Call me no fun but I’ve done what can’t be undone and I’m planning to put valves in rain or sun to make this SOB run!
Can't fault your spirit. Hope you don't run into any more issues. I would be concerned about unnecessary stress/wear on the valvetrain due to the extra weight those valves are packing. Good luck!
They may be a little thick but they’re dished to reduce mass, if that helps at all. I’m hoping for the same thing.
They are thick to allow them to be cut again after you wear out your face smiling for the next 100k miles and it needs a freshening up. Skilled man on the grinder did the head, looks good...drive it!
I would have done the same and have to run large valves. I always check the area to the head gasket to not go to far out.
It’s alive! She runs pretty good and has lots of power. I think it’s time to rebuild the carb while I wait for the downdraft intake and cast headers to arrive. I get the dreaded stall in hard brake issue that requires some float attention. Surprised the crap outta myself when the tires broke free shifting in second. Didn’t intend to get on it but a car ran a stop sign and I needed to move in a hurry.
Alright, so it’s been quite some time since posting a status report but here we are…… the car has been running/driving so nice, I’ve spent the last bit of summer just enjoying the ride. Not to jinx myself, but I’ll be taking her to a car show for the first time this weekend so some stuff needed done. Sitting on those ratty ass springs was really starting to drive me nuts. I think I now walk with a permanent pimp step due to sitting on bare springs. However much I loved the look on a passenger’s face when a spring slipped out of a mount and bit em in the ass, it was time for a permanent temporary solution. Not pictured, I finished installing zig zag springs on the back rest and installed some steel cables to keep em from moving laterally. I then butchered my wife’s old foam mattress from college for cushions. Now, I know my wife is a saint and all but we didn’t date in college so it felt good taking a knife to that that ole’ son of a bitch, I mean mattress. The mattress cover was cut to fit over the springs and my finest moving blanket was artisanally placed over the whole rigamaroo. Why the hell did I wait so long for this? Next, I installed my best cracked stanchions and windshield frame. You may be asking yourself how I keep my windshield glass so clean, I mean, there isn’t a single smudge to be found. Well, you’ll never guess my secret. At the moment, I’m pondering a leather strap solution for holding the hood down. I like the lime speed works solution or whatever they’re called, but I feel like there needs to be some more originality. Bet I’m gonna end up with the lime speed leather straps. Pics and inspiration welcomed btw. Finally, and the biggie….motor needs to be pulled to fix an oil leak. What started as a drip is now a near torrent coming from behind the block up where it meets the flywheel housing. The leak is coming from about an 1/8” spot that I simply can’t get to stop with goo, crap or cursing. I figure I lose about 2-3 oz an hour which is enough to piss me, my wife, the HOA, the neighbors, and commercial property owners off.
One of the Model A club forums I read that a drip tray made from a sardine can, hung beneath the flywheel housing drip hole is a standard part for a Model A. Keep a piece of the absorbent material that drag racers use in there and empty it before each drive . Cant remember how they hooked it up but it was four short wires from the center to the corners. or this https://www.mikes-afordable.com/product/A6768.html
Wow, they actually make a diaper for model A’s! Really want to shoot some paint on but my budget has been run over, tossed in a ditch and run over again! Still need to drop another couple grand on a radiator and interior.
Don't tell everybody about this , or the price might come down ! Vintage tractor places have heavy duty radiators for Ford 8n, 9n and 2n and others which can work for early Ford hot rods. Usually one of the places will have them on sale for under $200 bucks. Complete Tractor, Tractor Supply or Yesterdays tractors , Fix that Ford, Broken Tractor Co etc etc.. https://www.yesterdaystractors.com/Ford-8N_Radiator_8N8005.html https://www.completetractor.com/new-radiator-for-ford-tractor-2n-8n-9n-86551430-8n8005/ Do some measuring and see if one works for you. I have used them before for a Model A.
Yeah man you should get one then you can not worry about the drips and concentrate on the real worries of life... like when do I get to drive my Model A next! I don't care if it's a Donovan, a 90 year old beater or the latest 5 main from Terry, they are all going to drip sooner or later, not worth stressing over!
What a great thread, both in content and style! Went back and read it from #1 and it really had me smiling. Keep the updates coming.
I just bought a radiator for a 8n tractor from Steiner Tractor. It looks and fits like the original, but it came from somewhere in Europe, can't remember where right now. Wasn't bad expensive. So far, it's cooled fine. It's copper, not aluminum.
When you want to use them for a Model A or a flathead , you need to check all the measurements to make sure the are going to fit, I repair and modify my own, but if you have to pay someone to make alterations they can become as expensive as buying the A part. What I did notice is that Bob Drake makes some of the 8N radiators so I question the price break between those and the car ones....probably the retailers margin , Tractor parts is a more competitive market? Might be the tax rates? I don't know how that works in the USA! I regularly see prices under $200 for tractors, and normally over $500 for Model A??? Make sure the cap you use is not to high pressure..... None of the radiators I have seen have screw in caps like a 28-29, all are pressurized system .
No it's smaller than A Model A, it's basically half of a flathead V8, and wasn't offered in a car at all, but was offered ( with some modifications) in 41 pickups. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/1941-ford-four-banger.725310/
Man, I leave for 5 minutes and y’all come back with priceless info. That would be great if a tractor radiator could “drop in” for a 31 replacement. I used bailing wire to hold the hood on, so water splashing me in the face above 40mph isn’t a problem anymore. Picked up some Buffalo hide straps, trying to decide on over or under???
Under is best, to keep from scarring up the hood. Those fancy scissor type springs are available, I think restoration supply, or maybe snyders. I like the commercial headlights on yours
If ya really wanna be cheaper and just test the theory check out the local tractor wreckers, The first time I used a tractor radiator in a Model A ,it came from a wrecked tractor, ...bought the whole tractor for $60 parted it out and made more than double my money and got a free radiator. Around 1977 .
Your A is really looking good! I checked some prices Tractor supply is over $ 300 but I found them on Amazon for $160, same radiator. There are a lot of aluminum ones out there too. I'm looking for a radiator for my '26 Chevy and it is pretty close to a Model A. I sold two of those tractors (9N) to a friend. Maybe he has an extra radiator or at least a loose one to measure.
Yes the part # I used was 8N8005, but please do check all the dimensions before you buy. Yesterdays tractors have them for under $150. The links I gave in my first post were the cheapest that I could find at the time. https://www.yesterdaystractors.com/Ford-8N_Radiator_8N8005.html https://www.completetractor.com/new-radiator-for-ford-tractor-2n-8n-9n-86551430-8n8005/ AND someone pm'd me to say , " you can get them for even less if you have a relevant business number." Seems ridiculous. In NZ they are over $550 plus 15% tax for the same thing!
I agree, that under is best looking and more practical. Plus those scissor springs are way cool as well !
I like straps over the top with buckles. I think the front one needs to be a few inches closer to the radiator.
Under won and the cat agrees…..that’s my new band name right there! Never worked with leather before but man, it was a breeze. I think it looks pretty good for an A-mature. Made sure to make room for the lake header.
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