Further adventures with a Ford flat head engine

[Alastair Thomas]

I am slowly making progress with the replacement engine for our F60S LAAT.
My last post on this subject was about the trauma of removing the valves. This chapter is about building engine stands and checking the block for cracks.
I have appended the story in the attached .pdf document.

Going forward I will soon be reassembling the engine. I cannot find the torque settings in my operator's manual nor in the workshop manual. Can anybody help. I particularly need the values for the big ends, the main bearings, the head nuts and the flywheel bolts.

Kind regards,
Alastair
F60S LAAT
Ford Lynx I MkIII*

[rob love]

Van Pelt sales in the US have a lot of information posted on the flatheads. Here is a link to their page for torque specs on the early engines: http://www.vanpeltsales.com/FH_web/f...ecs32-48V8.htm


They are a small husband wife organization. I like dealing with them because they have continued to stock the 3 ton suspension parts we use on our CMPs, whereas most of the big names seem to have discontinued carrying that class of truck parts, instead concentrating on the smaller more popular 1/2 and 3/4 tons.

[Lynn Eades]

Main Bearing nuts 80 to 90 ft lb
Connecting rod castellated nuts 35 to 40 ft lb
Connecting rod self locking nuts 45 to 50 ft lb
cylinder heads cast iron 50 to 55 ft lb
cylinder heads aluminium 35 to 40 ft lb
flywheel cap screws 65 to 70ft lb
fly wheel self locking screws 80 ft lb
spark plugs cast iron heads 24 to 28 ft lb
spark plugs aly heads 20 to 24 ft lb

I took this from a scientific publications workshop manual (32 to 48). I know some flat head v8s have nuts and studs on the main bearing caps while others used bolts. I cant remember if the figures are the same, so you need to investigate further. This book is good in that as a post war publication it covers well, (for examples) the carb and clutch rebuilds along with interchange of parts. etc not found in Ford publications.
I have bought parts from James Saccoccio of Gotham Auto parts in New York (00 1 718 878 3699) and have had great results from him (and also from Van Pelts)

[Alastair Thomas]

Thanks a lot guys.

I have hopes that there will be plain sailing from now on and thus no need for chapter three of my adventures.

Alastair

[Dave Newcomb]

Worth the membership $ These fellows have been all about Flatheads for 60 years! Dave

[Alastair Thomas]

I have attached an update on my adventures in rebuilding the replacement engine for our F60S LAAT.
However, I now have a real problem. The reach from the timing cover to the end of the camshaft is about 0.91 inches. This is about twice the reach of the distributor. I seem to remember reading about this on this forum some time ago but cannot find it again.
Is there an adaptor?
If not, can anybody tell me if the dog on the distributor is held on with a roll pin, taper pin or something else? Close examination has not helped me. If I can get it off, I can make a longer one.
Does the distributor that has two bolt fixing have a longer reach?
I feel thoroughly faint at the prospect of swapping camshafts as I have got this far.

Kind regards,
Alastair
F60S LAAT
Ford Lynx I MkIII*

[Mike Kelly]

I found this:

https://rodandstyle.com/blogs/rod-an...d-distributors

Sounds like you may have the wrong timing cover , it could be from a later model engine and somebody has fiddled around and fitted it onto your engine. Or, the camshaft is the wrong type.

Sounds like the truck came without a distributor fitted ?

Found this on a forum: you can buy an adapter plate to convert the three bolt front cover to a two bolt Crab (42-48) distributor, That then opens up a world of aftermarket distributors, or a good rebuilt stock one, which if done right are a great upgrade over the earlier diving helmet dist. someone will chime in where they are available in the states im sure. If you RANG Bubba, no doubt he would have given you all this info directly, so try that.

The write up is a good read and the valve length jig was a nice solution ! You did well with the off-hand grinding of the valve stems.... I am not that brave.

I remember doing the valve seats and clearances on the 85hp motor in my 1941 army MCP 11D truck , it had the divers bell dissy. Hillman spares had new split guides for $2 each pair !


Off topic: you can clean up some types of valve heads by machining rather than grinding them . I have done this on a Holden Red Motor , the valves cleaned up well with a HSS tool. The Vintage car engine business down the road from me used to machine valve heads down to size to suit whatever he needed but this was back in the pre-unleaded fuel days.

[Mike Kelly]

I just read your article again and it is a little confusing:

Anyway we do not have any two bolt fixing distributors though we have plenty of Diver’s Helmet and Crab Top ones they are all three bolt fixing.

I thought the crab dissy is a two bolt fixing, not three.

If you do use the crab type, this may help you.

https://myflatheadford.com/wp-conten...tributor-1.pdf

[Colin Alford]

Alastair,

I haven’t read through all of your info to know exactly what parts you are dealing with, but the following info might help you enable the distributor to engage with the camshaft.

Here is the text:

[Colin Alford]

Here are the illustrations:

[Mike Kelly]

That is useful information.

[Alastair Thomas]

I got there by a roundabout route.
Firstly, I took a mould of the "gap" between the distributor drive and the camshaft by shoving a bit of toilet roll tube through the hole in the three bolt fixing timing cover and filling it with two part silicon rubber. I then bolted the distributor on and let the rubber set over night. I was then able to section of the result to get the required measurements in order to make an adaptor.
I was explaining all this to a neighbour who is into Allards (they use the same engine) and he said, "You want one of these", and handed me the adaptor as per the above drawing. Apparently, he had just fitted and electronic ignition set up and it came with the adaptor should he need it.
In order to put to bed the two bolt/ three bolt issue with crab top distributors, mine is three bolt and off the Allard. It is quite possible that it is a Lucas version made for the UK market. It does not appear on the presentation from Bubbas Hot Rod Shop. Neither does the Diver's Helmet distributor, currently fitted to the truck, which I know to be a Lucas product.
I have since bought the two bolt fixing crab top distributor off ebay but, though it was not incorrectly described, I have decided to go with the three bolt one plus the spacer.
Thanks everyone again for your help.
Alastair

[Alastair Thomas]

Happy New Year everyone and thanks for your help in 2023.

I have finished the rebuild of the replacement engine for our F60S LAAT and it has been shipped up to my brother's place awaiting swapping with the 21 stud engine.
The completion of the rebuild was not entirely straight forward (for me) so for completeness I have written it up and attached it below.

Kind regards,
Alastair
F60S LAAT
Ford Lynx I MkIII*