Help identify a part please and how to properly clean?

Model A Fan

Model A Fan

Senior Member
I got my engine all cleaned up on the top of the block and pistons, put new head studs in and I'm getting ready to seal the engine back up so I can reassemble it. I noticed the distributor lower shaft has springs around it, and I would like to replace them. However, I can't find the proper part number or I just don't know the name of the spring to look for on Mac's. Can anybody provide the product number for the spring that goes around the lower distributor shaft please?

Also, I would like to clean the valve chamber as it has accumulated dirt, debris and still has oil in it. Is there a good way to go about cleaning it up?

 
Here is the part number on Bratton's website for the oil pump distributor drive gear retainer spring #9560:

https://www.brattons.com/oil-pump-distributor-drive-gear-retainer-spring.html

I have a similar issue where my was off-set at the top (see "Oil Pressure Off the Chart" tread: http://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=196697). Towards the middle of the tread I have pics of my valve chamber with the spring issue. Several have commented on how it looked and how to replace it.

I'll defer to others on how to clean your valve chamber. Mine looks a lot worse than yours. I think you could almost eat off of yours.

Brian
 
I would just use some brake kleen and compressed air...
As a side note always keep your intake / exhaust ports taped up until your ready to install the manifolds... You don't want anything going in them
Make sure the main feed holes are open
 
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When you order the spring may I suggest you also get a can of Ford engine green and put some fresh color on your engine?
 
Also remember that the tubes feeding oil to the main bearings are in the floor
of the valve chamber so don't flush a bunch of crap down them.

Bob
 
I would stick a pipe cleaner down each of the 3 tubes that feel oil to the main bearings, then when you are done cleaning the valve chamber pull the pipe cleaners out, along with any dirt they may have trapped.
 
Hey at least he had one!

forever4 said:
OMG!
Please replace that distributor spring with a proper one before you put it back together!



valve_zpsluwch8ut.jpg
Click to expand...
 
Bear with me here...
Last year I offered to adjust a friend's rod bearings in a 1929 Tudor he bought from the guy, who had "restored" it. Boy-howdy, was that engine noisy and rattly ("rattly"?). I was afraid a rod would come loose and go through the side of the engine block if the rod bearings weren't adjusted - and soon. Knock, knock, rattle, rattle. (Can you guess where I'm going with this?) While doing that, I also adjusted the main bearings, which is always a fun job when the engine is still in the chassis. I have adjusted rod bearings maybe 100 times in 50 years, so I kinda know what I'm doing.
Well, after making the adjustments and removing suspiciously few shims, I started up the engine. The rattling/knocking noise was still there! WTF??? I sleuthed around the engine while it was running and determined that most of the noise was coming from behind the valve cover. Off it came. Readers may register horror at seeing the photo of the pieced-together oil pump drive gear spring shown in this thread, but at least there IS a spring! Yup - "Mr. Restorer" had assembled the engine and NOT installed this all-important spring. You could lift and drop the drive housing to replicate the knocking noise as the engine ran. Installing a used spring I had on hand quieted everything down. This was the first time I had encountered such stupidity - and I thought I had seen it all. Jeez - didn't the previous owner wonder where the extra spring belonged after the car was assembled? Why are such morons attracted to our hobby???
I hope I am not the first Model A guy in the history of the universe to have been fooled by a loose oil pump drive gear housing because of a missing retaining spring??? For the life of me, the noise sounded like loose rod bearings. Honest! I could have SWORN that the rods were loose. As a matter of fact, when I finally discovered that this spring was missing, I DID do some swearing! A LOT of it.
Marshall
 
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brianpharmd said:
Here is the part number on Bratton's website for the oil pump distributor drive gear retainer spring #9560:

https://www.brattons.com/oil-pump-distributor-drive-gear-retainer-spring.html

I have a similar issue where my was off-set at the top (see "Oil Pressure Off the Chart" tread: http://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=196697). Towards the middle of the tread I have pics of my valve chamber with the spring issue. Several have commented on how it looked and how to replace it.

I'll defer to others on how to clean your valve chamber. Mine looks a lot worse than yours. I think you could almost eat off of yours.

Brian
Click to expand...

Thank you for the part number! I have always bought from Mac's, so I may switch to Bratton's as the cost is lower, even before Mac's "discount" (spend $179 and get 10% off, which is really lame and not that great. They used to do better sales.).

Mitch//pa said:
I would just use some brake kleen and compressed air...
As a side note always keep your intake / exhaust ports taped up until your ready to install the manifolds... You don't want anything going in them
Make sure the main feed holes are open
Click to expand...

I'll tape them up so they don't get anything in them. This may sound ignorant...but what is a "main feed hole"?

700rpm said:
When you order the spring may I suggest you also get a can of Ford engine green and put some fresh color on your engine?
Click to expand...

Hahahah, that's funny you mention that. I have a few spray cans already and had planned on painting it. While I was cleaning up the block, I brushed against a part of the outside of the block and it appears whomever painted it the ugly green didn't clean up the outside first as they painted over grease! I wiped the paint off and it revealed different paint underneath.

Bob C said:
Also remember that the tubes feeding oil to the main bearings are in the floor
of the valve chamber so don't flush a bunch of crap down them.

Bob
Click to expand...

I'll be sure to keep them free of debris. I will follow Tom's advice.

Tom Wesenberg said:
I would stick a pipe cleaner down each of the 3 tubes that feel oil to the main bearings, then when you are done cleaning the valve chamber pull the pipe cleaners out, along with any dirt they may have trapped.
Click to expand...

Copy that, I will do just that.

Marshall V. Daut said:
Bear with me here...
Last year I offered to adjust a friend's rod bearings in a 1929 Tudor he bought from the guy, who had "restored" it. Boy-howdy, was that engine noisy and rattly ("rattly"?). I was afraid a rod would come loose and go through the side of the engine block if the rod bearings weren't adjusted - and soon. Knock, knock, rattle, rattle. (Can you guess where I'm going with this?) While doing that, I also adjusted the main bearings, which is always a fun job when the engine is still in the chassis. I have adjusted rod bearings maybe 100 times in 50 years, so I kinda know what I'm doing.
Well, after making the adjustments and removing suspiciously few shims, I started up the engine. The rattling/knocking noise was still there! WTF??? I sleuthed around the engine while it was running and determined that most of the noise was coming from behind the valve cover. Off it came. Readers may register horror at seeing the photo of the pieced-together oil pump drive gear spring shown in this thread, but at least there IS a spring! Yup - "Mr. Restorer" had assembled the engine and NOT installed this all-important spring. You could lift and drop the drive housing to replicate the knocking noise as the engine ran. Installing a used spring I had on hand quieted everything down. This was the first time I had encountered such stupidity - and I thought I had seen it all. Jeez - didn't the previous owner wonder where the extra spring belonged after the car was assembled? Why are such morons attracted to our hobby???
I hope I am not the first Model A guy in the history of the universe to have been fooled by a loose oil pump drive gear housing because of a missing retaining spring??? For the life of me, the noise sounded like loose rod bearings. Honest! I could have SWORN that the rods were loose. As a matter of fact, when I finally discovered that this spring was missing, I DID do some swearing! A LOT of it.
Marshall
Click to expand...

I haven't run this engine yet, so I plan on checking everything over first. I need to drain the oil pan and give it a good cleaning too. I'm thinking drain the pan, spray with brake cleaner and then allow it to dry? Or should I just drain it and refill? :confused:

Thank you for the help guys.
 
Make sure when you put oil in it after removing the oil pan to put a couple of the quarts down the distributor hole before installing the distributor. Also if you remove the oil pan, look at the inside of the block, there was enough hardened sludge in one of my engines that I could scrape it off with a putty knife. Just in a small area, must be an oil splash pattern that misses that spot.
 
Since you are dropping the oil pan you might want to check clearances. This was suggested to me since I had access to the crank by a couple of club members who post here in FB. Mainly since I had purchased my car and did not know the history/quality of the engine rebuild. That way I had a baseline and could make any adjustments up front.

My 2 cents
 
Here in California, you probably need a prescription and a permit to buy Pipe cleaners. Luckily I have some left over from a more stupid era of my life.
 
Before you order the spring, you might consider removing the drive assy. inside the broken spring. Look at the helical gear for wear, frequently they are worn razor sharp and really thin. Easy to replace the shaft inside the outer housing, giving less distributor slop.
 
So it's been a little while since an update. I've put all the parts back after sandblasting the block and other parts. Whoever painted it the John Deere green had a hatred of doing things properly. It was painted over grease. Like, I could wipe the paint off as it was just painted grease, not metal.

I repainted it so 700rpm should be pleased :D . I did decide to add a little "flair". For the bolt heads and oil return pipe, I got them down to bare metal and put a clear coat over them. They look ok I think.

I'll have to post some photos later so you can see it. I pulled the oil pan off today and scrubbed it inside and out. I'm going to sandblast it and repaint it a gloss black.
 
If I was you I would also replace those miss matched vale springs. The one on the left next to drive gear spring is not a valve spring.
 
Marshall V. Daut said:
Bear with me here...
Last year I offered to adjust a friend's rod bearings in a 1929 Tudor he bought from the guy, who had "restored" it. Boy-howdy, was that engine noisy and rattly ("rattly"?). I was afraid a rod would come loose and go through the side of the engine block if the rod bearings weren't adjusted - and soon. Knock, knock, rattle, rattle. (Can you guess where I'm going with this?) While doing that, I also adjusted the main bearings, which is always a fun job when the engine is still in the chassis. I have adjusted rod bearings maybe 100 times in 50 years, so I kinda know what I'm doing.
Well, after making the adjustments and removing suspiciously few shims, I started up the engine. The rattling/knocking noise was still there! WTF??? I sleuthed around the engine while it was running and determined that most of the noise was coming from behind the valve cover. Off it came. Readers may register horror at seeing the photo of the pieced-together oil pump drive gear spring shown in this thread, but at least there IS a spring! Yup - "Mr. Restorer" had assembled the engine and NOT installed this all-important spring. You could lift and drop the drive housing to replicate the knocking noise as the engine ran. Installing a used spring I had on hand quieted everything down. This was the first time I had encountered such stupidity - and I thought I had seen it all. Jeez - didn't the previous owner wonder where the extra spring belonged after the car was assembled? Why are such morons attracted to our hobby???
I hope I am not the first Model A guy in the history of the universe to have been fooled by a loose oil pump drive gear housing because of a missing retaining spring??? For the life of me, the noise sounded like loose rod bearings. Honest! I could have SWORN that the rods were loose. As a matter of fact, when I finally discovered that this spring was missing, I DID do some swearing! A LOT of it.
Marshall
Click to expand...


Where in the world did " Boy-howdy " come from? I am sure it means something Hahahaha! Wayne
 
George Miller said:
If I was you I would also replace those miss matched vale springs. The one on the left next to drive gear spring is not a valve spring.
Click to expand...

i noticed that too and the ol song " which one of these things is not like the other" started playing in my head...
 
"I noticed the distributor lower shaft has springs around it, and I would like to replace them. "

ok maybe i missed this but surely the OP is aware that in the pic there are 2 springs on the oil pump drive gear assembly, else the one spring is broken. There should only be one spring showing in that location

Also, I personally would never sand blast an oil pan or any part of a motor that involves motor oil. You will never get rid of every single speck of sand.
My opinion of course
 
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If you are going to remove the oil pan, you might consider removing that 1/8" NPT pipe plug before you remove the pan, and install a 1/8" NPT drain petcock from either a NAPA or other outlet, to hold your oil pump up in place. When the valve is opened the stem will press gently on the pump body, holding the pump. These pumps hurt a lot if the pump sticks momentarily in the engine block, then decides to fall on your head. If you accidently forget to remove the valve, to reinstall the brass plug, and you start the engine, you will find you have a very major oil leak.
 
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