Technical bringing engine to life

Personally I would not be concerned about what you found under the valve cover. There's a big difference between Use and Used up. As squirrel mentioned your probably headed for the Snow Ball effect. This kind of thing always starts out "I'm only going to do" and ends up heading into deep water. Think long and hard here my friend, investigate the condition of your Wallet before jumping in. I will say a pretty good running used motor is just as good as a Fresh Built 3 year project motor. They don't need to be New to do there job of giving us a good time.

 

You probably need to start, with the end in mind. What will you have when you're done? A money hole, or an engine that won't last forever, but will provide many miles of fun for little money, and some labor?

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/y-block-overhaul.1017969/

shows what I did with a Y block a few years ago. The car sat for years, the rings were stuck, there was some sludge in it, but aside from cam bearings, it really didn't need any new parts. I could have even put the old rings back in, but I found some new ones on ebay real cheap. I think I had about $200 and a week or two of work into the engine, and it ran great and went 3000 miles on a quart of oil.

 

After seeing those photos, I would only only turn that 32k engine over by hand after giving it a good soak of Marvel/ATF. I'd be afraid of doing some damage starting it (with the carb off, who knows what made it's way into a cylinder)? With the carb off, I'd guess at some point in it's storage, someone already tried to start it with varnished gas and gummed up the carb, pulled it to rebuild it and quit there.

You have 32k engine that's standard bore. I'd pull it, pressure wash it, field strip it, then bolt the long block to an engine stand. Pull then freeze plugs and flush the water passages. Then pull the intake and pan, do some cleaning/inspection, then soak/lube everything and turn it over. Do a compression check, adjust the valves. Pant it, new freeze plugs, points, fresh gasket set, new water pump, plugs, wires, etc. Then fire it.

As mentioned, don't work on the car to get it running before you buy it (price will go up if it runs). Just price it as a non running car that needs a complete rebuild.

 

To date we've seen no photos of the Project. The seller says 32K miles. That may be the odometer reading but could easily be 132K. I'd be looking at the wear on the 3 rubber pedals. To the knowing eye there are several other things that will show you the truth like the driver side seat springs. Door jamb service stickers. Why is the Rad out of it at 32K? Those things would help me decide how interested I'd be. On the flip side if you like it just step up and move on. Price isn't all that matters.

 

Here is the car and the pedals as mentioned have no wear on them. The front seat is toast but the back seat is still original.

thanks for the feedback and ideas.

 

Wow, you won't see many more like yours. That's a 500 series Victoria 4 door Town Sedan post car. I've never been a 4 door guy but I'd stop and look yours over. Maybe that's because 57's are high on my personal list. Looks like she's got some wounds here and there but a plenty good place to start.

 

Did you buy the car?

 

Hi All,

Well i pulled the trigger and am now the proud owner of a a 58 Ford Fairlane 500 Town Sedan! Did Ok on the deal for a really solid relatively rust free California car. I will get her in a week or so and will post more pics. She will need a thorough cleaning first and formost. Then it will be onto catalogue what needs to be done and slowly ordering the parts. So be prepared for a barrage of questions (some will be stupid I guarantee it :003. So I might as well start now:

-She needs new tires so what size am I looking for in radials?-
-Best engine degreaser? i need to degrease/sludge the valve chamber. It has been pointed out to pop the freeze plugs and pressure wash the passages out, how do I get them out?
-Who makes the best brake parts? I am thinking of going with Kantor's for a complete kit to do everything. I will also need to get lines as I am sure the originals are rusted by now.


Thanks you for all of your suggestions,

Mike

 

If you can find "pro force" degreaser get it, sams club sells it off and on. itll take grease off like nothing, be careful though itll take off paint and many more things too if left to sit

 

OK...
Congratulations
BTW that car looks to be a 1957. If it has two big round taillights it is a 1957. Many of these are titled by the year of purchase rather than their actual model year. No biggie, if the state says it's a 58, it's a 58 although it's really a 57.

Tips...
I have some no BS tips coming...
Hint...
They involve paper towels, a brush and a bucket of kerosene, diesel or mineral spirits....

 

I'm in. I can admit I don't know it all but have done almost all of it. Second time around was better than the first run most of the time. I agree with F-one in that the photo posted is a 57. Did you check the Title numbers against the Body tag numbers? You wouldn't be the first guy to buy a car with a Title from a different one. Double check that before money changes hands.
What I know about freeze plugs is that they usually have a lot of sediment behind them. I generally use a blunt dowel and drive the Top of them into the water jacket. That makes the Bottom edge roll out towards you. Then grab them with a pair of Channel locks and roll them the rest of the way out. Be careful and not hit them real hard before they dislodge because you can drive the Center off the Ring seated in the Block hole. Now you've got a headache.
To me Tire size is a personal thing based on wheels and stance. I could give a Rip what they came with or the Salesman says I should have. Big-n-Littles rule no matter the sheet metal they are on.
Seems like todays replacement shoes come with over size linings on them to take up drum ware. No matter how good the drums look to your eye have a clean up cut done to them and find a Brake Shop that can arc the shoes to each drum size. Now you have full contact of the shoes. Also I always buy the Cheep linings, I'd rather replace them 3 times than run the Bi-metal and have them eat up my drums. You won't find made to fit hard lines. Buy a coil of line from N.A.P.A. and a real good flairing tool and practice several times. Then make your own to fit based on the ones you take off. Also get a full set of new springs for all 4 corners only order them for a 1965 Ford and get the self adjusters, you'll be glad you did that in the end.

 

Unless the plan is to get the car on the road soon(and things go to plan) I’d hold off on tires till it’s ready.
I think you mentioned sludge/ etc in the engine? If the plan is to clean that out best to pull it and take it apart.
Does that engine have core plugs in the rear of the block?

 

looks like fun.

Are you planning to replace everything, whether it needs it or not? How is your budget? how is your available time? do you have room to work on it? inside? Do you have any plans for the car? stock restoration, fun low buck driver, hot rod, custom...????? And do you have some idea of when you want to have it on the road?

I ask these questions because they're important....if you don't know the answers, you'll get lost. You'll buy parts that you don't end up using, you'll take things apart that you won't be able to put back together, etc.

I've noticed that folks only work on the stuff that they feel capable of working on. Someone who doesn't know how to do anything to an old car might get new tires put on it, and install a new air filter and wiper blades, but the engine is still stuck, there are still big rust holes in the floor etc. Those are sad cases. Don't be that guy...start with the difficult stuff, that involves your labor, rather than spending money on parts that you may or may not get around to using.

 

@squirrel said it better and more complete than I did.

 

Squirrel,

I have two years to get her on the road as a budget driver. She will be my driver on tours while my other car is being restored. When I retire she gets the treatment. But for now she will be a fun driver. I am planning on spending around 5K which includes the power train, brakes, front suspension and fuel system. The interior/body will be last-but the body will have to be sealed up for rust purposes. So I may sand her down and do a budget paint job for this purpose.

She will be stored in a garage and I will work on her when I get the time-which will be weekends mostly. But I am looking forward to working on a car again. Just ordered the shop manual and when I get her delivered this weekend I can start cleaning her up and seeing what I really have. So far I am just seeing surface rust and no cancer!!!! I may start with the engine as that will take the longest to complete what with the cleaning and oiling. Then fuel system so at least I can get her running and tuned. Then it will be onto the brakes and front suspension if needed.

I am hoping I have things pretty well covered for what I have planned for her. If not please let me know.

Thanks everyone,

Mike

 

Sounds good.

You might want to consider going a little easier on it for now, just get it all working, get it on the road, and see how you like it, before going all out.

If you read the thread I linked above about doing an engine overhaul on a Y block, you can see that it might not take too much to get the car going, if you take your time to work on one system at a time, and only fix what needs to be fixed. I know it's tempting to buy "kits" to replace all those old parts, so it'll be like new....but the reality is that only a few of the parts in that kit are really going to do any good. Most of them are not needed. The trick, which takes some experience, is to figure out which parts you really need to replace, and only replace those. You might find it surprising, but I've noticed that old cars work better with most of their original parts...but some of the original parts, definitely need to be replaced. Worn bearings, leaking seals, dried or cracked rubber and gaskets, all need to be replaced. But good bearings, functioning seals, supple rubber, and other parts that are still working, will likely continue to keep working for quite a while.

 

Squirrel,

That was a neat thread about your Y block rebuild. Yep, I am only going to replace what is needed. I have no plans to take the engine apart unless I have to. Just clean, lube and tune. As far as the brakes go, I am just going to assume the rubber is all shot after 63 years of use and sitting. But the shoes and drums should still be good. Thank you for the tips.

Mike

 

Mike ,looks like a fun project for sure if you don't "turn on the microscope."By that I mean avoid the too easy path down the rabbit hole of getting it too nice.The car will never be worth a ton of money, and your time is worth a lot. Squirrel here is on board with your project,and you will Never find better advice.You would do well to spend a lot of time searching his posts and threads.Time Well spent.I'd add a couple more thousand to the budget though.It adds up fast.

 

Thanks rod1, now I am starting to get the paranoid feelings. Since I could not verify the tranny functions, I shifted through all three gears but don't know about the O/D. So when I get her home I will put her up on stands and check her out. The engine I am not too concerned about as I can deal with that, as long as the block isn't cracked. Even that isn't that bad as I can find another block. Tranny parts and the O/D might be tad harder to fix. So I guess the feelings will go away when I get her here and can really inspect her.

Mike

 

No regrets now ,let the fun begin!

 

I resurrected a car that had sat for 25-30 years last summer, I cleaned the points and had it running in a day, cleaned out the fuel tank and the carburetor, gave it a tune up and drove it many many miles last summer. Much to some people’s horror i dint rebuild the entire brake system, I rebuilt the front wheel cylinders only and put front brake shoes in, the stuff for the rear is still on the bench. The master cylinder is untouched. As squirrel said you may surprised how easy it is and how much still works fine.


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

No regrets, just nervous about the unknowns. Here’s to hoping....When I start on her engine should I start a new thread about it or keep it here?

mike

 

If you do anything to the trans, DO NOT use type F. Prolonged Type F use will lead to the transmission slipping because it will eventually wipe the face off the clutches and they will either stick together or warp. These old transmissions use type A which isn’t made anymore. DextronIII is the closest thing to Type A.

 

If it had a factory air cleaner on it while it was stored it'll probably fire right off, having the air cleaner on keeps most of the moisture, oxidation, rust out of the engine. If it turns by hand and the starter it'll be good to go.

 

I usually poke a screwdriver or long chisel through them and pop them out.

 

Do not use type a or f auto transmission fluid in the manual trans. I think that engine is pretty clean inside. I would leave it alone and just worry about getting it started. Do not use rearend lube in the manual trans use straight 50 wt or a lube intended for a manual trans. Just my 2 cents.

 

Just to add what other here have said, I'd shoot some MMO on top of the valves, and the first few turns on the engine should be with a breaker bar, not the starter.

I put my 56 Olds into service after sitting for over 10 years. The guys I bought it from tried to get it running, but one of the was stuck open, got smacked by a piston and bent the valve. Your Y Block is all solid lifters, so I'd try to make sure the engine rotates and that all valve train parts are moving before you try to fire it.

BTW, when you replace the gas tank, and you should basically immediately, the one available through Rock Auto is super nice and very inexpensive.

 

Update: car fell through due to title issues. So off to the next one. Thank you all for your advice in the matter.

Mike