Well, we got the engine fully reassembled, everything hooked up, break-in oil added (pressurized through all the lines), radiator temporarily hooked up and water added. Gas tank drained, fresh fuel added, old gas pumped out of fuel line.
<img src="https://rryrha.bn.files.1drv.com/y4mhBGls-ny2nALk3_-kl9lXXflbV5Nl7iPrqtsSuv9y8jj3PmGeYjjwlAVhzPE0Q-a3RuR1daHTihWFUcUjuXP_pfBUOHkhLaZvrNisBbxXgiq2kPQfQ2POfbMzfKd_X_JncIa0kutZ4VNwxx2SIK2xYG_06ACHN9Wtkhe-8S8aXbnhdMM1P-QNJ-U1_1uRCMJQ7Ep5WR6DuH0XWiLiMOeoA?width=1024&height=768&cropmode=none" width="1024" height="768" />
The engine started up immediately and was incredibly quiet. Unfortunately we noticed it was beginning to run rough, and #2 cylinder was not firing. Pulled the spark plug and found the cylinder full of water. Ugh...that was definitely not what we wanted to see.
Fast forward a few days, and the head and block have been pulled. We see a pinhole in the wall of #2, with obvious signs of water leakage, as well as a possible pinhole on one of the valve areas. Also, the bolts holding the block to the crankcase had loosened up, likely due to the too-thick gasket we used. This was to make up for a slight over-machining of the block itself making it ever so slightly too short. Unfortunately this all means that this block is probably toast. It's probably not worth trying to fix it.
We're now hunting for another block, but also considering other options. We are looking into new-cast as a base to start with. But we need factory dimensions before that's even a possibility. For example we would need factory bore size, original block height, etc. With that information we can begin the process of drawing up CAD designs for a replacement block. With the scarcity of Super 8 blocks for 37-39's I imagine that a new-cast option would help other guys as well.
BTW, did '37-'39 Super 8's use the same basic block, but with different machining? The serial number on the '39 block we have has a 37 on it, making us think it was cast in '37 and used in '39.
-Kevin
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