Projects The Build Without (Now With) a Body

I thought that they looked like Snyders pistons. Mine is together with Snyders pistons with .0035"- .004" average clearance piston to wall. I have used Snyders pistons on other engines I've built with no issues. I've had mixed luck with EGGE pistons. The biggest issue with them was that there was 65 grams weight difference between the lightest and heaviest. The Snyders pistons are within a gram or two. I'd be checking to make sure there wasn't a cooling issue that contributed to the failure, are you running a coolant temperature gauge?

 

Thanks for the info. I purchased egge pistons when I order the motor kits, so will go with the egge pistons and hasting rings. Will be checking the clearance on all critical assemblies.

 

Rubber Soul was always my favourite album…

 

Got the block back, it looks really nice. Can’t wait to start assembling and taking numbers.

What I had done:
Bore and hone cyl .020” over
Check deck for flatness
Check all tolerances
Cut new valve seats
Install new cam bearings (hot tank would kill old bearings)
Polish crank
Light hone on pin bushings (were tight)
Balance pistons
Balance engine (surprised how much material was removed)

Deja vu……

 

Love your horses...Did you make those? A nice setup makes me want to get down to it!

 

That was pretty fast turn around for a machine shop.
Who did you use if you don't mind sharing?

 

I used Gunn Automotive in Denver. These guys have a legit shop and know their way around flathead engines.

The horses are Burro brand that can be bought from most big box stores. They cost about $35 ea, cheaper than you can make em for.

 

Gettin’ there!
The bottom end should be wrapped up tonight. Luckily I realized that I installed a bad main seal that had a pretty difficult to see defect in the molded lip. Disaster averted!
Everything went together within tolerance specs without any major massaging. Won’t be long til I hear her sing again.

 

they went .030" over on the piston bore?

 

Massive bottom end on that thing. It should be worry free!

 

I ordered .020” pistons because .010” weren’t available until November. I had them sent directly to the machinist. Egge sent .030” instead of .020” and the machinist did his thing according to the pistons that showed up on his doorstep. Not super excited about it but what’s done is done.

 

Damn it, you gave me a heart attack….After responding, I thought to myself, what if I just installed 020 rings on 030 pistons!!!! I literally just dug to the bottom of my trash can to confirm I did in fact install 030 rings. The numbers checked out during assembly but holy shit, that gave me a good scare.

 

Good idea to keep those numbers even after assembly. At least until break-in, and if you can handle it, until the next freshening.

 

I have so many notes for so many builds. I only wish I could remember which is which.

 

Got one of them fancy Leonard Nettles high volume oil pumps, man that thing is nice. Pan is on and the valves adjusted: intake- .011" exhaust- .012". Spun a stud trying to put the new wheels on. While taking the hub off to weld the stud, figured I'd take a look at the bearings. Well, you know what they say....it ain't no problem unless you can see it. The rear bearings had that secret magic sparkle dust. New seals, taper shims, and bearings later, the rear should be all set. The frame is now cleaned with some paint touch ups and ready to party with a banger and shifty little tranny this weekend. On a side note, VLR works great for cleaning up those white walls. Body work continues.....

 

That made me chuckle into my beer glass..

 

Job well done.

 

Many swear words to get here. The frame spreader I whipped up saved my life, errrrr, I mean marriage.

 

That looks great. What paint did you use for the chassis & the engine.

 

Thanks Six.
The engine in Snyders Ford Engine Green, running gear is VHT chassis and rollbar gloss black, and the frame is good ol’ Krylon. The Krylon isn’t super tough but it’s a snap to touch up and it seems to hold up to oil, grease and gas pretty well.

 

Thanks! First I'm going to use up all the old partial cans sitting around. At least I'll use what squirts and get rid of the rest.

 

Long day….
Cleaned and polished the head and side cover for go not show. The power washer really worked great for getting the crud out of the jacket and blasting away the black gook left over from polishing. Finished cleaning and reinstalling the output shaft clam shell thing-a-ma. Mocked up the intake and exhaust, because why not. Starting to get pumped again to get her moving. Seriously contemplating painting just the firewall so I can get the body back on to take the old gal for a spin. Figure I can finish the body work and paint with the body on the chassis.

 

Paint gets shot on the inside and firewall tomorrow. My helper says peekaboo. Wish me luck!

 

Lots of fun and I learned a lot. Glad I’m doing this on the inside before attempting the outside. All the funny angles and nooks n crannies made this difficult. Some runs, some orange peel, and some really great spots. This is black magic I tell yah!

 

That looks very nice! It will give you some peace of mind to know all of that is protected.

 

More paint. Wish the black stuff laid down as nice as the white stuff…

 

So this happened today. What the hell is going on over here?

 

Oh Boy! Someone is going to have INTERIOR!!!!!!!
Be safe Have fun!

 

First test panel.
It’s not the best but certainly not the worst. I think this is doable.

Funny thing….my wife is on a business call while I’m sitting at a sewing machine.

“You know, times are changing. Ladies can do stuff now and you're going to learn how to deal with it.”
- Anchorman