New distributor (corrosion)

[Christoph]

12 month ago, i installed a new-type-distributor
(with some grease) into my new engine .

Due to some reason, i took it out in between
(10 Month ago) and it looked good back than.

I put (3 times) oil into the oil-fitting since than.

Friday i heard some strange noises while driving
and back home, i detected the distributor as
"noisy" and i had some fun to get it out of the head.

Never saw such an amount of rotten junk....
Bearings are gone for sure
Points open barely....

What was wrong there???

Thank you for your suggestions
Christoph

I put in my spare distributor (80years plus)
again which does fine....

[Tom Wesenberg]

Short trips send the condensation to the coolest part of the engine, which is the rust in your picture. I would use a heavy dose of grease on the distributor shaft in the valve chamber, and use anti-seize on the part that slips into the head.

Try to make trips of 45 minutes or longer, so all parts of the engine are well heated to cook off condensation.

The oil tube on the distributor should be filled every 500 miles.

[Kurt in NJ]

A small internal coolant leak could increase the moisture content ,and or short running time without getting the entire engine to operating temp (thermostat helps with this) long enough to evaporate condensation .

When you oil the dist do you just put in a few drops, or do you follow the owners instruction book and fill the oiler till it is full ---I interpet that to mean give the oil gun a good squirt into the fitting so the upper bushing gets lubed.

Another factor is something Ford warned us about in the service bulletins --- GYP parts ---modern low cost manufacturing doesn't seem to be able to match Fords production tolerances or materials

[Growley bear]

What Tom said. Years ago I lived in a very small and isolated town in which most driving was less than five minutes so an engine never was truly brought up even close to operating temp. Sludge and condensation built up so rapidly that valve springs would rust and break and when the cover was removed the chamber was so packed with sludge that the engine parts could not be seen. Longer drives to allow the engine and the oil to attain operating temp for (just a guess) at least 30 minutes is the answer to that problem.

Chet

[Growley bear]

Originally Posted by Christoph

12 month ago, i installed a new-type-distributor
(with some grease) into my new engine .

Due to some reason, i took it out in between
(10 Month ago) and it looked good back than.

I put (3 times) oil into the oil-fitting since than.

Friday i heard some strange noises while driving
and back home, i detected the distributor as
"noisy" and i had some fun to get it out of the head.

Never saw such an amount of rotten junk....
Bearings are gone for sure
Points open barely....

What was wrong there???

Thank you for your suggestions
Christoph

I put in my spare distributor (80years plus)
again which does fine....

I would say that the 84 YO dist. is manufactured with a degree of quality of material and workmanship than most REPRO units. And yes, commonly referred to by Mr. Ford as GYP parts. A term that I grew up with as my father used it often in the Ford Garage.

Chet

[Mitch//pa]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

installing a thermostat will help heat up the engine

[Growley bear]

Thermostats are our friends.

[redmodelt]

The only problem I see is the steel sleeve is rusted from condensation. Does not mean the bushings are shot. Wire wheel the sleeve and lower shaft, put some grease on it and go. You might want to also check for a head gasket leak in that area. Take off the valve cover and see what the inside looks like.

[Growley bear]

Originally Posted by redmodelt

The only problem I see is the steel sleeve is rusted from condensation. Does not mean the bushings are shot. Wire wheel the sleeve and lower shaft, put some grease on it and go. You might want to also check for a head gasket leak in that area. Take off the valve cover and see what the inside looks like.

I concur, all it takes in a very small amount of condensation, a leak that might be very difficult to spot especially at my age.

Chet

[Christoph]

Thank you so much for your suggestions !
I really appreciate that.
FordBarn rules.

I guess it is as Tom and Kurt said.
I will use lots of grease, do longer turns and will hate low-quality-parts.

I do not have water in the oil.
I had the valve cover off about 3 weeks ago and i looks all good there
no rust, no sludge ..... perfect

Ah - ja - the bearings in the distributor are gone - im VERY SURE
the points still must have opened, as the engine still was running,
but i couldnt spot that anymore - which is: "A"-miracle to me.

If there is corrosion, i would have thought that the lower parts
of the housing should have grown solid to the head .
But instead it is, that just the drive of the shaft did corrode.

Thank you again
Christoph

btw
Is it easy to change the bearings and the shaft of a distributor ?
(repair-sets are available)

[rocket1]

I have the same problem with the rust but I have a crack that ran to the dist. mounting hole that was brazed up years ago by a former owner,I suspect I still get a small leak which helps the rust build up. I never had a problem with the bearings in the dist. wearing though.

[Marco Tahtaras]

Can you wobble the shaft side to side at either the top or bottom? If not, the bushings are fine as I would expect.

The point rubbing block will wear down over time requiring readjustment periodically. The cam and rubbing block should be lightly smeared with distributor cam lube. Vasoline is a so-so substitute.

[Benson]

As mentioned above ... short trips, cold, and humid weather make this problem worse ... no time for vapor to evaporate.

Henry Ford was thinking about this problem 83 years ago.

Engineers added a notch in the Model B distributor housing to vent the water vapor.

Notice cut at top of round part of housing in the upper part of the housing to allow vapor to escape.

If I remember correctly this was done in 1930 or 1931 but maybe not until 32. See attachment of a Model B distributor housing.

FS Ignitions sells a stainless steel intermediate shaft which will help. I wonder if someone makes a stainless collar also?

Left click photo to enlarge:

[Growley bear]

Originally Posted by Benson

As mentioned above ... short trips, cold, and humid weather make this problem worse ... no time for vapor to dissipate.

Henry Ford was thinking about this problem 83 years ago.

Engineers added a notch in the Model B distributor housing to vent the water vapor.

If I remember correctly this was done in 1930 or 1931 but maybe not until 32. See attachment of a Model B distributor housing.

FS Ignitions sells a stainless steel intermediate shaft which will help. I wonder if someone makes a stainless collar also?

A person with good command of a Swiss Mill could modify the Model A distributor housing the same was as the Model B pictured. I have a B housing, and never gave it a second thought. Always room to learn, Thank You. I just may give that a try very soon.

Chet

[redmodelt]

A good file will do the same job, no need for a mill. It was changed in late 31.

[Benson]

Also to consider on subject of driving out moisture.

45 minutes of idling (causes more moisture than anything) and is not the same as 45 minutes of driving.

[Christoph]

@Marco
the original old distributor turns smooth.
This one turns rough and ....
Ja- Shaft on bottom side does wobble sideways
An the wobble is not equal while turning the shaft.
I will have to demount that part to learn why this is
so uneven...

@Benson
Thank you. Interesting fact. I will try to "tune" this
distributor

Thank you all for your suggestions and ideas
I really appreceate that!

[ericr]

I might add, parenthetically, that when I rebuilt my distributor, I just happen to stick a drift into the oiler hole and imagine my surprise when a wad of junk popped out the other end.