klownskar 12/6/01
Jim_Bollman 12/6/01
Does the short valve spring go on the exhaust or the intake valve.
The short spring goes with the roto cap on exhaust valve.
ALL of the used valve springs go into the trash, I can assure you that they (especially the "long ones") are no good. They will be very low on seat pressure. You add either spacers (as Crosley did later on) or rotators on the intakes, and run the stiffer short springs on all of them. New springs are still very cheap
The Crosley did not come with hardened valves seats so depending on how hard and how many miles you plan to put on your engine you may have valve problems someday. I haven't heard of any problems caused by unleaded. Some people have had hardened seats installed, I ran gas additives for awhile and lately I dump a few ounces of Marvel Mystery Oil in the tank ever so often. Not sure either helps but I only run about 500 miles a year and while I run it pretty hard it isn't like I'm racing it.
For those on the group with advanced engine rebuilding skills...is their merit to putting bronze guides for the exhaust valves?
Yes, there are several advantages to bronze guides over iron guides. They have better lubrication properties so you can run the stem to guide clearances a little tighter. This make the valve run cooler and also lets less oil pass by the stem. Also, due to the better lube tendencies, you can run a better seal on the valves to further reduce oil past the guides. The bronze guides will never be worn out in a Crosley, in virtually every block that I tear down the stock iron guides are worn out. The only drawback to bronze guides is, they are tough to machine (it's this same toughness that makes them last forever) and once a reamer has been used on an iron guide, it really shouldn't be used on bronze guides. I think enough of them that bronze is all I install on both intakes and exhausts in our shop, and I do quite a few of them.
When stored inside, a number of years ago, the Crosley engine ran fine. When I went to start it recently one valve is stuck open. Is there any way to unstick it other than disassembling the engine? I am dealing with a tin engine.
I'm a big fan of Marvel Mystery Oil. I mix 50:50 with light motor oil and squirt it in the spark plug hole. To get it up on the stuck valve you may have to turn the engine upside down or take off the manifolds to get into the valve stem area. If it isn't stuck open so far as to interfere with the piston you can put some Mystery Oil in the crankcase and crank the engine over to get it in the valve area. After you are pretty sure the you have some MMO around the valve let it sit a day or so.
The mix of MMO and oil is also good for freeing up stuck rings. Automatic tarnsmission fluid or kerosene is a good substitute for light oil.
Gumout, spray on the valve stem from the valve cover. Do Not use GUNK. Stuck open you can pull up on it carefully while (start by pressing down if it isn't bottomed out) spraying gumout carb cleaner which is now called injector and fuel system cleaner. White can with little red plastic hose attached to the side of can.
I've had good success by removing the manifolds and spraying the valve stems with a good penetrating oil. Then you can remove the valve cover and manually exercise the valves while you keep soaking the stems. Pull the plugs and turn the engine over to clear the cylinders.
The advice was appreciated but I was unable to utilize it in my situation. Here is how I solved the problem. By removing the cam cover, it was easy to determine which cylinder had the stuck valve. The engine would fire when I tried to start it but when the cylinder with the open valve would backfire through the carburetor, it either blew out or diluted the gas/air mixture in the intake manifold. I disconnected the spark plug wire to the offending cylinder and taped it off. I then was able to start the engine on three cylinders. After only a short running time the block got warm enough that the offending valve came unstuck. The spark plug wire was reinstalled and everything is 100%. Perhaps that method might help someone else with the same problem.