The Ford Barn

rotorwrench · 05-08-2019, 09:11 AM

While it is getting harder to find flathead friendly machine shops in many locations, there are still plenty of them that can likely figure things out if you keep an eye on them or just have them do the bare essentials.

It would be hard for any machine shop that does turn key work to give a customer a solid price without looking at the assembly first. This is likely why they gave such a high guesstimate. They may have high overhead in their company for various reasons and you don't need the lack of savings passed on to you due to that.

It's a lot of work to just tear one down. Anyone that has ever done it knows it can be a real challenge. Studs have to come out to thoroughly check the deck and do any cylinder/valve work easily. I know they have to be out just to put a boring bar on it too. That also can be a challenge. Cleaning is another thing on an old flatty. All the crap has to cleared out of the passages. Crank grinding, rod reconditioning, and God Forbid, crack repair, can all take some pretty good investment in labor and machine costs. This hasn't even gotten to the parts purchase stage where things add up quickly. Final reassembly can take time too and especially if a person goes with non adjustable tappets. It takes some knowledge to do it correctly and a few special tools as well.

A person should figure that all the bases need to be touched so having someone else do the work is going to be expensive. This is why most of us likely do our own tear down work and at least preliminary cleaning ourselves. Inspection will require at least a pressure test apparatus for the block or have it and any necessary machining done at the machine shop. At this point a person should know what has to be done and what can be avoided. Only take what is necessary to be machined and leave the rest at home.

If you can't do it yourself, get the roster or members and services from the EFV8 club and look for someone as close as possible. Sending stuff too far away can make recovery difficult if something bad happens in the transaction. Make new friends in your local club and ask a lot of questions. Most are very willing to help.

05-08-2019, 09:11 AM	#21
rotorwrench Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 18,007	Re: $$$$$ While it is getting harder to find flathead friendly machine shops in many locations, there are still plenty of them that can likely figure things out if you keep an eye on them or just have them do the bare essentials. It would be hard for any machine shop that does turn key work to give a customer a solid price without looking at the assembly first. This is likely why they gave such a high guesstimate. They may have high overhead in their company for various reasons and you don't need the lack of savings passed on to you due to that. It's a lot of work to just tear one down. Anyone that has ever done it knows it can be a real challenge. Studs have to come out to thoroughly check the deck and do any cylinder/valve work easily. I know they have to be out just to put a boring bar on it too. That also can be a challenge. Cleaning is another thing on an old flatty. All the crap has to cleared out of the passages. Crank grinding, rod reconditioning, and God Forbid, crack repair, can all take some pretty good investment in labor and machine costs. This hasn't even gotten to the parts purchase stage where things add up quickly. Final reassembly can take time too and especially if a person goes with non adjustable tappets. It takes some knowledge to do it correctly and a few special tools as well. A person should figure that all the bases need to be touched so having someone else do the work is going to be expensive. This is why most of us likely do our own tear down work and at least preliminary cleaning ourselves. Inspection will require at least a pressure test apparatus for the block or have it and any necessary machining done at the machine shop. At this point a person should know what has to be done and what can be avoided. Only take what is necessary to be machined and leave the rest at home. If you can't do it yourself, get the roster or members and services from the EFV8 club and look for someone as close as possible. Sending stuff too far away can make recovery difficult if something bad happens in the transaction. Make new friends in your local club and ask a lot of questions. Most are very willing to help.