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Board index » All Posts (JackVines)




Re: V8 Engine Building
#1
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Jack Vines
New pistons usually come with fitted pins and should slide in without heat. If they won't move by hand, then we put a steel plate on an electric hot plate and warm the piston. Not usually required with today's pistons and pins.

jack vines

Posted on: 9/2 18:27
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Re: V8 Engine Building
#2
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Jack Vines
Unless the engine has had exceptionally long and severe use, the piston pin bushings are often reusable. This is because the Packard V8 rod is about twice as wide at the small end as is the norm for US V8s. There's much more bushing material spread over a wider area.

According to the Packard Shop Manual, a special burnishing tool is required to properly install new piston pin bushings.

jack vines

Posted on: 9/2 10:37
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Re: 356 head gasket
#3
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Jack Vines
Quote:

I would not try to decrease the quench/squish clearance due to the possibility of the piston hitting the head. A straight eight can be expected to have some flex in the structure, and engine expansion is probably not as well-controlled as in some later designs. Many old heads have been machined, and some blocks have been decked.
Yes, No, Maybe. Before any of us were born, flatheads were being modified with reduced piston to head clearance. Some heads have been milled, some blocks have been surfaced, but that's what a machinist does; measure everything and set all the clearances where they'll produce the desired results.

One more time, examine what the Packard engineers did with the '54 Caribbean engine and that will be a best-practice to follow. If the aluminum head is not available, then we have a different set of circumstances. As mentioned previously, water/alcohol injection is one technique available to us when using a higher compression iron head.

And yes, agree, every flathead being built for increased performance wants a supercharger or turbocharger.

jack vines

Posted on: 8/22 11:32
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WTB Packard V8 core engine in the upstate NY area
#4
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Jack Vines
A custom shop needs a V8 core engine for mockup purposes. More complete is better; any year or displacement OK.

Also would buy a solid 374" long block.

jack vines

Posted on: 8/14 15:38
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Re: 356 head gasket
#5
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Jack Vines
Quote:

Ross wrote:
I'd note also that those Packard boys worked some very elaborate contours into the chamber. I'd love to learn their thinking on them as they changed from year to year. For my own cars I always look for the latest Packard head I can find.

My flathead Studebakers all run great but their combustion chambers are far simpler in form.


Ross, FWIW, there are at least five different versions of the Champion head, with the last version being the highest compression.

jack vines

Posted on: 8/11 11:50
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Re: V8 Engine Building
#6
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Jack Vines
Common pitfalls:


1. Disassemble the rocker arms, pull the plugs from the ends of the shafts and run a brush through the bores. Regrind the rocker tips.

2. Early valve spring retainers are too soft. They should be replaced with later hardened retainers.

3. Magnaflux check and pressure test the heads. Many '55 heads are cracked.

4. Balance the rotating assembly.

5. We line hone all our blocks.

jack vines

Posted on: 8/11 11:48
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Re: 356 head gasket
#7
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Jack Vines
FYI, it's usually not necessary to have $1000 custom rod bolts for two reasons:
1. I've always been able to find an existing part in the ARP catalog close enough to interchange.
2. Rod bolts are a high RPM problem; the 356" is a low RPM engine.

And yes, quench is a good thing. Back in the day, the flathead Ford V8 racers used pop-up and/or domed pistons into a matched recess in the cylinder head. The Harley-Davidson KR racers used a domed piston with the top edge facing the cylinder beveled at a 45-degree angle.

Finally, the Packard engineers knew what they were doing with the I8. Does anyone have the specs on the quench distance of the 8.7 compression '54 Caribbean? AFAIK, that's the highest compression ratio ever used on a production flathead engine.

One final thought; if I were building a high compression iron head 356", I'd definitely be planning to use water/alcohol] injection.

jack vines

Posted on: 8/10 10:02
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Re: Engine & Gearbox Rebuild
#8
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Jack Vines
Good advice thus far. Finding another mechanic is easier said than done, but since your current man has no interest in actually diagnosing the problem, say goodbye.

Since installing the Oldsmobile oil pump usually solves the problem of ticking lifters at idle and it's necessary to remove the oil pan for this, begin the diagnosis there.

With the oil pan removed, remove the center main bearing cap. If the lower bearing half still has good babbit, the rest of the engine is usually still good also. If the babbit is mostly gone and copper showing through, then a more thorough inspection is necessary to determine if a rebuild is necessary.

And yes, the membership here can assist your next mechanic in finding any and all parts, should a rebuild be found necessary.

jack vines

Posted on: 7/5 11:07
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Re: 352 onto an engine stand
#9
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Jack Vines
Grade 8 bolts are overkill. The standard grade 5 is more than sufficient.

What I do differently is turn the engine stand arms around so the back of the block is against the arm and not held further out by the spacer.

Also, adjust the arms up and in so the cam is centered on the pivot point. This will make it more balanced when the heads are installed.

jack vines

Posted on: 6/15 10:31
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Re: 1950 Super 8 sedan
#10
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Jack Vines
Quote:

Duane Gunn wrote: . . . This is for sale by an elderly gentleman who can't enjoy it so he's letting it go to someone who could enjoy it and take care of it.


Very nice car. Unfortunately, it's been brought to my attention that I'm an elderly gentleman who should be selling, not buying.

jack vines

Posted on: 4/28 11:11
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