52 M38a1 Motor Pool Resto

That's nice for you. Most f-heads I've owned had broken rings and scored cylinders for some reason.

But if the rings are good, whence comes the fouling? Just rich running, ya think. What did the plugs look like?

 

Here are the plugs Pete:

 

Hard to see well enough, and don't know how old they are.

My thought was, they may reveal any distinction between oil fouling and carbon fouling, possibly.

 

All right, the exhaust manifold needed to come off. I was hoping to avoid this but....a cracked/rotted shoulder neccessated this...

It's destined for recycling. Oh well

Patience. Soaking and heat has paid off. 3 out of 5 ain't bad I suppose...

Welded nuts onto the little of the studs that were left....

The last one is just not having it. Last try....

No dice. I need to drill it out....Ugh....Sometimes patience pays off. 4 out of 5 ain't bad.

 

Amazing that the bolt with the rotted manifold shoulder (in the first pic above) came out. It took quite a while just taking my time....

 

Best to walk away sometimes. Arthur offers consultation and a chance to take a frisbee break.

 

Some days when you work in the shop, nothing works. When you go back out there the next day, it seems to work better.
Still, making progress.
Drilling out broken studs is a skill I haven't mastered. Sometimes it goes well, getting them out, sometimes it just doesn't work. Keeping the drill centered is the problem I have.

Dave

 

X2.

 

Centering is not easy but also not unattainable with patience. I got lucky this time.

This is one of the very few fasteners I've busted on this project. I was WAY overdue to break something. It's still not out by the way. My attitude is it will wait have to wait until I feel inspired to finish the little that's left.

So moved onto to tapping some of the many holes on the engine. It's so much easier having this sucker on a engine stand.

 

It may seem counterintuitive, but cutting the sheared bolt/stud flush with a grinder is my secret. From there, take a sharp punch and center. That's the only fun part. Start with a small bit and work your way up.

 

Really cool! Worked out well.
I have the Easy Outs and left-handed drill bits.
Better at it than I used to be. Sometimes I think Easy Outs are made just to frustrate you. Sometimes I get it out and it really gives you a feeling of accomplishment.

Patience is the main thing with doing this kind of work.

Dave

 

Also, not absolutely necessary, in my experience.

 

Very helpful Pete! It's like reading palms. Tea Leaves...!

 

I have a similar distraction or therapy at times.

 

When I'm welding, if it's not working, I walk away. The next day, things just seem to work well again. My son would want to work all night to get his vehicle back on the road. I would say, "We can't finish it as tired as we are. That's why we start on Friday night, so we have the weekend for fixing the problems that arise."
When you slow down and think, you make less mistakes and get more done.

Looking good.

Dave

 

I start with small bits and work my way up.

I have one more broken bolt to contend with on the thermostat boss. Not the first time I've broken bolts in the exact spot before. This will be easy since I can chuck it up on the drill press.

But onto more positive topics. I removed the trim from to passenger side of the engine. You can see that the head gasket was weeping on the left side.

That was one of the easier distributors I've had the pleasure to remove. Tap tap tap from beneath. I'm quite pleased to have an original AutoLite! Too bad someone boogered the data plate back in the day.

 

Reverse twist drill bits help with bolt extraction.

 

Best chart I have seen. Saved.

 

With the height left on that thermostat bolt, perhaps you could try welding a washer and nut onto that one. I have to do several of those on my Ford Flathead V8.