I have been cursed by the drive by impulse buy, 1949 Ford. At first I was thinking the motor was stuck but after cutting the fan/water pump belt, I was surprised the motor turns free with little effort on the crank. Any ideas on procedure for oiling and starting the ole six... also the brakes are not working so need a source for all the necessary parts to get those up to snuff. Body is solid just some light rust here and there.
get the brakes working first, then you won't have to do bodywork I get many brake parts from rockauto.com Make sure the engine has oil, and fuel, and spark, and compression, and fire that baby up
Starting the engine is just your basic tune up and oil change. If you google brakes parts you can probably find a solution or you may try AutoZone they have a classic car parts section in their computer now.
Good car. The sixes are in some ways better than the v-8. Just make sure to pre-lube what you can, be aware there may be some stuck /sticky valves and rings, so be patient with the old girl when she fires up. But as has been said, do the brakes first, then after the victory of the first start-up, you can drive it.
Wow! That was fast. Thanks! I don’t think there’s much value in a custom paint job and the interior needs all seats panels and head liner, I had to de mouse it all so nothing but bed springs in a pile. Really need to see if it will run and stop then evaluate... likely will get body work and some rat finish before any big money will be spent.
LOL reminds me of a story. I probably shouldn't tell it but you know I will, right? When the granddaughter and I got that old Willys I had running it had zero brakes. I wanted to get it on a flat concrete surface before we started o the brakes, so I figure we would just cruise it to the driveway an then kill the motor. What I didn't figure on was the turning radius. So we rocked it to break it lose from the frozen dirt and I took off. We made it a little ways and all at once she hollars, "Grandpa TREE!!!" well I had it cranked to the lock and first applied the non existent brakes, yea old habits die hard. Then I pulled the world's best NASCAR move, I slid it out of gear, double clutched it and hit reverse. It actually slid into reverse like it was syncro-reverse. LOL We ended up careening around the neighborhood in the old heap, then quietly parked it on the driveway for the next round of playing old pickup trucks.
Looks really clean on the bottom! I would probably disconnect the fuel line and just try to start it from a hose in a can. Usually a lot of crap in the gas tank.
The only "rat" that gets any love around here is Rat Fink. Be aware that "traditional" doesn't equate with a lot of the rat rod look. If you just mean a flat black finish, some will call it passe', others will say whatever blows your skirt up. But a skullzz, barbed wire 'n bullets theme will get you nowhere here. Again, welcome to the board, but learn what we're about. No need for you to take a lot crap for nothing.
I get it. I have an inspiration vehicle, but I have to be cash conscious and evaluate as I go. If I were a wealthy man I’d hand it off to the builders, but what fun is that
Likely get it running with the 6-Volt but the whole car needs a rewire, I found a NOS complete harness and dash harness on eBay. If it gets that far I’ll convert to 12-Volt
Aren't stuck valves the killer on these flat 6's? Does it have a side cover where you could rotate the engine and see if all of the valves move? I would think if the valves are all moving, clean oil and good tuneup parts is all you really need before you try starting it.
or do something like this but with a chrome grill if the 6 is good leave it, add a glass pack. lower it, fix stock brakes, make it one color and enjoy
Welcome --- looks like a great project --- you don't have to spend a ton of money just to drive it and have a good time --- lots of good advise on here
Hey, TF; Nice find. Should keep you busy & broke enough to stay out of trouble... . (I wish my gaggle of '50 n '51 Studes were as nice as your '49). As far as the wiring, unless you're doing a nice restoration - & nothing wrong w/that, as there are good reasons/arguments for either: return to OEM or alter from mild -> wild, - you might consider a good aftermarket wiring harness. NOS may very well have similar problems to current harness, become brittle soon, not have enough options for what you intend down the road, etc. While I had a '51 Vic(in the early 70's), I can't remember what the wiring harness/wire covering was; plastic, cloth, tarred/cloth, etc. Plus = heavier gauge wire for the 6v vs 12v, & correct for OEM resto. Neg = just about anything else. Yes, it'll probably work ok, but I'd bet for ~ the same $$$, you'll be happier in the long (& maybe short) run w/a new harness. There's at least one harness guy on here, Rebel?, that gives discount to/for Alliance members, making that worthwhile too. (but I still gotta get to that point.) While I love old stuff, wiring isn't one of them. A guy by the name of Steve has a really good thread on wiring, called something like "Wiring 101" or something like that. Worth the read. FWIW. Marcus...
http://shoebox-central.com/ might not be the best price but he has the parts and is great to deal with
Yea that sounds like something that would happen around here don't it. LOL By the way there is nothing in the world wrong with 6V, if everything is up to snuff it works just fine. Going 12V is a cheaper route to take but 6V works on an old heap. The only problem I ever had with a 6V car was getting one started inn neg temperatures when the grounds and wiring was crap. That was nearly always cured with a 12V jumper battery. I say nearly always, I had the cables both hooked to the battery in my '53 F truck and make a spark that proved to be fatal to the battery. BOOM!!! LOL
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