1971 PL521

[The Birdman]

Everybody says try PB Blaster and soak it.

I just go the stuff myself but havent really tryed it out.

 

As for the cam sprocket get the one with the v marks in back. DO not buy Melling, Cloyes brand timming kits.

Tsubaki is the one to get but ck the box. Best are the 4 hole type sprockets if possible. I got the OSK Brand kits also thats multiholed as you but it has the V notch in the back. But I notice they fit slightly loose on the cam dowl pin. So it coul make the sprocket look a little off at TDC.

 

At TDC the oil/dizzy spindal should be about 11.28. I see where yours is at. I can only assume the mount/pedastal for the dizzy was changed or dizzy got mismatched and the spindal was droped and moved a tooth. If you keep it like that youll be OK.If you put the oil spindal back in per the book you might be off when lining up the rotor to the cap. But I guess you get the picture.

 

Sears sell the hood 10mm adpaters. USA and I think I got 2/3 of them . New Husky Tools are taiwan now used to be made same place as the sears craftsmans

http://vimeo.com/19077890

 

So who sells the Tsubaki set? I seem to have a while before I get to the re-assemble process, but I'll scout the parts now while I still have a few bucks left!

I think I'm ok with the impact 10mm socket for now, sears didn't have any 1/2 inch drive 10mm sockets when I needed them, but hopefully I won't need the heavier drive socket to put them back together.

Is that you in the video? I watched it several times before this mess started.

[wayno]

I hate to say this, but you have been ripped off, you said you paid for a rebuilt engine, that engine has never been apart till you pulled it apart, tell them to give you your money back and come get their crap, or file a complaint with your state at the attorney generals office, consumer protection, that's what I did when I dealt with an outfit like your dealing with, although I got rid of the truck to get rid of the engine in it, I did get a better engine the 3rd time at no cost.

I paid almost $1300.00 for a rebuilt engine with a 7 year warranty, 3 engines later I sold it while it was still running for less than half what I bought the truck for 2 years earlier, and it sat broken for half that time in a field, I told that company it was a field truck now, as was in a field rotting away because it had their engine in it.

The last engine was in their opinion "the last engine", and they even asked, "Are you going to sell the truck?", what a loser company.

You are also dealing with a company like that, you need to start over with someone else, if your going to spend the money rebuilding an engine, at least start with a block that doesn't need work just to get it to the rebuild stage.

If your going to stick with this block :geek:, then take it to a machine shop now and have them get out what they can, and then drill the rest out so you can run a tap in the holes and use the existing threads, you do not want a block full of helicoils. :crying:

This is my opinion.

[izzo]

I didn't read everything thats going on. but if this was "rebuilt" They probably just cleaned and regasketed everything, except the head... I doubt bearings, rings, or anything else of the sort is new...

[skyblue]

damn man that's f'ing bull S! hope you get your money back. good luck with the broken bolts. I thought i read this somewhere on here butm im could be wrong, don't use air tools to take out broken parts. they will break again. slow and easy.

[The Birdman]

I hate to say this, but you have been ripped off, you said you paid for a rebuilt engine, that engine has never been apart till you pulled it apart, tell them to give you your money back and come get their crap, or file a complaint with your state at the attorney generals office, consumer protection, that's what I did when I dealt with an outfit like your dealing with, although I got rid of the truck to get rid of the engine in it, I did get a better engine the 3rd time at no cost.

I paid almost $1300.00 for a rebuilt engine with a 7 year warranty, 3 engines later I sold it while it was still running for less than half what I bought the truck for 2 years earlier, and it sat broken for half that time in a field, I told that company it was a field truck now, as was in a field rotting away because it had their engine in it.

The last engine was in their opinion "the last engine", and they even asked, "Are you going to sell the truck?", what a loser company.

You are also dealing with a company like that, you need to start over with someone else, if your going to spend the money rebuilding an engine, at least start with a block that doesn't need work just to get it to the rebuild stage.

If your going to stick with this block :geek:, then take it to a machine shop now and have them get out what they can, and then drill the rest out so you can run a tap in the holes and use the existing threads, you do not want a block full of helicoils. :crying:

This is my opinion.

 

I knew I got ripped off back when you told me you thought it was a used not rebuilt engine, and that was more obvious when I took the manifolds off and got a look into the ports! I called them yesterday after trying to heat up the bolts and free them out with no luck, and the guy I talked to had the gall to tell me that I ruined their engine! I said didn't I buy the engine and isn't it mine? He asked me why I took the head off, and I told him because when I started to inspect how the engine came to me I found numerous things that needed attention before I would put it into my truck! needless to say, I knew at that point I wasn't going to get any satisfaction from these folks! My last words to him was that I would sue them and hung up. Right after that, I took the time to document the timeline of what took place from start to finish so I could get a case started in small claims court here in California. Their parent company is in Milwaukee Wisconsin and I filed a complaint online with the WI Better Business Bureau. While I was there I looked up their rating and it was an F! Numerous complaints, many unresolved! No attempt to become accredited.

 

The name of the company so no one else ever uses them is Southwest engines.com http://www.swengines.com/ . I honestly don't think anything is going to be resolved with these folks, they are useless to me. I will continue to try to make good this engine keeping close accounting of what it takes to bring it up to speed for 2 reasons. First that they are refusing to make good on their warranty and it will add to the costs I will try to recoup in court by proving in both documented pictures and receipts and phone records that I tried to work with them. Second is because I still want to try to get this project going and I have had very little luck finding reasonable parts here in my area. I'm in a tough place and have to make the best of it! If I followed my more basic instincts I'd already have locked and loaded my first 100 round drum into the AR-15 and made a patronage to these guys and made the national news! Logic dictates I shouldn't do that, and so I push on!

 

This thing has made several of you guys angry about it, as it has me, but I thank you all for your help along the way regardless.

[The Birdman]

I didn't read everything thats going on. but if this was "rebuilt" They probably just cleaned and regasketed everything, except the head... I doubt bearings, rings, or anything else of the sort is new...

 

Nothing about this hunk of metal was re-anything! It was probably sitting in a junkyard for many years and was cleaned up a bit to pass off as running! They won't pony up so I'm fked for the time being! But I'll try to make it work.

[The Birdman]

damn man that's f'ing bull S! hope you get your money back. good luck with the broken bolts. I thought i read this somewhere on here butm im could be wrong, don't use air tools to take out broken parts. they will break again. slow and easy.

 

If I'm going to get any thing back, it'll be way down the road in court! For now I have to keep trying to make this work. Slow and steady, heat and oiling the bolts, they'll give before I do!

[wayno]

I still think you need to get consumer protection involved(at the attorney generals office), once they got involved on my case, them jerks in Spokane WA. started taking care of things after they received the letter from the state of WA, I made no headway before that.

 

Since half of these headbolts were breaking off even/below the block deck, it is not likely you will be able to drill a hole in them and turn them out, so I encourage you to take the block to a machine shop so they can be extracted in such a way that the block threads will be intact, to do this one has to be very precise, basicly one is drilling new holes in exactly the same spot, and then threading them, so basicly they would be knocking whats left of the headbolts out of the original threads after the holes are drilled with a tap.

I checked the Vancouver yard yesterday, there was only one datsun in the yard(75 620), and the head was already gone.

It will likely be friday before I get to either of the Portland yards.

I am curious what you are going to do with the block, if you are going to totally rebuild it(I am not talking about re-ringing it), you need the head first to decide what pistons you will be using, A87 heads come closed and open, U67 heads only come open, W53 heads usually are closed, but I have an open version(only one I have ever seen), if I were to find a closed version head, then a dished piston would be used, if I were to find a open version, then it's likely a flatter type of piston would be used.

The U67 already has bigger valves, the A87 head comes with two differant sized exhaust valves, and it is a toss up on which will be found, as you can't tell without pulling the head.

I see more A87 heads than U67 heads, and I see very few W53 heads as they are JDM heads, and came over on the imported used engines from Japan.

BTW, if I found a 219 head, you would never know it, as I would keep it for myself.

There are guys on here that really know their shit when it comes to pistons and heads, I usually ask them what I need for pistons/rods with the head I have.

I will let you know what I find when I find it.

[ol'skoolrob]

sorry to hijack the post but since we are on the topic of heads

is the w58 open or closed :confused:

[The Birdman]

I still think you need to get consumer protection involved(at the attorney generals office), once they got involved on my case, them jerks in Spokane WA. started taking care of things after they received the letter from the state of WA, I made no headway before that.

 

Since half of these headbolts were breaking off even/below the block deck, it is not likely you will be able to drill a hole in them and turn them out, so I encourage you to take the block to a machine shop so they can be extracted in such a way that the block threads will be intact, to do this one has to be very precise, basicly one is drilling new holes in exactly the same spot, and then threading them, so basicly they would be knocking whats left of the headbolts out of the original threads after the holes are drilled with a tap.

I checked the Vancouver yard yesterday, there was only one datsun in the yard(75 620), and the head was already gone.

It will likely be friday before I get to either of the Portland yards.

I am curious what you are going to do with the block, if you are going to totally rebuild it(I am not talking about re-ringing it), you need the head first to decide what pistons you will be using, A87 heads come closed and open, U67 heads only come open, W53 heads usually are closed, but I have an open version(only one I have ever seen), if I were to find a closed version head, then a dished piston would be used, if I were to find a open version, then it's likely a flatter type of piston would be used.

The U67 already has bigger valves, the A87 head comes with two differant sized exhaust valves, and it is a toss up on which will be found, as you can't tell without pulling the head.

I see more A87 heads than U67 heads, and I see very few W53 heads as they are JDM heads, and came over on the imported used engines from Japan.

BTW, if I found a 219 head, you would never know it, as I would keep it for myself.

There are guys on here that really know their shit when it comes to pistons and heads, I usually ask them what I need for pistons/rods with the head I have.

I will let you know what I find when I find it.

 

I'll look into the consumer protection agency tomorrow.

Actually only one bolt is at deck height, the other 5 are all above by at least 3/8 ths inch and the one that the head got hung up on is 2 1/2 in high. My guess is that they all are in the threaded hole at about 5/8 ths in, which shouldn't be too bad for drilling out if I can't free them myself. The one that is at deck height is surrounded by a dowel. They all have been drinking up the Liq wrench and the PB blaster like they are dying of thirst! I still have hopes of getting them out, but I've got a machine shop that comes very highly recommended and I talked to the guy yesterday, he suggested I keep trying and when I'm ready to give up he'll take it from there.

 

What I do with the block depends on what happens with the bolts. I'll have the whole thing looked over and if I can re-use anything I'll go the least cost route for now. It has dished pistons in it now, they look cruddy on the tops, but not unusable. I would hope to simply hone the walls, re-ring the pistons and replace the bearings and be done with the bottom end to keep costs down. So that would leave me open options for a head choice of open or closed head.

 

I hope things go better over the next few steps, everything hinges on what I'll do based on what can be done with what I've got. I did post a classified here for L20B options, we'll see how that goes!

[The Birdman]

sorry to hijack the post but since we are on the topic of heads

is the w58 open or closed :confused:

 

It's open.

[wayno]

sorry to hijack the post but since we are on the topic of heads

is the w58 open or closed :confused:

 

 

The W58 head came both open and closed, closed supposedly the rare version.

Read this link, it has all the information.

http://www.olddatsuns.com/html/tech/head_ID_2.htm

[ol'skoolrob]

thanks guys

:thumbup:

[wayno]

When you try to loosen the bolt, don't try to just turn it out, you need to wiggle it back and forth till it moves just a little, then keep shooting PB Blaster on it, and then wiggle it more, it might take several minutes just to get it to turn a quarter of a turn after it starts to loosen.

I have had bolts jam again after I got them loose, and then they wouldn't turn either way after it jammed, and had to be drilled out, but I wasn't using PB Blaster either.

Do the pistons wiggle side to side in the cylinder holes, can you make them move even a little by pushing side to side with your thumbs?

I have re-used used blocks when the pistons did not move that I could see, I didn't even re-ring them, I just put a fresh head on them, and started it up without any issues, no burning oil at all, but I did have an idea that it was not a high mile block, as the odometer had only 110,000 miles on it, and the other I heard run before I bought it.

I do have another L20b/U67 in the back yard that was running when I bought it, fact is that we drove it 80 miles to get it home, but I cannot recall if it smoked anymore, I would have offered you this block, except you live so far away, and the guy that drove it said it was gutless, but it was in a 1980 4X4 datsun, a very heavy truck, it also has a U67 head on it, and with a dished piston, I am unsure of the compression ratio, it might be fairly low with a dished piston and U67 head, that could cause issues with power also.

I guess I am unable to quit typing, I just keep typing and typing and...........

[The Birdman]

The pistons seem pretty tight in the cylinders. There is a bit of PB encircling the pistons and I can see very slight bubbling of the fluid when I move them side to side. The pistons move very nicely up and down and the walls still have a very slight feel of crosshatching on them

[wayno]

The pistons seem pretty tight in the cylinders. There is a bit of PB encircling the pistons and I can see very slight bubbling of the fluid when I move them side to side. The pistons move very nicely up and down and the walls still have a very slight feel of crosshatching on them

 

I never used fluids when pushing on my pistons, I just pushed hard side to side and looked real close, and another guy that came by to look at my U20 also mentioned that that L20b block looked good as it didn't have a head on it, it was in the work truck breifly till the LZ23 was built and installed, now that engine is in the 66 520 project.

Have your machine shop guy look at it, I wonder if it can be checked without pulling it apart?

[The Birdman]

I never used fluids when pushing on my pistons, I just pushed hard side to side and looked real close, and another guy that came by to look at my U20 also mentioned that that L20b block looked good as it didn't have a head on it, it was in the work truck breifly till the LZ23 was built and installed, now that engine is in the 66 520 project.

Have your machine shop guy look at it, I wonder if it can be checked without pulling it apart?

 

While squirting the bolts, some got in the cylinders. I wasn't too concerned since they will more than likely be coming out to hone the walls and clean everything off before going back together. I'll have him "mic" it all when he gets it and hopefully the pistons can still be reused. I hope I don't have to replace much more than the rings and bearings, that will jack up everything!

[The Birdman]

I've had some time to ponder this situation, and what I've decided to do is to put the L20B on the back burner and push ahead with the L16 I have. I've already re-built the head, it's ready to go, I have just about everything I need to make it work, just need to get the bottom end cleaned up and move on! The problems of the L20B can sit while I get the truck going. It will actually work to my advantage come time to register because it will have the engine that came with it and the california smog deal will not come into play, simple!

[wayno]

I found an A87 head at the wrecking yard today, don't know if it is closed or open.

 

Don't know how long that truck has been there, so I don't know how much longer it will be there.

[wayno]

Any updates here?

Have not heard from you in a while. :crying:

You get that L16 going? :hyper:

[The Birdman]

Any updates here?

Have not heard from you in a while. :crying:

You get that L16 going? :hyper:

 

Hey! I went on the hunt for a machine shop I liked on all fronts, and found them a few weeks ago. Took the block to them and had them call me back with findings. Took them a few days to get back to me, but they found one piston had been damaged and cut into that cylinder wall. Needs to be bored .020 over. The walls had not been bored before so that was good, and after a bit of haggling, I got a $500 tag to make the short block complete with resurfacing the flywheel, new timing set, new pistons rings and pins, gaskets, and polished crank, bearings and all. These guys work is impressive, the shop is state of the art, and the guys are all very cool. They'll be done this week, the 210 head is already done so when I get the block I'll start the assembly.

 

Had to work my show the last 2 weeks, didn't get a lot of time on the other things the truck needs, but with the Thanksgiving break coming up I'll have about 2 weeks with no work to interrupt the truck stuff. I went to the Eagle Rock meet on Sunday and picked up a U60 head for the L20 block for $75. Looks pretty dirty, but it's complete, and after the L16 engine is in and working, I'll go back to the bigger engine for down the road. I was going to let you know about the head Wayne, but only got back from work a few hours ago. The head is still in the trunk of the wifes car, but I'll bring it in tomorrow and snap some pics.

[wayno]

Wow, a rare U60 head, I have never seen one, but it has the big valves like the U67 I suspect, so that would be a big WIN.

It's good you have the time to work on it, all of a sudden, everyone here wants there X-mas lights put up, but it's good to have work.

Want to see the U60 head. :)

[The Birdman]

Got the short block back from the shop the other day, bored and honed .020 over and getting ready to start putting it together.

 

Got started cleaning it up and ready for paint. Some may give me grief for the color choice, but I want it to look clean so if there is a leak it's easier to trace down.

 

Started dry fitting parts to make sure no issues were going to slow things down or find out i was missing bolts or parts.

 

 

 

Made a slot in the Alt bracket for a cleaner fit.

 

Decided the head bolts were in need of replacement, have to order some from Nissan dealer. Tuesday should have just about all I need to complete the engine.

 

Also here is the U60 head I picked up at Eagle Rock meet.

[Laecaon]

Hmm, that head has been shaved. You might check to see if it has cam tower shims.

[The Birdman]

I noticed that when I got it, but haven't seen any shims on it. I won't be doing anything to that head for a while, but I'll go thru it when the time comes.