Having Fun With it?
- Thread starter David R.
- Start date
I pulled the truck out yesterday and pressure washed some of the grime off. Cleaned up front axle parts from the good spare axle. New bushings and some brake hardware is on the way from Snyders. I have read Les Andrews book and the Ford manuals. I have never had my hands on an A but am learning. They are a study in rugged simplicity. Can’t wait to drive it. (I can’t figure out how to add another photo- upload of files failed)
30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
Forgot to add, 4 of the pan bolt holes are not blind. Seal them with some Permatex ultra black on the bolt threads to prevent oil leaks. Also I prefer to dab a little grease on the rope seal after the seal is in the pan/before installing pan to give the rope a little extra lube to prevent any possible burning from the crank. If you search here on FB there should be other tips/procedures on installing a pan gasket including making it easier to remove if you turn the wheels fully one way.
30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
Do not use the Les Andrew torque spec on the pan bolts. 20 lbs is way too much and will squish a cork gasket, use common sense, or 4-5 lbs is enough. Read his book carefully, if you disagree ask here 1st, there are a few errors in the book.
30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
If installing a pan on a motor that is in teh vehicle, these are very handy.
https://www.brattons.com/oil-pan-snap-up-installation-clipsset-of-4.html
Here is the oil pump npt tool if interested
https://www.brattons.com/oil-pump-holder-tool.html
https://www.brattons.com/oil-pan-snap-up-installation-clipsset-of-4.html
Here is the oil pump npt tool if interested
https://www.brattons.com/oil-pump-holder-tool.html
Chuck Sea/Tac
Well-known member
If the oil drains out good, and there’s no sludge in there, I wouldn’t pull the pan. I would start it and then if you hear any noise down there then you can do it. You’re not going to hurt the babbit if it’s knocking a little bit. It’s a lot of work adjusting bearings with the engine in place.
30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
Depends on your abilities/personality/time and money available, and condition of the A.
My truck was probably worst case. 50 years in storage in out buildings. Took the common advice I got, said to get it running and see what goes wrong and then fix.
Wish I had have someone completely go through it, last 6 years have been dealing with issues as they crop up.
Was told to just keep running new oil to clean out the sludge - so much sludge was in it that it ended up blocking the oil screen, radiator and block partially plugged up with rust/etc. and had an undersized 2 row radiator and kept overheating above 25 mph, water pump bearing went bad/froze, distributor bushings bad, generator went bad - bearings, etc., etc.. Bad head gasket, head rusted to block outside-between the block/head- to some studs. Some incorrect head studs - Latest was cracked rod cap causing a knock that had been cracked previous to our owning it, cap had been over torqued, had motor rebuilt because the cap cause major wear issue in that cylinder. the list goes on.
So you can be thorough and know the condition of the vehicle and be somewhat confident it is reliable. Or you can fix things as they crop up. If symptoms appear, investigate/identify/decide if it needs attention. I recommend you don't procrastinate without knowing the cause.
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Flushed radiator and block today. Lots of rodent debris but surprisingly little rust. Radiator has a small leak. Started to work on distributor. Had to jamb nut the locking screw to get it out of the head. Distributor lifts straight up out of head, right? I pried gently but it hasn’t budged yet. Penetrating oil liberally applied.
30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
Correct, once the nut is loosened and the screw is loose, the dist. comes straight up/out. Sometimes when it has sat for a very long time the distributer rusts to the head, and sometimes the distributor shaft/shaft cavity/cavity will rust together.
If you are not careful, it is possible to wreck/crack the metal distributor housing. The distributor design has a keyed 2 piece shaft. Part of the shaft comes out with the dist. the other part stays in the motor. The 2 shafts are keyed so they can only be put in the correct way. However there were aftermarket distributors that were a one piece shaft, no 2 piece.
Here is puller/tool, it threads into the dist. shaft cam screw hole, to pull the dist. via the dist. shaft.
https://www.brattons.com/distributor-puller.html
Here is a previous post/string with tips/hints
https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=252515&highlight=distributor+stuck
If you are not careful, it is possible to wreck/crack the metal distributor housing. The distributor design has a keyed 2 piece shaft. Part of the shaft comes out with the dist. the other part stays in the motor. The 2 shafts are keyed so they can only be put in the correct way. However there were aftermarket distributors that were a one piece shaft, no 2 piece.
Here is puller/tool, it threads into the dist. shaft cam screw hole, to pull the dist. via the dist. shaft.
https://www.brattons.com/distributor-puller.html
Here is a previous post/string with tips/hints
https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=252515&highlight=distributor+stuck
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30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
Have not heard of that before.
When you turn the screw does cam and shaft also turn? If no screw is stripped.
If yes - is the distributor all the way down/seated on the head? Then it is possible top port of the shaft is not sitting down far enough to key into the bottom part of the dist. shaft.
It is also possible that this part which is pined and fits on the distributer, and fits into the head hole has a missing or broken pin.
https://modelastore.com/electrical/distributor-distributor?product_id=4223
When the cam and the shaft rotates in a good motor, the entire motor works - points cam, dist. shaft, valve cam, timing gear, crank gear, crank, rods, pistons. All is mechanically connected.
Assuming the cam screw turns easily and is not stripped, would not think it would be inside the motor, so hopefully it is one of the above.
To get it out and the points cam is turning, you will probably have to use a vice grips or lock jaw pliers on the cam to hold it still. If you do this you will most likely have to replace the cam, and the washer between on the cam screw and the cam. Issue doing this is soon as the cam screw starts loosening the cam moves independently on the dist shaft. Timing on an A is not performed by rotating the dist like on more modern cars, but by positioning the dist cam properly and tightening cam screw.
I you can't get the screw out, hopefully the methods in the post string work.
When you turn the screw does cam and shaft also turn? If no screw is stripped.
If yes - is the distributor all the way down/seated on the head? Then it is possible top port of the shaft is not sitting down far enough to key into the bottom part of the dist. shaft.
It is also possible that this part which is pined and fits on the distributer, and fits into the head hole has a missing or broken pin.
https://modelastore.com/electrical/distributor-distributor?product_id=4223
When the cam and the shaft rotates in a good motor, the entire motor works - points cam, dist. shaft, valve cam, timing gear, crank gear, crank, rods, pistons. All is mechanically connected.
Assuming the cam screw turns easily and is not stripped, would not think it would be inside the motor, so hopefully it is one of the above.
To get it out and the points cam is turning, you will probably have to use a vice grips or lock jaw pliers on the cam to hold it still. If you do this you will most likely have to replace the cam, and the washer between on the cam screw and the cam. Issue doing this is soon as the cam screw starts loosening the cam moves independently on the dist shaft. Timing on an A is not performed by rotating the dist like on more modern cars, but by positioning the dist cam properly and tightening cam screw.
I you can't get the screw out, hopefully the methods in the post string work.
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30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
Updated after originally posted.
30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
The back of the distributor base has flange material sticking out the back. This piece has dimple/hole that fits over a corresponding "bump" on the head. This is what indexes the distributor to the head mechanically.
This actually is a nice feature. If you have a spare distributor and have gapped and timed the points on this motor, take it out, keep it as a spare. Any time you need the spare dist, you can just swap it in and should not have to gap or time it.
Pulled plug on oil pan and nothing came out. Uh oh. Probed in there and a bad batch of molasses eventually rolled out. Going down to pull pan off now.
30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
Yep, not good. You should do a thorough job of cleaning the lower end, including the oil pump to clean it and its oil screen.
As long as it is off, as you planned check/adjust bearings. Check for wear and damage on the crank and Babbitt bearings
Also definitely pull the access cover and clean out as mentioned above.
This is why we shudder when we see U-Tube videos of people resuscitating As, put some water in it, fresh fuel, clean plugs, points and start it.
Did you figure out your distributor issue yet?
I took all internals out of distributor. If I understand correctly it is not seated fully I can see a good 1/4” or so of locator pin on cylinder head. Still won’t budge though. Tapped around on it and applied another penetrant baptism.
Bottom side looks decent initially; other than a little gunky. Still not as bad as I’ve seen some modern engines. So far worst thing I see is crank pulley heavily grooved at seal and cracked. Do I buy one or two piece? Radiator is couming off and going out for repairs anyway. Not sure what to make of this engine. Flywheel housing, oil pan starter etc. all painted red. I see Ford color under the red on fly wheel housing. Engine block and head had silver paint? 2nd overhaul?
Bottom side looks decent initially; other than a little gunky. Still not as bad as I’ve seen some modern engines. So far worst thing I see is crank pulley heavily grooved at seal and cracked. Do I buy one or two piece? Radiator is couming off and going out for repairs anyway. Not sure what to make of this engine. Flywheel housing, oil pan starter etc. all painted red. I see Ford color under the red on fly wheel housing. Engine block and head had silver paint? 2nd overhaul?
30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
Before going much further, even though it is a pain, sounds like this motor may be in poor shape, might want to do a compression test on it soon, Hand crank it 1st to make sure engine is free. See below about the ratchet nut if you have problems keeping the hand crank seated in the ratchet nut.
Compression Test can be done without damage with your starter as long as the engine is free and the dist. shaft turns in the head/block . If bad readings pull the head and see what it looks like in the upper end, Also be prepared to replace the head gasket.. See if the cylinder walls are scored, how much it is over bored (usually the pistons are stamped how much over bore they are), shape of the valves/valve seats, see if the block/head is cracked.
Original engine was a darker green, that includes, all the things you mentioned above except for the oil pan (black) was a darker green.
Pulley is up to you, some prefer the one piece, some prefer the 2 piece. Less possible issues with the one piece, however the 2 piece allows you to take the pulley on/off without pulling the radiator. Before removing the pulley you may want to inspect the ratchet nut that holds teh pulley on, some times they are very worn, and it is difficult to keep the had crank seated in it when hand cranking the motor.
A trick to getting the ratchet nut freed up/off is to put a closed end wrench on it and jam teh wrench handle against teh frame, then bump the starter, works every time.
You need a special wrench or a socket ratchet so you can get on the nut, socket has to be deep well to get past the ratchet, and the wrench has to reach into the recessed area of the center of the pulley. Venders sell a special wrench, or you can make your own by heating up a longer wrench and bending it.
Interesting/unique color combination.
Hope this is not discouraging, there is a saying about A's, especially on barn finds and As that have sat for a long time "there is usually a reason(s) why they have been parked.
So how long and where did this A sit?
Compression Test can be done without damage with your starter as long as the engine is free and the dist. shaft turns in the head/block . If bad readings pull the head and see what it looks like in the upper end, Also be prepared to replace the head gasket.. See if the cylinder walls are scored, how much it is over bored (usually the pistons are stamped how much over bore they are), shape of the valves/valve seats, see if the block/head is cracked.
Original engine was a darker green, that includes, all the things you mentioned above except for the oil pan (black) was a darker green.
Pulley is up to you, some prefer the one piece, some prefer the 2 piece. Less possible issues with the one piece, however the 2 piece allows you to take the pulley on/off without pulling the radiator. Before removing the pulley you may want to inspect the ratchet nut that holds teh pulley on, some times they are very worn, and it is difficult to keep the had crank seated in it when hand cranking the motor.
A trick to getting the ratchet nut freed up/off is to put a closed end wrench on it and jam teh wrench handle against teh frame, then bump the starter, works every time.
You need a special wrench or a socket ratchet so you can get on the nut, socket has to be deep well to get past the ratchet, and the wrench has to reach into the recessed area of the center of the pulley. Venders sell a special wrench, or you can make your own by heating up a longer wrench and bending it.
Interesting/unique color combination.
Hope this is not discouraging, there is a saying about A's, especially on barn finds and As that have sat for a long time "there is usually a reason(s) why they have been parked.
So how long and where did this A sit?
30 Closed Cab PU
Well-known member
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