The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 1954 235 project

I recently picked up a 54 235 engine w/a known problem, cyl #1 low to no compression, all other cyl's are supposed to be OK and the engine ran on 5 cyls. Today I finally got a chance to troubleshoot it before teardown.

The engine block# indicates it's a 54 235 and the head# indicates it's an 848. It came out of a truck so the front mount is a direct boltup to my 49 3100.
My long range plan is to rebuild this engine and squeeze as much streetable perfomance out of it that can be somewhat easily done. I have no interest in going w/an open drivetrain and all that that encompasses. I'm wanting to stay somewhat period correct as well as being a direct boltup. $$$'s are a major consideration. So with the exception of perhaps changing the rear gears to 3.55 the engine will bolt to the existing drivetrain.

On to the troubleshooting.
I rigged up a temporary test stand to test it. The engine came w/a good starter so I rigged up a 12v battery for testing. I hooked up an oil test gauge to the oil gauge port to also test for oil pressure while cranking.
I removed the carb so the intake was wide open.
Here are the results of the compression test.
#1 dry - 0 psi. Wet - 0 psi.
#2 dry - 120 pso, Wet 130 psi.
#3 dry 100 psi, Wet - 110 psi.
#4 dry 115 psi, Wet - 120 psi.
#5 dry 130 psi, Wet - 135 psi.
#6 dry 115 psi, Wet - 120 psi.

Oil pressure at cranking speed varied between 10 - 15 psi.

I pulled the head and this is what I found on #1.
#1 cylinderlooked good considering. There was no gouges or deep scratches so the cylinder can be bored if needed.
The rest of the cylinders also looked good. The is a barely discernable rough at the top of each cylinder so a hone could clean it up. But those compression #'s seem to indicate an oversize bore is needed.
The head looks good to my naked eye. No visable cracks or obvious burnt valve problems. A closeup of #1. The oily film is probably from me squirting oil in the cyl for the wet compression test.

There were no piston parts floating around in #1 so the debris either shgot out the exhaust or dropped down into the pan. I ran out of time so I didn't get that far.

Wonder what damaged the piston? It's not directly under either valve. The cyl area doesn't seem to show any signs of overheating. Ingested something hard like a screw or nut perhaps?

Dave

Detonation would be my guess.

May have broke the piston ring land installing the piston at some time. Looks like a good find though. Or it was removed with out cutting the ridge out of the top of the cylinder some time....

John

That type of damage is a classic symptom of detonation due to a lean mixture. I'll bet there was a vacuum leak to the #1 cylinder at one time, resulting in a lean mixture to that one hole. The cylinder runs hot, the piston material softens, and the sledgehammer action of the fuel mixture detonating while the piston is going up knocks a piece of the piston crown away.

Check the cylinders for taper wear and if there's more than .005" or so of taper in the top 1 1/2 inches of ring travel, do a rebore and install new pistons.
Jerry

Detonation for sure. I would like to know where that chunk of aluminum went..? Best place would be the muffler..worst place..? Lots of bad places for it to go. Find it if you can. Measure the cylinders and do what Hotrod suggests. But find that chunk if you can.

That piece is long gone- - - -vaporized, most likely, or hammered into little bitty chunks and down the exhaust system.
Jerry

I had a similar problem with a an engine like yours and decided, in for a penny in for a pound and did a complete engine rebuild. I am sure that if I had just addressed the single bad piston/cylinder, I would have had a decent running engine, but I wanted to have something which I could rely on as a daily driver, and have never looked back. These engines are impressive in these old trucks when all-new inside.
Carl

Dave, I'm glad you came up to get the engine, and it looks like it doesn't have any MAJOR problems (well... a detonated piston is a major problem, but an easily fixed one). It was great meeting you, and I'll be following this thread closely so I can learn a thing or two (like I said... engines aren't my strong suit)

Thanks for all the input, course thats why I'm posting

Ran into a snag w/my new to me Pittsburg 2k lb engine stand. Seems I can't easily get all 4 brackets to line up w/the thin profile of the 235. Baring anything unexpected I'll get to play with it more tonight, I may start modifying those brackets....

Since I'm basically treading water (life & work & engine stand, etc) I'll go ahead and solicit some more opinions and recommendations on rebuild parts. ALL input is appreciated

CAM: I'm definitely going w/a 261 or similar cam. I'm looking for as much "streetable" cam as there is. I would like to be able to idle somewhat smoothly between 450 - 600 rpm but have more punch when excellerating. I've seen references to "Bulldog cam", 3/4 cam and CS293 Sealed Power cams.
Lots of reading but lift and duration specs aren't always listed.
Thoughts?

Lifters: I'm staying solid. I haven't inspected what I have but they appear serviceable at a glance. Should I reuse or go w/new?

Carb(s), this is a touchy subject as I've already found out
Theres a part of me that wants the look of dual carbs but I also want them to function. By increasing the valve lift and duration it would seem to be natural to add duals but from what I'm learning perhaps not. I know there are limitations to the Stovebolt 6 intake (siamesed ports) but I just like the looks of duals.

I have seen literature of a 54/55 235 Blue Flame w/hydraulic lifters being advertised w/140 hp w/a single 1BBL carb so that would seem to be an obtainable goal.
I have also seen the Vette Blue Flame advertised w/150HP w/triple 1BBL carbs so I know thats also obtainable.
Anybody know the venturi sizes and differnces in these multiple carb setups?
So good or bad lay it on me.

Pistons: I'm leaning towards full rebuild so replacement of all pistons is in the plan. Stock oversize or is there a higher compression offering out there I could utilize without extensive head work? Any brand better than the other?

Rings: What is the consensus on rings, chrome, cast and is one manufacturer better than the other?

There are some suppliers out there that offer rebuild kits, any recommendations on any particular one?

Exhaust: Definitely going w/duals. Noticed theres all kinds of differing name brands out there for cast iron headers. Any one brand better than the other?
Also on duals, are fully independant duals better for sound and performance over a setup w/a crossover pipe?
Also interested in deep & mellow over barking and wakeing up the neighborhood sound

These are all just questions I'm throwing out there. Any and all input on performance enhansements for a 235, or just basic engine rebuild input should make for a good topic/convo....

Dave

If you are installing a new cam I would highly recommend new lifters. IN the headers dept If you can not find the corvette split, then a Quality set of Fenton's from Patricks.. I would use the "Heat Kit" from Patricks But not his Short shaft water pump. For that I would use the "Water Pump relocation plate from Pre '68 Dave, Who can be found on this site. And I think there is a Tech Tip on it. I have heard lots of good things about an Offenhauser dual intake with Carter/Weber Carbsfrom Langdons(Spell). I don't think you can go wrong with a Overhaul kit from Patricks in Arizona. Yes, I did a Lot of rambling but this is how I would set up a 235 next time. Jerry

A new cam needs new lifters. Period. End of discussion.

On the engine stand problem, there is a quick simple fix that also makes it safer. Get two pieces of 1/2" X 2" steel flat bar about 18" long, and bolt them to the back of the block, then bolt the stand brackets to the flat bar outside of the block perimeter. It widens the footprint of the brackets and makes the whole assembly safer and more stable.

Exhaust: The Fenton cast iron headers are hard to beat. Definitely stay away from tube steel header systems- - - -all they do is raise the underhood temperature, make noise, and blow out gaskets.

Before you invest in somebody's pricey overhaul kit, have your local parts supplier contact Jackie at Internal Engine Parts Warehouse in Nashville. He can put an overhaul kit together at a much lower cost, and most, if not all of it will be brand-name parts. They're wholesale-only, so don't try to deal direct. Obviously, a big box store like Auto Zone won't provide that kind of service- - - -find an independent jobber.

I've already given you my opinion on carburetion. Have fun and stay in touch!
Jerry

Dave
I am thinking about adding an extra exhaust flange to my stock manifold without welding in the block-off plate between the two exhaust flanges in lieu of a crossover pipe to keep the rapping sound down. Does anyone see any problems with this approach?
Carl

Jerry 1ton, good rambling The shortshaft water pump on my 216 is good and the pump thats on the 235 seems to also be a shortshaft and it's fairly new. I could be wrong but I think the 54 235 uses the same pump as the 216. If it's not positioned properly Pre68 Dave's adapter will be the route I'll go.

Hotrod Jerry, new lifters it'll be, end of story.... I've got a local parts guy that I could use to contact Jackie. He mainly deals w/imports but I don't think it'll be a problem. Can Jackie do main, rod & cam bearings, pistons and rings?
re. dual carbs, you're opinion is/was noted
Definitely tell it like it is, wouldn't expect otherwise....

Carl, thats a good question. Wonder if the Vette dual exhaust manifold was open or blocked off?
Modifying a stock manifold to dual exhaust would seem to be a good option. Good heat, mounting flanges fit perfectly and the existing single exhaust would be a direct boltup. Good food for thought...

Took Hotrod Jerrys recommendation and picked up a piece of steel stock for the engine stand. Should be able to play with it tonight.
Also called my local machine shop, the one that did a great job on my 216's head, and he'll be ready to mic, measure, magnaflux, boilout/clean and bore the block and rebuild the head when I'm ready.

Going to sell my other project and concentrate on the 3100. Just ain't enough time or $$'s to do both. Anybody interested in a 72 Karmann Ghia?
Dave

Yes, Jackie can supply "all of the above", plus gaskets, freeze plugs, valves, guides, and just about anything else rebuild-related. Internal Engine Parts Warehouse has stores in 5 or 6 southeastern states, and they give very good service to professional-grade shops and engine rebuilders. I've been doing business with them for 20-something years.

Good luck on your project!
Jerry

Got the engine mounted on the engine stand and continued the teardown.
Great solution Jerry..

The mains still have shims installed.

The cam still appears somewhat serviceable.

This valve train oil line is quite different than oil line is on my 216. This is a HUGE improvement...

The overall condition of the internals looks in pretty good shape with one exception.
Main cap #3 appears to have some bearing material exposed. Hopefully the crank journal is still good.
Ran out of time, will continue later.
Dave

I have always been a little concerned about the 'engine stands' that are available for decent prices. I got one a long time ago and its similar to yours. You might have to reverse the mounting parts, do a little creative mounting, but it works. I just don't like how our 6's stick out so much further than the 8's.

The 54 235 is quite unique of all of the years. They used left over parts from the older engines but made significant improvements. I sold the one I rebuilt and completely dolled up for 3K several years ago. The purchaser keeps in contact with me and is very happy with it. Good for you Dave!

If that's the back side of the #3 main bearing, you're seeing wear on the thrust face, probably from a poorly-adjusted throwout bearing keeping a constant forward pressure on the clutch. Check the end play of the assembly when you reassemble it with new main bearings to check for thrust face wear on the crankshaft. A good machine shop that does crankshaft grinding can probably look up a specification for allowable front-to-back distance between the thrust flanges of the crankshaft, also.
Jerry

Got the engine tore down to the bare block today.
Overall condition ain't too bad.
The main bearings were in good shape showing normal wear.
The mains are std size and had 2 shims per side.
Like Jerry surmised bearing #3 thrust surface was wearing out around the crank.

The crank's main journals looked pretty good. All journals passed the finger nail test. There is some wear but no deep ridges or deep cuts. The dark line on the main's lines up with the valley cut in the bearings.

The Cam's bearing surfaces looked good. The lobes are showing wear.

All the rod bearings were wore down to the copper. Some more so than others. They were also stamped as Std so it's possible they are the original factory bearings. There were no shims on the rod caps.

The lifters show alittle wear on their sides. The bottom surfaces did show more wear but weren't pitted. There's holes drilled through them which I guess is to allow for good oiling in the lifter bores.

The infamous #1 piston . The others were in much better shape but worn. The rods all looked good and I plan on reusing them.

Another good sign was when I removed the rear block petcock alittle leftover coolant ran out.

The block, head and crank will be going to the machine shop and all the parts I'm reusing will be getting cleaned up and painted Blue Flame blue....

Dave

Good show- - - - -that's a very fixable engine! If the crank journals are still round and straight, it's possible to get the journals polished a little and go back together with standard-diameter bearings. I'm going to guess the cylinders will need to be rebored, particularly the one with the damaged piston. You can check for cylinder taper wear with a salvaged piston ring and a feeler gauge- - - -PM or email me for details if you'd like to try that. If you're up for a road trip, load up the block and head my way with a new set of pistons, and I'll break out the old boring bar and cylinder hone.
Jerry

Wow this site slowness is painful!

Jerry, how does a vacuum leak cause a single cylinder to run lean? Would think the intake would feed all cylinders with too much air. What am I missing?

I think Jerry was hitting one of those elixirs in his signature when he posted that.
If the gasket for #1 and #2 port was leaking #1 and #2 would be feed the same mixture. That is not to say there was not a lean mixture and #1 just let loose first.

LOL, it'll probably make him crankier to just sits and drinks j/k Jerry, you keep recuperating and we'll see on the road trip. Thanks for the offer btw.

I'm going to open up a can now
Oil filtering.
To be honest I am quite amazed at how well the rod & main bearings were considering theres no oil filtering on this engine. Theres not much muck built up in the bottom of the pan nor coating the sides. My 216 w/a bypass filter looked worse internally except for the bearings which also looked pretty good considering the miles and age. But there was more muck in the pan and deposited internally on the 216....
In both cases It would appear that the oil was kept regularly changed during both engines lifespans.

So why am I considering oil filtration? Cause thats how I was weaned on ICE's I rekon. Both military and civilian training STRESSED good oil filtration and it's stuck.
So I'm considering mod'ing for full flow oil filtration. Deve has a great pictorial writeup for full flow. I added full flow oil filtration to my 72 air cooled 1600DP VW without issue and am leaning towards this on this 235.

Course I could swap the bypass system thats currently on my 216 and probably do it for penny's, so I'm considering that also.

Then ofcourse part deaux I can't just ignor the proof-in-the-pudding so to speak when looking at the good condition of the innards of this 235 which had zero/nada oil filtration (with the exception of the oil mesh screen on the oil pickup).
So lots of food for thought.

So just thinking out loud and ofcourse will welcome others thoughts.

Dave

The first 216 I owned had 3 bent push rods and 3 1/2 quarts of sludge in the oil pan. It looked like an aerial view of the Amazon river. That was in 1985, and it still runs like a champ today. (I did change the oil and straightened the push rods since then, BTW)

Not guilty, Dave! I definitely enjoy some Gentleman Jack on occasion, or some custom-distilled stuff from a buddy with a 15 gallon copper still and a recipie handed down from the 1920's in the NE Georgia mountains, but the pain meds I'm on right now won't let me indulge for a while longer.

I've seen some very oddball stuff caused by vacuum leaks, including a half-dollar sized hole in a piston crown on a MOPAR 440 that developed in less than 10 seconds. Of course, the engine was developing 700+ HP at 6500 RPM at the time, on the dyno. The leak was at the opposite end of an open-plenum intake from the cylinder that went lean. The only indication of a problem was a quick spike in exhaust port temperature for that cylinder, and it destroyed the piston before I could chop the throttle and back off on the dyno load. The swirl patterns and firing order pulses in a siamesed-port situation can definitely cause one cylinder to get a noticeably different mixture than the other one that shares the same port.
Jerry

Detonation waits for no man!

No one wants to come out and play re. oil filtering? Thats cool I've decided I am going to add filtering, just need to pick bypass or full flow.

CAMS....
Been researching cams. Theres 261 style cams listed as mild, 3/4 and 3/4 Rumpy grinds. I've also communicated w/others that can custom grind a cam to provide high torque at lower rpm or high torque at higher rpm. Lots to choose from.
I've not verbally discussed this w/the various providers yet, trying to line the ducks up before hand....

I'm somewhat concerned w/lift as I don't want the valves to contact the pistons. I figure the head shop will do alittle milling on the head to get it flat but at this point I'm unsure of the present clearances as well as the fail/safe amount of milling an 848 head can take before the valves will have to be set deeper in the seat. Thoughts?

At what point do the valve springs need upgraded to stronger
"competition strength" springs?

Timing gear, thrust plate and spacer. At this point I'm leaning on leaving the cam I removed as is so the new cam will require a new thrust plate and gear. I'm leaning towards an aluminum gear for longevity so I will have to install it on the cam. No problem but I've seen references to a spacer along w/the thrust plate. I can't tell if my stock cam has this spacer. Is this spacer required? Since I don't have a press I'd like to try and get it right the 1st time, thoughts?

Ultimately I don't mind alittle lope'ing at idle as I do want to wake this 235 up to it's highest streetable potential. It will be a weekend driver that can see some extended cruises, perhaps even pushing AC, and see some bumper to bumper traffic but it's not going to be a red light screemer. Them days are long gone
Good sound and enough performance to hit 65 or so easily is desired.

Carboretion is still to be determined. The seductiveness of duals or perhaps even triples keep calling but a bird in hand is worth two in the bush and I have a perfectly good single carb and intake I can use to get going. Break in will probably be w/the single when I get to that point but thats way on down the road. A great deal on a multi carb setup could miraculously appear

Exhaust will be duals, starting w/Cast Fenton headers. I will route heat to the intake, probably use the taps and direct exhaust gases.
The headers are definite, the heat type is TBD....

Since I'd still just pondering as I build up the necessary funding for the upcoming machine work, opinions are highly welcomed and encouraged
Dave

Determining the maximum valve lift can be a little tricky. I usually do a trial assembly on any engine where valve/piston contact is a concern, with the lifters, pushrods, valves, and piston installed on one cylinder. The critical point is on the "overlap" position between the exhaust and intake strokes, when the exhaust is closing and the intake is opening. Stovebolt exhaust valves cannot get anywhere close to the pistons due to the combustion chamber design, so the intake is the only one to be concerned with. I use a very weak spring on the valve, one that can be pushed down by hand, and find top dead center on the exhaust stroke. Then I use a dial indicator to monitor valve movement as I push the valve down to contact the piston. It's a good idea to maintain a minimum of .060" clearance at the closest piston/valve relationship. It's possible for a good machinist to recess the valves deeper into the head to increase the safety margin, but there's a possibility of restricting gas flow by shrouding the valve if it's recessed too far. Finding a really good machinist with some racing head prep experience is definitely a good idea!

Stronger valve springs are only needed if you plan to run very high RPM, and/or run a cam with a very radical rate of lift.
Jerry

Re: Valve springs; Jerry, my experience says to use the springs recommended by the cam manufacturer, unless someone has other experience with that exact cam. The wrong springs can affect a lot more than high RPM, including the idle.

my 235 has the add on filter from gm that bolts on the manifold i used a tee to add it on many years ago napa has tha filters #1080 i beleive when i freshend up my 235 the insides were nasty in the old days you ran black label pennzoil then poured in a 1/2 qt of rislone to clean out the motor for about 10 muinutes then dumped the oil when i rebuilt the first time the whole inside of the engine was sludged and varnished beyond belief non detergent oil. i started using castrol 30 wt after the rebuild then when i rebuilt it again this motor has about 250,000 miles on it the insides were clean as a whistle. i now use 10w 30 castrol but i have installed a hydro cam and lifters no more feeler guage beatins a stock rochester b will handle any small beef up cam. just jet it accordingly cam selection will be limited. your 54 block has oil galleys for the hydro lifters and cam they switched with the second series in mid 55.also run an out side oiler to the rocker arms there is an oil plug in the block on the the rt side.where the oil comes up thru the pushrod gallery plug off the pipe remove it and reroute to the head. my motor is original with the truck.put a k&n filter setup on it it will flow alot more air to the motor. as far as valve springs you gotta use the cam lift + about .060" for proper spring the set up you don't want any coil bind.as far as overlap this ain't a hemi head so the valves are not going to ever touch each other.the intake might touch a piston on a high lift cam but his is a 235 here not a v8 the valves are at a slight angle but cutting the seats deeper than max spec will only make the rocker ratio wrong.at 1/2 lift the rocker arm will be in line with the center line of the rocker shaft.pushrod ball end of rocker arm and the end of the rocker arm where it touches the valve tip is correct geometry. too heavy of springs will rob h.p. and cause wear on the cam and lifters you don't need. you just need enough to do the job this is a tractor motor with a 120 lb heavy crankshaft torque in other words stump pulling torque. so a torque camshaft will be the best solution. also use valve seals on the head they make em.you can have the crank turned down for lighter wt but if your gonna go for all that then put in a small block and get it over with it will also handle the a.c.without a problem.

Update, finally got the time to make a run to the machine shop during normal business hrs so I loaded up the truck and moved to Beverly (actually Claxton but it don't work in the song).

Decided to put the crank back in the block for transport, left the valves in the head and also took the cam and bearings for the machinist to check out.
1st analysis is the crank needs turning, the block needs bored, the cam lobes & bearing journals are worn out and the normal trouble spots on the block & head looked good. He's going to hot tank and magnaflux both. He doesn't turn cranks but he recommended Custom Cranks here in Knoxville to inspect/turn it. He gets $120 to grind and refinish a crank. I'm holdoing off on the crank work until I hear back from Cagle Machine Shop on the condition of the castings.
Don't mind the Ford hauling those Chevy parts, it ain't prejudice
Pic 1
Pic 2

Furds are OK for hauling treasure. They just aren't worth restoring. Kind of like putting lipstick on a pig.

With the block and head away @ the machine shop I spent a few constructive hrs cleaning up some of the engine parts. A tub of Simple Green helped break down the yrs of built up crud. That and a couple brillo pads and wire brush got a few parts ready to paint.
For the Rochester B & intake manifold I tried something new.
I rigged up a home made
Soda Blaster
It worked pretty good on the Rochester B, before and after.
After cleaning up the carb I noticed it had a thick gasket between the top & bottom castings and I could see more gasket in spots than others. I'll be tearing it down for cleaning and inspection later. 1st thought is that I've got one of those famous warped B's. Will know more later.
The Soda Blaster didn't do as good on the manifold but it did OK. A wire wheel will finish it up for paint prep.
A soda blaster is good to bring out a nice finish but it isn't aggressive enough fr heavy paint and grime. I may try some ground glass media.
Dave

Dave, I know its a little to late now to bring this up for your purposes, but since the engine ran with the old, un-rebuilt carburetor, it may have been a better plan to wait to rebuild the carb until after you break in the cam of your new rebuilt engine. It is a PITA to have to fiddle with carb adjustments while you are trying to run a new rebuild at 2,000 RPMs for 20 minutes right from initial start up to break in the cam properly. You can ask me how I know this, as I made this same mistake. Fortunately nothing bad happened, but it sure was nerve-racking listening to the clattering valve train, and fiddling with the carb to get it to stay running for twenty minutes. You might be fine with yours.
Carl
Carl

Good points, Carl,

I am concerned about starting (breaking-in) the 235 that is being rebuilt for me. I have a Holley-rebuilt Rochester (not tuned-in) and my old Rochester (which has not been run for over 10 years).

My solution is to set-up the rebuilt Rochester on a friends truck and check-it/tune-it. Then, it should be good-to-go for breaking in the cam/lifters/etc at the start-up of the rebuilt 235.

Carl, now you tell me...... j/k
Good advise btw.

If that carb ends up being servicable, I should be able to get it close enough to run at 2k rpm (I hope).
I'm also exploreing other carb options, Carter and duals of various manufacture.

I may re-jet before hand also. A hotter cam deserves to be fed more
Appreciate the input.
Dave

Dave, I'm glad you took my 'too late' advice well. Some folks don't respond well to after-the-fact advice. Thanks for being a good sport. If nothing else, it may make it easier for someone else doing a rebuild.
Carl

No problem Carl, keep the input ccming, even the late ones too

Got some great news today, the 848 head is crack free and rebuildable. Made a tactical decision to recut and reuse the stock intake valves & seats. The exhausts will be replaced (stems were highly worn) new guides and new hardened exhaust seats. The springs will be tested and reused if they pass.

The block is back from the dip tank and he said it cleaned up and looks good. He'll magnaflux, measure and bore it out soon.
Said he's had a rush of engine machine work lately. He does good work and his reputation is keeping him very busy.

Will be dropping off the crank for regrind now. Probably see if he'll resurface the flywheel too. It's not cracked but has a few ridges.

Dave

Glad to hear the head was uncracked! That is indeed great news! Hopefully there are no hidden cracks in the block too! Keep the updates coming!

Graham, looks like there were no cracks in the block either.
Just heard from the machine shop, he had to bore the cylinders .060 over to get them round and true again.
There wasn't much of a ridge when I tore it down and he said the top 2 inches were really worn. Said when he set the cutting bit at .030 then at .040 it didn't even start cutting until it got down in the bore a couple inches.
Some one must have cut the ridge off at some point and time.
I'm going to measure those pistons out, if they're not oversize I'll be surprised.....
Looks like it'll be alittle over 235 ci now

Dave

Dropped the crank and flywheel off at Custom Cranks last Monday, hope to hear good news next week.
He's got a full engine machine shop. He's only got a small sign on the road and he's on the ground floor of a multi tenant building down around on the back side. I've been past him 100's of times and never knew there was an engine machine shop there.
There were racks of refinished cranks hanging along a couple walls and many engine heads and blocks of various configs awaiting work and awaiting picked up. Said he was very busy.
If all goes well I should be able to order the innards soon. Just need to know what oversize bearings I'll need.
He had an AD 1 ton w/dual rear wheels sitting in his lot. The body didn't look too bad except someone cut and modified the headlights to dual square late model chevy type. The cutting looked good but the "look" didn't..... No bed. It had a 235 in it. Said it would turn but hasn't tried to start it. Said he wanted $1K for it , told him I had enough projects for now.....

Received some hi temp engine paint, GM Blue, gray and satin black.

Finally got those manifolds split. 2 of the 4 bolts just didn't want to come out.
The exhaust manifold looks like it's been welded near the front #1 cyl, or it could be a casting flaw or both.
Since I'm going to go w/Fenton headers I'm not concerned w/it.
There was alot of built up soot around the runner to #1 cyl that was covering up that flaw...

Wire wheeled, soaked and scrubbed the intake manifold clean and it's now got a couple nice finish coats of gray coloring to it.

The valve cover, side cover and timing gear cover is going to get a nice fresh coat of Blue Flame blue very soon.

Funny, the 216 nearly got 13 mpg on the last tank full and it's been running pretty good lately. It must know something's going on

Dave