Remanufactured Flathead

farmerdick

farmerdick

Senior Member
I found a 59 block that has a re manufactured tag on the one piece bell housing on drivers side. It was done in Boston Ma and has a code # stamped on it. There is an A stamped on each head. There is no 59 anywhere on the block. It has a 2 piece oil pan. I was told it came out of a 47` truck. What might I expect concerning what they did for specs during the rebuild process back in the 40`s. re-sleeve, bore size, etc, etc?
 
I thought those tags also gave those specs. I've seen those tags that say for ex. .010" over, etc.

If cheap enough, sounds like a winner. Two piece pan is great addition to any 59AB.
 
On occasion, the specs it was built to are stamped in to the surface plane that the intake bolts to. Usually right - front.
I've seen plenty of those tags that were not stamped.
"A" CAST on heads are '40. Why do you believe it's a '47 "59" series block?

Ford remanufactured engines were done very well. Still, how has it been stored? How was it used?
It may be junk today... I would strongly suggest you remove at the very minimum, the intake to inspect.
I'd also prefer to remove the pan.
 
The previous owner of the engine saw it come out of a 47`truck. Its been under cover for several years and the oil still in the pan was clean. The intake was taken off the day before i picked it up as i did not want it. I will check further for the stamping s and remove the pan which is is in very good shape. There was a number cast into the bell housing with a star symbol on either side of the number. The number was higher up on the bell housing from where the 59 would be stamped. I plan on using my 59a heads in any case. I just had them re planed. Thanks
 
If it was a Ford re-manufacture, it would have been done at the Somerville plant before it closed in 1958. I have had several of them and I believe one was sleeved. They seemed to be pretty well done rebuild. Photo of the plant as it looked before they closed it. That area a commercial area called assembly square.
 
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How much is he asking for it? You can ball park it if you are uncomfortable stating the price. That will be a big factor whether it is a go or no go.
 
clean oil in the pan is because the dirt settles down to the bottom after a decade or two
 
no 59 on bell housing, A heads which would have needed to have some milling work to work on a 59 eng--I would suggest that it is a 39 to 41 engine put in a 47 truck
 
According to the Ford Engine Parts Reconditioning manual Ford had authorized rebuild facilities all over the place. Not sure how one is ID over another. This is the tag they show being used, but not sure if a location is on it. The manual is not dated, but the way it is written it sounds like it is from the war years.
 

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JSeery said:
According to the Ford Engine Parts Reconditioning manual Ford had authorized rebuild facilities all over the place. Not sure how one is ID over another. This is the tag they show being used, but not sure if a location is on it.
Click to expand...

The tags on the engines I've had had the plant that did them near the top.
 
cas3 said:
clean oil in the pan is because the dirt settles down to the bottom after a decade or two
Click to expand...

I recall learning the hard way decades ago that clean and good smelling transmission fluid in a salvage yard trans was usually a bad thing. It typically meant someone changed the fluid and / or filter as the trans was "going south". And, with the new fluid, etc. not fixing the issue, the car was often trashed.
So clean oil in this aforementioned engine means little if anything.
 
Must be doing something wrong
 

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All I can add, is 80% of reman' s around here were done by Cody Ford authorized. As
far as the riveted plate most just had a serial or job number. But some only had ".010"
and thats a guess, rods or mains or both?? I think Cody was somewhere on Rt 9 Somerville, Revere area, don't know. Back in the bus co.we bought several from our
local Ford dealer, I think the dealer was the only way to get one. While on this subject,
got to thinking of that HUGE blue Ford ovel all made from blue and white panzies at
the Sommerville plant. Just maybe Sommerville Historical would have a picture of that.
It was on a hill and kind of like 'Hollywood" sign up on hill in Calf.
 
It's probably a 221 bored .030/040, with ,010/020 bearings. I was in the Patterson NJ plant back in the 60's to pick up a JD 172 industrial engine. I watched them do some in line 6 cyl engines. I asked if they had any flatheads. He said they were all sold off years ago, thay made allot for Sears and other stors. Yhey only rebuild engines one way depending on sales and only blocks that met certian requirements. Most were .030 over and ,010 on the crank. However, if they were short of cores they would take a .040/.020. Setting up the machinery to do an engine took awhine as they did most all kinds. One sad news, they didn't do Merc 4" cranks, they were scrapped. Often wondered how they checked the blocks??
 
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