How often to run the engine in a Centurion?

[eddy8men]

they don't like being left outside, the biggest problem i've had with cents is the clutch plates sticking/dragging, i also had this on the cromwell. you can either hold the clutch pedal depressed when stored, which i'm not keen on or make sure it's bone dry before it goes away for the winter. if the clutch does stick a good hose down with a steam cleaner will free it evereytime.
the meteor can be easily turned manaully if you want to avoid running it. on top of the starter motor you'll find a 7/16th hex bar turn it clockwise and this will turn the engine over (slowly)

[Malcolm Towrie]

Jeez, you guys are good!
Eddy, I rebuilt the clutch about 3 years go with the best parts from 2 used clutches we had and then went onto another project. But I covered the clutch up well, so when we checked the clutch recently, it still spun freely when disengaged, despite outside storage.

jdm, a preoiler, like our T54 has, would be great. Wonder how easy that is to install? But you know, considering we will run this Cent about 50 miles a year at the most, it's unlikely we will see any problems from bearing or bore wear in my lifetime!

45jim, great info! Now the question is do we do it the easy way and pour light oil into the cylinders through the carbs while idling like Perry says, or do we pull the intake side plugs and squirt the oil in? I kind of like Perry's way because it is easy, and also it gets oil on the valve stems to some extent.

Malcolm

[eddy8men]

malcolm i wouldn't over think it. cents are pretty squaddie proof and as long as they are stored inside i doubt you'll have any issues

[45jim]

The air intake horn location and the updraft carb of the Centurion may make it difficult to get the oil into the cylinders as you really can't pour from above with the engine running. You might be able to rig up a curved tube and follow Perry's method, it may work as well if not better than just oiling the cylinders. It just might be physically impossible for the engine to draw the oil up through the carb.

[maple_leaf_eh]

Fascinating conversation of by-the-book, use of the gray-haired archives, parallel job experience, similar actual experience, and mechanical curiosity.

(I am no expert, so please do not take my word.) I would think that if the biggest internal concern is the rings seizing against hard RR cylinder sleeves, then putting a barrier layer in there should be an important effort. Intuitively, I like the idea of pulling the spark plugs, adding machine oil directly, and deliberately turning the engine over would add that layer.

Batteries can be charged, changed and removed. Fluids pour and drain by gravity. Grease squirts in under pressure. Auxiliaries can be literally walked up to and problems addressed. Transmissions are oily by nature. Clutches though are always deep inside the hull, so whatever you do is better than nothing.

For what it's worth, I support dry storage versus outdoor storage. However, I had an unusual encounter with condensation on my M38A1 when there was a humidity pocket inside the shelter one late winter day. The water droplets formed on the vehicle could be wiped off like rain. I opened up the doors and turned on blower fans to move the moist air away as best I could.

In my other experience, if at all possible, heated indoor storage with batteries on tenders, and some form of monthly run-up cycle would seem like the best possible preservation. As I learned from a physiotherapist, muscles are made to move. Extend that to our hobby, ships are not built to stay in harbour.

[Malcolm Towrie]

Waaay off topic, here, but Terry, you mentioned batteries. What a problem that is for us. Something like 80 running vehicles get parked in the fall for their long winters nap. We don't have a program to look after those ~ 150 batteries because it's a thankless, and very time-consuming job. So come spring we have our fair share of dead batteries, some of which can be recovered, some not. It upsets me, but not enough that I'll volunteer to run the program!

And, in my opinion, running a battery program is quite skilled. You need to be physically strong, know enough about batteries to be able to connect and disconnect them without melting wrenches and battery posts, know how to carbon pile load test, take SG measurements, effective ways of charging them, new technologies that can restore a sulphated battery, and most important know when a battery is toast and further effort is futile.

What do others do?

Malcolm

[Jonathan Moore]

Malcolm,

Very good question, I trickle charge about 10 batteries but they don't really like it, so I will be very interested to hear what other people do.

Jon

[maple_leaf_eh]

Originally Posted by Malcolm Towrie

Waaay off topic, here, but Terry, you mentioned batteries. What a problem that is for us. Something like 80 running vehicles get parked in the fall for their long winters nap. We don't have a program to look after those ~ 150 batteries because it's a thankless, and very time-consuming job. So come spring we have our fair share of dead batteries, some of which can be recovered, some not. It upsets me, but not enough that I'll volunteer to run the program!

And, in my opinion, running a battery program is quite skilled. You need to be physically strong, know enough about batteries to be able to connect and disconnect them without melting wrenches and battery posts, know how to carbon pile load test, take SG measurements, effective ways of charging them, new technologies that can restore a sulphated battery, and most important know when a battery is toast and further effort is futile.

What do others do?

Malcolm

I'm glad you spoke up about that part of the collection. I had the pleasure of a visit in May, to survey the V100 in comparison to the other V100 in Canada. (Nice machine, well restored, but it needs to run more often.) I saw the pile of batteries in the side shed.

It occurred to me that if the current crop of volunteers are skilled wrench pullers, restorers and troubleshooters, but as you frankly admit are not battery techs, maybe the collection needs to partner with an outside company to get a better routine in place. Not telling you your business, but thinking out loud. Imagine someone who knows exactly the things you mention and will do it for a tax receipt.

The collection where I kibbitz, burn gas and break things, has a facility not unlike Oshawa's but not as crowded. The crew chief has a monthly run up routine. Fuel doesn't go into most vehicles' fuel tanks, but is fed into the line with portable tanks. And, from what I've seen, a battery tender is wheeled around on some regular sequence.