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Im still exploring my new 49 mercury truck 8ba (fresh from canada, not ran in years). It stopped raining for a few hours, a few days ago and changed the points, vacuum advance, condensor, rotor, and cap (thats all i could do because its constantly raining in mississippi). I also have the carb off and having it cleaned and gone through. My question is....i bought many parts from lmc truck, one being a canister oil filter. I never really thought about it's location because most of my engine experience is with late 80s 5.0s (with an oil filter). Does this truck not have an oil filter?....also, it does not have a breather/airfilter. I have heard the term 'oil bath breather' would my truck need that?
thank you for any information (young guy learning old technology)
The engine does have oil in it. I was told it ran two years ago. Do i try to search for a canister and add one? Im also not to sure where the lines would go.
Don't worry about it. There's bigger fish to fry right now, namely seeing if the engine is good.
Have you turned it over ether by hand or with the starter? You should be able to turn it by hand by turning the fan and holding tension on the belt. Or you can use a socket on the Crank nut.
If it does not turn...you can try oiling the cylinders with Marvels. It can also lock up up top in the valve train.
If it does turn...don't turn it much. Turn it only to see if it's free. Remove the Spark plugs and oil the cylinders, just a few squirts in each hole.
If it tuns and you have oiled the cylinders, drain the oil, add some Valvoline VR Racing oil. It has Zinc. Get 6 quarts. Put 4 in and check with the stick for the last quarts.
If it turns by the starter, do a compression check.
The oil filter is really no big deal, these used a by pass filtration system. You can simply monitor and change your oil or add a filter once you know the engine is good.
It looks like the truck is still 6V. 6V is fine and it can be reliable now as in 1950. You can try to wake up on 6 V but the sessions will be short due to battery life. On 6V all the grounds must be good and all the connections must be checked.
These were originally 6V Positive Ground. A must is the factory shop manual. It has a lot of info for you.
I know the early flatheads didn't have filter, and they became an option at some point. Did they ever become a standard item? I don't think I've ever seen an 8BA without one. (Until now)
As for the air cleaner, you can't just search for one for a '49 8BA. You need one for a '48-'53 truck 8BA. Look at the top of your carburetor air horn where an air cleaner would attach. See the V-shaped ring that goes around it? That's where a truck-style air filter assembly would clamp on. The carburetor off of a car engine would have an air horn that looks like this:
and it takes an air cleaner assembly with a different clamp design. To my knowledge, there are no other internal differences in the two carb designs or the air cleaner assemblies and I have no idea why Ford saw fit to use a different air filter clamp for the cars and trucks. Regardless, it's still important to know to get the right air cleaner!
Thanks for the process!.
yes, i have turned the motor by hand and it is free. I also pulled the plugs and put marvel in each cylinder. I have not changed the oil yet. Yes, It is still the 6v system. I have a new solenoid, voltage regulator, and coil im going to put on it. Im hoping the starter and generator still has some life.
this is a mercury so i wonder if options were different in canada compared to US (pertaining to the oil filter)
i will do a search for 49 8ba truck air cleaner and see what i can find
any other expertise is welcome! (Never owned or even rode in a flathead vehicle before)
It is still the 6v system. I have a new solenoid, voltage regulator, and coil im going to put on it. Im hoping the starter and generator still has some life.
any other expertise is welcome! (Never owned or even rode in a flathead vehicle before)
Grounds grounds grounds. Make certain every electrical connection is clean bright and shiny tight down to bare metal. It's impossible to over-emphasize this. This includes the starter and generator itself, which grounds to block through brackets and hardware, also the body of the voltage regulator itself needs to see ground. In later years Ford ran a dedicated wire from the G terminal on the generator to the regulator base.
Cables need to be adequate size, 6V systems really need 00 ("double ought") AWG. Sometimes previous owners recognize the need for new cables, but they didn't follow through and installed cheap 12v generic cables from the drugstore. These will not work.
Polarize the generator windings before startup using the Ford or "Type B" method. The Shop manual is VERY helpful with this kind of thing when setting up and troubleshooting primitive electrical systems. Keep in mind that while a modern digital voltmeter will work for simple tests like whether or not charging voltage is OK at the battery the old fashioned analog type is needed when getting in any deeper than that because generators and regulators are mechanical devices.
