The Point of No Return

Well, the Lincoln Shop Manual guided me through a successful 30 plus steps to pull my engine. When I rented the engine crane and went to pull it, I found this to be an easy Friday afternoon thriller. This is my first official engine pull. Went pretty smooth but leaves me wondering how easy or challenging it will be to reverse these steps when I get the rebuilt Y-Block back from M & D Automotive of Purceville. M & D is another post or many post altogether and more to come on that. All I can say about this is to be wise enough to know what you simply cant do yourself...before its too late.

Now my excitement is off the charts with so much to do! I have fuel lines to flush, carb to rebuild, starter, generator, fuel pump, etc to rebuild or replace. Where do I begin? This is my happy place. And how can I forget the engine bay? Im already picturing this pristine, like new engine bay with a clean rebuilt Y - Block in there. But what I have to do to make this happen is the real journey. One that I will enjoy every turn of the ratchet, stroke of the wire brush, wire to replace, and spray of new paint. Lets not forget skinned knuckles, oily messes, and inconvenient trips up to the hardware store for that one open end 11/16th wrench that is just the right size to get that one last bolt loose either. A man hasnt lived until he has gone this far...the point of no return.

750 Lbs of Detroit Iron

Gasp! Yikes! Holy expletive!

Yes, those @#! exhaust manifolds are still hanging on to the rusted remains of the exhaust pipes that were just too stubborn to get at with the engine still in. But NOW, I have access and they shall surrender.

Hey! Pull My Engine!

I followed the original shop manual for pulling my beloved, rusted, and drowned 368 Lincoln Y Block. There are roughly 30 steps but honestly, it wasn't too bad. I read somewhere your typical shade tree mechanic can be ready to pull an engine in 2 hours. Im a pretty experienced shade tree mechanic but I have a freaking garage and it still took me about 8 hours off an on!

Most of the process went well. There is one bolt between the firewall and engine connecting the block to the bell housing that took me about an hour to work free with an 11/16th open end wrench, some work on my cursing, and some good old perseverance. Im not even sure how my hand fit in there but there was just enough room for my hand to hold the wrench like tweezers and some how, magically, get it off. I think I only dropped the wrench about 20 times in the process which involves a process of climbing out of the engine bay, crawling under the car, and retrieving the wrench. I am amazed that it landed in different places each time. Anyway, here she is ready to pull. It looks pathetic, rusted and sad because it is. This a great before shot. Next up is to rent and engine crane, truck and cart this 750 lb block of mechanical genius of to a professional shop for a rebuild...and maybe a few extras to boost the HP and give Annie a little Bad A$$ rumble too.