Valve Cover

How old is the gasoline that you are running it on....the gas of today is made to burn, not be stored. Some fresh gas may help though the T engine is pretty forgiving on fuel, however this is troubleshooting. Also, run the engine in the dark, after sundown, you can see all kinds of arcing and even a spark plug porcelain light up like a lightbulb if it is bad...you may have something arcing to ground. This is going to be a process of elimination and you may have more than one problem.
Hang in there and step thru it...
 
red or green said:
How old is the gasoline that you are running it on....the gas of today is made to burn, not be stored. Some fresh gas may help though the T engine is pretty forgiving on fuel, however this is troubleshooting. Also, run the engine in the dark, after sundown, you can see all kinds of arcing and even a spark plug porcelain light up like a lightbulb if it is bad...you may have something arcing to ground. This is going to be a process of elimination and you may have more than one problem.
Hang in there and step thru it...
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We usually go to Wawa on Friday evenings and fill the tank with their R gas. The gas in it now would be from two Fridays ago because we didn't run it this past weekend. I'm still inclined to pull the head, pull the valves and do a valve job on it just for the pleasure of knowing that it couldn't be the valves, and also that I have two sons that are in the shop with me all of the time and are soaking up everything I teach them because they are 20 and 17. I'm sure the valve job time would not go to waste because my dad taught me how to do them around that age. I could also flush out the block and just do a general inspection. I think the issue might be that this engine was restored in the late 1960's, driven about 3-5k and then sat because the owner restored other cars and drove them because they could keep up with traffic. Wouldn't a compressed valve spring be weak after nearly 50 years of sitting?
 
Listen. If you simply must pull the head for no reason at least do the following; take a dry/wet compression test. Nothing will indicate the engines condition better than that. Since you seem bent on doing valves which might not need it be done might as well confirn the condition of said valves and the rings too. Sitting won't wear valve springs out. Useage will. Don't forget The car doesn't know how long it's been since it last ran.
 
I didn't pull the head and don't ask me why, but I decided to rebuild the carb and the miss went away. What would cause it to miss from the carb?
 
Running too lean will make it backfire through the carb. This is sort of a hickup on these small engines rather than anything to do with fire. It just depends on how lean it was under load.
 
Glad you took care of your problem.
Just want to always emphasize. Several mentions of Marvel Mystery Oil, were made.
Problems or not it is a valuable asset for any valve in block motor.
Keep some in the gas, add some to the oil.
It is a real asset.
 
Hi Jeff,
Dizzy bushings will cause a random miss fire, Check the color of your plugs if they indicate a lean condition then the mixture could be a issue. I find that my T will run with the mixture screwed all the way in on my model A marvel carb but is to lean to run real well at low altitudes. These are old carbs & needles & seats are not perfect. If you are like most T people you probably have a spare tappet cover, cut it and the gasket down enough that you can see the valves. Be creative and run it like that you should have a minimum of oil loss ( after all it is a model T ) As far as top end lube I use synthetic caster oil, it clings to parts better than MMO and smells better than wintergreen.
Craig.
 
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