Merc block -next step - cam, valves and guides?

Knurling the guide provides more lubrication than a non knurled guide thus preventing wear. The .050" piston to head clearance includes the head gasket.
 
Hey Ron, if you are knurling the inside of the guide, how do you do that? I've been busting my brain on that for a while.

If putting a 4" crank in a 59AB will a stock 239 ford cam work well?

Thanks, Al K.
 
The knurl is not like a traditional one as seen on a lathe on the od. with a checkered design..
The guide is knurled with a 11/32 tooling . This is a spiral tool that expands the inside of the guide when it pulls itself through due to the interference spiral thread design the tooling can still be purchased and you ream to your desired size after knurl. The reaming only removes the high spots.The full inside of the guide is not expanded only the portion that is effected by the spiral tooling. Not really a desired effect but there is no side loading on Flathead valves. It has been around longer than dirt.There is no great benefits when done to an ohv engine as most have a certain amount of side loading due to the valve train geometry.You end up with some non contact area inside the guide but on an old street flatty it can be a consideration. If done by a shop the cost does not warrant the job.I am sure old Ron has his tooling from long ago and it costs him nothing to do the job but with no tooling the end user will have to pay the going rate. Still can be done but ther are better repairs it all boils down to how much do you want to invest in this little beauty.But if that is your budget than that is all she wrote.

Ronnie :)
 
One more opinion! On my 53 Merc. I bored 30 over, with the stock 4" crank, new chevy valves, and new guides. Used adjustable lifters from Red's Headers. Norfleet cams (been grinding cams for eons with great results) in Dallas. Ground the cam to an old grind from Clay Smith, "Dirt track cheater grind"; No lope, great pickup and power, and we ran it all over the country for 5 years. Block deck was cleaned up just a touch for a nice flat surface. Stock Merc heads and headers from Red's . All she needed was another carb or a bigger one.
I've got another Merc motor that's gonna get the exact same deal for a 30 coupe!
 
Ronnie answered the knurling question, yes I have the tooling. Now the most unfortunate thing here is NEW guides have to be Knurled as well, because most have too much clearance..
 
If you are using new guides there is no need to consider knurling or lining. There are thousands of Flatheads running around with stock, new, guides. There is a big difference from a street engine to a competition engine. Or, at least, there should be.
 
Jack 34pu said:
Great - I have a set of EAB heads but one has some pitting around one cyl edge so may have to be cleaned up. I assume you mean .050" without head gasket.
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Jack, I've got an EAC cam in my little 0.060 over 8ba, pulls hard, sounds great at idle and cruise, I highly reccomend it! I reused the stock guides, had to replace a valve or two with chevy valves, it doesn't use a drop of oil. My only regret is that I ground the valve tips for clearance to use with the stock lifters, it's got a valve tap on one of them. Wish I would have installed adjustables while I had it apart. Someday...
 
Bassman/NZ said:
Can you explain bronze guide liners please? In decades of having flatheads I've never heard of them.
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There are 2 popular (maybe more) types.
One is made by Winona and is a spiral insert that looks similar to a Helicoil.
The guide hole is theaded with a special tool..The insert is installed with another special tool..The hole is then reamed to the size required..
All of this is normally done in a shop with a valve machine but the tools are adaptable to being used in a portable configuration.

The other type of insert is a straight sleeve that is installed after the hole has been reamed to size..After inserting it is reamed to size.
I have used both types in racing and hi performance street engines with no failures.

As John mentioned above, there is no reason to knurl or modify stock guides in stock engines..If they come out of the box out of spec. do not use them.
 
The install kits for the liners are sold by Goodson, among others, as a complete kit for a particular size with some options for amount of clearance...I think the spirals use a ball broach (several sizes in the box), essentially a ball that is driven through to finalize size. The kits are not really cheap but are at a level a seriously disturbed do it yourselfer could pay. Everything you need in the little kits fits into a box like a 1/4" socket set.
 
One diagnostic for that is the ratio between $$$ for a specialized tool you are willing to shell out versus $$ for paying someone who knows what he is doing to handle the work.
With me, the ratio is up in dividing-by-zero land!
I'll divide by HALF of zero if the needed tool is by KRW...
 
Well I guess we've covered all the different opinions about valve guides. What I din;t understand is why Knurled guides are no good but bronze guides reamed to the right size are. They are more expensive. Now if you get a new set of guides that have the wrong size clearance, don't use them. Then what, use the old ones. I like to keep the cost of the engines I've built down for the customer. I knurled their old guides as part of thhe valve job. I used stock valve springs with a .060" spacer an ALL street engines. I never used the rubber seals, Just a little RTV on the guide. I know this stuff works because most of the engines I've are still running. 2 are not
 
Old Ron I didn't read where knurling was no good but did notice bronze liners have worked well in many applications.
The cost of bronze liners is definitely not cheap.Knurling is low cost and will work for a Flathead application..This could be interpreted as more is good lots is better I think it has beauty is in the eye of the beholder.I have all the sizes including metric for guide tooling,and make money with them. I don't think that a "diy" guy will pay the few hundred dollars for one size and the only way to get some money back is to buy the guides by the box of 100 or 250 not something a shade tree wrench is going to look at.But then again much more has been spent on lots less.Bronze liners could give some guys bragging rites when they are bench racing.Many times it has been said on paper this wins races and you know they don't race on paper but on asphalt .Have I ever knurled cast guides absolutely sometimes that is all the customer wants.Tell me you haven't had a customer that says you want how much!!! LOL. Take what you can get.Or turn down the job.There are 2 kinds of oats fresh ones and ones that have been through the horse.

This forum is still a great place for knowledge to be learned and a good one to pass on the proven ways,and I have stated before you have "bin there and done that" many times and I truly acknowledge that. Sometimes a few posters just seem to think differently.Lets have more discussions on engine building and parts.

Ronnie
 
a seriously disturbed do it yourselfer


:D:D anyone who mucks around with old cars is seriously disturbed..... or so my wife says..... and who am I to disagree?
 
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