Projects 1947 Flathead V8 - Future hot rod engine?

In 2019 I bought this flathead V8 out of a 1947 Ford coupe that was being street rodded.

It's been sitting in my garage ever since, untouched with the exception of me turning it over by hand so it doesn't get stuck.

Today I decided to start digging in to it, to my surprise non of the passenger side head studs broke and the head came loose after a few light taps with the hammer.
Can't see any markings on the piston tops indicating it's been bored?

Anyway, this is meant to be a very long term project and my first step is to tear it down to a bare block and get it checked for cracks.

 

Looks like that piston is stamped 030.

 

I like the 59 ab's

 

I agree with SASROD. .030 over bore.

 

I'm seeing the .030 stamp on that piston as well. You might consider just cleaning everything (especially the oil pan and oil pump pickup), maybe lap the valves and hone the cylinders and see if this thing runs good, it might not need a full rebuild. What do you have to lose?

 

You're right about the .030, I read it from the wrong direction and thought it said 8 for some reason

I'll get the other head, intake and oil pan off first and see what I have to work with before getting the block checked.

 

Teardown continues.

Got the intake off. Lots of old oil-stuff but adjustable lifters was a positive surprise, I think?




The other head came off with ease like the first one.
Discovered cracks between 4 of the head studs and water passages, something to worry about?



And finally, what is this hard line from the timing cover supposed to attach to?

 

That's a hot rod engine! Note the small holes for sticking a rod into to hold the lifters while you adjust them.

The vacuum tube originally attached to the base of the carb area. Some aftermarket intakes have a port down near the mounting surface to the block, into two ports at once.

Don't worry about those small cracks. Almost every flathead has them.

 

Well, the engine was pulled from a 1947 Ford coupe and it also has manifolds for dual exhaust, maybe it was a "high school hot rod" back in the day.

That's what I thought about the cracks, thanks for confirming that.

 

Take some long skinny rods or screwdrivers, poke down through the water passages and scrape around to loosen any sand or scale. I left my pumps on, leveled the stripped block, and added Rust 911, cleaned up the rust very nicely.