[garretthes]

I have a 1959 chevy 235 that needs lots of TLC. It runs rough, leaks oil badly from several places, is hard to start cold and both bolts are stripped on the exhaust manifold where the exhaust pipe meets.
I need to get this engine running smoothly and dependably for a year or so until I can afford to drop in a 350. The 235 is just not enough engine for this 5000 pound Suburban.
A little history;
The vehicle sat for approx 3 years.
I have rebuilt the 1 barrel carb.
The stripped bolts cannot be twisted out of the manifold. I guess i will have to drill them out?
Any advice will be appreciated.

 

[lowlypawn]

1st thing u need to do is run a compression test, if the motor is ok then you just need to do a serious tune up to get it to run smoothly.


If you keep spraying penetrating oil onto the stripped studs for a few days you should be able to get em lose. If they break then just drill em out / easyout or worst case drill/retap.

 

[garretthes]

Can I tell anything by looking at the plugs?

 

[lowlypawn]

yes!

http://www.strappe.com/plugs.html


also found this.

http://www.gnttype.org/techarea/engine/plugs.html

 

[garretthes]

Changed the plugs and they were clean except for one. I will post a picture of it later.
I also changed the points. It still misses at idle. It's a very random miss. Might be plug wires. I will change those tonight. What else could be causing the miss? It's so bad it will not idle at normal, only fast.
Should I have changed the condensor and or coil?

 

[docvette]

Reviving the Dead...Or Long Stored..

Doc here imp:

It's always a good thing to change the condenser whenever you change the points. They are cheap, and in the long run, will eliminate a lot of headaches.

REVIVING THE DEAD...OR LONG STORED...

Get and install good quality Wires And plugs. Make sure they are all gaped properly. (probably 32 to 35 on that engine)

Check your Dwell angle, Should be around 28 to 32 on that engine. If not, reset the points.

Set your timing,

find your timing spec, and set your timing for that, with the Vacuum advance disconnected, and the line plugged.

With it running, after you set your timing, pull the plug hold your finger over it, and quickly replace the line...Does it speed up? If so, the advance unit should be OK.

Your Misfire Can also be fuel related.

Check The Carb, ensure the Bolts are tight, and gasket is not leaking,

(spray Carb cleaner around the base with the air filter on to prevent false readings from over-spray, if it speeds up you have a leak)

Check and Tighten the air horn screws.

Adjust the Jet (s) At idle.

First Check or set your timing, then, Set your curb idle at around 900 (For Manual Transmission)

Turn the jet in until the car starts to stumble or idle badly, or dies, then back the jet out 6 ~1/2 Turns
( or 3 turns total, easier to keep track of that way)

Turn the jet slowly in and out SLOWLY and wait about 30 or more seconds for the car to "Normalize" from there until you get the highest idle, Smoothest Idle with no random misses.. While waiting go back and smell the exhaust, It should not smell like fuel.

Take your TIME! This should take an hour or two to Get it right on, bumping it a little at a time, and waiting for the normalize!

Recheck and adjust your curb idle for around 900 and you should be fine.

If you can't smooth it out, or if the Jet has no effect, a Carb Rebuild, or re~Jet is in order.

Replace your Fuel Filter (S) and air filter, and if it's been stored a while an oil and filter Change will do it wonders!

Check, Clean or Replace the PCV Valve. Do a Visual on all the Vacuum Hoses, If they are off or rotting, replace them, In fact the hose is so cheap, I usually replace them at every 2 nd Tune up anyway.

If you have a "Road draft" (used a lot in the 50's) instead of a PCV system, you may want to think about plugging the road draft (You can get a Rubber Soft plug to do this at the parts house) and install a PCV system, It will keep your engine compartment CLEANER and not blow oil all over the under carriage, and help it breathe better.

Do a Vacuum Check, It should be within a steady 17 and 20 in. hg. With no fluttering at idle. If you get a lot of flutter, then do a compression test, should Be between 125 ~ 150 a hole.

Do this, and if correct, this Engine should run good for more then the projected year you have given it.

On the manifold, Best thing to try to get it off, is soak in penetrating oil, then drill the center out, and get an Easy~out, and try to remove them that way.

If you have Access To a mig welder, and an old 1/2, 9/16 Box wrench (or whatever the size is) You may want to try CAREFULLY, tack weld the box end to the Bolt and then break it free, then grind the tacks off and remove the bolts.

If you can't get it, (assuming collector to pipe bolts are the offenders) You will probably have to remove the pipe from the muffler, drop the manifold, and take it to a shop for re~drill and taping, or just take the truck to a local muffler shop.

To do it right, get your parts together, a Couple ~O~ 12 -packs...your unabridged dictionary of Cuss words, Band~aids , and every road doggie you know that owes you a favor...Oh, and, you may want to degrease the whole thing before you start work, Clean engines are so much better to work on! and plan a weekend of work.

Have Fun with it!

Hope it helps!

Doc imp:

 

[garretthes]

Doc you are amazing. I just bought a set of new wires. I thought I would replace stuff until it fixed the problem. I do have the road draft tube. Where will the pvc install?
I do need to degrease the entire engine. It's leaking at the rear main pretty bad. How hard is that to fix.
Thanks again. I guess I'm going to have to break down and by a timing light, vacuum tester and compression tester.

 

[docvette]

Road draft

Doc here:imp:

The PCV will install into either the Valve cover, or if so equipped the oil filler pipe.With a Vacuum hose from the Base plate of the Carb, or any constant manifold vacuum source available. Be sure you have a positive breathing oil cap. If you get a kit, It should have detailed instructions.

Yes, Degrease the whole engine, you may find stuff you didn't see before. Like maybe that rear main leak is really the road draft dumping oil overboard onto the pan...??

The Rear main seal isn't too hard to replace if you can pull the pan from the bottom of the truck with little or no problems...get a Chilton or Haynes manual for the exact procedure for your truck.

Timing light, Vacuum gauge and compression tester are good investments and relatively cheap.

you'll find it easier to do the job all at one time rather than peace meal..however, we all can do only what we can do!

Doc imp:

 

[garretthes]

My guess is the rear seal is leaking. I drove 150 miles to my Dad's shop to paint it. I guess I kept it around 60 or so. Just before I got there the clutch started slipping. My uncle (retired old school mechanic) took a look underneath and said it was leaking at the rear seal and getting on the clutch. He said it was leaking other places too which I already knew.
My previous experience has show that an old engine that sets up for a year or more tends to lose it's seals and gaskets. This truck (actually it's a 59 Suburban) sat up for around 3 years in the hot Arizona sun.
So I guess I will take a stab at the rear seal and pan gasket. Then maybe the valve covers.
I think one of the cylinders has a problem because the plug I pulled out of it had some black burnt stuff. My guess is it's oil. The other plugs looked OK.

 

[garretthes]

Hey Doc!
I installed new wires, adjusted the points, and it runs better. It cranks faster too. It still misses though. Next I will replace the condenser.

 

[garretthes]

Followup.
Replaced the condensor, rotor and cap. No difference. Reset the points as recomended by forum. After engine warmed up I sprayed cleaner around the base and fittings to check for leaks. No leaks.Then I tightened the top of the carb as much as possible. As I made an udjustment on one screw the motor idled noticably higher. Clue.
After the carb was tightened down I went back to the carb screw and adjusted as Doc recomended. As I was getting nearer the proper adjustment suddenly the skip went away and the 235 smoothed out. Now it runs smooth even at low idle.
Thanks guys!
On to the leaks and rusty exhaust bolts.

 

[lanierledford]

235's

garetthes, sure is nice to hear from someone who's had a problem and took the time to return a note about what they found. Hang in there and pay close attention, we won't ask question, but you'll remeber it a lot longer.

 

[garretthes]

I can't count the many times I have searched for the answer to a problem then found a thread that matched my problem only to have it go nowhere. Swore I would try to leave a little prize at the end of all my trails for people searching behind me.