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Belgian 1955 Cadillac restoration

Started by LayEmLow, June 19, 2017, 01:49:12 PM

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LayEmLow

Quote from: goofyhb on August 04, 2017, 12:19:56 PM
Hello,
I agree with Bruce. From my experience the cylinder gives a bit too much room for the piston. The bore is no longer perfectly round.  The dark part at the top of the cylinder is burned oil which got past the piston rings or valve stem seals. So you need to check what made the marks. At this time it would be good to measure piston and cylinder for wear. My cylinders were so used you could have installed 1. oversize pistons without machining.

After you assembled the engine:
Best is to take off the valve covers and turn the engine by hand with plugs out. See that all valves are moving. You can also check if the push rods of a cylinder in firing position (valves closed) are moving freely.
When you try to start the engine, take off the power from the coil and crank the engine on the starter until the oil pressure is okay. Then see how long it takes until it comes on again. If this takes 5-10 seconds you crank it again until the light comes off, connect the power to the coil and start the engine.

Axel

Damn... and i tought the cylinder walls looked pretty good because of the lack of edge. Quess i'm wrong then.

Thank you so much for the info guys , i'll need to figure out if i can afford a rebuild now.

Greetings from your Belgian friend.
Maarten Robaert

1955 Cadillac Fleetwood
1964 Chevrolet Impala
1962 Vw Beetle
1968 Vw Bus T2A

The Tassie Devil(le)

The biggest thing is to find out what caused the mark.

If it only goes down a short distance, then something has fallen down from the top, and got caught, and eventually went out through the exhaust port, if nothing is there.

Is there any corresponding damage to the cylinder head?

With the groove where it is, when the piston is at its highest, there will be a sudden loss of compression down through the groove, past the rings, thereby pressurising the sump, more than it was intended to be.

Is there any ridge around the top of the cylinder wall?   And, what is the rest of the bores like?

If you don't know much about engines, I would be recommending you get someone nearby to you that does, to have a look before going any further.  Did you manage to do a compression check before pulling the heads?   I suppose with the stuck valves, you didn't have much need for a compression check.   Plus, you need to investigate the reason for the valves sticking.

Bruce. >:D
'72 Eldorado Convertible (LHD)
'70 Ranchero Squire (RHD)
'74 Chris Craft Gull Wing (SH)
'02 VX Series II Holden Commodore SS Sedan
(Past President Modified Chapter)

Past Cars of significance - to me
1935 Ford 3 Window Coupe
1936 Ford 5 Window Coupe
1937 Chevrolet Sports Coupe
1955 Chevrolet Convertible
1959 Ford Fairlane Ranch Wagon
1960 Cadillac CDV
1972 Cadillac Eldorado Coupe

LayEmLow

Quote from: The Tassie Devil(le) on August 05, 2017, 07:18:31 AM
The biggest thing is to find out what caused the mark.

If it only goes down a short distance, then something has fallen down from the top, and got caught, and eventually went out through the exhaust port, if nothing is there.

Is there any corresponding damage to the cylinder head?

With the groove where it is, when the piston is at its highest, there will be a sudden loss of compression down through the groove, past the rings, thereby pressurising the sump, more than it was intended to be.

Is there any ridge around the top of the cylinder wall?   And, what is the rest of the bores like?

If you don't know much about engines, I would be recommending you get someone nearby to you that does, to have a look before going any further.  Did you manage to do a compression check before pulling the heads?   I suppose with the stuck valves, you didn't have much need for a compression check.   Plus, you need to investigate the reason for the valves sticking.

Bruce. >:D

Thanks for the info!

I'm 90% sure it's because something fell into the bore.
The scratch is only really bad on top of the bore.
My fingernail catches on the first 1/4 inch of scratch , after that i just feel a little uneven spot.

There is no damage to the cylinder heads...
And almost no carbon build up.
Which i think is weird because it clearly burned oil.
There is no ridge around the top of the cylinder wall.
And all the other bores look great. No rust , no scratches, no edges, as good as they could be. Engine has only 80k miles.

I'm a self-taugth mechanic so little experience with engine rebuilds etc...

The other valves were rusted stuck.
Thank you for the info guys.


Greetings from your Belgian friend.
Maarten Robaert

1955 Cadillac Fleetwood
1964 Chevrolet Impala
1962 Vw Beetle
1968 Vw Bus T2A

The Tassie Devil(le)

Sounds like you could get away with a complete head job and simply put up with the slight imperfection in that bore.

BUT, when it is rebuilt, do a compression check, and then again each year, or after every 5,000 Kilometres in your case, and see if anything is differing.

Sometimes, we just have to do things to keep things running, and enjoy.

Bruce. >:D
'72 Eldorado Convertible (LHD)
'70 Ranchero Squire (RHD)
'74 Chris Craft Gull Wing (SH)
'02 VX Series II Holden Commodore SS Sedan
(Past President Modified Chapter)

Past Cars of significance - to me
1935 Ford 3 Window Coupe
1936 Ford 5 Window Coupe
1937 Chevrolet Sports Coupe
1955 Chevrolet Convertible
1959 Ford Fairlane Ranch Wagon
1960 Cadillac CDV
1972 Cadillac Eldorado Coupe

Jeff Rosansky CLC #28373

I was wondering where this thread had gone and I just found it.
Fantastic job of getting the head off. Please post what trucks you used on the head bolts to get them free.
Are you going to have the heads redone? Probably just carbon buildup in the valve guides caused them to stick. When back running put a bit of ml Marvel's in the oil and that helps. We use that on the plane to cure "morning sickness".... first start of the day is rough for a few seconds because the valves are sluggish. Marvel's in the oil helps.
As for the oil pressure, pull the switch and soak the business end in anything you want. It is probably just stuck in the position it was for all those years-no pressure/light on. It may free up when soaked.
Jeff
Jeff Rosansky
CLC #28373
1970 Coupe DeVille (Big Red)
1955 Series 62 (Baby Blue)
Dad's new 1979 Coupe DeVille

LayEmLow

Quote from: The Tassie Devil(le) on August 05, 2017, 07:28:17 PM
Sounds like you could get away with a complete head job and simply put up with the slight imperfection in that bore.

BUT, when it is rebuilt, do a compression check, and then again each year, or after every 5,000 Kilometres in your case, and see if anything is differing.

Sometimes, we just have to do things to keep things running, and enjoy.

Bruce. >:D

I'll eventually rebuild the engine , but now i have other priorities in my life that require $$$.
Just want to get her running and enjoy her while i do the bodywork.

Thanks for the info !

Quote from: Jeff Rose                                         CLC #28373 on August 15, 2017, 10:31:35 PM
I was wondering where this thread had gone and I just found it.
Fantastic job of getting the head off. Please post what trucks you used on the head bolts to get them free.
Are you going to have the heads redone? Probably just carbon buildup in the valve guides caused them to stick. When back running put a bit of ml Marvel's in the oil and that helps. We use that on the plane to cure "morning sickness".... first start of the day is rough for a few seconds because the valves are sluggish. Marvel's in the oil helps.
As for the oil pressure, pull the switch and soak the business end in anything you want. It is probably just stuck in the position it was for all those years-no pressure/light on. It may free up when soaked.
Jeff

except for cutting the exhausts in half, pulling the heads was no big deal.
but i'm glad i did , the engine would've never ran decent.
plugged water holes , corroded head gaskets , ...

i'm getting the heads inspected and basic work done to them ( going to rebuild them fully with the rest of the engine in a few months/ years)

i already have a new oil pressure switch , so hopefully that deals with the problem.

Not that much of progress on the Caddy , hard to find motivation the past few weeks. :'(
rebuilding the house pretty much takes my attention 24/7.
BUT MORE COMING SOON !

Greetings from your Belgian friend.
Maarten Robaert

1955 Cadillac Fleetwood
1964 Chevrolet Impala
1962 Vw Beetle
1968 Vw Bus T2A

Belgium1958owner

Hi,
Welcome, dear compatriot.
Nice project car.

Best wishes for 2018
1958 Eldorado Seville, body 481
1956 Eldorado Seville, body 1968
1958 Eldorado Seville, body 612 (parts car)
Member of : 1958 Cadillac Owner Association
CLC # 29119
1956 Packard Four Hundred Coupe, body 3002
1956 Packard Caribbean hardtop, body 81

LayEmLow

Thank you my friend.

Nice collection you have there!
Nice to see more Belgian Cadillac owners here.

Greetings from your Belgian friend.
Maarten Robaert

1955 Cadillac Fleetwood
1964 Chevrolet Impala
1962 Vw Beetle
1968 Vw Bus T2A