Technical 292 Y Block info needed

Between Mummert, Eaton, and Tim McMaster’s site you’ll find plenty of successful approaches to the rocker/cam oiling problem.

The 239, and I think the 256, used a different front cover that mounted a smaller water pump. That’s one clue, but anything could have been changed. The cam bearings and distributor drive gear and oil pump drive are different. It’s probably not worth starting with one of those motors due to expense and limited parts. If it’s a real truck 292 with a steel crank, the cranks a very desirable item for building a stroked.

Plenty of guys have y blocks in 32’s, it’s tight but you can plan ahead. The truck bell is a little deeper I think, but that’s what’s in my 32. Mine was modified to mount a TKO500. The granny low truck trans are pretty big and heavy. I had 3 or 4 at one point and couldn’t give them away.

Depending on your setup, the rams horns might work, and they’re not bad manifolds. The 57 car manifolds (flat top) are decent, but the those tend to be pricey. I saw one car where a guy did some fancy work and got the rams horns to work with the car motor mounts, but it’s not a simple deal. The trucks used the front mount and ears on the bell housing. You should see that on the truck.

 

Didn't the Y block Mc Master fixed for the San diego Highway man throw a junk iron fit right after instalation?

 

Yes there was also a 256 in the Ford Medium Duty Trucks. The 256 was a Mercury based engine and was also apparently available in the Ford car chassis for police applications, but not for the general public.

I can’t locate the brochure now, but I remember the 256 being the F600 truck engine. The “Big Job” trucks of that era used Lincoln based engines, a 302 perhaps a 317, and a 332 all come to mind. These were not the Y blocks in this discussion, nor are they FE series engines.

The green dumptruck in the photo has five bolt wheels, so I would think it is an F500, which would have had the 239.

 

If it is a 239. most of the parts on it will NOT interchange with a272, 292 or 312. they may look the same and actually bolt on, but most parts, especially the internal parts do not interchange. they also have the worst heads in my opinion. I would not spend my money on one unless I was restoring the truck. coaxing H.P. out of a Y Block is more difficult than most engines and the 239 is the worst. I am not familiar with the 256, so I do not know if it is like the 239, or if it is based off the 272. if based off of the 239. I would pass on it. these engines are not that hard to find

 

The 332 resembled the MEL engines but had the dist at the rear. They did use the same bell housing as a FE.

 

Not too rare, we had five on the ranch in the fifties and sixties with no problem with the oil to the rockers. We used detergent oil and changed oil when we were supposed to, had thermostats and worked our engines. The non detergent oil and lack of maintenance, no thermostats took out more engines the design problems ever did. Bones

 

Back in the 60,s it was common practice for a ring overhaul job to be done on a Y block. especially in a truck. It was easy to remove the oil pan. And the ring groove was removed a valve job and new rings and rod bearings. and external copper lines ran to the rocker shafts. We would pinch those lines to reduce the oil flow if necessary. And most overhaul where sort of a success. But every so often shortly after the ring job on a Y block the engine would lose a piston top. the top of a piston would come off right at the top ring land? and we figured it out. The mains where loose and that let at high RPM the piston top since it had a new thicker rod bearing hit the cyl head and the piston would break. Now the remedy was to remove the worn main bearings. and file the mating surfaces to make the inside diameter smaller. the shim stock was placed between the main bearing and the block and main cap. but .010 more shim was used on the block than in the main cap. that increased the distance between the head and piston. And it worked pretty good.

 

A 239 crank will fit in a 292 I ran one in a 56 Bird 239 crank bored to 3.91 and 301 Plymouth pistons a Y block that liked RPM.