parts, the torque tube and since the project started they have done several loads, as yet I have not media blasted anything, but I will be in the near future as I was given a blasting cabinet and a pot blasting setup by a friend. Edited July 3, 2012 by ajmac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ferrettkitt Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Hydrochloric Acid I would Imagine. Part of a series of chemical imersions, paint strip, rust removal, passivation bath... this is who I used: http://www.surfaceprocessing.co.uk/ My Cousin is the MD. I dropped off a batch, including all the engine parts, the torque tube and since the project started they have done several loads, as yet I have not media blasted anything, but I will be in the near future as I was given a blasting cabinet and a pot blasting setup by a friend. Nice that's a great way of stripping paint and rust Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcspool Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 It is quite common on Flatheads and speaking to some US Flathead guys it is an easy fix. Too bad! An English friend of mine used to comment heavily on Henry's cheapskate engineering, he would only be seen driving "proper English" vehicles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Bedford Boys Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 Too bad! An English friend of mine used to comment heavily on Henry's cheapskate engineering, he would only be seen driving "proper English" vehicles English vehicles were just as bad... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Farrant Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 English vehicles were just as bad... you had better elaborate on that sweeping remark........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 5, 2012 Author Share Posted July 5, 2012 I can forgive an engine being cracked, after all it was the first mass produced V8 automotive engine, built down to a cost, with little casting design experience and on top of that it is 70 years old! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcspool Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 I can forgive an engine being cracked, after all it was the first mass produced V8 automotive engine, built down to a cost, with little casting design experience and on top of that it is 70 years old! Yes, it must have given a good return on its investment. The famous flathead design went on to be manufactured until the late 1960s in France. By the way, maybe one of those "French Flatheads" is a suitable replacement engine? They can be made to look very much like the wartime V8 - see quote from Maurice below. Check with RR Services to see if they have any left. if you swap the sump , and inlet manifolds , and water pumps from the orriginal block you are there , just one fan belt has to be deleted if you leave the french distributor on , but if you put an adaptor plate in between the wartime distributor and the wartime gear cover you can delete the french distributor (cam shaft is slightly longer) This is possible with the 21 stud engine , and 24 stud engine (heads on french 24 stud engine have radiator hose connection in different place, so 24 stud WW2 head can be swapped as well) . clutch matches straight on to gear box . PS: "built down to a cost" is what my friend refers to as "cheapskate engineering". Fact is, Ford is still around, most of those "proper English" manufacturers aren't Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 5, 2012 Author Share Posted July 5, 2012 (edited) Engine block now deposited with a nice gent who I found just 10 minutes from Lincoln, he works from a farm rebuilding vintage engines, does white metaling, journal grinding, any kind of cylinder work and metal stitching. I have asked him to repair the crack and change a couple of seats that were rather pitted, he will try a recut first to see if it will take out the pits. Great place no know, and local too! http://www.adengineeringuk.com/ Edited July 7, 2012 by ajmac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 14, 2012 Author Share Posted July 14, 2012 With the engine work going along a pace at home (will post a full rebuild description when I have all the parts to hand) it was time to visit the farm and tackle the axles again. They have really taxed me as they are supposed to come off so easly, nothing is easy with this bl~~dy project! I was planning to get the chassis blasted next week, but when I started work on the axle I realised there was little point as when it comes back there will still be tones of stripdown still to do before any substantial parts can be refitted. Back to the front axle (more correctly a cross tube), one bogie was shot to pieces so I simply slit it and drifted it from the axle shaft, even that was hard job. The remaining bogie (front right) is the best one that came from the range target, so it needs to be saved, no slitting down the side on this one:laugh: I removed one of the bogie wheels the other week and this time removed the remaining spring assembly. I will need to have a set of new springs made, so I now have a version as a pattern for both the inner and outer coils. As you can see Carrier spring assemblies are made up of four coils two ball caps, two seat plates and a main shaft, all the ones I have are bent so these will need making new. The bogie yet again failed to budge even when glowing red! Plan B is to fabricate a heavy duty frame to hold the bogie while I jack the x-tube out through the bogie centre. Above you can see what keeps sneering at me, the rear x-tube, with two bogies attached, ahhhh, run away! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eddy8men Posted July 14, 2012 Share Posted July 14, 2012 difficult task you've got there alastair, if you can't get it to shift with a jack you could always slit it like the other one then weld the seem to close it again. not a great way i know but at least you'll get the bugger off the sodding shaft :mad: anyway keep plodding on with it you'll soon be at the putting things back on stage which is where the real rewards come, you'd be there already if you had no family, endless wealth and limitless time :-D all the best rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 15, 2012 Author Share Posted July 15, 2012 Thanks Rick, I will keep going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fesm_ndt Posted July 15, 2012 Share Posted July 15, 2012 (edited) What about two one inch plates with 3 or 4 holes in them couple of inch and a half bolts and use a big spanner and bar to tension it up then a bit of heat?? Just thinking you could keep it tensioned up with the heat on or off and or leave it under tension. You could use an impact driver if the bolts and nuts are good quality. Edited July 24, 2012 by fesm_ndt poor spelling Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 23, 2012 Author Share Posted July 23, 2012 This weeks progress revolved around the wish to get the chassis blasted, so selected one rear track adjuster brace to repair, this involved knocking out a couple of dents and then welding material in to fill shrapnel damage. I prep'd the rear corner of the brace as there was a chunk missing, I will weld in a replacement section this week. Work continued on the LHS brace too but this one is in a bad way. Two surprises earlier this week, I was offered a lathe by a friend at work, a 1936 Atlas, it is now wired up at the farm....and a friend appeared in the workshop at home :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 30, 2012 Author Share Posted July 30, 2012 (edited) An afternoon trip to a farm near Hull on Sunday resulted in a boost for the Flathead V8 rebuild, I picked up a bargin set of NOS war department flathead parts: Full set NOS 3 1/16" aluminium pistons with rings. Two NOS water pump rebuild kits. Set of NOS adjustable lifters. Engine Set of NOS 1949-53 valve train equipment (the best ever made, much improved over 1930's originals) Pair of good 81T cylinder heads Dual belt crank pully. Fell on my feet there, seeing as the chap and I only got talking about flatheads in passing Original boxes were a little water damaged. Only way to get at the pistons was to rip the boxes open. All wrapped. So much grease. Cleaned up and found 'Ford' on the crown, great news. WD packaged rings. That lot looks too good to hide away inside an engine! Edited July 30, 2012 by ajmac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amphibi boy Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Hey Alastair, Wow that lot will give you a huge grin! Bet you are on cloud nine. :shocked: Nice things like that give you a huge boost towards the work. Well done great work Cheers shaun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted July 31, 2012 Author Share Posted July 31, 2012 I found a great way to remove the Cosmoline packing grease, just get permission from your wife first (which I did), pop your pistons on a foil lined old roasting tin, the deeper the better, set the oven to 150 Deg C for 25 minutes and voila! All the hard brown gunk runs off and you are left with items that just need a wipe with a dry cloth and a following swill in some thinners to take off the remaining greasy sheen. Hope that tip helps someone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fesm_ndt Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 Hope that tip helps someone. Yep thats a good tip as I always forget to get permission from your my wife first :-D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmac Posted August 18, 2012 Author Share Posted August 18, 2012 (edited) I'm off to France for a week again from sunday to get a suger beat factory ready for the season so I was in a bit of a rush to collect the parts of the project that were out with local companies having work done. Below you can see the chassis is all blasted and primed ready for rebuild and the engine is back from having the crack repaired, bores honed and the pitted valve seats recut. The engine needs a batch of parts shipping over for the US before the rebuild can progress any further and that has to wait for funds to allow, meanwhile I can start bolting the chassis back together and once the front axle arrives from Clive Hughes the torque tube and steering controls can go in. Edited August 18, 2012 by ajmac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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