Is Mike's 1937 Ford Flathead Engine Useable?? - Compression Test Isn't Great
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 ก.ย. 2024
- Over the summer Mike purchased a 1937 Ford flathead that was pulled from a "running" Coupe. The gentleman Mike purchased the engine from had a video of it driving off the trailer and into the garage. The engine appears to be useable but we want to check some things out before getting the engine on the run stand. Mike is going to do a compression test, flush the water passages, and clean out the oil pan. Along the way Mike learned a few things about his engine that added some additional work. Hopefully with some parts ordered we can get this engine fixed up and running!
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So real. Man working on an engine in his garage with basic tools. Baby stroller and a pile of mulch for another honey-do project in the background. Best of luck Mike. Good to know Matt has your back.
When I revived my flat head in my 47 I blocked the lower hose opening and filled each side with Evapo Rust, let it sit for three days then dumped and flushed, two new water pumps, new hoses and I have never had a over heating problem. Pulled the oil pan and cleaned the crud out and have been changing the oil every 500 miles to flush the engine, so far so good.
It may be a difficult process, but you'll be more confident if you disassemble and inspect every part. Good luck with it.
In deed
Mike, thanks for showing us all the heartbreaks of flatheads. Nothing is easy when it comes to flatheads and hotrods. Good thing that you have a stash of parts.
You've got more than enough compression for the engine to start. The low cylinders are probably low due to crap and corrosion on the valve seats. Once you get it started and run for a bit, the compression will come up quite a bit. I started a 39 one time that hadn't been run in many years. I think it started on 1 cylinder. As it struggled to run another cylinder would kick in, then another and another until all 8 were hitting.
Spot on Joe! Folks of my generation would never bother running a compression check on an engine that had not been run in years. We all knew that the engine needed to under go a few heat cycles to free up the valves and rings. That's how we did it back in the 1960's.
Im sure you already know this but with old engines that have weird compression its best to run em and heat cycle em a bit. Loosens up the rings and sometimes the compression will come back
Couple squirts of oil in the low reading cylinders and check them again, if compression goes up you'll know it's a ring problem and not valves.
Squirts of 'master blaster' first to free up those rings..turn over, let 'em sit a bit and then oil 'em and test.
@@MajTom-wd2yt Backwards
Fun to see Mick tinkering with the old flathead. You are right, learning by doing is very hot rod 👌
You’re really close to just a quick rebuild Mike, definitely pull the heads off and get a cylinder bore measurement and check for out of round, the motor might be in good enough shape for a very simple rebuild, and you would have peace of mind driving it further from the house, wish I lived closer!
As someone who has disassembled four flat heads in the last couple months, my expectations are a bit more tempered. I hope he’s that lucky!
There is no such thing as a quick rebuild on a flathead ford v8.
@@classicautorepair2100 this is what I do, there is quick and simple rebuilds
That's right Mike. That's what hot rodding is all about & that is what separates the "built" from the. "bought". Hot roddeos are proud to say "built" and learning all the time. My buddies and I enjoyed the video, thanks. We look forward for your next one.
Hi Mike, welcome to the world of flatheads, glad to see you don't mind having a greasy project. My advice is to dismantle the whole thing, clean,inspect all wear parts, reassemble, because your going to do it anyway. Good luck, thanks for the video
You are doing well. I think once cleaned out and all the fitment issues are resolved, your flathead will be fine. Great to see your baby toys around here and there. Keep up the good work!
Morning Mike! That ole flathead definitely has been used & abused!!! As close as you are you might as well put rings & bearings in it, cars are always a learning experience.....be safe!!! God Bless!!!!
The reality of hot rodding makes success all the more glorious. Man, I'm going through similar stuff with my chassis but don't shy away from asking questions!
Feels kind of weird seeing you by yourself working on something of your own....Cool! Need more vids like this. Totally different vibe but in a good way. Can't wait till the next one Mike. :)
I love those old flat heads, don't mess around, Just do a complete rebuild.
Nice to see Mike getting some of the spotlight for once.
Plus the update on his build.
At the point you've got the engine now you really should give it a full rebuild with all the goodies added.
Engines can be kinda important in a cat ya know 🙄
Hey Mike
Good to see you getting started on your own Hot Rod finally.
Hope the run stand tells you that the engine is good enough to install and get some drive time in when the car is built.
Work Safe, Be Well
Good luck mike keep up the good work 👍🏻
With your engine having sat for a long period, about the only thing a compression test will tell you is if you have any stuck valves. You need to get the engine running to loosen up the rings before a compression test will tell you much. Good luck.
I want to thank you for the adjustable lifters They are now in my 1933 BB Ford truck with 1949/50 engine. Good luck with your project.
Cool that you caught it now and did not run it as it could have damaged it . If you have to go through it and do rings and clean it up and change some parts, at least you will know exactly what you got!😁
Great Job Mike, I really enjoyed this video!
Sludge was a normal hazard of those old motors , as was stuck rings . I can recall an old advert for one of the early additives ( maybe Bardahl ? ) - which talked about the ' 3 Villains ' - ' Gummi Rings ', 'Sticky Valves' and 'Blacky Carbon '...!
I think before I dipped my hand in my pocket for more stuff I would pull the heads and pistons and check the bores, bearings and rings. I would also check the valves. With all that sludge in the motor I think it might not have been looked after as well as it could have been
Mike, that flatty looks like it has potential. As others have said, the valves seating and rings, possible glazing of cylinders could be reasons that compression is low. If the block doesn't have cracks and the bearings have life left you may luck out with a cleanup and runner. Don't get discouraged it is worth the effort. Flatheads forever!
In spite of the problems you encountered your video was hugely informative. I'm sure it will help a whole lot of guys getting into flatheads. Good stuff Mike!
Good job,just take your time.
Good luck Mike, no reason to go it alone. Plenty of knowledge on Ford Barn and the HAMB.
And....right here..🙂
Oh, the joy of old flatheads Mike! Good luck mate, I hope that’s the worst you come across with your engine build. Nothing like the sound of a flathead though so all the pain is worth it IMHO. I’m going to build myself a run stand after seeing the ITG video on the one you guys made for all my 8BA’s and the odd small block Windsor, great for shed parties at the very least! Can’t wait to see yours on the run stand, fingers crossed for you mate.
I know very little about flathead Ford engines but they fascinate me.
When I got the flathead four banger in my old Farmall tractor back to running after sitting for years, the compression was like yours except lower. I soaked the cylinders in Marvel Mystery oil while I was working on other things on it. When I got it started, it was smokey as heck, but the rings did free on up and I have decent compression on it now.
Friend of mine [who just passed at 90] was an old time dealership auto mechanic, related to me how, when a used car came in, they pull the cylinder heads for a look [on flatheads] when assessing value!
Hi my name is Larry and I am a Milwaukee addict. This video just got pretty awesome lol
when you’re looking for the 21 stud aluminum heads, check Facebook market in Canada around major cities. They are way way cheaper and not rare at all up here, because most of the Canadian flatheads had them.
I live in Las Vegas nv and I'm 80 yrs old and have 2 flathead engines. If you flush every thing out on a 4x8 sheet of plyboard then roll the blocks over and over as much as possible getting all of the original sand casting sand that was in the blocks leaving the plant, you'll be suprised how much sand you'll get out. I have a 1947 ford and a 1937-39 french ford 60, it's supposed to have 60 hph but it has about 135 hp , they sound great, reliable, simple, it'll be worth all the extra effort, 24 in glass packs, the best, good luck, Jim in Las Vegas where its 115 for about a month in the summer.
Thanks for sharing! Hope to visit you all this summer! RWB ❤🎉
Good to see you getting your hands dirty on a flathead Mike! :-) Just one question - couldn't you have used one of those cool vintage engine rebuild stands that you and Matt have at the garage, instead of working on the engine as it hung off a chain? Been there, done that, but stands make the work so much easier!
Hi Mike,
Yes welcome to Ford Flatheads. Pour some marvelous mystery oil into the cylinders, does wonders for loosening those rings that appear stuck...brought mine back up. Decisions Decisions...what route to go...I feel your pains. Best of luck. Btw, made up my own wire loom by taking aluminum tubing, cutting the lengths I wanted, put them together (aluminum brazed), and polished them.
Thanks for sharing, Guys! Mike appears to be a seasoned veteran working on that old flattie! It certainly looks like a lot more fun than stacking parts in the warehouse, or shipping out old beer cans! Enjoy your week! Be safe!
The cam gear is a press on so that means you have to pull the valves so you might as well pull the pistons for inspection. All that sludge took a lot of neglect to build up.
flathead V8 was the first engine I ever rebuild that was back in 1973 and it is still running today
Thanks for sharing your compression test and other learnings with us. Feel for you when stuff doesn’t work out off the bat as it happens to us all. You’ll look back in a while with your nice smooth running flattie sitting in your awesome ride and remember the early struggles. Looking forward to following along.
Love the grass roots video-Can't wait to see your next one-
Mike I am sorry about what you have found, been there with a few motors my self, so I feel for you. I am sure it will all come out great in the end, with you being a better smarter mechanic for having done it your self.
I think this is the best video you have put out despite the detours. Best of luck
Marvel Mystery oil is your friend here! it will help with the rings loosening up and help get the crud off the valve seats!
Hey Mike, you're getting a real education. Don't get discouraged. There is tons of info out there. Get on the H.A.M.B., there's a world of info there. Also look up Mart's Garage right here on TH-cam. He has brought a couple of flatties back from the dead and shows some real good tips. Have fun with it!
A quick hone and a couple heat cycles and that compression will come right back... Had the same issue, after a quick hone and a few cycles it came up to 125-128 PSI on all cyls... Good luck with it Mike!
The harder it is to put the engine back in place, the more satisfaction it will be when you finish restoring it and hear it sing! 👍😎
You win some, you lose some. Like you said , this is what Hot Rodding is all about !! You'll get it figured out. Thanks again for the great video. Now go steal some absorbent pads from Matt. Lol
Mike as a suggestion.
When you use that test stand install an electric fan to the radiator it's more efficient for cooling the engine.
Having the stock fan so far away from it does not draw that much air .
11:11 Well I would say not good. How deep is that sludge ? 1/4 to 1/2 inch ?
If you are going to use this engine it would be nice if you could install an aftermarket spin on oil filter.
This way to help remove the sludge is to run the engine with one quart of trans oil mixed with the new oil. Changing it every 1000 miles or so with a new filter.
Trans oil is a much higher detergent than motor oil.
Don't know if the timing gear (cam gear ?) is made like the 4 cylinder Model A. The A cam gear is compressed paper. Pour gas on it and set it on fire and it will just burn away.
Mike, be sure to clean the main lubrication tube BEFORE starting the engine. Remove the timing gear and you will see a brass plug that is removed by a large screwdriver. Pass about a 5/16 rod or wooden rod through the passage to the back of the engine. I used an inexpensive dowel from Home Depot. This passage MUST be clear to allow oil to the bearings. Failure to do this will lead to ruined bearings and a seized engine. Good lick.
Great video! This is at least the fourth engine video I've seen where the oil pan has to be drained and then thoroughly cleaned before any serious engine work gets done. Those old oils didn't have any detergent qualities nor were they multigrade. The pans were all full of oil muck and sludge which left alone would find their way back into engine. Same rules apply to gas and gas tanks in these barn find cars and motorcycles. That stuff has got to be cleaned and cleaned out.
Welcome to my world, Mike.
Good Video Mike checking the compression and figuring out what works best with the upgrades you want to use.
Possible theres a tiny bit of rust on the valve seats causing compression to drop. Test after the engine has run for a while and see if it changes.
Tks Mike for the video,so its allways a learning process,lucky u know a few great friends ,,till next time ,
I do wish you luck in getting it to run.
Love it Mike. Your sure biting on Matts ankles. Trouble being that he likes it. Keep chipping away fella 👍
Spray some PB Blast penetrating oil into the cylinders and rotate the crank a couple times and spray a bit more. Then let it sit overnight. Rotate it some more (I just use the starter) before making any more pressure tests. Any stuck rings will show their appreciation, at least somewhat. Pulling the pistons is likely a good next step.
We always put a little oil in cylinder and checked compression again
Then low compression would be valves because oil helped seal the rings while testing
In the last 5 or so engines I rebuilt ;I always change to pertronix, best change in the world, last one was 1950 Buick straight 8
Surely on a cold engine without oil having been circulated you'll get false readings.
Half ass customs mentioned your name and channel so I decided it would be great to subscribe here. I’m starting on a 37 ford truck for myself 😎
Into the 40s alot of service stations carried crude oil and cut it with kerosene. Once the kerosene burned off the oil returned to a crude base
Hang in there Mike, after a deep clean it may turn out to be a good runner. Weird the timing chain gear has a crack in it. I think I would push on to the engine run before doing to much else at this point.
Excellent video, Mike! Great job, man! Thank you for another fantastic video!
You do it for the love of it...Old engines are a shot in the dark: Do you hit your target or miss it completely. Peace, thanks for sharing...
Its out, so just tear it down and re-ring it, then you can clean out the oil pan, clean off the valves too.
wish you good luck Mike,
Best thing to do is just dis-assemble the entire engine, inspect it and send the block out to be Hot Tanked. If the cylinder walls look to be in good condition then hone the cylinders lightly and just install new rings and bearings in it.
Good to see you wrenching Mike !
Dont forget to be extra clean for the wifey.CLR will help clean out those passages.Another fine quality video sir much luck
Mike those compression numbers might not be the sign of a bad motor, it could be a sign of stuck rings or rusty valve seats. I'd start the motor on the run stand, and run it threw a couple heat cycles, but before you do that pull the plugs, drain the oil, dump in a gallon of diesel fuel, and crank the motor with a battery, let it set overnight, and drain.
Perfect! On the garage floor wrestling with an old flattie. Tear it down if you can afford it, or see if there's enough compression to make it run. Research away! It's all good either way...
You went this far so just rebuilt it would save you time and headaches👍😉
Clean out as much of the sludge as you can. Then dump 1 qt. of ATF into the crankcase and then top off with fresh oil. The high detergent in the ATF slowly breaks down the sludge, carbon and rust ( if there is any ) . It works great for cleaning an engine out safely. You don't have to worry about it knocking loose large chunks of sludge/debris to plug up the pick up screen and oil passages like some harsher flushes can do. It can also free up stuck rings. Just run the added ATF for a few oil changes and the engine will be nice and clean inside.
Hey, mike just picked up my nailhead got all of same stuff to do as you are here! Hope we don’t have big problems
Just plan on a full rebuild, hard to be disappointed after that.
At least your sludge is still soft and gooey. It will eventually work its way out (with a lot of oil/filter changes). The compression problems are probably a combination of stuck rings and dirty valve seats. The rings should free up with a couple of heat cycles when you run the engine. You may need to reseat the valves to clean them up. The valve seals will also be suspect, causing excess smoking...The rust looks about normal, just needs aggressive flushing... Good luck..!!
All hotrod builders know about set backs, hang in there it will come together. This will be a cool build
Really enjoyed this one, my brain is screaming pop the heads check for cracks lol not sure if that helps
Educational episode! Good learning experiences for you, and us! Great content!
Wouldn't it be worth it to just strip it and have everything hot tanked and give it a hone and some new rings at least
Flushing the old flathead out I used a 2" trash pump and made an.adaptor and how the crap came out the first 60 seconds it didn't take long .
Looks like the lifter valley in my LS engine. How about a video on cleaning that up?
Pour some white vinegar into the cylinders and let it sit overnight and it will clean the internals .
I get trying not to disassemble her but I think you will be a lot more confident in the engine if you do take it down to clean and inspect. But ya gotta do what you're confident with or have a budget for.
Great video Mike. I thought I was the only guy who got into crap like that.
🤞🤞 hope you start to get better results from your engine
Thanks for sharing, Mike. Enjoyed the video. I will follow the build hope you get it like you want it. 👉🇺🇸👈
I understand pretty new to this myself I have a few things to learn as well. Met good mate through a club he has been in this game for over 40 years when is become my Yoda learn you must master you must seek
Quick note :
I've run straight white vinegar thru many a coolant system. Including .. driving with that sh*t in it for a week. Removes a sh*t load of trash & rust. Empty system, refill with hose water & baking soda, run again. Empty & fill with distilled and/or antifreeze.
Yes Vinegar works the best. My grandfather said they were doing that back in the Korean War
Hi Mike. All jokes aside mate. Seriously suggest you strip the engine down and give her a good clean out from top to bottom. Give the cylinders if they're OK a hone job. Might get away with a crank polish. A set of rings and bearings. Valve job might help. Appreciate you want to do as little as possible and get the thing running. Having wasted many hours and $$ on these cast iron wonders. Simple clean through as suggested will save you a heap of trouble later.
I hated when I didn't pay attention to the rotor position after removing the dist. It goes back on 180* out. Did that a few times.
If its been sitting a long time the vavles could be stuck open a little. I wouldn't be to concerned about the numbers unless it was after it was fired for a few minutes. Clean out the mouse bones and send it. Run it on premix at first. Then check it. Make sure you don't have rusty cam lobes. Not sure you can use factory fan, it doesn't clear the distributor you want to use. Go with an electric fan.
Mike: I noticed that the starter rpm kept changing during the compression test you performed during this video. This will have an effect on your readings. I think you would do well to mount the engine on the run stand and get it up to operating temperature a few times. try to keep the rpm below 3000. Once you finish the "heat cycle" running, perform another compression test. This time do a "wet and dry" test.Test all 8 cylinders, record your readings and then pump some oil into the cylinders and run the test again. The cylinders which show a higher compression after oiling most likely have rings which are leaking. If any valves are leaking, the oil will not effect the reading on that cylinder. One further test you can run is to pump air into each spark plug hole at low pressure. if you hear air escaping from the intake or exhaust manifold that will indicate which valve is leaking. The results of these tests will give you a good idea of what further work the engine needs.
Try putting 2 to 3 table spoons of oil in cylinder.if compression raises >to the rings may be just stuck from sitting.should loosen up when started up and warm.
That motor needs to come apart and get completely flushed out. You don't want any clogged oil passages.
That engine needs some Marvel Mystery oil to klean it really good.
My guess that there is a 50/50 change of those 60 pound cylinders to come back up.
Hoping for the best for you.