Nic Sanford's 61 Project

[action]

Yikes on the inside rust of that engine.

The engine running vid the engine sounded like it was ticking. Usually that is valve train issues.

The adjustable push rods. Haven't seen those type of push rods in years. Not sure if those are stock or not. But keepers no matter.

>>>>>>>>>>>Action

[NicSanford]

Yikes on the inside rust of that engine.

The engine running vid the engine sounded like it was ticking. Usually that is valve train issues.

The adjustable push rods. Haven't seen those type of push rods in years. Not sure if those are stock or not. But keepers no matter.

>>>>>>>>>>>Action

I was pretty bummed once I got the valve covers off, and once I get the heads off I’m hopeful that the rest isn’t as bad. The exhaust manifold bolts are seized on and I need to figure out how I’m gonna get the heads off, so I’m at a standstill at the moment. Do you have a link on a new set of push rods? These ones are pretty well shot.

[action]

I have never bought internal engine parts for a MEL. (A lot of FE & 385 engines) And I believe most are readily available except pistons. I think a lot of that stuff is on ebay.

Push rods are not too spendy. Rocker arm assy and/or cam and lifters can set you back.

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[papawayne]

One half acetone, one half trans fluid. Best weasel pee I've ever used, and it is cheap. Once on the bench, those manifolds should come off with some love and patience. Don't try to hurry it. When all goes back together, use new studs and brass nuts. Wayne

[NicSanford]

Anybody have any pointers on detaching an exhaust manifold from pipes if the bolts look like this? Anybody have any pics of these parts apart or clean?

[papawayne]

Nic...use fire for now just to get everything apart. Save as much of the studs as you can when you cut. Once on the bench, use lots of weasel pee and time and patience to gently work the studs out of the manifold with a good set of vise grips, or if you have one, a stud socket. Go gently back and forth (on and off) until you feel resistance, and then go the other way. Let the weasel pee sink in so it can do its work. If all else fails, heat the manifold (not the stud) as hot as you can get it and then stick an ice cube on the stud and try to work it out that way. The theory is that the ice cube will shrink the stud. Wayne

[trouble]

great work Nic, keep at it, cheer's

[action]

As stated above, chances are high that the manifold studs will loose their life upon this operation.

If you have access to a high torque rattle gun and a six sized socket (5/8" or 9/16" I think) likely the studs will twist off. After you have the heads off you can figure out how to remove the stud remnants. The above method by Wayne would allow you control on where the stud is parted. Twisting the stud off with a rattle gun means the break may occur close to the manifold. And then drilling for gold followed by a screw extractor would be needed. Just depends on your preference.

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[papawayne]

My brother would counsel that it doesn't matter how much one tries to get the exhaust studs out of the manifold, or what method one uses. Ultimately, it all comes down to drilling anyway, so he would start drilling right away, rather than wasting time to get to that point. I would try all other methods until I was forced to drill. Wayne

[sauceman]

Broken bolts and studs in cast iron I get a torch, oxy/acetylene not just a propane one, and heat the stud red hot almost to the point of turning liquid. Then quench it with water so it's totally cool then grab it with vise grips and it should come out.


cheers

[NicSanford]

Thank you guys! It looks like the manifolds should come off easy enough, it's the two bolts to the exhaust that look sketchy to me. Went and soaked them in liquid wrench, picked up my pushrods, and waiting on all my gaskets. As soon as I get these parts stripped and repainted I'm confident the top end will be in good shape. Will keep you all posted!

[NicSanford]

Got around to stripping my intake tonight. Looks like whoever painted it before painted over a layer of rust. I used Aircraft paint stripper, but I'm left with a good coat of rust I'll probably have to strip with a wire wheel. I have my gasket set from Summit on the way, and a new set of pushrods. As soon as I get these painted parts stripped and repainted, I'll be ready to put her back together again. Hoping to get at least a couple weeks of drive time before the weather changes...

[NicSanford]

Decided on a blast cabinet to get these parts clean. Picked up this never used Harbor Freight unit from 2006 for $85, but not sure about the quality. Also got a nice size shop vac for $25, so $110 for a decent blasting rig ain’t bad!

[defrang]

Awesome price. It should work fine. I wish I would have had one. I went over to a friends house every other week for about a year to use his. The company and garage conversations were great though.

[Solid]

Nic, are you planning to replace the entire pan of the trunk or patch what's there? I don't know of anyone who makes floor / trunk pans for these cars, so probably you need to find a parts car...and that may not be easy as the part you need is probably one of the most failure prone parts of a car that is being parted out. That is, it may be hard to find one with good floors that is being parted out. Therefore, if you just have that area on the right that is rusted through, maybe you can just fabricate a patch? Since you aren't building a show car, it isn't going to show anyway under the trunk carpet and/or undercoat. Just a thought.

I would eventually like it to have a proper floor, but will probably just resort to fabricating something temporary for now. As far as I can tell most of the rest of the floor of the trunk is in good shape. I contacted Mark II Parts hoping they also had trunk pans, but no dice. I think I will take advantage of their quarter panel patches though as they are the only other trouble spots I can see. It's crazy how much different these cars can be. My 62 was in about as perfect condition cosmetically you could get without a rebuild but had some mechanical issues that were hard to dial in. This one sounds very good mechanically but cosmetically needs some work. I imagine the 61 - 63 had the same trunk pans yeah?

I think you'll probably find that unless you need it to be a show car and can spend the money to get these sections sawn from another car, fabrication is the correct approach here. Rusting and blowing out above and to the sides of the mufflers is very common along with the lower quarter panels that you've already flagged. If for whatever reason welding is not an option, you could probably use the 3M impact resistant structural adhesive to install patches instead.