went and picked up the 52 last week . was enjoying the daylights outta driving it around for a few . well first the right front brake decided to lock up , which turned out to be a bad flex hose , so they all got replaced , and in the process she got HOT !! well after the repairs we checked everything over and all was fine . more enjoyment til .... the dain fail proof thermostats failed in the closed position which they are not supposed to do , and got her really warm again . bye the way that's the second set , one in the truck and now the 52 . so we take 'em out put it back together and fire it up to see ..... well it doesn't take long to heat up now . there are no tell tail signs of a blown head gasket , or leaking one , no smoking outta the exhaust , plugs look fine , nothing in the oil , have yet to check for an clog , but the radiator is not as it had been i and cleaned and a repair made , the water pumps are moving the coolant ,and i have yet too run a compression test as my set seems to have been "borrowed" if you will . any freakin' ideas here guy's ??? maybe i'm overlooking something as i am just freaking tired and worn out from the work schedule . no i don't have a washer in either water neck too make a restriction yet so that may be a partial cause .............. idea's gents please !! i don't wanna have to tear into it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Timing is a primary cause of excess heat in flatheads, check that. But... how do you know it's "hot"? Dash gauge?

 

Check actual temp with a point and shoot tester....these things are invaluable! Where is the engine/ rad the hottest?
Are there bubbles in the coolant or a lot of pressure in the system? Then likely head gasket.

 

well the dain temp gauges just quit working new 12 volt with adaptors , but she's boiling over ross and tin man so i would assume she's a little warm eh ? i thought of the timing and another thing missing is .............. one of the son in laws has got too have them but i need them now. i walked away from it just now to go back to work and it has tatsed a good deal of my blood after taking 2 big bites so i'll come back later and double check here and go cuss and throw things out there !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Sounds like a water pump.

 

A Flathead will heat up sometimes do to air trapped in the system - One thing that can fix this is to drill a small ( 1/16 ) hole in the upper valve of the thermostat.
If this is a flat V8 you have to remember that each side of the block is a separate water system - The only connection being the radiator, so water circulating in the rad just indicates that one half the motor is working

 

well the strangest dain thing . set the timing , point gap , and dwell { timing by ear } took the cap off left it loose and it sat there for 20 minutes with no issues . so either a bad cap , or air in the system as it has been bled out a couple of times . we shall see yet . if it is pumps i got the good ones from my truck here , and a whole passle full of other parts too including one complete flatty in pieces and a couple of sets of heads so ...... the cap is a 4lb just like the book says and its no longer spitting water out like its under pressure if you look into the radiator . im gonna put in the fancy washers {LOL} from the trucks thermostats to restrict her flow a bit and maybe go with a no pressure cap for now and keep a close eye on her . she's bitten me three times , drew blood , so i don't think she's happy with me leaving her set for a year and a half again ....................

 

The washers are for use instead of thermostats; I wouldn't use them with thermostats. I'd guess you worked the air out of your heater and it caused a burp. Also remember not to fill to the brim of the upper tank.

 

yeppers i know about the washers / thermostats . tween here the other site were on ross , and the wide world of the interverse i have gleaned a good deal of useless info ............. went for a little ride in the evening tonight and damn i forgot how cool a lit up old ford looks gliding down the road !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! { went past some plate glass equipped buildings downtown to have a looksee } . now we shall keep our eyes open for any future incidents.

 

4.6 swap! The Dark Side is calling you! Please heed thy call!

 

honestly tom the biggest 2 reasons i don't do that to my 53 is : 1- i really love my old cantankerous flatheads !!! 2- the dain electrical nightmare that comes with it . also i really do like that bird . i have beat the living daylights and just generally abused the hades outta that car and she's still here going strong . if the unthinkable were to happen aka the 8rt in the customline got toasted or damaged due to the issues i'd take the flatty for my truck put it back together with the eab heads , 8cm cam and merc intake drop it in it then we'd have a long tough decision thanx too the 8rt , the 8ba sitting in pieces , and the 4.6 to repower the 53 . so that idea isn't dead yet .............. gotta get the 52 ready for winter . get the heater ducts etc , and hook the core back up / checked out as it was run back onto itself { the lines } by the po . it is and will get driven as much as i can . oh and a little thing called exhaust . 44 years in a garage has kinda made it look like swiss cheese ........ the 53 will be back in the garage this weekend to continue with her rebuild !!!!!!!!!! oh and i now have access to my old 429 outta my thunderbird { .030 over rebuild with a little hotter than stock cobra jet cam , accel dual point , weiand intake , port matched heads } from my old 70 bird too .... norm has decided to put a cleveland 4bbl in his eleanor clone from the original movie , and has no need for the 429 at present . he does change his mind a lot though !!!!!!!!!