Using A MODERN Machine To Cut A Flathead Ford V8 Valve Job!

[@JAMSIONLINE]

Go to meetfabric.com/JIMSAUTO and start investing in your child today.

[@markchodroff250]

You two make me laugh ! Being 75 years old and building flathead engines for the first 20-25 years of my 50+year Career as a mechanic these engines were just normal! Then going to the next steps and fuel injection on industrial engines was scary, but as you say I was a mechanic during the time of Constant upgrades and modifications to engines and systems in a short amount of time, many of my colleagues fell short of working on new technology, the last ten a years of my career ended with total electric machinery and even that had Tremendous jumps in technology has it progressed from DC to AC current , people talk about electric car ! I was working on that technology for over ten years before it was available! Thank God I am done ! Retirement is good , I can watch you two do the work now with my coffee ! LOL thanks you both fantastic videos and channel!

[@tetedur377]

I'm not quite as old as you, though I'm gaining on you (68). I did time in the Navy and the Army. After I got out, I went into the automotive field during a transition period, when they started just replacing whole assemblies and sub-assemblies. I started out rebuilding carbs, alternators, generators, and everything else, but even then, it was getting to where it wasn't cost effective anymore. We became, in large part, parts changers. And let's face it: many customers' approach to repairing their cars was to fire the old parts cannon at it, and they didn't see any reason to pay for diagnostics on the new-fangled engine control systems. And honestly, neither did many, if not most of the guys we worked for. Yeah, it was a tough time, both for the guys who'd always done things the way they'd done them, and for those of us who stuck with it and learned as much as we could. Shops didn't buy specialized diagnostic equipment; nor did they spend money on subscriptions to diagnostic services on line. And let's face it: there were only 2 or 3 of them at the time. Things got better, but after 25 years, I'd had enough. Finished college, grabbed a job working for the Navy, and retired a few years ago.

[@tetedur377]

If you watch Eric O on South Main Auto, even in 2024, he STILL gets a lot of cars that have been broadsided by the old parts cannons, many times in different shops, before he's the last resort for car owners. I don't know what his pricing structure is, but in my day, car owners hated to pay for diagnostics, and shop owners hated to charge for it. They still wanted mechanics to go out, listen to the car, tell them what was wrong, and either fix it for cheap (or free) or let the motorist go on their way to throw parts at their cars. A guy can't make a living that way, that's for sure, and yet people without any sort of conscience routinely expected us to do exactly that.

[@tomtke7351]

Diagnostic fees are now a must. ​@@tetedur377

[@olronholleran1310]

Ol'l Ron Here, Been building Flathead blocks since the early 60's, and I appreciate your efforts here, The bock you have is a very early 8ba, In late 50 they eliminated the intake seat,and in late 52 eliminated the exhaust seat and hardened the block there In 92 I wrote a biik on the engine. Gramps

[@deeremeyer1749]

Making hardened seat inserts a complete waste of money which INCREASES the risk of block cracks those engines are notorious for. Not to mention you cannot treat a flathead like "any other V8 engine" when it comes to seats and guides because no other V8s have them IN THE BLOCK.

[@ninja63639]

Is this Ol' Ron from Ford Barn?

[@timlee4204]

My Uncle was a motorcycle mechanic during WW 2 and loved his old 42 Ford truck with its oversized front fenders. He asked me to do a valve job on it in the yard 10 miles from town. After it stood unused for about 5 years, about 1971. Uncle Harry decided one day to get it going but the engine could not be turned over, it would turn back and forth almost a full turn but not all the way around. He asked if I could look at it for him. Harry was an Army Motorcycle mechanic in WW 11 and loved his old Army Ford with its oversized tires and oversized mud guards but what a beast to work on the engine. Working on the engine meant I had to stand on a four-gallon drum (about 20 lt) and lean into the engine bay over these oversized mud guards, this put a lot of pressure on my chest and the backs of the legs. The engine was a fairly simple design, the next step up from the A and B model fours of 1928 on, something like 8 Brigs & Stratton mower engines all joined together. This is a prime example of manufacturers building things that are easy in the factory without any consideration for anyone having to fix it in the field. I finished up pulling off a head and discovering a huge lump of rust in one of the bores, which cleaned up OK. It also meant that I had to borrow tools from a previous employer in town, even doing a valve regrind meant at least 2 trips back to town, ten miles each way. I’m going to go into some detail here but even doing a regrind of the valves was a nightmare. Nothing like an FJ Holden or an A40 where you remove the head, put it on the bench and slip out the valves. First, I had to work out how to remove them, (no Google in those days) the valve stem had a mushroom end so it couldn’t just be pulled out, I had to remove the intake and exhaust manifolds. I had to cut a gap in a 3/8 nut and bend a piece of wire into a claw shape, I had to make up a board with nails and holes to place all the bits as they came out. There were 16 valves, 32 guide halves all of which had to go back into the exact same place that they came out of. Looking at the picture below, this is a valve, guide, spring and spring retainer already taken apart. In the factory the assembler would have assembled all these parts into one unit and passed it on to the bloke putting them into the engine, who would push it into place, slipped the horseshoe in to hold it there and released the spring. I had to turn the engine over until #1 valve rose up enough, poke the cut nut up through the exhaust port, push it in below the notch on the stem, then back the engine back until I could knock the valve and guide down enough to get the horseshoe out, then pull out the valve assembly, remember this was not factory clean like it was on assembly. Once I got the valve assemblies out, disassembled them and placed them in place on the board, they had to be taken into town and refaced. I had to borrow the seating tool to reseat the block, then the valve was fitted into the guide and put in the hole and measured with feeler gages. Then the valve had to be taken back to town, fitted to a machine grind off the exact amount from the stem to have the right clearance, there being no other way to adjust the clearance. Then after standing five years the fuel tank needed cleaning out as there was a lot of flakes of dried out petrol, had to remove the tank, feed a chain into it and shake it about etc. Ted from down under.

[@ellieprice363]

Hi Ted, Greetings from America. Thanks for sharing your long entertaining description of the old Ford flathead. I hope you’ve recovered by now from all the back bending, knuckle scraping, and running back and forth to town that old truck engine caused you.

[@jmflournoy386]

good on ya

[@brucejones2354]

AWESOME story mate, loved that story because it reminded me of some of the stuff my Dad did to me. Another thing he loved to do was buying a machine that someone else had disassembled then bring it to me in many boxes, then say " here, will you fix that " . Yeah, those are the days that you Will remember...... often times with fondness!

[@460mark8]

When I was at Ford as an experimental engine mechanic back in the early 80's I had the honor of being able to meet and converse with a gentleman named Don Sullivan. Don "Sulli" Sullivan worked on design of the flathead in Thomas Edison's laboratory and back in the early 80's he came back to Ford to design a 4.5L Nascar engine for the Winston cup series. He was a very pleasant man who took working very seriously and had a note above his desk "If you have nothing to do, Don't do it here". Great guy. During one of our many discussions he told me one bank of the flathead was offset in order to properly balance the engine.

[@randyrabinowitch3806]

I have found my favorite thing to watch on KZbin! I spent 30+ years in the same occupation. I totally admire you guys for many reasons. Your shop is immaculate! My wife nicknamed me Mr Clean too. I look at all the wonderful equipment in your shop. I also understand the time and investments to get all that stuff. I am a big believer in having strong “shop practices”. I watch how well you maintain fluids during tear downs. I too have a great inventory of PigMat! I watch how you jig work up and how thorough you are about clamping. How you remove sensors, how you are extremely precise and thorough with your math. We have nearly the very same work ethics and style. I absolutely have NO criticisms whatsoever on anything I’ve watched you do. I admire the engine restoration business more so than the performance engine world. Your ability to take on anything “internal combustion” is admirable. Truthfully, fellas like you are not on every street corner. On 7-17-2011 I was early killed in a motorcycle accident, not of my own doing. I am confined to a wheelchair so the engine building days were over. I liquidated all my assets and resurfaced as a gunsmith.i am physically able to handle that. To satisfy my desire to watch engine rebuilds etc…I found your videos. I thought to myself, these guys are just like the kind of guys I could work with daily. Your videos are FANTASTIC! The camera and production work is outstanding, the editing is top notch, commercials are well done, and most of all, you two are great to watch. Your personalities work great on camera and the information is presented in a way that I feel like you are talking right to me. You don’t act like you know everything but it’s quite obvious you both are accomplished machinists with a tremendous knowledge of internal combustion engines from it’s inception till now. Keep up these great videos! Don’t let the keyboard cowboys feed ya any bull! Your new viewer Randy

[@johnalexander4356]

62 here. I started machining engines back in the late 70's. We didn't see many flat head v8s but lots of flathead 4 or 6 cylinder engines. I ended up switching to aircraft turbines and didn't do much auto work but I really enjoy watching you and seeing the way newer equipment makes the job easier and more accurate.

[@paulcheshire8787]

Being in my 70's and working as a youngster with at my dads shop i recall that the crank is .265" off the center line . The crankshaft was offset per the DeSaxe principle that was engineered in to give a slight advantage of leverage for the designed direction of rotation of the engine and for harmonics. Can't recall if the cam is also.

[@pipi7731]

It is nice to watch a professional work. You make things look easy. I'm 68 and still trying to learn things. Thanks.

[@Carcrafter7165]

The cleaning guy is The guy to watch. His years of experience surely shows. You’re a good man Gentleman Jim.

[@weskirkland5850]

One day he'll make a fine machinist too! lol

[@dknoll85]

The cleaning guy is a national treasure that must be protected at all costs!!

[@patjohnson3100]

That is the nicest looking, best prepared flathead block I have ever seen. Extremely clean. Your information about the offset cylinders is very important. I had no idea about these variations. It shows how important it is to find a professional who is familiar with these engines when machine work is needed. I have my grandparents original 48 Ford Super Deluxe. At 57,000 original miles it has only needed water pumps replaced, and the oil pan dropped and cleaned of sludge from older oils. Still a very quiet smooth running engine.

[@jimmyfoster8944]

In 1965 I worked for an old parts house that started as a wrecking yard in Dallas Texas. We had everything to rebuild model ‘T’ to 53 239 Flat head ford. Our machine shop had several ford flat head engines to rebuild. I was a gold mine of parts. In fact I have the very guide tool in my tool box today. It’s good to see someone that is still interested in working on those engines. I’m impressed with the detail of your work and above normal standard of quality you give your customers. Keep up the great work and thank you for asking you knowledge to your son. He is a lucky guy to have a father like you.

[@raytaylor8381]

I am only 62 years old. I enjoy all the builds. I play with Air Cooled VW'S. But I used to drive different brands. One flat head V8. A couple of Y blocks. Ford fe powered pickups. And of course a small block Chevrolets. I live vicariously through your videos. I was injured in an accident. I just have trouble working on vehicles anymore.

[@douglassawyer794]

Beautiful shiney raw looking machine surfaces...no flash rust... Quality craftsmanship.

[@bertgrau3934]

I bought a 1950 Ford F2 3/4 pickup in 1988. A 239 flathead. A friend has a machine shop , he did all the machine work. Replaced all the valve seats, reground the crankshaft, resized the rods. Milled the block, and heads. Put 2 cylinder liners in, bored it .030 over. Put adjustable lifters in. (That made valve adjustment very easy) he balanced it. That was a very good running engine. I got 15 MPG on highway. The truck had 4.88 gears. I changed the rear to a 1970 1/2 ton rear, with 3 to 1 gears. Helped top speed some. With 15 inch tires would run about 55 MPH

[@jacobgambardella551]

The picture in picture with you guys talking about the work at the same time is golden entertainment! I love this channel

[@v3ctors69]

The discussion while the time lapse of the valve work is happening is probably the best execution I've seen. Like tier list for time lapses would be F: music -> B: Explaining what's happening during the time lapse -> A: What you did here, having a discussion about the process/history. Great work, always interesting to see engine machine shop stuff, let alone the old stuff that us younger folks don't squat about. Also the cleaning guy does a pretty good valve job.

[@jeffhopper3526]

2 x 4 v2: drill 1/2" holes for each valve stem to pass easily thru the 2 x 4 for lapping and such. Some guys do mic drops.. the Cleaning Guy can do a broom drop every time. Awesome as always!

[@SteveNicoson-u1i]

Thanks for another fantastic video Jim and Nick. It was another great learning experience for me and informative and most interesting!!!! These old flathead motors sure do stay strong, especially when a master like yourself goes to work on them!!!! I so enjoyed this video and learning from you the techniques on these old flatheads. They were quite the motor and still are used in a lot of hot rods. Sincerely appreciate the time you took to explain your steps and the why to the process. You Jim, are a fantastic teacher , and take your time to explain what you are doing and most importantly, why!!!!!! Learned a lot from this video. Thanks ever so much for your time and Nick’s also. Keep the great videos coming, I am so enjoying them. Take care my friend. The retired Air Force veteran.

[@bret9741]

When my grandpa bought his first flat head ford, he had already owned a couple of model T’s but he still spent far more time with a wagon and buggy on our family ranch, (he was born in 1889!!!) it was unbelievable that anyone would ever travel more than 100,000 miles in a lifetime, most never traveled much more than 50 miles from where they were born. By the time I came along the 1960’s and 1970’s pickups I began driving normally needed an overhaul between 120,000 and 150,000. A. Interesting anomaly was a Dodge dart that my other grandpa (1917) had. He bought a 63 Dodge Dart Sedan and drove it constantly across the US as a traveling pastor holding if tent revivals. Anyway he drive that car 420,000 miles with no engine problems except he had to add a quart of oil every 2000 miles for as long as I remember him driving it. I really wish I had bought it off him when he sold in in 1988.

[@bnghjtyu767]

I had a customer had a 41 Ford truck with Flathead in it and he couldn't get it to run right so they sent it to me and it was the first large amount of work I've done on a flathead and which is only tuning but everything needed work carburation and ignition and it had the old distributor on the front of the camshaft and it was fascinating to me and I really enjoyed working on it because I learned how they did that and it was different. One thing that fascinated me was how easy it started and how smooth it was. It's a lot of mass in that engine for what it is.

[@richardsmith5984]

I'm 78 and remember as a teenager going to the Waterloo NY fairgrounds dirt track every Friday night the ran all old flat heads and got some incredible horsepower fun times all for $1.00 great video thanks.

[@charlesperkins7746]

I've watched several flathead Ford v8 machining and rebuild videos over the past few years, and one of the comments that stands out is the fact that these old engines still have alot of sand in the water jackets after 70 to 80 years of existence.

[@jcnpresser]

That doesn’t surprise me. I think that’s the cleanest flat head ever after they run it through that oven and bake it. It looks like it’s brand new casting.

[@francisschweitzer8431]

I’d imagine that there was a lot of sand that was actually encrusted into the cast iron and would come out over time as the iron eroded. If only that sand could talk.

[@leftyeh6495]

Some coolant has silica in it, which can drop out of suspension and look like sand coming out during cleaning.

[@riprock23]

On the tractor engines, Most have been rebuilt many times. The early engines used thin sleeves, and the later engines a thicker sleeve. Many of the early ones were rebored for the thicker sleeves. Something else to look out for was that Ford actually recommended on the early engines was to not replace the thin sleeves but use oversized pistons without a sleeve when rebuilt. I only saw that on one engine. Try looking for a sleeve that isn't there. The tractor engines can also use the adjustable lifters which is an aftermarket upgrade for the V8.

[@lenscraftedlife]

I love how informative you are, you are a great teacher in explaining the how and the why.

[@Ever443]

The French, used flatheads in several tractor lines up until the early 2000's. You can still buy flathead block brand new from France. Just a bit of trivia

[@michaelatkins5480]

Back in the early '70s we ran a '49 flathead in dirt track racing (usually last!) it broke a valve seat on No.1 exhaust. The busted seat made a bit of a mess of the top of the piston but we didn't worry too much about that. We towed it 20 miles to town on the Saturday morning on the end of a length of No 8 fencing wire, where the shop replaced & faced the seat & we towed it home again. Put it all together and raced on the Sunday. Great memories! This was country Western Australia.

[@michaelfoort2592]

I just love getting parts back from the machine shop...so precise, so clean and bright. What a skill!

[@dalemilton5773]

i’m in my 70s. was a mechanic as teenager / young adult. worked on numerous fat-head eights and owned two myself. one was a 52 ford. really nice car. later i built a hybrid flat-head with a lot of truck components on it - & converted to an alternator. most other flat-heads I worked on were cracked between cylinders due to people not cleaning the threads and tightening without a torque wrench.

[@Corey-dy2cq]

Love it. All that precision and he goes to the pocket knife to get that seat out. Probably the fastest and easiest tool to use and it fits the theme of that old Ford flat head. I like watching Jim work on these old engines.

[@Wheel_Horse]

That poor pocket knife! LOL! 😉

[@Davefromwisconsin]

Tractor supply has more in the bargain bin 😂

[@davidlibby5430]

A really good set of attorney's I've used in the past was "Dewey, Cheatum and Howe"

[@stevenslater2669]

I recall that a Ardun head wizard mentioned the offset bore situation and how it complicates setting up the head installation.

[@24theMoney]

Very satisfying to watch the valve seats driven into the block.

[@bigmountain7561]

Flatties Forever!! Best V8 besides the 283 Chevy and the 318 Super Commando. I figure it this way the early V8’s have stood the test of time so why wouldn’t you really dive into these and get them running with a wine glass on top showing no cavitation. Just smooth as silk! Great Videos Jim Thank You 🙏

[@vancejohn4834]

I have a couple of those valve,spring, and guide tools. I had no idea what they were until I saw a video on KZbin 10 years ago I still have some other engine tools that I do not know what they are for.

[@460mark8]

I love your videos as they are very informative from a very well seasoned engine builder AKA the "cleaning guy" One factoid about full flow oil systems is that when the oil is cold, because of the limitations to flow thick oil through a filter media and the strength of the filter can, there is a bypass feature that allows oil to flow past the filter media and directly into the main oil galley. The filters I'm familiar with will bypass with a pressure delta of approximately 8-11 PSI between the inlet and outlet of the filter media.

[@prinz10ga]

I VOTE FOR--- The OHV Buick Straight-8 engines that were used in the early dragsters. I remember watching a few of them at the Woodburn Drag Strip back in the 60’$.

[@2ndCavTrooper]

The cleaning guy is putting more faith in those two bolts holding that engine on the chain than I would..lol

[@victoramato4692]

I'm 75. Machinist since 18 yrs old. We used to take the seats out In a couple of seconds each. All you do is take a 3/4" chisel, carve a little notch on one edge, hook it under the seam between the seat and the block, tap it in a tiny bit, leaning the side of the chisel against the opposite side of the seat, now tap the side of the head of the chisel and it will pry it right out. Clean out the cavity, drive in the seat like usual. Maybe take 8 minutes a seat. Did tons of brands of flat heads. Good old days! Souix and Black and Decker made a nice pilot that centered in the guide hole and lifter hole. Top was 3/8" pilot.. great tool. Don't forget to drill the side of the lifter bore for an allen wrench to keep lifter from turning when adjusting valves. Grind back top edge of lifter bore also. Need room for the lifter wrench. Adjustable lifters are shorter. So they'll be down in the bores. Have fun!

[@pascaldurand8083]

I'm French , and I like so much this channel...thank you for the real clear informations .

[@dwcheshire]

The after market made hemispherical heads for the flatheads, the manufacturer was Ardun. Those heads are very rare.

[@rcf8367]

Great video! Have that same 239 Mercury engine swapped into my 51 F1 truck, and I never did get used to the inner two cylinders sharing the same exhaust port!

[@johnds6621]

I'm always amazed at how well you can work through things. Your shop looks great I wish you where close to where I live I would love to give you business.

[@erikglad9975]

A master class on auto machine work. I love the channel. Not bad for a cleaning guy.

[@timlee4204]

I made from scratch a half scale Onan opposed twin with cylinders offset to the crank, and yes, I struck the problem with the camshaft, getting the timing right. After giving it some sort of run I checked the valve opening and closing points, I wrote down all the degrees etc, wrote on the bottom of the page, "This engine would have a better chance of running backwards".

[@MrRustyjackson]

I hope you got an 'A' !

[@nee3029]

It felt like 30 minutes, I was so shocked when I saw at the end that it was 1h 18min 🙈😅 I just wanted to take a quick look, zaaaap time flies. Although I have nothing to do with restoration, but rather with service and replacing parts, I'm always happy to learn something new. For me you have the best channel on KZbin 🤙🏻

[@michaelatkins5480]

The tortuous route the exhaust ports took through the block was the reason these motors had an overheating problem. My dad had a '49 Custom Ute (pick up) & a '53 Customline sedan. We never went anywhere in a Western Australian summer without boiling the bloody things. It was a major design fault. BTW, love your work guys. From an Aussie shade tree mechanic.

[@robr1656]

Ford & Mercury Flathead V-8 Identification & Rebuilders guide by Joe Abbin is a great reference book. It shows all the various engine changes throughout the years. He has a few books. Nostalgia, by Ron Holleran is good too. The Ford barn forum is loaded with knowledgeable info as well. Great video, guys. I look very forward to watching an in depth video. I had emailed you fellas a couple months back hoping you would go through one of these engines.

[@jcnpresser]

Ron hollering is in the comments! Pretty neat

[@robr1656]

@jcnpresser I noticed that too. I made reference to his book and came back and seen he put a message in here. The man is a wealth of knowledge. Very cool.

[@mikebell9166]

An 8BA on Serdi... now THERE'S something you don't see every day!!😊

[@juanalberts1]

Great videos, after watching this valve job video, I watched BarryTsGarge with Ed Smith. Also great video, it’s about valve adjustments and modifications made from years of working on these motors. Thanks for the interesting videos and nice to see father and son working and enjoying time together and passing experience onwards.

[@jjay718]

Nice work! You got that block super clean. Thanks for the video. My 8N is one with the .040 sleeves and going to have it machined for .090 sleeves. Not sure about the v8 flathead but the 8N does not have cam bearings either. The intake and exhaust valves are different sizes on the 8N as well. It has larger intake valves but they share a small intake port. The exhaust valves are smaller but they each have their own larger exhaust port. The manifold also warps often where all the ports combine at the back.

[@GaryH-pw9cm]

Harold T. Youngren was responsible for the updated 49 to 53 Ford and Mercury V8 engines. He worked toward a balance between power, fuel economy and kept the old flathead V8 going for a few more years.

[@corneliusconijn881]

Funk brothers were a WWII aircraft company, after the war contracts were over they looked for other opportunities. Among farmers, their claim to fame was the Funk Conversion, which enabled dropping a flat head V8 into an N series tractor.

[@MrLittleone101]

I'm always jonesing Sundays and Mondays for my favorite KZbin drops. JimsAuto & NicksGarage covers all the stuff I work and grow up with. Old tractors and muscle cars! Love all your content and the professionalism in your work! Always something new to learn from.

[@88SC]

Auburn/Chord used a flathead V8 that was manufactured by Lycoming. I saw a cross section of that engine and immediately noticed that the valve centerlines were profoundly laid over, so much that they actually had rocker arms (of a sort) to actuate the valves. I believe it used a one-piece block as well. And it had a gear-driven centrifugal supercharger.

[@keithstudly6071]

That engine was much like the Oakland/Pontiac V8. The valves were angled to give better port flow. The biggest difference was the exhaust ports came out at the top of the engine which eliminated one of the Ford V8's big problems. The long exhaust ports not only produce flow problems and force extra spacing between cylinders in the middle of the engine but cause the flathead to be subject to overheating problems. Those exhaust ports running through the block transferred a lot of heat into the cooling system. FYI the Ford flathead V8 was in use in France in Simca cars into the 1960's and was also available as an industrial/agricultural unit later than that and were used to run water pumps and fans in orchards to reduce frost damage so they were made longer than most think, just not in cars.

[@handyandy6488]

(Sorry if this has already been mentioned). For the next - in-depth - flathead video, please include a big chunk on the WWII and Korean wartime roles of this engine. Obviously the durability, maintainability, efficiency and damage resistance characteristics would be assessed and valued differently than in peacetime.

[@derekmcelravy8429]

I’m actually right in the middle of rebuilding my father in laws ford 8n. I wish we had a machine shop like you around here, not many shops want to mess around with old ag motors, it’s all about the high horsepower now

[@theoldman8877]

I am still using my grandfather single bit ax . I have replaced the handle seven or eight times and the ax head twice because the hammer side was warn away too much, it still has the original steel wedges "two" that help hold the head in place .

[@HamJamming]

On Ford 8N tractor engine rebuilds, the parts companies that specialize in rebuild kits make it sound like you'll be receiving all the parts from them, and that the pistons will fit perfectly after you press in the new cylinder sleeves. In reality what you get are dropped-shipped boxes from various parts companies, and the sleeves have to be honed to fit the pistons.

[@HamJamming]

I should add that Steiner Tractor Supply doesn't do this. They sell you a set of matched parts, all supplied by them. I believe you still need to hone the cylinder sleeves, though.

[@jtg2737]

At 8:48, I had wondered just recently if this offset only applied to "inline" engines and I'm seeing that no, not at all. I know that Toyota either experimented and or implemented an offset design maybe 20 years ago but I had no idea that Ford had already done so such as in this example in this video? We are always learning something! GREAT VIDEO and a hello from the State of Texas!

[@tdotw77]

Yeah there are several manufacturers that use the 'Desaxe' principle in their engines including Yamaha, VW, Toyota, Honda, of course Ford(flatheads), & a few others. Learned something new today too! 🤔👍🏻👌🏻🛠️🔧😀

[@jtg2737]

@@tdotw77 Hello. ALWAYS learning something! Funny because I swear that more than a week ago I was thinking about the offset centerline if it only applied to the inline engine but how about a V-8? Then this video from above came out and laid it out perfectly the information that I was already wondering about. I think that it is fascinating that the leverage already be past a straight line to avoid that violent crash after the ignition goes off in that particular cylinder. Less wear on the connecting rod cap bearing side. Hello from TEXAS!

[@davidandrews4304]

Excellent careful work. Nice to see someone with a brain at work and even better that you are passing that on to your offspring

[@saltracer1]

my current project is a 8BA engine on a run stand. this block has no seats and I will leave it like that as the seats can come out under race conditions. Great video

[@russelblackwell6041]

What a magnificent intelligent gentleman there is so much involved in reconditioning an engine i am growing to love the Ford v8 flathead engine I'm use to the Cleveland's and Winsor's here in Australia loving your videos you learn something every day Sir

[@dcrahn]

I love the old Ford Flat Heads. Too bad it wasn't made with 5 main bearings. But it does have one advantage over other engines, the firing order. I know some are going to say BS. But it's a proven fact by one of the best engine builders in the country. Doing testing he found out on a lot of his race engines that the flat head firing order was easier on the bearings than the factory design order, it didn't change much on power but the bearing do last longer. My latest SBF engine build will have the flat head order. Another plus is the old Ford have the coolest sound over others. Do you think ol' Henry Ford knew something?

[@jmflournoy386]

there were German clones with 5 main bearings

[@redchevy3307]

I saw an old Lincoln with a V12 flat head in it, HotRod Lincoln, My dad used to drive a truck back in the 40's. They liked the Ford flat head V8 because they had more torque than the in line sixes. The flat head Ford was the hot rod motor back in the day until the small block Chevy showed up in '55.

[@1981FlyingV]

I’m kinda surprised you and Nick didn’t use your new lathe to make a valve guide insert the fit tight for the machining .

[@richardphelan8414]

The first engine I ever built in 1956 was a 59AB ford Block with a Merc Crank ,finned aluminum heads a lightened flywheel I fut down in machine shop in High school thanks for the walk down memory lane

[@Stormin06096]

Great content as always. My father let me help him rebuild a flattie in the mid 60s when i was 8 years old. I recently owned one in a 1950 Ford F-2 and it ran great. You barely cranked it over and it started.

[@powellmachineinc]

Yes, there are 2 different "bank angles " on flatheads, we have a early and later index plates it also correlates whether the cam is 1 gear or 2 gears..

[@davidbaldwin2729]

liked the video very much. I have a 8BA in my 1950 shoebox and it runs like a sewing machine with plenty of get up and go. many thanks from this 72 yr old Ford guy

[@billwentworth3108]

Loved this video. I really appreciate the the content that focuses on some of the odd and/or older stuff.

[@roderernst9990]

Yes ,sometimes,Have seen couple that ran that silently &with absolute no vibration, prewar sedans. Love your show.

[@Paul1958R]

What is the nominal/allowable interference fit between the seat and the block?

[@georgedreisch2662]

Back in the day, -70’s, I bought a second hand Sioux valve grinder and seat grinding equipment. Included, was a set of segmented bushing, looked kinda like little tailpipe expanders. Think they were made by Lesle. They inserted in the guide bores, on the applicable flathead, and were expanded by a tapered Sioux pilot. Y’all giving me flash backs… Also, the core plug holes also functioned as legs / supports for the inner cores during buildup of the cores for block casting, and kinda redundantly provided a place to get the sand out.

[@PCMenten]

Do you need to install the valve springs before you adjust the lifters? If you mount a dial indicator on the face of a valve and zero it, then adjust the lifter, it might be easier to install the springs afterward.

[@tetedur377]

Yeah, actually, I have heard of the Funk Brothers, and man, was that a blast from the past. In the late '70s, I went to Spartan School of Aeronautics in Tulsa, and at that time, the FAA still required training on dope & fabric repairs on airplanes, even though only private collectors even had airplanes that were made of cloth and wood in those days. That was the Funk Brother's era, though. That ended with the advent of WWII, actually. Aircraft dope is basically plasticized lacquer that was applied over fabric, and gave the fabric its stiffness. Imagine relying on a product like that to keep your airplane in the air.

[@jmflournoy386]

Piper cubs still had cloth and dope. Dad had one they sent to tech school in LA where the students striped bare and re painted frame with zinc chromate (now illegal in CA) and re seconited the wings they then put in a 140HP engine they got from a North American business plane that was a spare. Flew like a rock but really moved going from 85 to 140 hp

[@jayschroeder8091]

In the late 60 I work at a Ford Dealership. Had an Older Mechanic working next to me . Willis had been working in dealership since the late 30 s Willis told me if you got 40 to 50 thousand miles on a flathead you were lucky and needed an overhaul . And he could do one in a day and a half with No power Tools all by hand in the car

[@brentcox4561]

Rather than use the factory valve guide with wide tolerance you should have used the CNC lathe and copied the Suix taper guide with a hole to guide the Serti.

[@Randallshafer]

It is amazing to me that people would question your knowledge.

[@CAMCAM413]

thanks for the in depth history lesson and actual machine work on the Ford flathead 😊

[@notajp]

I would never have thought they would be using valve seat inserts back in the late forties! Learn something new every day, I guess….😮

[@jackpledger8118]

Hard to find a flathead block with no cracks, especially around the valve seats. That block really looks nice.

[@johnrebus1641]

The 1929 Oldsmobile Viking engine was actually the first monoblock V8 but wasn't a big seller, probably because it was fairly expensive & released just before America caused the big depression.

[@corneliusconijn881]

I have an original 1937, complete. Was going to go in a 1937 1-1/2 ton delivery van. Sold that project to a local gentleman who plans on going the LS route so I have no immediate plans for it. Would love to have you dive in for the knowledge it would bring.

[@notajp]

To me, it would be more unique with the flatty. The LS swap has been done to death….

[@oceannavagator]

It just illustrates how far we have come in terms of internal combustion engines, manufacturing and electronics. This engine was introduced just 30 year after the Wright Brothers flew their Wright flier.

[@jkonet1]

Did you make a video of the completed engine and initial starting? Your work is near perfection...

[@prinz10ga]

Great video. I truly enjoy your ingenuity in developing the correct fixtures you need with these old engine blocks. As a reminder, we should all recognize that the early technology and lack of precise technologies back then is so different than today’s. The valves"…. They were “ hand lapped” by a technician with abrasive compounds. To better understand these comments, go to posts from India, or Pakistan and see what they do to save engines….. and wonder how they ever function. Tolerances and standards change with progress of technology available.

[@rootbeer666]

That cylinder offset relative to the crank centerline is there to help get the connecting rod started in the right direction at TDC. Otherwise this is done with offset wrist pins. I've seen what happens to engines when that offset is wrong or flipped, they only run for a very short while.

[@MrJohnnaz]

Have you guys ever worked on any of the Ford split (two-piece) valve guides?

[@fsj197811]

Cool stuff and very interesting on the design. Thanks for sharing.

[@GaryH-pw9cm]

I had a rebuilt 255 Merc V8 flathead engine in a 50 Ford truck that was a daily driver from 1972 to 2005 and never had a problem with burnt valves or valve seats. Never even had the heads off the engine. It had chrome rings that took a long time to seat in. It ran just fine all those years. One problem was the crankshaft seals would leak and have to be replaced. Modern fuels would eat up the gaskets in the Mercury carb so had to replace them every year. Also 12 volts on the 6 volt starter worked great but would lock up the starter every now and then requiring a removal of the starter to unlock it. Get down and get under.

[@prestonmiller9552]

The Ford Y-Block overhead valve engine was introduced in 1954.So the flat head lasted for about 22 years. Stock car racers still used a lot of flat heads in the early 60's. Chevy didn't have a V-8 engine until 1955 no doubt due to competition with Ford.

[@oscarn8482]

In the 50’s the engine was sold and prodused until 1973 in France, i guess it was some military they was used for.

[@georgebettiol8338]

@@oscarn8482 The French Simca Vedette used a Ford flathead V8 - with a capacity of 2351 cc - ie. 143 ci.

[@JoeyToth-ti9tp]

We used to get them from the junkers in the 60’s and we would take the head off and add the yellow powder and check them with a magnet and most of them were junk. Also the 8n9n tractor were the same thing. They found a bunch of them in France as the used them in their armored tanks.

[@zorbakaput8537]

On my 51 Ford Custom 8Ba back in the day we made an interesting changeover by using Mercury exhaust manifolds to give us twin exhausts. The Ford 8Ba manifold system on the Custom was a single exhaust with a crossover that went across the front of the motor from one side of the block to the other. The Mercury manifolds were not a straight swap however as the staggered exhaust bolt pattern was diagonally mirrored and consequently had to make up adapter plates to take the two sets of bolt holes. Luckily back in those days there was a lot of scrap Duralium for the old aircraft and we scavenged enough half inch plate and it worked like a charm. The sandwiched Duralium plate never leaked or complained I guess because of the differential expansion rates in the materials. The old 8Ba breathed/revved a lot better than the other local v8s that ran the wheezy standard exhaust. I won't bother telling you how old I am LOL.

[@rayvreman2002]

I found this very informative. I was super impressed with the pen knife I was waiting for it to break the tip off but it went the distance

[@davidmcduffie1398]

I'm sure a lot of your viewers enjoyed this video and learned a lot. Mercury ( a Ford Motor Company Product ) Flathead engines were a little different than the Ford ones. Mercury ones had larger bores than the Ford ones and were highly sought after for racing because you could make more HP with them !

[@travisboggus]

Actually Mercurys had the same bore size but longer stroke crankshaft.

[@wyattcollins6755]

Theres and old timer around me that brings a 8n ford with a flat head v8 in it but not just any flat head, he calls it the reverse flow flat head where him and one of his buddies machined all the lobes off a cam got a bar and put set screws in each lobe so that the intake goes through the exhaust ports and exhaust goes out the intakes to prevent overheating

[@wyattcollins6755]

meant to say he brings it to all the local tractor shows

[@jamesmize9178]

How hard is the block material on those flatheads compared to say a 70s chevy block? Any noticeable difference?