i have a 1951 chevy 3100 that i just bought . it hasn't been cranked in about 5 years but does run . it has 37k original miles and still has the 216 . i want to go back original with it as much as possible but , i have been told that the 216 has poured bearings (is this true? ) and i know the oiling system is only partially pressurized . i have been told that if i go back with this engine due to the oiling system that it won't last very long . i do have a 327 at home i could use . what do you guys think ?
Ask yourself this Hi newbie, as for the engine question, its a 51 and it still has the original 216 in it, if these engines were that bad it wouldnt be there, it would have been swapped out, many of the guys on here swear by them, ok so they ain't setting any 1/4 mile quick times with them but it seems to me they just keep on going, some prefer a later 235, some prefer a 350, having said that some prefer a rolls royce merlin engine!! but the big question is what do YOU want for YOUR truck?
Babbitt pounders rule! If your engine only has 37K miles on it, it only has about 150K left on it before the babbitt bearings go bad! Do yourself a favor and tinker with it and get it running! Drive it for awhile and see what you think. After that, if you don't like it, drop your 327 in. Those 216's are tough, dependable engines and, if taken care of, will last forever. Change the oil every 2000 miles, adjust the valves on a regular basis and it won't let you down. Welcome to the forum. Post some pictures and enjoy the ride!
Hi Dawg ! WELCOME ! Like Neil and Ken said , 216's are great , sturdy engines , many people who don't understand things , automatically say ' oh that ~ that's old crap , they're no good ' . In fact , the 216 C.I. Chevrolet " StoveBolt " engine was and is , a world beating design . There's really only one way to kill it : go too fast . yes , it has poured babbit typ bearings but then they're carefully scraped to perfection and then shimmed " Just So " so they'll do the job and go the distance and then some ~ your 57 year old truck isn't the only one still running the original engine ~ there's lots of them still out working . It just won't last long if you zizz down the highway @ 55 + MPH although it'll easily go that fast if you tune it correctly . Do some hot oil and filter changes and look in the older posts about tune up and valve adjust , you'll soon see how sweet a driver these old trucks can be , slow a$$ed original engine and all . If you plop a V-8 into it , you'll need to upgrade a whole buncha other things too , time lost instead if having fun driving it around now . Remember : it's only stock ONCE .
Dawg, Welcome aboard. You did state you wanted to go back to original, if that is the case, why think about a V8. Go backand read some of the older posts as Nate stated earlier. Get your truck running and drive it.. Charles
the part about going down the hwy @55 is what i am concerned about . i have been told that it might not last long with a lot of highway driving and that's the problem . i want to be able to drive the truck to the mountains or other places if i want to . as far as the v8 conversion goes , i would like to keep it stock but , i also want it to be driveable on trips . what kind of modifications would have to be done to do the v8 ? i don't want to trash the truck so it could'nt be put back original . i have dealt with older cars from the 60's but , this is my first truck and the oldest vehicle i have ever owned .
Highway Speed O.K. , here's the deal ; If you put a V-8 in it , forget about stock ever again , it's just not gonna happen as there's frame welding involved etc. If you put 16" rims on it and select the correct size radial LT truck tire , that'll give it a few more MPH and you can also replace the ring and pinion with 3.55 gears , this really helps get it up to 60 ~ 65 MPH without killing the engine . Those two are what I've done to my old '49 shop truck , it has a 235 InLine 6 cylinder and goes anywhere @ 60 ~ 65 MPH , over hill and dale , Death Valley and beyond , no B.S. , this is my work truck so it hauls full loads of scrap and tows cars too .
It is only stock as long as you leave it my 57 has been raped repeatedly befor I got it I finaly got all the old engine mounts cut out from were someone had put a 471 big block V6 in Nasty!!! I am doing the V8 327 in mine but mine also had the option to have a V8in it and thier are a few things changed but for the most part everything will work. But I throwed a wrench in mine also I have a built 327 and am looking for performance so not only am I changing the engine but the SM420 is gone and a M22 Rock Crusher is taking its place, the stock drop threw rear end it out and a Ford 9" is going in so it all boils down to how much you want to spend and what your goals are for the truck.
lubrication Nice! Don't let your engine oil level get low, The crank scoops oil up from the sump to lube the rod bearings. Also grease the front end and chassis regularly! The manual for my 55.1 3100 says every 1000 miles. That means about once a month for a daily driver. Enjoy it.
' Dipper ' 6 Bangers Well , sort of : Chevy called it the " Target Lubrication System " as there's a snap in tray in the upper 1/4 of the oil pan (just TRY snapping it out tho' ) , this tray has six little troughs in it and each trough has a nozzle , the oil pump pumps oil into these nozzles and at idle or low speeds , the cute little scoop on the bottom of each connecting rod , splashes through the oil , scooping it up and into the babbit bearing . at higher RPM's , the oil pressure is sufficient that the nozzles actually squirt a jet of oil into the little scoop as it comes 'round ~ hence the ' Target ' as the nozzles must be correctly aligned or the rods won't get sufficient oil above idle speeds . Chevy even used to have a cute little flat steel gauge plate that you'd hold along the troughs whilst holding a garden hose into the oil tubes , the gauge plate has holes in it and each nozze must hit the target hole or you bend them ever so carefully until they did . Unless the oil pan is seriously dented , this isn't an important test . There's one fellow I know who took the time and effort to blueprint his 216 and it zips down the freeway @ 70 MPH just fine thankyouverymuch . Runs cool and gets super fuel milage too .
thanks for the replies ! this helps me to understand these engines a lot better . but let me ask one thing . how do you tell the difference between a 216 and a 235 by looking ? the fellow i got the truck from said it was the original 216 and i don't think he would intentionaly lie me or , at least he never has , but i just want to make sure before i get started .
Quick Test If there's two nuts on top of the rockerbox holding it on , it's a 216 . If . OTOH , there are four screws 'round it's perimiter holding the rockerbox on , then , it's a full pressure engine . Pretty much any InLine 6 cylinder engine under the hood of an AD , is a well designed , robust unit . They ALL use the same tune up specs. so go search them out and get to work ! .
point of interest Many of these old engines are hitting 60 yrs old now, many without a rebuild and some have been standing for years then fired back up without a tear down in sight, kinda makes you think when people jus disreguard them without a care
Just So ! You're right Neil ; Most of my career has been in resurrecting old long forgotten junk and returning it to service .
Listen to ol' chebby! You have the best advice right here. Get that V8 ready, figure out what your wiring will be, etc. But I think you'll find like I did~ once you start rebuilding it stock(ish), you will be happy you did! Then drive it. When (and if) it gives up the ghost, it's all done but the swap. My plans exactly. It may be a battery powered block, but that will be contingent on what type of motivation we have to use by the time my long block is enshrined! Don't give up on that 6. Even if it is "stubby".
ok it looks like i have a full pressure engine . the valve cover has four bolts around it and has "chevrolet" stamped on the top . i assume this would be a 235 wouldn't it ? if not how could i tell what it is ? also , tell me about the tourque tube drive shaft .
Waddya need to know about the torque tube? Check Nate's older posts by searching them and you will find the very best procedure for shimming up the ball seal. Other than that, it's like everything else on this truck that involves any kind of oil...it leaks!!! Not only that, it leaked from the factory!!! Seriously, I was leery of the torque tube as well, but it's simple and easy. Basically, your rotating driveshaft resides within a rigid, non-spinning tube that bolts to the back of the tranny. Gear oil within the tranny lubes the u-joint (trunnion) within the ball seal. It's a cool setup and gives tons of traction. Any specific questions that are beyond me and in need of Nate? Andy
that's basically what i wanted to know is just how they worked . since i got this truck , everyone i talk to is trying to get me to rip out any of the factory drive train and customize . they say i will have trouble with the tourque tube set up . i had always wanted an old chevy truck and wanted to do one as much factory as possible but , i want to be able to drive anywhere it i want . i am just starting to learn about these older trucks and just trying to get all the facts before i start .
Drivability : Dawg ; Lemme tell you a thing or two about old , beat to crap Chevy and GMC trucks : They're alost unbreakable and when you finally do break it or wear it out , they're unbeliveably simple and cheap to fix , using only basic hand tools . Look around and see who drive the most ? old guys still working and enjoying thier more or less stock(ish) trucks ? or they Hot Rod guys who've dumped thousands of dollars into replacement drivertrains , only to leave it in the garage 99 % of the time ? . I'm an old Yanlkee farm boy who grew up around these trucks back when they were just $250.00 work trucks and I'm still driving and working , a 58 year old beat to shit Chevy pickup that gets more miles per year than any Hot Rodder I know and yes , I know plenty . ALL of them hate my pokey old truck because I drive up and down hill , far into the Mojave Desert fully loaded , Dath Valley and beyond , loaded , empty , towing cars , full of Motocycles and firewood for weeekend camping jaunts ~ zooming up and down narrow steep canyons - NONE of them do what I do without a second thought . Some folks just naturally assume ' old is bad ' . If you need to do burnouts and go 85 MPH then yes , please butcher up your nice old truck as you're going to wreck it trying to go fast but if you just want to enjoy it and $pend your hard earned dollars on beer and dates , . tune it up , do a brake job and get 5 new LT D rated truck tires and have some fun , fix the cosmetics as you go . The guy in my shop who screams the loudest about how awful a 6 Banger engine and Torque Tube is , also has an unused '49 pickup V-8 Hot Rod he built and doesn't drive, routinely waves $10,000.00 ca$h under my nose , trying to pry my old beat up shop truck out of my hands ~ not gonna happen . As the old guys told me back when I was a pup ~ ' you pays yer monies and you makes yer choices '
