Bronze valve guides??

D

derek costello

Senior Member
If our flatheads are not winter driven they sit along time without running.

This will cause some of the valves to seize in the cast-iron valve guides.

Are there any bronze valve guides available for the ford flathead???
 
derek costello said:
If our flatheads are not winter driven they sit along time without running.

This will cause some of the valves to seize in the cast-iron valve guides.

Are there any bronze valve guides available for the ford flathead???
Click to expand...

Solid bronze guides are usually a do it yourself project. You really don't need them in a street engine even if it sits for long periods.
There are several brands of bronze inserts available and are quite easy to install with the proper tools. Much cheaper also.
I prefer the Winona brand.
Another option is to use plain cast iron guides and chrome stem valves.
 
I knurell the stock guides. this keeps the stem well lubricated, yet prevents oil from contaminating The AF under hi Vacuum conditions. However Bary Here on the barn sells bonz lined guides.
 
Gary goes by GOSFAST here. He said last Friday that he would be away some this week, so don't be surprised id he doesn't answer a PM right away.
 
Just about any machineshop should be able to put a bronzeliner in your existing guides.
I use K-lines liners and just put them in the lathe and ream them there.
 
derek costello said:
If our flatheads are not winter driven they sit along time without running.

This will cause some of the valves to seize in the cast-iron valve guides.

Are there any bronze valve guides available for the ford flathead???
Click to expand...


Have never had seized valves in my flatheads after sitting and not running for a long time.
Maybe if you have 20 or30 year long winters it may happen.
 
Just my experience. Of all of the flatheads I have owned and driven since 1957 (about a dozen), the only one I ever had with stuck valves was a wrecked '50 Tudor that I pulled out of a garage in 1990 where it had been sitting since 1954. It had two stuck exhaust valves that freed up after a bit of running.
 
I've never had seized valves in the guides before. Heck in my 32 Cab, it sat in a non-heated garage for 55 years, no hood, etc.. When I got it, I pulled the heads (to check the valves), pulled the pan to clean the sludge out, check the bearings and install a new oil pump and started that sucker up. Drove the car with that ole' 59AB for a couple years.

I think the most common caused of 'stuck valves' is due to water getting into the engine . . . due to it being left outside or someplace where bad things happened . . .
 
derek costello said:
If our flatheads are not winter driven they sit along time without running.

This will cause some of the valves to seize in the cast-iron valve guides.

Are there any bronze valve guides available for the ford flathead???
Click to expand...

Derek, Save yourself some money and worries by starting your car and letting get up to operating temp at least once a month during the winter. You'll avoid stuck valves even in your frigid winter weather.
 
The modern offerings of replacement valves for flatheads seem to be mostly stainless steel these days. Stainless stems have a tendency to gall against a cast iron guide so sleeving the guides with a phosphor bronze liner like Gary does is not a bad idea. His prices are not bad either for this service.

A regularly used flathead shouldn't have much trouble with stuck valves. Heavy carbon deposits can cause sticking but it's usually under extreme conditions with an excessively worn engine. A flathead that has set for 20-years in a moisture laden environment can have multiple stuck valves. The ones I've found down here in south Texas all had stuck valves and I mean stuck. One old truck engine was so bad that the follower was driven through the stem and the cam broke when an old farmer tried pull starting the truck with a tractor. It took me a while to get that mess apart.
 
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Moisture/condensation is the biggest contributor to "hung" valves, put the liners in now and never worry again!

Not enough continuous run-time on these Flatheads is a reason for moisture build-up! You'll find this also plays havoc with early exhaust system failure without a stainless system.

Have literally done thousands of these guides to date and not a SINGLE valve issue!

We have an entire pkge available (photo below) with stainless valves, bronze guides, and 8 intake stem seals if chosen, this is a customer option. We do your existing guides to keep the costs in line some. All shipping is minimal!

Thanks, Gary in N.Y.

P.S. Am presently working on limited schedule due to some health issues. Would most likely be able to help with the bronze liners at this time though! Not all that expensive either when you consider the alternative!
 

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Gary - Good to see you back! I hope everything worked out for you. Even though I've been lucky so far, if I were going to do any kind of a flathead beyond a simple re-ring and re-gasket, I'd opt for the lined guides.
 
We have about 3-months of extreme heat with no rain but have had floods in some years during the wet season. It gets pretty humid during those times even if the car is in a garage. It's all about local climate.

Where I'm from up in KS is dryer than a popcorn fart most of the year. The cars can set out side for 20-years and not stick valves. South Texas and especially on the gulf coast, can be humid as hell.
 
I have had the engine run rough and fluttering vacuum after sitting for two months without running. Both time it cleared up by drizzling some MMO into the carb while running the throttle up and down.
 
When I purchased my '47 it had stickie valves. That cleared up quickly with an oil change including MMO and a quart of good old Bardall. Now I use common Penn State 10-30 oil. The engine is rarely run in winter season (dry-salt-free roads only) and no valve problems.
 
Newc said:
A club member in RG # 9 had his bronze insets move out of the guides. Caution. Newc
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That’s not a bronze guide issue. It would more than likely be an installer issue as installed correctly the won’t move no matter what kind of engine.
 
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