Hey guy, I talked to a guy that has a 1951 f1 that he is doing a engine swap on.The flatty (v8) is still inthe truck, he said he drives it to get coffee a few times a week,and that it does not smoke. Its got a new starter, a new carb, and been changed to a12v. alt. He said I could have it and the 3 speed trans. for 500.00. Is this a good engine for a mild hop up, 2x2 intake, headers, maybe heads ? I would hope to do it without a total rebuild. what do you think? Thanks, Jason
Could be... I would at least give it a compression check. Should be at least 95-100 across the board. Even that is alittle on the low side. You always take a chance with cracks on any flathead. Alot of runners were found with cracks when disassembled for a rebuild. Just a chance you take if you can't disassemble at least the heads. The fact it has a tranny is a plus although I don't beleive the 51's had top loader trannys.
How much of a perfectionist are you? I'd do it after I proved his statements to be true. I believe that just because it's been around the block a few times it doesn't mean it has to be worn out. I'm "eccentric" in that I'll run a used engine in stead of a high dollar rebuild in a heart beat. Some guys couldn't sleep with a used engine. If you can live with it and aren't afraid...go for it. Don't forget to figure in the cost of the trans and the required parts to make it operational. clutch, flywheel, bell housing etc. etc. That can add up quickly if you have to buy them separately.
If the engine is original to the truck it is being pulled from, then it may be one of the longer stroke/higher displacement flattys. I'm thinking '8RT' code may be one of the '50s truck flathead codes. I think those engines have somewhere in the area of 250 cubic inches compared to the 239 and 221 of earlier Ford flatheads. Nothing concrete, just layin' out some thoughts. Either way, if it is tight, then buy it. Deluxe
sound like a deal to me. the 51 trans isn't a top loader. but you can still run it i am going to use my 53 trans, some guy swear by the top loader style. but heck you can run a linkage shifter instead or go with a three on the tree set up. plus is the fact you arn't going to have to worry what rear end you use as its an open drive shaft.
I don't personally see a 'running' flathead as any great shakes... That being said, a good flathead block is worth at least $500. The problem is, you probably wouldn't know how good it is untill you started hopping it up. I'd pay 500 for a complete flathead if I could pull the heads and examine for cracks. If that wasn't an option, I'd try to offer him less. JMO... It's either a deal or damned-near a wasted 500 because if the block's bad, nothing else in the engine is worth anything...
I sold my non running Flatty for 600 and the guy that bought it got it started and soild it at the swap meet for 1600. Damn basterd lol
Yes it's worth it. The 8BA is a good engine. If you want to get rid of the tranny, I'd like to have another one for parts in case I grenade mine. I can't seem to find any parts for them.....(I have a '51 F1) My 8BA is warmed up, 4" crank, 3x2 strommies, etc.
If you have $500 layin around and you want a flatty... Yep, it's worth it. If yer broke and couldn't care less about havin a flatty... Nope, not worth it.
I'm thinkin' it's a 239 cuin same as the cars except for the water pumps and front mounts. Some of the BIG trucks came with the 337 cuin. Only thing that was around 250 cuin was the Mercs with the longer stroke and 255 cuin.
I have a perfectly good flathead out of a 37 Ford.Approx 17000 original miles on it.Wouldn't take less than a grand.Have another that is froze and still should be worth $500.00.Better buy the one you are looking at. Mike
if you can drive it down the road and it's reasonably clean, $500 for the motor and trans is a steal. Particularly if the compression is reasonable. I wouldn't sell a set up one for much less - price out some of the parts, the carb, starter, alternator conversion, and some of the other small pieces would tally up to $500 in a hurry if you had to buy them on your own.
Buy it. I wanna run a big, overhead motor in my A, but I'd be running a flatty if I found a good runner for $500...
Merc motors are the only ones with the 4 inch stroke. 255 cu. inch is 3 3/16 bore with 4 inch stroke. 239 is 3 3/16 bore with 3 3/4 inch stroke. 221 is 3 1/16 bore with 3 3/4 stroke. Can't say that it wasn't a Merc put in sometime over the years but probably not. I paid $500 for a flathead that ran well. It is now setting on the floor in the shop. Two cracks in the block. It would be the best to pull the heads to see if the block is good. Then the $500 is a good deal. At least pull the spark plugs and look at them. See if they are similar in color. If any are cleaner than the others, they may be getting steam cleaned. If they are all gunked up with oil, you found out something there too. When you have the plugs out, check the compression. They can run well with a cracked block. If it is still in the pickup, take it for a drive. Pull the motor hard and see if you can blow water out the radiator. If so, either a leaking head gasket or cracked block. I learned from the $500 boat anchor that I have. If someone is pulling the flathead out, my question is why? I am guessing but I think that the previous owner pulled it because it ran hot when you took it out on the highway. It got hot because it had the cracked block. It ran fine around town, like for trips for coffee. Neal
I would at least pull the plugs and have a look see. Their condition on a flatty will tell you a lot. See if you can run it long enough to get it to operating temp and check exhaust for steam. $500 for engine and trans is a good price if you can use it. Thanks, BOBBY FORD
Thanks guy for all the responses, I called him and Iam going to see it tomorrow. Iam going to take my compression tester to see how it is. I'll let you know what i find out. Thanks again
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