41 Ford SuperDeluxe - V8 Rings stuck (again)

[DA-WOODY]

Engine wouldn't turn over when I bought it in 2003
couple years later a friend came to check it out and said That's what they do when they sit & to squirt sum penetrating oil in sparkplug holes and try workin the fan back and forth after a few days but just a little at a time.


Well it worked, and turned freely eventually


Has been sitting w/o me turning it over every month or so, so Now it's stuck again, I pulled 1 head off to have a look and about to pull the other. I looks to have been rebuilt not many miles ago as valves all look fresh (1 looks slightly different) and cylinders have signs of honing w No lip at the top of the walls. stamp says 080


OK Cut to the question:
I have been squirting Liquid Wrench around pistons and think I would like to tap on top of pistons ever so "slightly" just to break what ever bond they have made. I Do Not want to harm and rods or bearings/bushings in the process, and wonder about if I should Not even try that or to what degree I should ??? Rubber Mallet? Block of wood ? 3"OD ABS Pipe w rubber mallet ??


Not sure if I want to pull the engine and look around the crank side. My Goal at this point it Just Get it running "Properly" I picked up new bearing water pumps and head gaskets as well as carb kit.


What Have you actually done to address this situation ???


I have No Idea about the piston pins or what is under the rod caps
If I remove the pan can I learn anything from markings on Crank & Rods (up graded or not)
This is my 1st post so hoping I'm in the right place

Thank's in Advance

[DA-WOODY]

nothing I have seen yet on top of casting, other than I wont un-bolt

[alanwoodieman]

soak the pistons/ring and valves with atf/acetone, 1/2 and 1/2, do not bump or anything with the pistons. an A 1938-41 engine with a crab style front plate/distributor

[Mart]

It's hard to give advice without knowing your ability level.
Personally I'd be tempted to pull the other head and inlet, then either pull the oil pan or the motor and get it on a stand.
Pull the pan and carefully lever the flywheel back and forth. Observe the pistons and rods and look to see which one(s) are tight. If only one is tight, loosen the rod bolts and see if the others move.
Then gently tap the remaining one so it moves.

I'd probably pull the motor down and reassemble reusing most of the parts but making sure everything is clean and serviceable.

The water jacket looks to be severely blocked with rusty residue. That ought to be addressed, or it will tent to run hot.

It's up to you. If you just free it off and get it running you run a higher risk of something getting damaged than if you tear it down and inspect everything.

Not everything needs to be absolutely perfect. As long as all the parts are serviceable (as in good enough) then it should give good service.

But, as I said, it depends a lot on your ability and keenness to take on the work.

Mart.

[RKS.PA]

Great job of posting you pictures. As Mart said above, without knowing your experience and willingness to "take this one apart".....and your budget for parts, it's hard to advise you.


Having watched many of his videos, I know exactly what Mart would do and I'd do the same because eventually, you're going to want this thing to run well and be dependable. So, I'd pull it, tear it down and get the block machine shop cleaned and crack checked. That way I'd some idea of what needs to be done and if it can be made reliable.



Welcome to the Barn....you've come to the right place!!

[DA-WOODY]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Thank You Both !!
my 1st car $50 (when that was allot and I was 15 ... 1966) had a stuck flathead Studebaker 6
neighbor who was an Old Car ACE would come by and tell me what bolts to undo and what to take off. I dropped the pan and undid the rod caps eventually freed it up and got it running for a couple years.
I have rebuilt a few motors but got a short block and head(s) done so I could keep to 30-over and 10/10 on the cam bearings etc.
This was enough encouragement to pull the engine and get it on a stand to get inside. I was pulling the other head regardless
from what I have been gathering the crank.rod bushings leave Much to be desired ... yet the piston pins might be an easy upgrade. my goal at the moment is to get it going As-Is as much as possible ....... that said if the rod caps are not that much of a PITA I might tear it down and perhaps get new rings as they have been stuck a few times. who knows how hard it will be to stop ?? Pull and re-seat the valves just so them seal flush and not have anything preventing them from being Happy. the Top of cylinder walls do NOT look like they had a ridge cut away and the rest of the way down don't show signs of wear. The Funk in the pistons is crap I put in to try and free up and as such wipes clean. Looking at the head it appears a slight head-gasket water leak when it was running ???
My Issues/situation is this is a 41 Ford SuperDeluxe Woody Wagon =it's fairly Cheery and All Original (someone once said not original engine?) Anyway if I can just get it running so I can check out & address anything else in drive-train then refinish the wood and get it ready to paint My last step would be to pull engine and transmission to get engine compartment sprayed with the metal bits and at that point if engine wasn't all Happy do a complete rebuild w all "The Right Parts" I'm am thinking once it runs and is driveable I will be More Inspired to "Get It Done" right away.



PS this is Not my 1st forum, I have a Deep Hate of those who join and ask for Help with what others understand ..... Only to try and correct everyone trying to help


I Will Not be That Person, I understand some mechanics having just completed valve job on a 2005 Ford F150 V6, Whey Too much emissions related BS (read Everything including lifters and injectors end to end) on a 2006 Jeep 4.7 V8

But I have Never had a Ford FlatHead V8 apart and do not want to mess up what might be OK.... I have been told Do Not Touch the distribute by a few yet 1 guy said Not to Worry. just be sure to understand it 1st
I am here to Learn from your experience on what I have in my '41 for now and perhaps a few parts after it's running like drivers side window crank, radio and a few other bits, I know that I Don't know A BUNCH about this 41 V8 and I am here the Lear what I can. perhaps I can share my knowledge on other engines I have learned about in the past
PS I picked this book up along with the new water-pumps at the WaveCrest WOODIE MEAT the 18th of last mo (my 70th BD gifts to me)

[JSeery]

Well, you came to the right place IMO for these type of questions. The engine does look a little ragged. If and when you get it running you will want to address the rust in the water jackets. I would start by soaking the piston/ring area in the ATF/Acetone mixture for a while and see if it loosens up.

[DA-WOODY]

This is my Baby back in 2018, still can be found in "My BARN"

stuff on seat(s) no tears, rips etc

Yes has Back/Middle seats and the Rear Window (wood/glass just fine)

No dents, No rust below surface anywhere including underneath

As you can see I have a Bunch of sanding, polishing, varnishing & painting before needing to go All Out on the Engine

I just need to hear it running to get me to spend the time getting it Ready To Shine On The Road Again !!

feel free to let me know if you have a radio or some of the other little pieces I might not have.

The whatever/canvas top is in 1 piece but has shrunk a bit from being off ... still has the rain gutter rails that I hear everyone threw away right away to look kool

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid...&__tn__=%2CO*F

[RKS.PA]

So, looks like you might be in the San Diego area??? If so C&G Ford Parts is one of the best early V8 resources in the US, right there in Escondido. And if you already knew that, so much the better!!! (Joe, Kyle, and Dorothy are first rate!!!)

[corvette8n]

Pull the belt and see if your water pumps turn by hand. I once broke loose a 36’ Pontiac by pulling the plugs and filling the cylinders with Marvel Mystery oil and rocking the car back in forth in gear, after about a month of rocking it finally broke free.

[DA-WOODY]

the belt was 1st thing to go, waterpumps spin fine but shall Never feel the engine run.

Car has little room behind and has a flat so not rocking (ya I know put another tire on it)

My plan as of now: Pull the other head and have a look for any issues as the 1st side had.

Then pull the engine and get it on a stand so I can work it all over from the top like a Man

Once pan is off .. More PIX and no doubt More Questions

of note I have received a couple PM's but as a nOOb I can not reply so Please post all help/advice in the thread

Another question ... How/where do I find Mart's Videos ???

I am out to absorb as much Knowledge as Possible before Digging Deep into this

The 1st Great Lessen I learned was a couple years after I had my car, when I Realized The BEST Thing I did was Not just Jumping in and doing what I thought was a good idea at first.

One thing I missed out on was a neighbor (who taught me about Old Cars) was Heavy into Lincoin's

he had a complete ready to assemble Lincion Zepher V-12 w transmission as well as drivetrain and rear end

All Spare Parts from his collection of cars and All Machine work completed so as to be ready to fix one or restore the next one.

it was bigger but not that much and could have been done to look like OEM
That would have been Really KOOL and sorta be a Stock-Rod

But that chance is Long gone

I have Never seen a WOODY with a V-12 !!!

[Mart]

https://www.youtube.com/c/MartsGarage/videos

[DA-WOODY]

Originally Posted by Mart

https://www.youtube.com/c/MartsGarage/videos

Thank You + 1 Subscriber to your Chanel



I wouldn't suggest subscribing to mine for knowledge



Entertainment Sure but knowledge, not so much

[Ggmac]

The one pic of piston and wall looks as it may be a cylinder crack . Just my old eyes on a picture but check that cylinder before you sink much money . I hope it isnt .
I think its picture six and it at about 12:00 half way down .

[DA-WOODY]

Well good thing I didn't come here to try and sell it

pistons say 080 but cylinder walls say maybe at edge of sleeve ??
and the up/down lines visible through the swirling lines look like they honed it to replace piston or rings. regardless does not look like a fresh bore job so just getting it running for now back as a possibility. might find another engine by the time the wood and tin are shinny again ??

[cas3]

I have to wonder why it became stuck twice. are you near the ocean? parked in a damp cement garage? slight head gasket leak? Usually a motor can sit for decades if its dry. good luck on the project

[Bored&Stroked]

For one thing, I noticed a lot of rust color in at least one cylinder - that means you've had water in the engine and the resulting rust is what is the most likely cause of the engine being stuck. I would not try the "quick and dirty approach" - I'd pull the engine, get the block checked out, get the rust out of it and then assess where to go from there. You really won't know what you need to do until everything is cleaned, checked, clearances checked, block cleaned/magged/pressure tested, etc.. Best of luck and welcome to the Barn!

[Charlie ny]

B&S and others got it....no short cuts on a jewels like your '41. Cut to the chase and pull the motor now.
......While the motor is out......
check the steering box for any issues, access is so easy vs with the motor in place.


Charlie ny

[DA-WOODY]

quick reply does Not like my PIX, these watered down to appease the limitations I don't yet understand .................... And as watered down as possible the PIX now won't show even posting just 1 ;-( is there a way to delete a reply that had a pic that doesn't show ??
I came here to learn what I can .............. posting a Pic shouldn't be that hard (????)

[DA-WOODY]