1957 country sedan build

Discussion in 'Cosmetic & Restoration' started by 1930artdeco, Apr 21, 2021.

  1. 60Mercman

    60Mercman Well-Known Member

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    If you have the data tag on the car the first letter is the engine code. If it’s D,E, or F you have a 312. Or it left the factory with a 312
     
  2. 1930artdeco

    1930artdeco Well-Known Member

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    My car came with a 292, 2 bbl. but the power train from the fairlane that I got was a 312. Either way I am just happy to have a functional power train.

    mike
     
  3. 60Mercman

    60Mercman Well-Known Member

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    Oh great. Either Motor is a good one. Your wagon is gonna be nice. Really enjoy following your progress. You really did save this car.
     
  4. 1930artdeco

    1930artdeco Well-Known Member

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    Well, I had the control arms blasted and am painting them now along with the MC and new spindle. I installed one upper ball joint today and will do the other tomorrow along with new bushings. The lower will probably have to wait until next week as it has to be straightened out a bit more on the press so I can get the ball joint in. Tomorrow I will hone the MC out and hopefully paint it up so I can rebuild it next week.

    I adjusted all of the valves in the Y today using Tim McMasters method and it worked great. So tomorrow I am going to separate the tranny. Anything I should look out for? If I remember right, I pull the bell housing bolts and it should slip off. Then unbolt the converter, drain and set aside. When I drained the fluid it came out red but pooled purple. Is that good bad or in between? How do I know if I need a new flex plate? Starting to add things back to car :bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman::bananaman:

    Mike
     
    Last edited: Jul 3, 2021
  5. 1930artdeco

    1930artdeco Well-Known Member

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    Well got her off and set aside. Everything, even the ring gear is in great shape. I don’t think the tranny has ever been apart from the engine. But how do I get the flex plate off without destroying it? I hit the bolts with an impact gun and it didn’t even budge.

    Also, this was at the bottom of the housing. To me, that is rear main oil leakage. Which is the main reason to get the flex plate off. So I can replace if need be.

    Mike
     

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  6. OldFox

    OldFox Curmudgeon

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    Not required. It has a graphite impregnated "rope" seal and can be changed by dropping the pan and removing the seal holder. It takes a special 8 pointed socket to remove the two screws holding it in. Normally you can get by just changing the lower half of the seal as the upper carries no load. However, they make a "chinese finger" gadget to replace the upper without having to pull the crankshaft. Also, they didn't have silicone sealer back in the day, but a little dab on each end of the rope seals where they come together can only help.
     
  7. 1930artdeco

    1930artdeco Well-Known Member

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    More progress. Since I manage to always find the obscure items to buy/restore/fix this should come as no surprise that the MC is a Ford oddball. The vendors sell a MC that is 2” measured vertically bolt to bolt. My car came with one that 1 7/8” bolt to bolt-not sold by the vendors of course. But I managed to have the local NAPA track one down so I can finish my brake system finally!

    Got the upper control arms done! Are the bushings OK? I swear there just about 1/4” gap between the shoulder and the arm. So that is what I did not realizing the other one would be out so far. Is there going to be safety/alignment problems?

    The ring gear is pretty chewed up. Is there a way to replace it or rotate it so the starter engages some good teeth?

    I figured while do a compression check I am going to move oil around so might as well have a good filter on her. This is the one I took off-notice where it is made…..that is how old it is.
     

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  8. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    The local machine shop can heat that ring gear, pop it off and flip it around, so you have fresh teeth, since you're pretty sure the engine and trans have not been separated. It would be a good idea to also have the starter checked out, make sure the drive isn't worn out and loosey-goosey. Otherwise, you'll wear the ring gear teeth once it's flipped around.
     
  9. 1930artdeco

    1930artdeco Well-Known Member

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    Well they are off! Used a block of wood and some tire irons and they popped right off easily, after a few good whacks. And this is what I found.

    GOOD-Some carbon ridge-albeit not all of the way around and just a very slight wear ridge. No major scoring, although there is one spot that can be seen and just barely felt. Standard bore, clean piston tops-more or less and Ford valves in the heads. Not bad for a sub 50K engine.

    BAD-some sludge, not much and it will get cleaned out when on the stand. some scale and goop in the antifreeze in the water jackets. Rust on some valve heads but I think that is from sitting in the yard.


    Overall, she is in pretty good shape. Next up is to see what the bearing look like. What do you all think? Passenger head/block and then driver side head/block and finally #6 before scraping and after.



    Mike
     

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  10. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    Yeah, do a bit of clean-up, make sure the cylinder walls are wiped down with penetrating oil to prevent rust from forming, and once you get the engine installed and running, perform a carbon removal 'tune-up.' that's where you get the engine hot, hold the throttle open so it's 1500-1800 RPM, then use a spray bottle to mist water down the carb throat and in through the engine. The water flashes to steam and breaks all the carbon away from the valves, piston tops, combustion chambers, etc.
     
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  11. OldFox

    OldFox Curmudgeon

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    That engine has been apart before as evidenced by the Fel Pro blue residue on the heads. The original head gaskets didn't have that. Check the valve guide seals to see if they are cracked and brittle.....if so replace them.

    That engine had a road draft tube instead of a PCV system. There should be filters in both the oil fill cap and the road draft tube. Make sure they are clean or replace them if you can find the parts. This is what leads to the sludge build-up inside the engine. I could never use Pennzoil in mine as it led to a milky slime build-up inside the valve covers. I always used Shell oil. Oil formulation has changed since back then. You cannot use modern oils in it without a zinc additive or you will experience cam wear. Adding a can of STP or available additives will cure that problem.

    If you can find a set of aftermarket tubular pushrods, by all means get them. I was forever bending the cast ones if I missed a shift or during a rapid downshift deceleration. Also, if you change the timing chain and gears, be aware that the gear marks do not line up like most conventional engines. If I recall, they are 13 pins apart.

    In deference to Twinkie's advice, that's not necessary if you clean everything up while the engine is apart. A good wire wheel or Scotch Brite Roll Loc pad mounted on a die grinder or drill motor should suffice.
     
  12. 1930artdeco

    1930artdeco Well-Known Member

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    Oldfox and Twinkie, thank you. I just saw that HG was a steel version and not a composition so I assumed it was original. Oh well, not like have not been wrong before-and will be again. As for the road draft tube it was blocked off at some point and a PCV system added. For the push rods, I have an automatic so hopefully no real chance on bending them. I will see what I have this weekend when I check the bearings.

    mike
     
  13. 1930artdeco

    1930artdeco Well-Known Member

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    Got the valley an oil pans off, not to bad. It has 312 caps. Some sludge but not too bad. So as long as the bearings are good, I will regasket her and button her up.

    Mike
     

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  14. 1930artdeco

    1930artdeco Well-Known Member

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    Up on the slow progress. Both upper control arms are in and the lower pass side is done and awaiting time to go in after I weld the spacers in. The diff has a new pinion seal and the rod bearings are toast-i think-on 1/5 rods. So if they are bad I am going to hope the mains are still good. Here is to hoping.....

    Mike
     

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  15. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    Well, the bearing shells are certainly worn, but a good quick test is to pull your fingernail crosswise on the journal. If it barely catches, it's the point you'd want to consider cleaning/polishing the crank; a hard catch means machining.
     

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