Featured Projects 1941 Ford Special, Field Car

I remember picking up my 47 Ford project years go, 3 hour drive one way. Half of it was bare metal. It rained that day on the way home, so had a bunch of extra work when I got home, stripping off all of the flash rust. The days on either side of the travel day, were sunny and dry. Go figure.

 

Made it home, it will get hosed off tomorrow.

 

Driver side is a mix. P***enger side was consistent. It has a gallon of transmission fluid and marvel mystery oil sitting in it right now. I’ll let that soak for a few days and see what happens.

 

Run a thread chaser thru the holes ...

 

So much for a VGG revival. I had a gallon of ATF soaking in it and I’m really impatient, so I started wiggling the crank and it broke free a few degrees then stops. One plug had water corrosion on it so I yanked that head. 2nd piston is frozen, the other three move up and down 1/8” so either a broken crank or rod.
The first piston liner has worn through at the top. I’ll tear it apart but I want to see if I can do an in frame rebuild like my grandpa used to talk about.
I’m a GM guy so that rusted piston is #3 in my world.

 

Looking a little rough in there. It's fun to watch Youtube videos where guys beat rusted tight engines loose and get them running again, but you gotta wonder how long they'd actually last on the road. Stuck valves are a big issue on flatheads too. Curious to know what this will look like once the crust is cleaned off of it.

 

We had a 318 poly in a Dodge truck at school. Engine stuck
I bowed up on the biggest pry bar we had and got it to turn.
The owner drove that poly for at least 5 years and sold it still running

 

That thing could have a cracked block too. You will find out soon enough. And by the way. 70 years in a field is not patina. It's neglect. Big difference so don't be in a hurry to "save" the patina. Do it right.

 

Whatever its called, it is getting preserved just how it is. The cracked block is always an option, once I get that piston out and pull the cylinder liner I’ll have a better idea of whats going on.

 

Pretty damn good shape for sittin since 1958

 

Wow, still in pretty good shape. It was obviously parked before they started salting the roads heavily in the winter. As a kid growing up back there it seemed as if every farm had a few of those things parked in the shelter-belt or out in the sand wash. Except our place, my dad didn't want any of the "junk" sitting around...

 

Paint is perfect
Ya could pick up a cheap SBC to Flathead trans adapter.

 

Pretty solid find for a long time field car, a neighbor has a deluxe se that will probably take up space in my shop soon. has only been off the road for about ten years so revival should be pretty easy

 

I like Anthony Myricks idea, throw a small block in it and drive it like you stole it! That flatty looks like a lot of work to save

 

I got the oil pan off of the flathead, and it’s amazing that every bolt came out easy, caked in dirt and grime. Nothing broke off or has been stuck. The reason it was parked is they ran it out of oil. You can move the crankshaft and the rods up and down About a 16th of an inch so I’m going to pull it out this week and see what the true damage is.

 

Was there anything in the pan? Full of jelly sludge, or no oil at all? Just curious.

 

Not really, a skim coat of oil in the bottom and lots of bugs. The exhaust crossover was plugged up with seeds so I suspect the lifter valley is going to be full of mice nests.

 

Interesting. Unfortunately the Merc flathead I picked up a couple years ago had bad mouse nest damage under the intake as well. And the cylinders look so good yet, I'm sure it was a runner until they got in there and just trashed all the valve springs and guides and whatnot. Still hoping to salvage that one though.

 

Pull flathead set aside for rebuild. Pop in cheap SBC & drive enjoy. Now rebuild flathead. Evan a old 305 or 307 2 barrel probably makes more grunt then mild flathead

 

“Run without oil” to me that means spun bearings. At a minimum, polish crank maybe replace crank. Rods burned black when no oil & bearings went means new rod. Rust in cylinder means hone at least maybe still use pistons after new rings. Mouse acid means replace valve stuff. Gone this far replace clutch. Have you priced flathead stuff needed compare to used SBC + bellhousing. Some folks do not have unlimited $$ for what is usually a hobby. I always wonder about price per horsepower. Stiff a great save, nice car. Get her on the road & enjoy

 

I can't believe all the "throw a SB in it". At least pull it out, tear it down, and see how bad the block is. Cranks are out there, blocks not as much. But still I'd put a flathead back-and I'm a die hard GM guy. (and yes, I have built one and know what it costs)

How many miles on it to have 5 different kinds of spark plugs?

 

I’m a Chevy guy. That said, that 41 deserves a sympathetic restoration so it stay’s true to how it was found. Period

 

My merc had a FH. Clean engine but a few stuck valves. Turned out to be a ford FH so we swapped that out for a 283.
After starting on the 283 stuff I found out one of my parts car has what looks like a good Merc block. Definitely has a great Merc crank.
Probably would have kept the FH if known sooner.

 

Good find. Am amazed at the stuff you can still find out there in the US. Here in Europe WWII, post-war austerity, salt on the roads and EU regulations (inspections, no old-style s**** yards allowed) mean there are very few hidden gems like this.

Re engine: my avatar shows my allegiance but even I have to admit the easiest route if the FH requires lots of expensive work is a SBC, at least until funds are available to do the what has to be done.

 

These days SBF are just as simple. If not even more than a sbc as they are outdated now and SBF's were produced up into the late 1990's. Speed parts now are just as cheap so the "throw a sbc in it" doesn't hold water. Plus it keeps it Ford in a Ford. Henry said, "I didn't build these cars so someone could put a shivrola engine in em". Early 50's when Ford came out with their Y Block before gm did in the mid 50's the cry was "Put a Ford in that shivrola."

 

If ford didn’t want SBCs in their cars they would have designed one that replaced the FH as easy as an SBC
Or built a better OHV sooner

 

Ford beat Chevy by a year with a OHV engine to the market place. And!, the distributor was in the back.

 

Better was the key word
Caddy, Olds and Chrysler had em while Ford was trying to improve the FH

 

I’m pulling this flathead tomorrow or Saturday and will see what the true damage is, at a minimum polished crank and resizing the big ends on the rods. Worst case the block is shot and none of it can be used. Either way it will never get a small block Chevy or a small block Ford. If I do a swap, it would be a Buick nailhead, Ford Y block or something period correct. And I love Chevys engines too, I have an 8.1 Vortec on the stand right now, but it’s not the right home for this car.