burns5150

I just had this conversation today with an ol friend. These guys might need to second this, but I was told that the water needs to be "misted" , sort of like an old Windex bottle, misty spray instead of poured or dumped in. ....But like I said, I have never tried this , but will remember this when needed... Oh yea, just bought my Plymouth Service Manual off Ebay last night (per advice from you guys!)...Can t wait to see it and get some info on the jewel!!

Thanks a million guys! There is some great info coming in and I am all ears. I feel like I can take this on now. I am still open for more info and am glad to recieve it. I would like to think it would be just a head gasket, that sure would be nice. Those piston, especially the front shiny one, has about 1/8" of play, but they all can be moved but barely. Maybe it should be rebuilt , like most said, to have peace of mind on the road. Plus, I do want to give one a try, so why not now! Still open for info and ideas....

Great infor guys!...I am located outside of Savannah Ga...There is not alot of people that I can go to for advice or anyone who has knowledge of old flatheads, i around this area. So, all the advice ya'll give is a great help and is priceless. I am a pretty good body man, put never tackled an engine before. There is only one way to get this "lack of knowledge" out the way, is to get in there and get dirty. Keep the info coming, all the better. Great info guys!

Can all this be done with the engine still in the car?....I was wondering earlier if this could be done just as easy with the engine still in place.

I may have jumped the gun, and took the head off already. I didnt even check oil pressure before I did this. The knock is more of a bump/hit than a tapping, and sounded very close to the front/under the head(right where that shinny piston is at. I have put some pictures of the head and block to show where I am at. I did however (and this may have not been very smart), turn the engine over a few times to see if I could find the sound or visual sign of the noice. It spun over smooth as it could be, and didnt make a sound or knock. After this, I tried to move the pistons within the cyclinder,and there was some play,but very little, in the pistons movement. Is this normal to have a little movement or should they be super "snug". Everything looks good, I hate to pull this if I dont have to. Could a bearing in that piston be giving just enough play to hit the head?....Thanks in advance for all the help!!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hey Guys, Im working on the 217 1951 Plymouth flat 6. All this is new to me, and I am thinking about taking on my first rebuild job. Bear with my lack of knowledge, but I have got to start somewhere, right.... A few questions about whats going on before I pull engine. The car has sat for a good many years. But suprising, after running a gas line in a gas can and dumping some gas in top of the carb, it cranked up rather quick. There was a knock as soon as it ran, so I shut it down, only to try a few times to see where the noice was coming from. Sounded like it was right on the top, very high. (dont worry,only run it 10-15 seconds,..one or two times). It ran real well and was suppose to have been a running car. Oil looked good, water looked fresh,plugs looked good. I took off the head and aside from some carbon, it appeared cleaner than I thought. Funny thing is that the front piston was very clean, even silver looking on top with little carbon. The other 5 looked dark, with more carbon build up. I looked at the valves hoping one was stuck making that be the sorce of my noice, but all where moving. I have never build an engine and I know very little about flatheads. But I want to learn this, and dont want to send it to someone else.I really would like to stay with the original motor..... What can I look for that would make that noice? Is it a for sure rebuild, or is there something that can be done before a pull ? Please dont tell me to just take it to a shop, I do want to learn and start somewhere...Thanks guys!!!