Dave-
First question is what do you expect from the engine on its
completion? If you are just trying to get it to run, ( with a strong
emphasis on "good enough") you might try a few days soak with PB
Blaster/WD40/CRC etc.. it may free up, unless the lack of movement is
caused by a crank bearing (etc.) fault. If you are looking to build a nice
motor, chances are the pistons and liners are toast and can be removed by
any means you choose. No point in carefully removing scrap parts. If the
motor sat for any length of time with water in a cyl, there will probably be
bore damage, repairable with a rebore of the liners and a new piston set.
Reboring liners is expensive because of the machine shop setup time, and
will require oversize pistons. ( foolish economy). Best bet is to buy the
87mm piston/liner kit, have the crank reground, and be sure to balance the
whole motor. Of course if the objective is just to get the motor to run,
be prepared for 'sewing machine' noises, oil consumption, a bit less power,
etc. These engines will run even when in remarkably worn condition. I
rebuilt one a while ago that had 230,000 original miles, it had pretty good
power (although consuming about 1 qt oil @ 200 miles) even though there were
pieces of the pistons missing that were almost the size of your finger.
(Rings? what rings!)
It is probably worth the pain to do it right the first time, as
there are few things worse than starting up a motor you invested a lot of
time in and discovering just how worn those 'good lookin' rod journals
actually are.
Have fun
Bob Westerdale
59 3A TS36967E
Dave wrote-
I am about to venture into the great unknown of a TR3a. The first thing I
am going to take on is freeing up a seized block. Has anyone had experience
with this? From all appearances the liners look okay and may simply need a
good cleaning. But I can not make a judgement call until I can get the
pistons moving and check the bottom part.
The block is going out to be boiled clean at a local repair shop so that
will get 98% of the grim off. The question I have is how to get the pistons
free? The two suggestions I have so far is to use a large can of WD-40 and
fill the top of the pistons. Allow it soak. The other fluid that had been
suggested is diesel and again fill the piston. In both case then take a
block of wood and large sledge and swift whack to each piston.
Any suggestions here, or is it a case of brut force and blind ignorance?
As always
thanks and regards
David A. Templeton
Open Text Corp.
Waterloo, ON
Canada
WebSite: http://trandmustang.homestead.com
'74 Triumph SpitSix
'66 Ford Mustang (Wife's)
'59 Triumph TR3a (Project)
'99 GMC Safari
'95 GMC K2500 Sierra
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