Just retired and I thought I would challenge myself with all of this extra time. I've worked on a lot of cars, trucks, big rigs etc. etc. over the years, but I never had a Ford Flathead V8. I've pulled them to replace the motors, but never rebuilt one. SO, ....... I bought a 80 year old Ford Truck with a frozen motor. Holy Mackerel ......... You have got be kidding ! It has taken me four days of fighting with that motor to break it down to the point that I can take it to a machine shop ....... Wow ! So much dirt, rust, Nasty Black Sludge and who knows what else was in the block AND stuck to the outside of the block. Whatever the combination of materials were .... that was glued together on the outside of the block .... I had to lightly use a air hammer with a wide blade to break it free from the outside of the block .... and that was after power washing it with 2300 psi ! That motor kicked my butt. My hat is off to you guys who have been working on and resurrecting Flatheads all your life. You have got to be the Toughest and most Patient people in the world.
I agree. I pulled the flathead out of my old truck and it took a week to finally get it all apart and clean enough to handle. Luckily I had some old flathead tools to help. Had some stuck valves that refused to come out without cutting. I decided not to even use it after I realized what it would cost to rebuild.
You wasted your time cleaning it. Have the machine shop bake it & bead blast it. Gonna need it anyway,then have them magg it & pressure test it. My machine shop said they would rather have them dirty than cleaned. They seem to bake better.
Odds of the block being good are not good. Been told by a old flathead expert, that builds them for a living, that you may get one good one out of ten. Good luck with your project .
Welcome to the flathead lovers/haters group. It's an addictive sickness, with a bizarre psychological behavior pattern, not easily cured.
Only if you like twice the power and extra cash you pocket.... Wait, did I just say that out loud?.....
Congratulations! They don't make squat for power, but they sure look and sound good. Enjoy your project.
Yup, you Jinxed it. The motor has a crack on the exhaust port of # 3 Cylinder. So, I'll ask the machine shop to try pinning the cracked area.
I wonder what mixture of metals are / were used on the valves ? When I was cleaning up after the tear down; I could pick up everything with a magnet except for the valves. Are new modern day valves non magnetic also ?
ANYBODY can build a SBC... Takes a real crazy man to do a flattie. Welcome to the mad, cool world we lurk about in.
By far the most money you will ever spend for 200 Hp, and they fight you the whole way. Funny thing is though, they are like potato chips. You can't have just one.
The Jalopy Journal
