1974 2 Door Maverick in San Diego

Trans mount obtained at Autozone ~9.00. Block and head to machine shop late yesterday. Magnaflux block is step one. Anxiously/nervously awaiting the result. Would hate to have a crack in the block!!!!

 

Engine machine work

Was called by the machinist to "come see what he found". Dreaded words. Magnaflux on block was fine.

1 Rod is bad and needs replaced, he will do this and recondition the others. Cylinders will be bored .030 over and new pistons and reman crank installed. Full engine rebuild kit will be used and comes with new pistons all gaskets and oil pump, etc etc. This should be ready by 6/31.

The head is the main problem...it has a crack from the twin exhaust port down to the air fitting. This will be pinned and welded. The clifford port splitter will be welded in and filed. The exhaust and intake ports are highly worn. His recommended fix is go with the later model exhaust valves which are larger and should make for better performance, and fix the intake ports by installing hardened seats which are recommended for unleaded fuel. New camshaft. This will start on 6/31 as the owner is the only one up to the challenge on the issues with the head.







I think I will be out the door for about 1200.00 for complete engine and head rebuild parts/labor/tax.

Found a painter who will do the minor rust repairs/body work and paint with racing stripes for 2k. This will happen after engine/trans reinstall. But he will be doing the engine compartment flat black this week while all still disassembled.

I think I see light at the end of the tunnel.

 

Good that the motor stuff is mostly good news.

Sure you want to repair that cracked head, rather than find another/better one? ... as I whisper the words ... Aussie Cross-Flow or whatever those really good (expensive) heads are ... don't really know sixes, but love to modify stuff.

Also ... seriously, I wanted to offer a small useful suggestion.... flat black paint inside an engine compartment can be a heartbreaker. It will look good until you get the first splatter of whatever on it. It will always tend to as a spot where the oil soaked in and changed the sheen.

If you switch to a semi-gloss paint, which is still subtle, just a minor change, it will clean up a ton easier and stay nice for a long time.

Or maybe your painter can offer a suggestion for a flat clear coat over the black that does clean well.

I like to paint the area behind the grille with it to. It gives the grille a lot of depth. Some folks paint that radiator support body color and you lose that. I also like to paint the strut rod crossmember black, too, so that you have a harder time seeing it when viewing the front of the car. It hangs down below the valance and disrupts the looks. I like to make it go away as much as possible.

 

Is flat black like satin black or no gloss black?

 

I have couple questions for you..how much did you find your master rebuild kit for...and are you doing a stock rebuild?What kind of cam are you putting in?Now on the valves..wouldnt you mean putting new exhaust seats isntead of the intake for the unleaded fuel reason?So is ur machinist gonna put together all the motor for you for 1,200?The reason for my 21 questions is because I'm getting my 1973 250 I6 rebuilt as well and im trying to compare prices with other people on their rebuilds..keep me updated I want to know how this turns out..Good luck bud

Howdy from Vista ,CA

 

In most paint labels selected language (may vary) .... going from least to most shiny ....

flat (NO sheen)
satin (light sheen)
semi-gloss (subdued sheen)
gloss (high sheen)

I am sure your painter can show you some chips, but if you just tell him "flat", that is probably what he will do without any more conversation.

 

yep. I learned my lessons the hard way and flat paint is a bitch to keep clean. Even light wax or oil will mottle the look of it. Hell.. you can even unintentionally polish it by scrubbing too hard in one spot when trying to clean it. I never drop below satin sheens anymore.

 

I have looked at the Aussie ones and also looked at the ones from classic inlines and they both are super expensive. The complete head rebuild with new cam and all parts is 350.00. Can't beat it since I have not been able to find another used head locally and would still have the danger of the crack on the twin port and the worn valve seats. Can't see the crack until magnafluxing...so I could still be in the same boat. Also, don't plan on racing this is my daughter's car and she won't be working it too hard....just glad to have it back on the road and dependable.

Thanks for the heads up on the semi-gloss paint. Pretty sure the painter knows, but will double-confirm. Good lookin' out.

 

I looked at the stock master rebuild kit online at Rockauto and my machinist's kit was about 200.00 less (rock's was like 680.00 then you have shipping). Yes stock rebuild at .030 over on the cylinders. Also you have the shipping delay....which is unacceptable in my case...I need it back on the road asap. I also worry that they might ship a wrong part or something will be missing and stop the work.

So the exhaust valves on later model 250's are larger in size...this helps with the excessive wear I currently have. They will grind them a bit more for fit, and that's it. The intake valve seats are also worn, but am having hardened seats installed the original one's were intended for leaded fuel and are not hardened...the unleaded fuel does a number on the valve openings. I am not a machinist, but that is the gist of what I understand. Maybe someon here can chime in if I don't have it quite right or can elaborate a bit more.

Yes, my machinist quoted the full motor build and the head rebuild parts and labor for a little less than that...will revise after I make the payoff.

My guy is very well known and does most of the commercial work for the car dealers such as mercedes in San Diego...all work I have heard is stellar.

Hope that helps answer your questions. You wouldn't by chance have a grabber hood you would part with?

 

So what black do you guys recommend for the engine bay?Im about to paint mine as well

 

Ok I thought you needed to changed the exhaust seats instead of the intake but I might be wrong..So is the guys going to test the motor for you once hes done to see if it works?
Where in San Diego are you located?Unfortunately I don't have a grabber hood but i will keep my eyes open...If you see any Grabber or 2 door v-8 in the area 73 or older let me know Im on the hunt for one

 

I think it is intake due to the unleaded fuel passing across them...the exhaust ports have just the smoke...so I think those are ok. Could be wrong.

Craigs has a few lately...but a little pricey.
1971 non grabber 5500.00
http://sandiego.craigslist.org/csd/cto/3041799851.html
1974 grabber not running. 3200.00
http://sandiego.craigslist.org/csd/cto/3033673559.html

 

actually.. you have been incorrectly advised. You may want to call around for second opinions on that head work. Not that you need to change machinists or anything like that.. just get more advice from others to more accurately advise your builder of what you want to achieve.

It's like this. The fuel type passing over the seats has absolutely nothing to do with seat wear(until you get into exotic race fuels and such). It's the abrasion(due to no more lead as a lubricant) and heat build up of the exhaust that does a number on the seat itself. This is why OEM's have improved many heads to include hardened seats on the exhaust side with lessor emphasis on the intakes due to the normal cooling properties of the intake charge.

Also consider that the larger size of the intake will spread the spring load across the seat and give less pressure per sq inch on the seat contact area thereby reducing the wear rate.

I've run both setups many times through the years and everytime I run higher seat pressures and higher RPM on straight cast?.. the seats pound out in less than a year. Even quicker on hotter street setups with one hard running motor actually recessing the valve into the seat by nearly an 1/8th inch in 6 months flat(and no.. I was not leaning the motor out). Then the exhaust flow, power and mileage will inevitably suffer as a result. Although not very drastically on a simpler stock manifold street motor like this one. But hey.. gas ain't cheap and you're literally paying the same cash to reverse the seats getting treated to hardened inserts.

So, my advice to you is to not take it from me.. or even any of the experts around here.. but to check around at your local machinists to pick their brains for second and even third opinions on the matter. Any competent machinist or engine builder will tell you.. exhaust seats are the very first ones to go due to all the variables mentioned above.

Hope that helps you out in the long run.

PS.. just be damned sure to get away from the umbrella type valve seals and use premium positive type fluoroelastomer/Viton style seals. It's super cheap insurance in the long run and that will help keep you away from the dreaded start up puff and plug fouling that these old motors are so well known for with the stock material arrangements. You'll need to have them machine the top of the guide to accept the newer style positive seal but the tool and procedure is quite cheap. You can even buy the tool(which is just a small pilot with multi-faceted OD cutter head) and use a hand drill to do it yourself for about the same cost if you wanted.

Good luck with it all.

 

Back on road

Got the Car back from reassembly on 8/12. Had some trans hesitation on take off. Took it to the trans shop on 8/14 found governor was not assembled quite right and that a bolt on trans mount had broken off. They corrected both issues and running fantastic at this point.

Next project. Idiot lights not functioning (replaced bulbs...issue not fixed). Brake, Temp, Oil lights do not come on when car is being started. Have a new triple gauge to install, but it is a bit more than I can handle technically...was quoted 185.00 by local shop to install. Thoughts? I think it is way too much.

 

Regarding the idiot lights, the wiring for the cluster is one long strip with contacts running down it. I had mine loosen up once and it may have been the bottom half wasn't making contact. Just had to push it back into the cluster and it was fine.

Other than that, the circuits for the cluster are printed on a plastic sheet and that can break down over time. You might have burnt out bulbs too, if you have never seen them work. There are brighter replacements out there now ... a search on the board might give you some ideas.