You are on the right track. Fresh oil, run it until thoroughly warm,
drain the oil hot, then replace with new oil. Pull the plugs. Squirts
some oil in each cylinder. Crank it one more time to get the new oil
distributed then pull the motor.
Some people tape the openings. This isn't a bad idea if you live in a
damp climate or if your garage/ storage area had condensation
occasionally. Flyers who store airplane engines for long periods buy
dessicant spark plugs. These are neat devices and will protect your
bores better but the above precautions should be sufficient. I wouldn't
worry that much about your valve springs although, if you don't tape the
openings, closing all valves will help protect the cylinders. Your
rings are much more likely to lose tension over time anyway and you
won't be removing them. Personally I think keeping the engine in one
piece offers more value than trying to save the valve springs. This is
from someone who has lost his fair share of items put away for safe
keeping.
One thing I would do if you weren't planning on it would be to remove
the clutch. If the disk sticks to the flywheel and pressure plate it
could be ugly.
If you are really hard core, you could buy a large dessicant canister
from someone like McMaster Carr (http://www.mcmaster.com/)- 10 lb
canister for 35 bucks. Heat this in your oven (send SWMBO on an errand
first, they kinda stink) to dry it then throw it and the engine in a
heavy, tightly sealed plastic bag like a body bag although I would have
no clue where to find one. I don't think that a standard garbage bad
is tough enough. You may want to repeat the drying process every year
of so just to be sure. Never bag an engine without dessicant. I am
dealing with a Jag block that was bagged after prep and it has surface
rust everywhere.
On the other hand, I have started engines in old cars that have sat
outside for 20 year and, other than weak rings, they have run fine. I
have also had a motorcycle engine freeze solid after spending one winter
in a shed so who knows. The more you do, the better the odds.
Regards,
Bill Eastman
61 MGA driver
58 Jaguar project
A Morgan is next on the list
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