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I just picked up my Grandpa's '52 and pulled the heads on the original motor. Whether or not the motor is worth saving will steer the direction of my restore/re-build. Impressed by the depth of knowledge on here and would appreciate any input.
Can the condition of the motor be determined from these photos? Is there a shop in the Dallas/Fort Worth area that anyone could recommend if the motor is worth saving?
It doesn't look promising... but I've seen worse ones saved (at considerable cost). It would take a lot of work to break that apart just to be able to vat it, before testing for cracks. The complete valve train must be garbage, have you taken the intake manifold off? That one cylinder shows pretty clear signs of water getting into the bore thru cracks. If it can be saved, isn't cracked, I'd say you're looking at a minimum of $3k, maybe more, to get it rebuilt. For far less than that you could buy a running flathead in decent shape.
Looks pretty bad. Ive torn a few apart that looked like that. Alot of work...
I would wire wheel the really rusty bore first to see if its cracked, then wire wheel between all the bores and valve seats to see if there are any cracks before tearing into it.
The next thing to check would be for pan rail cracks.
Good luck. Post pics of what you find after wire wheeling.
I see some cracks from water jackets to the bolt holes. That not uncommon, or a showstopper. Welcome to the site by the way. Do you have any pics of your truck? What do you think your plans might be for restoration?
I haven't had a chance to take the intake off but will soon. Here are some cleaned up pictures. Any additional thoughts?
Looking at these two pictures, I'd say this one is a loss. I had a block recently that had damage in the area of one valve that was almost as bad as these and the block was unusable.
I'll drop the oil pan and take the intake off next. Below is a picture of the truck on the trailer. It spent about 30 years in service, 15 years sitting in the field and then the last 15 years or so in a garage but it appears the damage has already been done. If rebuilding the original motor doesn't make sense, I would like to update all the major components. Nothing crazy modifications wise, just want to be able to drive it around town on the weekends. Have about $15K to play with at this point some hopefully I can get there. I have basic mechanical skills but not a lot of space or specialized tools.
I should think you will spend every nickle of that but you will certainly have fun . I agree with Ross the engine will take 3,000 if it's worth fixing . Pull it apart some more and investigate
While you are tearing this motor down, you might want to keep your eye on your local Craigslist for a 49-53 flathead motor. You may be able to get a decent running engine that someone is swapping out for far less than a rebuild is going to run you. And you could have the truck back on the road sooner.
