201 Flathead?

[belvedere666]

That's a good lookin 49. The extra ribs in the grill and the ribs in the bumper give it so much detail.

[Plymouthy Adams]

Thanks..it was affectionately know as "The Ditzy" as in driving me....it was a good car...but alas the short legs of the spouse made it a poor purchase as it was for her I bought it...so it was sell as nice solid car or upgrade with V8....decided to pass it along to another...

[Darbone85737]

My front end now includes "bicycle catchers" to keep them from denting the stainless grill

Edited April 21, 2015 by Darbone85737

[Don Coatney]

Thanks..it was affectionately know as "The Ditzy" as in driving me....it was a good car...but alas the short legs of the spouse made it a poor purchase as it was for her I bought it...so it was sell as nice solid car or upgrade with V8....decided to pass it along to another...

Ya sold it and ended up here

 

[Reg Evans]

Hey, that's only one wife Tim......where's the other one ?

[Plymouthy Adams]

had supper with them both this evening Reg...thanks for asking....

[belvedere666]

so i sprayed the pistons and the valves down with a carb cleaner and i was surprised at how much came build up came off. i'm going to pick up a plastic scraper and try to do some scraping tomorrow or friday. so now i'm just playing the waiting game on the head and i have a wiring harness in the mail. i passed on the 201 which is still available, but i think not going forward with it burned that bridge for me. he was persisntent and a hell of a salesperson. i never commited to anything, but i just couldn't do it after talking to all of you and getting your advice and opinions.

[soth122003]

Told you that cleaner would do the trick. As far as passing on the 201, when it's all said and done, tally up the money spent on yours versus the 201. I think you'll be happier. Your car looks pretty sweet. I tell everyone mine is a good looking girl in an ugly dress. But when I get to the paint job and the interior, she will be the Belle of the Ball.

 

Joe

[belvedere666]

is this bad? in the first picture... this isn't build up. it looks like corrosion. i hit it with a whire wheel for a second to see if it would chip off and it didn't. also some of these are kind of rounded, or convex, and some are flat on the top. is this all normal useable?

[soth122003]

Looks like corrosion. It should not be a problem unless the valve seats are worn/corroded too. For each set of valves, turn the crank until both valves are closed. take a little sealant and make a circle around the valve sets, a dam if you will, something to keep fluid from running. The pour a little gas, enough to cover the valves, and see if the gas leaks through. If it leaks past the valve like a sieve, do a valve job. If it is slow, like ten minutes or so, it's up to you. Since you have the head off anyway, I'd do a valve job. It's easy and since your waiting on the head anyway, might as well do it right.

 

 

To remove the valves you need a valve spring compressor. These can be purchase or rented at any auto parts store or tool rental shop.

 

Look under the resources tab at the 218 teardown. Number the valves(sharpie marker will do) as to which one goes where. Get some valve grinding compound and lap the valves to the valve seats. Check out you tube for the procedure. It may seem like a daunting task, but it's not.

 If you have any problems, or questions, just ask here. We are happy to help.

 

Joe

[belvedere666]

got the head back today all cleaned up. i haven't tried the valve check yet. hopefully i'll be abl eto tackle that over the weekend.

[soth122003]

I re-read this thread again. I'd say you have spent about $150-175 on you eng so far. Every thing looks good so far. I was thinking, something else I'd do would be to put a little eng oil on the piston heads. About a 1/16" should do and see if it leaks past the rings and how fast. This will tell you the condition of you rings and walls. If it's gone past in about 5-10 minutes you might want to consider honing the walls and replacing the piston rings and checking for out of round. You can check for out of round with an inside micrometer just by turning the crank and putting the piston at BDC. Also check the walls for scarring or wear. If you have a little to moderate wear, you can put the engine back together and do the block rebuild after the summer and save up some cash for the job.

 

If the oil sits in there like a good little oil should, leave it until your ready to put everything back together and then wipe it out with a clean rag. Leave a thin coat on the piston walls, and make sure the cylinder is free of any debris. You said it was running before. How good was it running? was it smoking? was it coughing or missing?

 

Like I said before these engines were pretty bullet proof, and they will still run even with problems. Since you got the head pulled check a few things out. It wouldn't hurt to pull the oil pan and check the crankshaft and bearings out while you are at this stage of the game. It's like NBC used to say, "The more you Know".

 

Joe

[belvedere666]

I re-read this thread again. I'd say you have spent about $150-175 on you eng so far. Every thing looks good so far. I was thinking, something else I'd do would be to put a little eng oil on the piston heads. About a 1/16" should do and see if it leaks past the rings and how fast. This will tell you the condition of you rings and walls. If it's gone past in about 5-10 minutes you might want to consider honing the walls and replacing the piston rings and checking for out of round. You can check for out of round with an inside micrometer just by turning the crank and putting the piston at BDC. Also check the walls for scarring or wear. If you have a little to moderate wear, you can put the engine back together and do the block rebuild after the summer and save up some cash for the job.

 

If the oil sits in there like a good little oil should, leave it until your ready to put everything back together and then wipe it out with a clean rag. Leave a thin coat on the piston walls, and make sure the cylinder is free of any debris. You said it was running before. How good was it running? was it smoking? was it coughing or missing?

 

Like I said before these engines were pretty bullet proof, and they will still run even with problems. Since you got the head pulled check a few things out. It wouldn't hurt to pull the oil pan and check the crankshaft and bearings out while you are at this stage of the game. It's like NBC used to say, "The more you Know".

 

Joe

i've spent a little more than that. the new head bolts and gasket. the machining of the head. the new exhaust manifold. the set of exhaust/intake manifold bolts, nuts, and washers. the water bypass elbow. the oil pan gaskets. new spark plugs.

something like that.

it was running well. it sounded a little sputtery like it was coughing gas into the carb. i figured it needed a carb adjustment but that was about it. i guess running it a little harder wore out the jb weld that was holding it together.

the piston walls don't appear to have any grooves or scars.

i did spray carb cleaner on the pistons and let them soak. there was still cleaner in therehours later. i used a cloth to dry it out. i'll try to the oil thing on monday. it'll be the next time i get to put my hands in there.

Edited April 25, 2015 by belvedere666

[Don Coatney]

You mention new head bolts. Where did you find them? Can you post a photo of them?

[soth122003]

If you used the carb cleaner and it stayed on top of the pistons then don't worry about using the oil. If the carb cleaner didn't leak past the pistons then the thicker oil won't either. Just wipe down the cylinder walls with oil before putting it back together.

 

All I tallied in you spending was the machine work, head bolts, gasket and bypass housing.

 

The sputtering sound could be timing or the carb. A vacuum gage/ fuel pump tester should point you in the right direction. Check out Harbor Freight for the gage, I paid like 15 bucks for mine. 

 

Joe

[belvedere666]

You mention new head bolts. Where did you find them? Can you post a photo of them?

i got them from andy bernbaum. there like 2.50 each. got a set of 21. i don't have a pic of the ones i have but i can post one tomorrow.

http://www.oldmoparts.com/parts-engine.aspx

this picture is from when i put the head back on with new bolts and after i backed out the one the was broken off in the block.

Edited April 25, 2015 by belvedere666

[Don Coatney]

Big question is was the shank undercut as pictured below?

 

 

[belvedere666]

Big question is was the shank undercut as pictured below?

 

 

good question. i don't know. i'll check them when i get them home tonight. what impact would the difference in the bolts have on everything?

[Don Coatney]

Fasteners with no undercut shanks have a tendency to rust fast to the head. Makes removal highly prone to breakage.

[belvedere666]

Here's a pic of one of the head bolts.

[Don Coatney]

That head bolt should work OK. Interesting that the bolt head is smaller.

[Merle Coggins]

That's the style he sells. I have those head bolts in my engine too.

Merle

[belvedere666]

I assumed that he would be the best place to get them from.

Vintage power wagons and bernbaum have been my go-to places for parts.

ive done a lot of Internet research and it seems there isn't any other suppliers out there that might be more knowledgable.