Red's 520

[Lockleaf]

Find an industrial scrap yard or a fork lift repair company.

This. Call them and ask if they are willing to sell core engines.

[difrangia]

Might check with these guys; Looks like they have some J15 stuff. Maybe have some engine cores available or give advice on finding something?? 

 

http://www.motorpowerinc.com/

[wayno]

This is north of you a ways, but might be worth the trip.

I seriously doubt it is a 1961 engine, but I suppose I could be wrong.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1961-Datsun-J15-Rebuilt-four-cylinder-engine-Comes-with-original-Transmission-/272354041621?hash=item3f6990df15:g:mP8AAOSw9a5XPrH2&vxp=mtr

[Charlie69]

If you have the cash and a good water pump I would make an offer on that engine.  First ask about warranty, was the engine bored with new pistons and rings, turned crank with new rod & main bearings,  new valve guides and seals, valve grind, and was the cam bearings and cam replaced?

[damen_red]

Ok, so worked on the brakes today, didn't get as far as I had hoped because I ran into some inevitable parts-fitment problems.  The brake master was pretty corroded and took some convincing to get off.

 

 

 

The challenge when putting the new one on had to do with the fitting on the adjustable brake plunger being too wide for the pedal retainer, meaning I couldn't hook the return spring on the end, which also acts a s the retaining clip, so I stuck it in the vise, and bed the tabs in, just a bit, like so:

 

 

And that seemed to do it, but this is where everything went down hill. Just bending it in the vise was the wrong thing to do because I ended up distorting the threads, so it became impossible to adjust the arm once it was in place, so I struggled with it for a bit until I got it adjusted just enough to see that in order to shorten the rod enough, the threads were now hitting the pedal and binding up the whole assembly.  Of all the little things I have to "fit" to any car, brakes are the one thing that I just want to "work", but oh well, I had to take it through to the end just to see what it would take.  My next idea was to take the arm off of the old M/C and put it on the new one, but I quickly found out that the retaining washer was too big to fit in the old one, so I mulled it over for a bit and started shaving down the retaining washer to fit. That took a while and some layers of skin, but I finally got it in and the retaining clip in place.

 

I have all the hydraulics, but ran short on time and I figured that I would like to try and flush some fluid through the lines before putting the new hydraulics in, to try and get out as much corrosion, or dust, or whatever is in there out before fitting the new wheel cylinders. Well, it's bone dry in there and I couldn't push any fluid through at all, even while pulling a vacuum at one of the wheels, so things are probably pretty messed up and it looks like a complete disassembly of all the lines and injecting fluid manually into them before reassembling is what might have to happen.  I am beginning to remember why my roadster project stalled out, the fear of each and every rusted nut potentially breaking and putting me back days or weeks is starting to get to me, I am trying to douse whatever I plan on working on with prodigious amounts of liquid wrench, but it never seems to be enough! Forgot to take some "after" shots.

[DanielC]

I have found a 50/50 mix of Acetone and ATF makes the best penetrating oil you can get.

All the body fasteners on a 520 are American SAE (fine) threads.

[FunkyFresh520]

Where in socal u located? Im in long beach area.. My 520 sat for 20+ years also and now shes up n running

[Craig Hughes]

Hey I'm up in SaN Luis Obispo and I pulled my running J13 and put a 2nd motor i purchased and completely rebuild with all new machine work, so mine runs great and the original motor i was going to rebuild then put back in as all original, well haven't got that far so its just sitting. I'm leaning toward selling my 520 so the engine could be aviable if that is the way you end up needing to go.

[damen_red]

Hey I'm up in SaN Luis Obispo and I pulled my running J13 and put a 2nd motor i purchased and completely rebuild with all new machine work, so mine runs great and the original motor i was going to rebuild then put back in as all original, well haven't got that far so its just sitting. I'm leaning toward selling my 520 so the engine could be aviable if that is the way you end up needing to go.

 

Hi Craig, I may be interested in you old engine, I just heard back from the machine shop and on top of everything they were going to have to do, it needed hardened valve seats as well, which made the head rebuild cost about $400, so I decided to just have them stop there and I'm going to pick up the head in parts and try to source another one or maybe get a competitive quote for a complete rebuild with hardened seats. I'll PM you, thanks!

 

DR

[Craig Hughes]

Hey DR, I haven't kept close to this awesome  web sight after I got my truck all together as a prodject at my local high school auto shop. The instructor is a close friend and thought because of its simplicity  he could show things easily to his students as we first took it apart then they watched as the parts came in from the machine shop. All that to say the original motor that did run just not strong, has been waiting its turn for rebuild but I just haven't had the time or extra cash to do it just to make the truck totally numbers matching though that would be nice and my thought for someone interested in the truck, inn the future, but who knows if that would happen, so the motor is probably aviable if someone where interested. Keep in touch, hope you solve your prodject needs.

[wayno]

Your going to have to put hardened seats in any engine head of that era, even a good used head the valves will slowly sink into the head, especially if you have your foot into it.

I suppose you could find a machine shop that will just do a valve job.

[Charlie69]

Read this.

 

http://community.ratsun.net/topic/54932-photobucket-ratsun/?p=1414637

[damen_red]

Read this.

 

http://community.ratsun.net/topic/54932-photobucket-ratsun/?p=1414637

Is that the right link? You pasted in a post about photobucket.

 

DR

[damen_red]

Your going to have to put hardened seats in any engine head of that era, even a good used head the valves will slowly sink into the head, especially if you have your foot into it.

I suppose you could find a machine shop that will just do a valve job.

I guess I'm hesitant because I don't know how the bottom end looks yet, I'm ok spending a couple hundred for a freshening, but when it approaches the cost of a running pull, I have to weigh my options. Besides, there was nothing wrong with the head, other than being worn, which shouldn't prevent me from putting it back together and running it enough to suss out any other problems, still don't know if it'll hold water, that's a biggie.

[wayno]

I guess I'm hesitant because I don't know how the bottom end looks yet, I'm ok spending a couple hundred for a freshening, but when it approaches the cost of a running pull, I have to weigh my options. Besides, there was nothing wrong with the head, other than being worn, which shouldn't prevent me from putting it back together and running it enough to suss out any other problems, still don't know if it'll hold water, that's a biggie.

There is always the chance that if you rebuild the head it will burn oil like crazy pulling it thru the rings because of fresh head.

You also could just put it back together with the parts you have bought and hope it runs good.

[thisismatt]

I have a spare J head that came with a 69 parts truck I bought.  I have no idea of the condition, but I could take a look at it next time I get to where it's stored.  Let me know if you're interested.  I have no idea what they are worth, but I'm not attached to it.

[damen_red]

There is always the chance that if you rebuild the head it will burn oil like crazy pulling it thru the rings because of fresh head.

You also could just put it back together with the parts you have bought and hope it runs good.

 

Wayno, I think that's the ticket, I have a nice rocker assembly now(got it yesterday by the way, thanks!), which was the only thing I wouldn't have felt right just putting back on there. The head has been cleaned and magnafluxed, which is always good. It would have been nice to at least have the surfaces between the rockers and valves re ground, as those will be the most dissimilar and would wear the fastest but, c'est la vie. I can lap the valves in and bolt it on, this isn't my daily driver, so I'm a little more willing to have some fun with it.  I know I'll eventually have to throw some real money at it, but right now I'm just trying to see where I'm at, for all I know the transmission could be toast, and I'd be taking out the whole shebang anyways. Just thinking out loud right now, because I'll be in Valencia this weekend and will have no time to work on the truck.

[wayno]

Happy to hear the box arrived.

Not having the hardened seats put in the head will likely not affect you that much if not daily driver, when my valves sunk into my head it was because I took a trip from Vancouver Wa to Kissimmee FL in a loaded truck, I had my foot deep into the pedal there and back, it only took two months to need head work and another Dogleg transmission, that was an expensive trip, I also ran premium back then.

My machinist told me that it happened because I have a lead foot, if I didn't have one, I would not have had this issue, well I told him, "that is the way I drive, install hardened seats please", never had an issue after that, that was my first super head, it only lasted 2 months before I ran out of valve adjustment. 

[Jwilkers]

Did you ever find a seat. I have one,but is is only the frame and springs. All in good condition

[damen_red]

Jwilkers, as a matter of fact I haven't please PM me and we can talk, thanks!

[damen_red]

Small update, just got the head back from the machine shop, it looks beautiful! I also had them rebuild my rocker shaft. Wayno, the one I got from you had taller "towers" than my original, but the shaft from mine was toast, so they took the shaft and whatever parts I needed from yours and re used as many of my original parts as they could. I'm happy the way it turned out. Any idea on why the difference in tower height? I also noticed the shaft I sourced from an MG had shorter towers like mine did, the engine appears to have been original, but now I'm wondering which ones are the original parts.

 

Still looking for a seat!

[damen_red]

After sitting for a year(Hockey season takes up a LOT of my time!), I finally am back on this. I did end up getting a seat from hosestop, and have replaced all the hydraulics in the braking system.  Big set back this weekend though, I decided to inspect the lifters before putting the rebuilt head on, and this is what I found:

 

 

 

Pretty bad. I was expecting some scoring, but not full on corrosion! So, I ask again, anyone have a J series engine sitting around?

 

DR

[Charlie69]

I have one in a 67 Datsun 520 I have no idea what shape it is in.  Hopefully better than yours.

[damen_red]

Thanks, Charlie, let me at least pull the camshaft before taking a drive out to Arizona.  Seeing where the corrosion is and isn't, the lifter bore might be OK, not opposed to rebuilding a block, just don't know if it will be THIS block.  I was just in Phoenix over Presidents Day weekend, too!

 

DR

[Charlie69]

i hope the block is usable.  You might consider an "A" motor swap if the block is not usuable.