The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 1952 3/4 ton - sitting engine - Help or suggestions

Im starting the task of evaluating my engine in my 52 3/4 ton that has been sitting for abour 40 yrs bwfore I bought it. Any suggestions on what oil to use in the engine? Also how Do I prime the oil pump? I've heard using a flat tip in a drill through the distributor hole...?

Any oil will do- - - -preferably something that will have a little viscosity to it, not one of the water-thin synthetics. Do a LOT of preparatory work before you even think about turning the crankshaft, however. You're going to need to remove the spark plugs and soak the cylinders with lightweight oil such as KROIL or Marvel Mystery Oil to hopefully prevent scoring of the cylinders as you try to wake up the engine. Ditto for valve guides- - - -soak them liberally for several days and work each valve individually with a pry bar so they won't stick and get bent by a piston. Inspect the intake and exhaust system for any evidence of rodent nests - - - - -it's amazing how small a hole a mouse can work its way through to make a nursery out of a manifold or a cooling passage. I pulled a cylinder head recently, and found a nest in the cooling passages between #5 and #6 cylinders, and the only way to get there is through the thermostat housing!

Pull the distributor and spin the oil pump with a cut-off screwdriver blade in a 1/2" drill motor to prime the oil galleries if there's no evidence of extreme sludge buildup in the oil pan. If the engine is really gunked up, pull the pan and do a scrubdown of the pan and a pressure wash of the crankcase.
Jerry

Thanks for the reply, looks like I'll be pulling the pan in a few hrs. I've had the cylinders soaking in ATF for a week or two as I thought the engine was siezed but it turned out to be the waterpump that's rock hard. I drained the oil and will be getting new water pump, cap, rotor, points, condensor, plugs and wires, oil canister cartridge and oil....I guess pan gasket too. good times.👴

When you say pressure wash the crankcase, are you reffering to the inside and..... with water? I was thinking I would give things a little scrub down with a small brush and some diesel fuel..

Cold weather 10W30

High pressure water won't hurt a thing, or once you get the engine running, you can overfill the crankcase with 2-3 quarts of kerosene or Diesel fuel after filling it to the normal level with 30 weight oil, and let the connecting rods and the crankshaft counterweights act like the agitator in a washing machine. The high speed splash will do a better job of scrubbing than any kind of manual brushing. Run the engine at fast idle for 30 minutes, 1500 RPM or so, then drain the pan while the engine is still hot. Just don't drive the truck or put any load on the engine while the thinned-out oil is in there.
Jerry

That sounds like a great Idea, thanks Jerry. I did get the oil pan off yesterday and It's a good thing too as the oil had turned to sludge completely clogging the puckup filter and making a mess of the oil pan. The oil canister also had a bit of slimy residue at the bottom. Everything inside looking up from the bottom looks to be in good condition though, no rust on any internals and thanks to my camera probe, going through the sparkplug holes the cylinders still have a shine to them. I still need to pop the valve cover to check out the valves but so far it's looking like it may just start once I get the oil changed and primed and a tunevup done on the ignition system. One more thing.....I know the drivetrain is original and looks to be untouched so I was wondering shoyld I be usinga lead adative in the fuel?

53€me,

Don’t get eager and try turning the engine over before making sure the valves move like Jerry said.

Ed

Stop what you are doing until you read and follow our Tech Tip “Dead Engine Back to Life”. You just may save yourself some big money.

going to it now, thanks for the tip

The engine appears to be untouched, should I be using a lead addative in the fuel?

Lead additives are not necessary. It was not in most grades of gas when this engine was new, only added to the top tiers to prevent spark knock in higher compression engines and had a minor side effect of preventing some valve erosion. For a non high compression engine like this, there is no advantage to adding it, only expense...

that's great news! thank you, I was concidering having my cylinder head and valve seats redone to have hardened seats so lead padding on the seats wouldn't be needed. guess I'm good then, thanks for the information.

Unless the machinist who installs hard seats is VERY skilled, there's a danger of the seats coming adrift and wrecking the engine. The press fit of the seat in the head is very critical to the procedure. Too tight, and there's a danger of cracking a good head. Just a tiny bit too loose, and they fall out. The only time hard seats are a must are on LP gas or compressed natural gas fueled engines.
Jerry