ditchdr":980wspz2 said:
Hi everyone. I am new to this site. I am rat rodding a 49 F-1 it has a 226 in it. I want to keep this motor, everyone does a SBC, and I love the "no one runs one of these" factor. I have no expeirence with these motors at all. I pulled the head off of it yesterday, it looks pretty good on the inside. I have no idea where to go from here. Are there any books I can pick up that can point me in the right direcetion? What should the average cost of a rebuild cost be, I know that is a loaded question? I would like to ring out as mush power as I can, and I understand horsepower=$$$. But what kind of power can you make with one of these without breaking the bank? If you guys could just point me in the right direction that would be great.. Thanks..John
Good deal you decided to step away from the SBC. A good engine they are, but unique they are not.
My advice to you is to stop turning bolts for the moment; leave the engine together and make a plan.
I didn't see where you make mention of this engine
needing to be rebuilt. So, I'd recommend that you check if it does.
Do the bores have ridge? If no, proceed to the next step - if yes... go grab the wrenches and start swinging.
If the bores are really clean and good; still see cross-hatch... try pulling the distributor and spinning the oil pump (put oil in pan if needed :roll: )
AFTER getting some oil pressure up, put a bar on the crank, and see how it turns over.
Since the truck you're building is a 'rat rod', it should be constructed so that the engine will be pretty easy to pull. I'd try installing it and see what I had. Of course, it would be a different story if it were a Lotus V8 that takes a guy in a well-equipped shop 30 hours to install.
If you really want to be unique, why don't you fab your own headers and intake? The flanges can be made from steel plate for darn near any inline if you have access to a drill press. A grinder is a very nice thing to have to make square/rectangular/trapezoidal flanges. But, a bunch of elbow grease and a file will still work.
By the way, as a guy who builds engines for a living, I feel kinda' funny telling a guy not to just automatically jump to rebuilding his.
-Bill