Just a quick note on the single piston replacement.
Many years ago , I had a '39 Chevy sedan.
One weekend a bunch of us guys went on a road trip. About 100miles from home the chev tossed the top off a piston , came off right 'round the oil ring groove.
We left the car on the side of the road (engine partly dismantled) and got back to it the next weekend.
During the week I went to a local wrecker and bought a 2nd hand cast iron piston , complete with rod. That was all I could afford on apprentice wages.
Back at the car I pulled the sump, changed out the rod etc, refitted the head and spent hours trying ( in vain) to get the sump back on with some gaskets intact.
Finally , after sleeping in the car for the night , I got it going and rushed off home . We stopped at every garage to scrounge another couple of gallons of used oil , such was the size of the leakage from the bad gasket job on the sump.
It never even occurred to me to check the bore or bearing size , I just stuffed it in .
What a total fluke that it worked .
The next week it tossed the top off another piston.
Replaced the original 216 with a hotted one from a '50. Whole 'nuther story.
