Apologies for length.
With no rain, and no grass to cut, I thought take the time to replace the freeze plugs on my 8N '52. For a couple of years, well OK at least 5+, I'd been watching a couple of them weep worse & worse. Clearly they weren't going to fix themselves. So I researched this forum and other forums & clubs and Utube. Wow! What a wealth of knowledge out there. This post is a sort of Thank You to all those who have shared – and my amateur's thoughts & comments to add to the mix.
Begin:
NAPA part # 381-1021 Replace all 4. You know it makes sense.
Open the block drain (turn anticlock and the tube moves into the block, seems counter intuitive to me). If you're sensible you'll collect the fluid in a clean container – else, like me, you'll be buying new anti-freeze.
Remove (in order) Sump breather assy, but not the tube; Oil filter; Generator; block drain plug assy; AND definitely - the little tube that holds the dipstick. It's an interference fit – about 1" long - just work it out gently.
Mask off all the holes & open tubes to stop dirt and foreign objects going into the wrong places.
Removing the starter is an exercise in frustration and self control - but yes it does come out - without the need of prybars or the judicious application of a teensy bit of C-4!
Two things I'd add to starter removal is that you do NOT actually remove the two mounting bolts – just loosen them from the bell housing – and once the starter is loosened from the bell housing – then holding the starter and getting a nut onto that bolt to keep the armature in place (#36 in 50 tips) can need 3 hands – if help is available, use it! Once you've got that nut snugged down on the bolt then you're good to start to pull the starter free of the bell housing and start to wiggle & squiggle and search for the sweet spot where the bendix comes free. Ladies should now be out of earshot.
Removing the old plugs – some pretty much fell out (!) others I drilled a hole, inserted drywall screw and used a prybar.
Inside the block was scary. Enough dirt to grow potatoes – or hide Jimmy Hoffa. Maybe I should have inserted garden hose and flushed it, but I just picked out what I could.
Inserting new plugs – clean the seat, add a little bit of permatex to the seats, insert plug and clean off excess permatex – then - when you flatten the plug you can see the little bead of permatex squeezed out around the edges. I didn't have a ballpien – so I used a 4" carriage bolt, its got a nice rounded head and gives room to swing the hammer. I didn't know how much to flatten the plug. Answer – you'll know – when you see the permatex squeezed out.
Re-inserting starter – pretty much a reverse of removal – its all wiggle and squiggle and (expletives deleted) then when its all in except for the last half inch – then remove the (#36/50) nut and it'll slip into place.
Replace Geny, Oil, Drain, Dip & Breather. Fill w/ antifreeze.
End.
Historical note: Last time I did a freeze plug – was 45 years ago, in the Little Minch, Scotland, upside-down in the engine space of a small yacht – same Ford A series – using a British 1 penny coin and some JB-Weld.
That worked too.
Now – let it rain. Please.
With no rain, and no grass to cut, I thought take the time to replace the freeze plugs on my 8N '52. For a couple of years, well OK at least 5+, I'd been watching a couple of them weep worse & worse. Clearly they weren't going to fix themselves. So I researched this forum and other forums & clubs and Utube. Wow! What a wealth of knowledge out there. This post is a sort of Thank You to all those who have shared – and my amateur's thoughts & comments to add to the mix.
Begin:
NAPA part # 381-1021 Replace all 4. You know it makes sense.
Open the block drain (turn anticlock and the tube moves into the block, seems counter intuitive to me). If you're sensible you'll collect the fluid in a clean container – else, like me, you'll be buying new anti-freeze.
Remove (in order) Sump breather assy, but not the tube; Oil filter; Generator; block drain plug assy; AND definitely - the little tube that holds the dipstick. It's an interference fit – about 1" long - just work it out gently.
Mask off all the holes & open tubes to stop dirt and foreign objects going into the wrong places.
Removing the starter is an exercise in frustration and self control - but yes it does come out - without the need of prybars or the judicious application of a teensy bit of C-4!
Two things I'd add to starter removal is that you do NOT actually remove the two mounting bolts – just loosen them from the bell housing – and once the starter is loosened from the bell housing – then holding the starter and getting a nut onto that bolt to keep the armature in place (#36 in 50 tips) can need 3 hands – if help is available, use it! Once you've got that nut snugged down on the bolt then you're good to start to pull the starter free of the bell housing and start to wiggle & squiggle and search for the sweet spot where the bendix comes free. Ladies should now be out of earshot.
Removing the old plugs – some pretty much fell out (!) others I drilled a hole, inserted drywall screw and used a prybar.
Inside the block was scary. Enough dirt to grow potatoes – or hide Jimmy Hoffa. Maybe I should have inserted garden hose and flushed it, but I just picked out what I could.
Inserting new plugs – clean the seat, add a little bit of permatex to the seats, insert plug and clean off excess permatex – then - when you flatten the plug you can see the little bead of permatex squeezed out around the edges. I didn't have a ballpien – so I used a 4" carriage bolt, its got a nice rounded head and gives room to swing the hammer. I didn't know how much to flatten the plug. Answer – you'll know – when you see the permatex squeezed out.
Re-inserting starter – pretty much a reverse of removal – its all wiggle and squiggle and (expletives deleted) then when its all in except for the last half inch – then remove the (#36/50) nut and it'll slip into place.
Replace Geny, Oil, Drain, Dip & Breather. Fill w/ antifreeze.
End.
Historical note: Last time I did a freeze plug – was 45 years ago, in the Little Minch, Scotland, upside-down in the engine space of a small yacht – same Ford A series – using a British 1 penny coin and some JB-Weld.
That worked too.
Now – let it rain. Please.
