Valve Spring Compressor

Well after some wrestling with some vintage flathead tools I found this little gem. Trust me you want it if you are going to try to remove the valves from a Flathead Caddy. It made the job so much easier.

Craftsman Valve Spring Compressor

Engine – Remove Lifter Gangs

So I cam across a little tip to make removing the lifter gangs a little easier so I thought I would share with the rest of you.

First off you need to get some rubber cord about a 1/4″ inch thick and cut it into 1 1/2″ by 2 1/2″ squares with about a 3/8″ slot cut in the middle. Sorry the image is a little blurry.

Now rotate the the engine as each valve come up slide the rubber spacer between the valve seat and the block. Here is after the first one.

and here you can see I have finished all four valves for cylinders 1 and 3

Now you can remove the “T” oil line, the small splash pan under the oil line, and the lifter block bolts. Besure to clean label everything as you pull it off.

Here you see it with everything removed.

Now the lifter gangs should come out with no trouble at all. Do not force it. If it seems stuck even a little rotate the engine to move the cam enough for the lifter gang to be removed easily. Here is a shot with the lifter gang removed.

Be sure as you remove the lifter gangs you use a punch to mark wich one goes where.  There you have it, not too tough but helpful. I will keep you posted as I do more.

Links Part 1 (Cadillac Flathead)

I decided to try to put up the links I have been collecting, maybe the will help some one else. If you have some good Ones I should add, let me know.

This first batch is related to Cadillac Flatheads

Useful Info from Forums:

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=247291

http://www.modifiedcadillac.org/forum/index.php/topic,3560.0.html

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=100131

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=84451

http://www.modifiedcadillac.org/forum/index.php

How-To:

http://www.rmrclc.com/WaltsWorkBench/

Parts:

http://www.allcads.com/products

http://www.wilcap.com/cad.html

http://www.hemmings.com/hmn/stories/2005/10/01/hmn_feature5.html

http://www.hotrodchassisandcycle.com/parts_cars.php

Pics:

http://glennsplace.com/new_page_4.htm

Specs:

http://www.secondchancegarage.com/public/488.cfm

http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/

Other Links:

http://www.amwmag.com/C/Cadillac_World/hauptteil_cadillac_world.html (some broken links)

Got to Start Somewhere

So this is where my hot rod begins. I bought this engine in Oregon with out seeing it but these things seem like they are pretty tough to find. I was told it was a 1948 Cadillac Flathead that “ran when it was pulled” (what ever that means) Here are a few shots of it while in Oregon.

It came with two Hydros so I figure I can piece at least one together with the parts.