1949 Straight-Six engine ?s

[Stephanie]

Hey

So, Phil was tearing down the engine this afternoon and realized that it appears to have already been rebuilt. The cam gear has already been upgraded from the fiber wheel, the pistons look great, and he suspects it maybe already converted to full pressure. He has a few questions for those that have worked on these engines:

1. When should he stop tearing it down? Should he break it completely down and clean it all? Or is there a point where if he continues, he will start doing more harm than good?

2. How does he know, for sure, whether it is full pressure oiling or not?

3. Is there a good way to tell if things do not require to be rebuilt? (ex: cam shaft bearing, crank bearings, etc.)


Thank you so much for any help you can send our way

[coralhead]

Take the engine down completely and have the block and head checked out at a local machine shop. The crank will need to be checked for score lines(wear) and they can determine if it needs to be reground or not. The head needs to have the valves worked and have hardened valve seats installed if not already in there. (For todays unleaded gas). Pistons may still be good but new rings should be installed since it is down this far. The cam bearings will need to be checked as well for wear. Oil pump will need to be inspected also. Checking the engine and block numbers can help in determining the year of the engine. My opinion is that if you got it apart check it all out and fix any problems that you have. You will then have essentially a new engine in Chester. Forgot, put in new main and rod bearings as well. The size is determined on what your crankshaft measures at the journals.(bearing points)

[coralhead]

After looking at the pictures from your build thread you have a 216 ci babbit pounder. These engines need to have special rod bearings (babbit) poured into the connecting rods for the bearing surfaces. The little sheet metal "Dippers" on the bottom of the connecting rod caps deliver oil to the bearings. I suggest you get a manual for this engine or perhaps find a doner 235 ci replacement with full pressure oil. The 216 is a bit trickier to rebuild at home if expierience is little on the 216. Hope this helps and am not trying to discourage. If it has been rebuilt before you may be ok but have it all checked out before you put it back together. Also go to the Stovebolt website. These guys are all about putting the old engines back in shape.

One important thing. Check your title to make sure the VIN number is used on the title and not the engine number. If the engine number is used you may have to work around that.

[mknittle]

Originally Posted by Stephanie

Hey

So, Phil was tearing down the engine this afternoon and realized that it appears to have already been rebuilt. The cam gear has already been upgraded from the fiber wheel, the pistons look great, and he suspects it maybe already converted to full pressure. He has a few questions for those that have worked on these engines:

1. When should he stop tearing it down? Should he break it completely down and clean it all? Or is there a point where if he continues, he will start doing more harm than good?

2. How does he know, for sure, whether it is full pressure oiling or not?

3. Is there a good way to tell if things do not require to be rebuilt? (ex: cam shaft bearing, crank bearings, etc.)


Thank you so much for any help you can send our way

1. When should he stop tearing it down? when it is Miller time.

2. and 3. What coralhead said. If there are "dippers " on the bottom end of the connecting rods the lower end isn't pressureised

[Stephanie]

Thanks so much, both of you, for the advice!
Haha!! Thanks mknittle for the laugh and advice on Miller time ;P
I'll head over to stove bolt and see what other advice I can find out and hopefully Phil will finally buy that engine manual that I have been bugging him about for weeks :P

[sweet70beast]

You definitely have a dipper motor, the easiest way to tell with out having to take the pan off is a plate that is bolted to the side of the block under where the intake/exhaust manifolds go. Your motor has this plate, post 39 picture 3 of your built thread shows the plate. When it comes to these engines it is up to you what you want to do, most people get rid of them and up grade to a full oil pressure 235. 54 and up 235's look different than the earlier 6's so they are easy to spot. In 1953 Chevy did offer a full pressure 235 in their cars that came equipped with a powerglide transmission. These engines look just like the early 6's but don't have that plate that I was talking about earlier. This is the engine that I have in my 50 pickup. These are hard to find and a lot of people want these because they look like the early 6's but they have the advantage of full pressure oiling.
I can't seem to find the website that goes into better detail but these are some good reading.


http://enginefacts.com/chevrolet216.php
http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/models/engine.htm
http://www.inliners.org/becks/BCN2.html