Rebuilding old motor

[Gaza]

I am just about to buy an old Dodge pick up truck 1960 to do up for a bit of fun. To get it back on the road the motor needs the rings doing, this is a job for a pro but can an average skilled bloke be able to pull the motor out and put it back in.

[echnidna]

Yeah they're a nice old low stressed motor that live almost forever.

Pretty straightforward though the 265 hemi is by far the best motor of the series

[Gra]

Depends on what Equipment You have, and how quick you need the car. If you need the car quickly, get a man to do it, if you ar not in a hurry, treat it as a learning experience. You will need at least a hoist to get the motor out and back in with, a stand to hold the motor while it is out. Ring compressors are also a really useful tool, and a cylinder bore hone while you are at it can often go down well, The big stuff can always be hired

Other than that, as long as you have some mechanical nouse (?) it shouldnt be to hard, buy a manual, and be very methodical, I also cant stress enought, keep you work area cleen. I know it is a PITA, but it does help.


Good luck and welcome the the realm of car restorers, be warned a restoration takes at least twice as long as expected and 5 times the original budget

[Gaza]

Depends on what Equipment You have, and how quick you need the car. If you need the car quickly, get a man to do it, if you ar not in a hurry, treat it as a learning experience. You will need at least a hoist to get the motor out and back in with, a stand to hold the motor while it is out. Ring compressors are also a really useful tool, and a cylinder bore hone while you are at it can often go down well, The big stuff can always be hired

Other than that, as long as you have some mechanical nouse (?) it shouldnt be to hard, buy a manual, and be very methodical, I also cant stress enought, keep you work area cleen. I know it is a PITA, but it does help.


Good luck and welcome the the realm of car restorers, be warned a restoration takes at least twice as long as expected and 5 times the original budget

Budget!!! what budget if it costs me less than 30k ill be happy but plan is to keep it on the road the whole time. This motor the oringal has had the head done already but the rings need redoing. Was going to send the motor out to have it done but it does not seem that complex.

Recommend any books,

The bloke who is selling it has owned it since new and always been in rego.

At least i can do a nice timber tray, idea's welcome for timber species and layouts.

[johnc]

Gaza,

Out of interest is it a slant 6, 318V8 or something earlier, the old Chyslers had a pretty long lasting motor for the time.

John.

[Gra]

What sort of Dodge Ute are we talking, A wayfarer, or the big mother truck. If it is a wayfarer, then I would be talking to the valiant owners club, otherwise have a chat with the local chrysler club, they may be able to point you to a workshop manual, or even ebay, or your local swap meet. Your workshop manual (If it is a good one) should be able to walk you through the dis assembly and mor importantly the re asembly of your motor. Dont try doing it without a book it is a nightmare, how do I know? Try finding a workshop manual for one of these

[TassieKiwi]

You can do it:

• Get the manual. Read it before doing anything. Read it again, looking at the motor, after you've degreased it and steam cleaned the gunge off every surface.
• Buy some of those ziplock bags with the white label area where you can write stuff. As you take things off, replace the bolts from where they came from, or put them in a bag and label it right then. It is truly amazing how things go missing, or how many things are left over when it is all back together
• Take the bonnet off.
• Disconnect the battery earth first, and remove from the car
• Take the fan off so you don't gouge the radiator, as the motor will have to come forward before it will go up. Maybe take the radiator out and clean it out/check for damage
• Probably easier to remove motor and gearbox as one unit, and break apart on the shop floor. You will need to hire or borrow a hoist for this - the assembly will be 250-350kg maybe. Check it. You will need one or two helpers for this. Think safety, steelcap boots won't save you
• Dissasemble, making notes if necessary. Put everthing in bags, number them.
• I would leave the crankshaft, camshaft/timing chain and pistons untouched. Once you have the block stripped to this stage, take it to a recommended engine shop, pref. by the local car club. Make sure they're not dickheads, as this will cause much pain. They can then measure the wear in the cylinders and main bearings ,check the camshaft and timing chain, determine what parts you'll need, and reassemble. It is very easy to bugger the ring assembly up, break rings while putting them on, etc. You can do it, but it's not a lawnmower, and I think your time is better spent going over the oil and water pumps, ignition system, valve grind and de-coke etc. You'll get a freshly painted assembled block back and some kind of guarantee, that you can assemble your cleaned and checked parts on to.
• Check the clutchplate for wear and replace if required
• Assemble
• Listen to your sweeet new engine. Enjoy.

[Daddles]

Do you need to take the engine out? If all you're doing is rings and a head job, you may be able to do it all in situ. Did the Hillman three times that way, though we did have to jack the front end of the motor about an inch to do it.

Another example - if you know how, you can do the clutch on a Mini in situ ... whereas until that became common knowledge, all the books talked about lifting the motor out.

And again. My current MG is far easier to mess with than my first ... but they're mechanically identical. It's all to do with how much more I've learnt about them

Get involved with a group of enthusiasts and try to find at least one crusty old grump who's been working on these things since they were new. You'll be amazed how easy it all is once you know the work arounds

Richard

[rrich]

I did the predesessor motor to the slant six. (Flat head six in a '57 Plymouth) I used the rafters in the garage (Shed/lock up) and a chain hoist to remove the engine and transmission. I did add a couple of 2x4 (50MM x 100MM) to the sides of the rafter to make sure it was strong enough.

If it were me doing the Dodge, I would let a rebuilder do the internals. Here, most rebuilders will return the same block/head rebuilt. The major benefit is that the bearings are all resized and replaced to a regrind of the crankshaft. Also a MAJOR issue on the straight six motors it that the head MUST be surface ground when it is removed and replaced. If you don't surface grind the head you'll probably be blowing head gaskets at regular intervals.

With the engine and transmission out of the vehicle, replace the clutch, pressure plate and throwout bearing. You can do it now for the cost of parts or later for the cost of parts and about 5 times that for labour.

BTW - You can tell your rebuilder to bore things out and take more off the head to increase the engine performance. All usually at no extra cost. On my 1957, I had the bore increased by 0.060" and took 0.090" off the head. I would tell the rebuilder to take as much as possible off the head but leave enough material for one more surface grinding. The other thing that I would do is to use chrome rings for the rebuild. With the chrome rings, you should be able to get 200K Km off the rebuild.

[journeyman Mick]

Gaza
I'd reccomend you get new valves and valve seats fitted so you can use unleaded petrol without having to add an upper cylinder lubricant. Maybe put a mild cam in it too. (Actually last time I rebuilt a motor I put a mild "heatseeker" cam in which made the motor more responsive and gave better fuel economy)

Mick (former revhead)

[Daddles]

Mick (former revhead)

I don't believe that Mick ... what's this 'former' bit :confused:

Richard (closet hoon)

[E. maculata]

I agree with Richard, there is no "former" it's more like "dormant"

Bruce-one half of an almost revived petrolhead duo (kids are getting old enough to participate )