Y-BlocksForever Forum / Y-BlocksForever! Forums 2006 / Technical

Stripped Self tapping screw in T-Bird dash

slumlord444 — Wed, 16 May 2012 21:30:27 GMT

One of the screws that holds the chrome trim that holds the dash pad over the instrument cluster stripped out. I think it is a #8 screw. Don't want to go to the next larger screw. Thought about drilling it out for a small plastic screw anchor and glueing it in. Metal is 1/16 to 1/8 thick. For some reason my brain is not coming up with another option today. Better way to fix it?

possible engine swap

Bigfoot5 — Thu, 17 May 2012 09:57:13 GMT

well im gonna get the block/ crank looked at but is its bad i was wondering is tere another engine that'll bolt stright onto the ford transmission and engine mounts. its a 55 ford fairlane?

Y-Block Crank Rotation???

Red55Bird — Sun, 06 May 2012 17:21:20 GMT

Hello

Newbie here.

So, hoping some of the Y-Block folks can help me out......before I go batty :). Working on a 55 Thunderbird that has a 272 in it. This is not the original engine. It's my Dad's, owned since 63 and has been in storage in our basement since 1969 November! Engine has probably less than 5K miles on it and obviously did run.

Anyway, Saturday nite after months and months and many hours we set out to fire it. After pre oiling rockers we cranked it and all is well. Due to a faulty NEW fuel pump.......needless to say we were unable to actually start it. However, what is driving me NUTS is crank rotation. On these engines, standing at the FRONT of the vehicle looking at the crank pulley........which way is it supposed to rotate?? Dug through our manuals and couldn't find much other than distributor rotation (viewed from top) should rotate counter clockwise of which it does. However, looking at front of engine.........it is rotating clockwise as you crank. Hoping someone can 100% tell me, "yep.......car/truck y-block crank rotation is clockwise" :P:

Look very forward to some reassuring words.

Thank you! BILL

Swapping Out Manifold and Carb

fireball14513 — Tue, 15 May 2012 04:53:24 GMT

Hi I was wondering what would be the best choice to replace my old Ford 2 barrel EBU carb and manifold with? Im looking to go to 2 barrel or 4 barrel with electric choke...Im trying to make this a little easier for the wife to drive. Any suggestions would be great. :unsure:

Fordomatic Overhaul Time

ChrisnLouie — Wed, 16 May 2012 19:55:46 GMT

Hi Folks, yes it's overhaul time for our Fordomatic (in 312 pwrd '56 Merc), can anyone advise me if there are any kits or similar available that will "smarten up" the performance of the std FOM?. Also, I figured that while we have the trans out it would be prudent to upgrade or modify the Torque Converter to a higher stall spec. as we intend to warm up the cam in the future.Is there a suitable alternative that will fit or is modification of the stock TqC the way to go?.

We appreciate any help, cheers Louie & Chris N.Z.

Is it a 312 or 292??

Nighthawk756 — Thu, 10 May 2012 07:29:38 GMT

I have a 56 Ford F100 that I bought with no engine. I wanted to get the best y block I could find locally to rebuild and put in it. So that leads me to today....there's a vintage/classic junkyard close to me that I wondered around today and I have a question about what I'm buying from him.

He had a y block that was already out but using the handy tech info that I printed out from Y Block Guy's site before I went, the casting numbers showed it was a 272. So I moved on....he had (what he said was)a 1956 Ford Club Sedan with the y block still in it. I popped the hood and noticed it had a 4 barrel on it. I then noticed it had Thunderbird badges on the front fenders.

What can you tell me about that engine? 292 or 312? My friend seems to think there's a good chance it could be a 312 but I'm thinking it's just a 292 for a couple of reasons....the casting number by the distributor is EDB with what looks like 17 above it. Also, I found a website that showed the "thunderbird" model sedans had 292's with holley 4 barrels. And I realize the only true way to tell is pulling it and checking out the crank flange or mains. I just know you guys are the gurus and might know if they ever put 312's in these cars or not.

Also, the data plate was missing so no way to tell so far exactly what year the car is.

I really appreciate anything anyone can tell me....it would be
fantastic if it's a 312 but I'll be almost as happy if it isn't. I just need to
find a set of G heads, good cam and headers to slap on it!!

Although, if I go with Mummert's site, it says that an EDB # if cast at Dearborn is a '57. So that means I might already have G heads right? :w00t:

Machinist asked a question I need help with

Missouri Mike — Tue, 15 May 2012 20:12:41 GMT

Hi Y guys-

My machinist asked me today what or how much the offset amount was to be ground off my crank??

I had told him it was to be offset ground to 2.1000" and I know the stock rod journal is 2.1880"-2.1888" per JM's tech info, sooo, does he mean the difference between the stock rod journal and the offset ???? ( If my math is correct that would be 0.0880"-0.0888") Or does he mean something that is completely over my head??

I did a search but couldn't find anything that got me out of the "DUH" phase. I did learn that a 3..52" stroke with a 2.1000" rod journal has an overlap of 0.602".

Any help and/or clarification would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance

Mike

Luck is fine but right now I need knowledge!!!!

272 rebuild kit

Bigfoot5 — Sun, 13 May 2012 15:51:06 GMT

anyone know where and how much a rebuild kit for my 272. after pulling it apart needs pretty much total rebuild.

What to do with a 272

poppyblue — Mon, 14 May 2012 16:53:44 GMT

I have aquired a complete y-block.From carb to oil pan. From fan to flywheel. and it rotates. Block # is ECG-6015-C, heads are ECZ-C, Rockers are ecg 6564-A. I am assuming it is stock 272 from a truck. It has a front motor mount. It is yellow with silver valve covers. Plans are to bore to 292 or maybe 30 over, a mild to medium cam for street, dual exhaust. i am looking for a four barrell intake to replace the one I threw away 20 yrs ago when I thought I would never have use for it. Any input as to what I should do or use to have a decent street cruiser. It will go into a fairlane so I know I will have to change the oil pan and timing cover. also I'm thinking of an AOD

4100 carb

stuey — Sun, 13 May 2012 06:28:45 GMT

hi folks

need a bit of help please what is the lever with the horizontal screw for?

also there is a threaded port to one side and below the fuel inlet that leads to a pin sized hole just below one of the primary throttle blades is this the vacuum signal for the distributor? would that be ported or otherwise?

many thanks for any help

stuey

England

One freeze plug is a different size?!

matt2491 — Sun, 13 May 2012 20:50:31 GMT

What's up with my 292 having one freeze plug that is a different size than the other three? I know the normal size is 1 3/4" but here I have a hole asking for a 2 3/32" plug?! Anybody else ever come across a yblock with different size plugs or is it just my block? Its the driver's side front hole by the way.

AOD Conversion Driveshaft yoke

jcacciag — Fri, 11 May 2012 06:54:07 GMT

I am in the process of collecting parts for a AOD conversion into a 57bird that had a 3 speed curise o mate conversion done many years ago and was wondering if the yoke from a cruise o matic is OK to use with the AOD trans. It slides in and seems to fit OK but still concerned if it is alright to use. Has any one done the conversion and can give me a heads up on what to expect.

Need cam brg and paint info for early 239 54 Ford engine

Dennis K. — Fri, 11 May 2012 10:45:41 GMT

Helping a friend of mine on an EARLY 239 54 Ford engine that has the 2.05" diam cam journals. Note, the later 239/272/292 cam has a 1.926" journal diam

Does anyone have a source for the cam bearings, either Ford or aftermarket? If not, a Ford part number for the 6A251 Camshaft Bearings Kit or the 626_ individual brg part numbers, or aftermarket part numbers, even if obsolete. The part numbers do not appear in my 49 - 59 Ford Parts Book, 1964 edition.

Also need to know the correct exterior colors and paint source for the engine block, pan, and rocker covers. Engine now has red rocker covers and maybe some yellow? on bell housing.

Thank you.

Regards,

Dennis

'57 T-Bird Dash Pad Instalation

slumlord444 — Wed, 09 May 2012 19:31:23 GMT

Anyone done one recently? Last time I did this was '73 with a factory pad. Repo does not seem to fit as well. Having problem with the bottom of the eyebrow over the guage pannel. I don't remember pulling the guage panel the last time but the new pad has excess material in this area and I am afraid to try to trim it to fit. Looks like the only safe way to do it is to pull the guage pannel and run the excess material under the panel. Also seems to be excess padding in this area.

Lower Control Arm bushings

lyonroad — Wed, 09 May 2012 19:44:18 GMT

I am in the middle of installing new control arm bushings on the '55 Ford Fairlane. When I removed the arms from the car both lower bushings had been pressed in from the inside of the arm - rears pressed towards the rear of the car and the fronts pressed towards the front of the car. The parts catalog illustrations show it this way and OldCarMark's manual (he has been a tremendous help to me on this) show it this way as well. My '55 shop manual says "On Thunderbirds, the front bushing is pressed in from the inside of the lower front leg. On all other cars, the front bushing is pressed in from the outside of the leg." OldCarMark says his manual says nothing about the Thunderbirds and other cars being different. Has anybody come across this?

Also I am having some difficulty determining how far to press the new bushings in. The bushings that I purchased have poorly defined shoulders and it is impossible to tell when they have been pressed in the right amount. Is there a distance i could measure as i am sur this would have a bearing on the alignment.

Thanks for your help.

312 thunderbird y block , stock power steering pump pressure

Phantom '58 — Wed, 09 May 2012 11:50:21 GMT

does anyone know what the pressure of a stock 312 1957 y block power steering pump produces? I believe I have a mid eighty's truck dodge steering box and wanted to know if that would work together. I say it would but someone told me that it wouldn't.

180˚ Thermostat question

Nat Santamaria — Tue, 01 May 2012 09:19:14 GMT

I just installed a Mr Gasket 180˚ High flow thermostat. I checked in a pot of water to make sure it was opening at the right temp. It worked perfectly.
I am finding however that the car runs at a cooler temperature than it did with my 170˚in the same outdoor temperature (170˚ also a high flow) . The engine barely gets up to 1/2 way on the temp gauge. It takes forever for the car to get up the operating temp. Its still cool here in Canada but relative to my 170˚ the car runs way cooler. I thought the 180˚ was to get the car to warm up more quickly and run at 180 minimum.

any thoughts

Thanks

PLEASE HELP CAR DONT START

Bigfoot5 — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 09:49:37 GMT

Hay i own a 55 ford fairlane with 272 engine. i cant seem to get it ti start iv had the timing looked at and starter look at all is good. its the original 6v system. it sounds like it turning a little slow but i dont kno. i did check the silinoid and its only getting 5.3v of power i dont kno if thats it or not. i do put it in neutral. if anyone has an idea please help. if someone thinks they might be able to help me i live near ft. bragg, Nc. i would like to drive this car before i deploy to afganistan in may

56 Merc Tail Lights

Town Vicky — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 20:34:25 GMT

Does anyone know if 1956 Merc. tail lights will fit a 56 Customline?

Town Vicky

Head problems

scott5560 — Tue, 08 May 2012 04:02:37 GMT

Motor back in truck and number 6 filled with water GREAT. Thinkin ready to start lol merry christmas GRRRR. After spending $700 on heads. They are ECZ-C heads which I roughly measured at 72cc so stock? Had 0.040" taken off to up comp. And now this. Can this be repaired? Welding? Is this a fluke? Its right at the edge of the firing ring. Or is 0.040 to much for C heads?

Pilot bearing

ejstith — Tue, 08 May 2012 18:22:27 GMT

Is the pilot bearing the same on all Y-blocks?

bell crank

55vickey — Tue, 08 May 2012 10:02:18 GMT

I'm switching from auto to manual shift on my 55 Vickey, will the bell crank with the auto kickdown work on the engine or will I have to find another throttle assy., thanx, Gary

Think I have an Exhaust leak???

Apache — Tue, 08 May 2012 09:00:28 GMT

I've done some searching, to no real avail. The problem I'm having is on m 57' Fairlane, when I'm cruising under acceleration it sounds like a lifter tapping or an exhaust leak (More like an exhaust leak). While parked and slow revving I hear nothing from the exhaust. But one thing I noticed is there is air coming through the back left (Driver) side of the intake manifold. There's a little hole roughly 1/4" coming out of the intake manifold and is pushing out air. I'm thinking this may be what it is. I highly doubt Ford made a hole in the side of there 4 barrel intake manifold just for kicks and giggles.

I'm trying to find a picture to show you guys what I'm talking about :-/

Anyone have any idea what I'm talking about?

Water cut Copper Head Gaskets

Hollow Head — Thu, 03 May 2012 10:03:56 GMT

We did an order about water cut copper head gaskets awhile ago to local shop and now I have the first set ready. If someone is interested about similar items, we can deliver. Those are straight 0.039 inch thick plates and must be assembled with PERMATEX 80697 or other similar glue on both sides.

From the left: Old used gasket, two new copper items and a wooden trial gasket to see that all holes were in right places and right sizes.

And, as I have the necessary file to make those, thickness of the plates can be choosen for your needs to lower or increase compression.

292 vs. 312 fuel pump

idaho211 — Mon, 07 May 2012 17:09:47 GMT

Rebuilding a 312 for my 60 ford truck. Wondering about fuel pumps. Would a stock truck fuel pump for a 292 be adequate for a 312 4 barrel?

Pinion Seal Questions

easyissy — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 14:44:14 GMT

I'm trying to fix a leak I have on my 9" rear end. I'm trying to replace the
pinion seal but it seems I need some special slide hammer tool to remove it.

Is there any way to remove the seal without this special tool?

I also noticed some wear on the area where the seal contacts. Should this
piece be replaced to remedy my leak as well?

Push rod lenghts

jcacciag — Fri, 04 May 2012 05:12:54 GMT

What is the proper length supposed to be for push rods.
I have some out of a 292 (1959) that are 8.129 inch (new style rockers) I just checked the ones out of a 312 I am rebuilding with old style rockers and they measure 8.225 inch. I would like to use the push rods and rockers out of the 292 because I know they have less mileage on them. I cannot find any info on the longer rods. Can I still use then with newer style rockers. Also, Under the 312 rocker arm base are Diamondish shaped stampings not in the 292. Are they for oil direction and is that why there is a length difference. Do I need them?

Torque to turn fresh rebuit engine

jcacciag — Fri, 04 May 2012 07:20:26 GMT

Putting the finishing touches on a rebuilt 312 bored .060 over but else everything is stock. Just wondering what is the expected torque to turn the engine over in the rebuild stand. Seems a little tight when I adjusted the valves on the test stand. No spark plugs in holes. Is there a torque spec. for this.

Joe C

Dearborn Mi.

3X'sretired

Live and Learn

Jim Rowe — Sat, 05 May 2012 08:05:36 GMT

After having my current 312 balanced i still noticed a drive line vibration. So checked the pinion angle, it was 3 degrees. Had the drive shaft balanced and straightened. Still had a vibration????. i had installed AC and was having problems with getting a belt the right size. I then installed a idler pulley from a 5.8L ford engine. Fit like a glove found a longer belt and working great now. I know sounds off topic, however while watching the idler and belt I observed the balancer weight moving back and forward on the dampener. The ring was actually moving rearward and rubbing on the oil pan. Several years ago I purchased a new harmonic balancer from John Mummert, and now was the time to install.
Viola!! no more vibration. It is so SMOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTH. Keep and Eye on those old balancer's.

Jim

six blade fan

55vickey — Fri, 04 May 2012 15:11:01 GMT

Summit has a 6 blade rigid fan, it's listed as race application, any reason why it can't be used on my 55 Vickie with a 272 and stock radiator? Thanx, Gary

239 crank pulley on a 292?

y not — Wed, 02 May 2012 14:21:11 GMT

Would there be any adverse effects of swapping the 292 damper for a 239 crank pulley? I need to keep the high mount fan in my '55 F250.

Thank you.

Water leak

yblock55 — Wed, 02 May 2012 14:44:52 GMT

Hello.
I am a little worried to ask this question. I have a water leak on the lower bolt on the generator bracket. I have removed the bolt and the water is streaming out off the screw hole. I have a picture if someone want to see. I do not hope there is a crack there, the engine was rebuild last year. I have put alot off money into this baby, and hope anyone one have some good news. But i fear this will be my nightmare for some months.

Regards
Robin Norway

edelbrock 94 carb

Bigfoot5 — Wed, 02 May 2012 16:10:56 GMT

anyone know about this carb, my ford has what i think is the old holly on it but it might need to be replace (screw nolonger tightens think its stripped) but would like to keep the look. or is there another carbthat might better any input?

Flywheel minimum thickness

Rono — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 11:33:40 GMT

Hi Guys;

Just picked up my flywheel from the machine shop and while they were able to "clean-up" the clutch surface, I only have about 0.175" thickness above the ring gear. Is there a ball park figure for a minimum thickness here? Also, I had the ring gear flipped while it was at the shop, but as you can see in the picture, it is so badly pitted, the starter gear may miss a tooth or two if it stops on a bad spot. AND THIS WAS THE BETTER SIDE:w00t:Rono

Holley 2 bbl rebuild input requested...

texasmark1 — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 12:28:14 GMT

In the interest of time and money and mostly for the experience of doing it together, Daniel and I may tackle rebuilding his Holley 2 bbl (probably a 2300? model). There's no tag afixed to it and the only numbers I can find are:

3174

List 2228

3160570

6R-1344-B

any suggestions/warnings we should consider?

thanks,Mark

compression readings

sc63uni — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 19:56:16 GMT

compression readings from #1 and 2 and 5-8-were 200-202-200-195-200-197. did not check 3 and 4 as they are kind of a pain to get to and my starter sounds as if it is going out. it is usually not a problem as i only have to bump it to start the truck, but it was having trouble with the 5 or so cranks req for test and after seeing other readings i kinda assumed....

i also recalled the guy that had the motor said " it tested pretty even at around 195" seemed high at the time so i did nt really trust his test but when i got about the same thing... maybe so

anyway i was trying to detemine if i should rebuild heads( i have an extra set and kinda assumed the ones on engine would not have hardened seats and condition probably questionable) i have a slight knock on upper end of driverside. you can feel it on the valve cover but not on head or block. Passenger side sounds fine. rocker assembly looks ok and after i adjusted valves, the knock went away.... til i revved it..... then came right back.

i was checking compression to see if it would tell me if lower end of motor was in good enough condition to go to expense of head rebuild ( if thats possible) and i was curious anyway to what they may read.

any body have any input or suggestions for other tests? do those compression readings seem normal? high? good?

thank you for any feedback

How does a 57 horn work?

Apache — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 16:57:00 GMT

I have a 57 fairlane (There's a universal wiring harness installed). I've used a voltage tester on the relay and the only thing that's not working is the horn switch itself. I've even taken the steering wheel off, and I can't find where the switch is to the steering wheel. I assume it's the button in the center, but where can i get into the wiring for it? Very curious how the stock set up is, I'm hoping i can retain the horn ring and not have to use an auxiliary horn button. :-/

Thanks in advance for everyone's help.

Timing max question

PF Arcand — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 17:56:33 GMT

Further to earlier questions about Dwell variations. With intial timing set at 8* & with vacuum connected, my timing light appears to indicate that at around 2200-2500 there is about 38-39 degrees total advance. ( I had to put additional estimated marks on the damper with soapstone, for past 30 degrees) Is this likely too much total with "C" heads on a 312 auto, using 87 octane fuel? Unfortunately, I'm somewhat hard of hearing, so if it's pinging, I'm not hearing it? Thanks.

Optimal Ignition system

Fred — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 11:03:31 GMT

Does anyone know of an optimal timing system for street and highway usage with the goal of achieving the highest mileage possible?

I would think it would include a knock sensor and various other sensors to real time determine how far to advance the timing.

Any suggestions

Fred

CLUTCH LINKAGE TO LEFT EXHAUST MANIFOLD CLEARANCE PROBLEM

alanfreeman — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 18:02:43 GMT

I am putting together a '54 Mercury with a '61 292 Y-Block and '54 overdrive transmission. The engine and transmission are installed. I am trying to use the stock '54 Mercury clutch linkage. I have the correct '54 Mercury left side accessory dual exhaust manifold Part # EBU 9431-D on the engine. I attempted to install the clutch linkage assembly but the flat crossbar which goes between the linkage bracket on top of the frame and the engine bracket (which hold the swivel ball) ends up going right across the center of the lower exhaust manifold flange. It would be impossible to mount the header pipe onto the manifold flange with this interference. Has anyone ever put dual exhaust on a '54 Mercury with manual transmission? Was the clutch linkage a problem? Thanks, Alan S. Freeman