Here are some pics of the burnt paint on the engine my Model A. A little back ground first. The entire chassis and drivetrain were rebuilt about 8 years ago. The owner put the body on the chassis and was getting ready to take it to the bodyshop and he passed away. The car sat in his widows basemet till about a year ago. The guy I bought it from brought it home. put a battery in an it fired ight up and idled fine. This still has breakin oil in it. My question/concern is why did the paint burn off? Was the motor "tight" after the rebuilt and get to hot. Carb to lean?Or maybe just lousy paint! The water pump is working and I asume theoil pump too Any thoughts or steps I should take to make sure there are no issures or potential problems down the road? Thanks, Todd
Answered over on the Ford Barn but I'll post it here too; I think you're dealing with bad prep. The paint is flaking on the top of the head behind the water outlet - the last place I would ever expect for heat to be an issue. The fact that black paint is present underneath and the head studs/nuts are painted as well leads me to believe that paint was slapped on without much regard. Strip it with a wire brush/stripping wheel/solvent and make sure it's free of grease - paint with a quality enamel.
Yep, seen it many times on spray bomb rebuilds. Who ever is working on the car decides he is tired of cleaning on the engine and just goes ahead and paints it and then the paint lifts off where it wasn't prepped good.
I'm looking at the spark plug bases also. It almost looks like these areas have been exposed to something corrosive. Who knows, but it doesn't look like it is from heat. If it has been setting for many years, who knows what it might be exposed to. Clean it up, change the fluids, lubricate and tighten everything. Then drive. Good Luck LJ