I have had only a few responses from my asking for vender advise on rebuilding my 216. Since this is an issue that could effect a lot of us, and many have had their engines rebuilt, may I have some more opinions please? A PM suggested that an honest answer may cause a vender to not want to support our organization, or reflect poorly on the vender? I just want some good advise, and maybe in the long run the vender might benefit from our opinions. I assume I am making a $2,000 to $4,000 decision which I do not wish to regret the rest of my life? I have had my car since 2003 and this is something I have worked towards for a long time. Thanks for reconsidering my post, Mike

One reason for low post may be geographical location. I would think there are several good rebuilders within a 500 mile range of your location. I would first suggest you research what you want in a "good" rebuild. Your prices listed are low for a "complete" rebuild in my area. By complete it would include complete disassembly-cleaning and inspection of all parts-crank ground and polished-all bearings replaced (rebabbited)-line bore checked-block bored-new pistons,rings, valves, valve springs,head and block resurfaced-new cam gear-rebuilt oil and water pump-rocker shafts rebushed and rocker arms resurfaced-and possibly other parts that did not pass inspection.Some shops with modern tooling can rebuild the old engines to better than original specs.Throw in some balancing and in my area you are probably looking at $8-10 grand. I would attend some local shows and ask a lot of questions and then visit the shops that are recommended before making a decision. I am sure others will have different opinions so perhaps this will get them to chime in.

Thanks Steve, the good news is that I have already a good reliable shop that I have visited several times and checked out their references. The bad news is that they want me to find the parts myself so they won't have to charge me for that service. The only positive feedback I have gotten from our chat site is use Kanter because they guarantee their parts, and check with NAPA because their parts maybe cheaper, and watch for venders who hand your order over to third parties so you get excessive postage/product markups because the parts are not sent from one bundled source. The machinist doing the rebuild has warned me that there is a lot of "junk out there" and to try to find American made parts. Thanks, Mike

Hello Mike,

I had my '48 216 rebuilt in 2003. The builder used a Kanter kit and the result has been very good. Not only do they offer a great warranty, but the kits are very complete and the Kanter staff is very good to work with if a problem arises during the rebuild.


Your concern over finding your own parts shouldn't be a factor. My builder did the same thing with me and I considered it a plus in that it saved me some money. My builder did give me some general recommendations to work on during the process. Use it to your advantage!!

As I recall, back in 2003 it cost me somewhere in the $3000 - $4000 range for my rebuild which included the labor and materials.

It is a big investment, so take your time, get your ducks in a row and good luck to you.

Mike,
I prefer to order my own parts because I can determine where they come from. Most rebuilders take the easy way out and order from Eggy (not on my acceptable list). Since I have stock piled most of the engine parts for my older cars over the past 40 years, I only have to get gaskets and have the bearings and rods repoured.

Several 41 engine parts have been listed on eBay recently. I bought some to stock pile for my '43 Chevy. You might contact the eBay sellers when you find an engine part to see what else they might have. Example is Bill Haven from Springfield, MO has a bunch of valves, valve guides listed but I know from previous purchases that he still has a ton of NORS engine parts. His eBay seller name is justbhaven. Might check him out. Other options are to check with local part houses, particularly those with ancient employees that will look through the books to find cross overs, etc. Many parts were also used on tractors, industrial engines so are still available. Valve guides & valve springs are examples. And those parts are generally much less too.

There is a company on eBay that will sell you all the engine parts. Don't know their quality but their prices seem to be on the high side.

Is Carquest in Bay City what used to be Bay City Auto Parts? If so they have had a first class machine shop for at least 50 years. I had an '32 engine done there some 40 years ago. It was a great job and reasonably priced too.

If it were me, I would want the shop to source the parts to keep the liability all under one roof. I think most items are pretty safe with the exception of the camshaft. There seems to be a lot of camshaft failures in recent years with the result of a lot of finger pointing. This idea of buying a kit is quite interesting. I would think that the crankshaft gets ground, the cylinders bored and then at that point one knows what size of parts to buy. It used to be that shops would want to do the final hone of the cylinders with pistons in hand.

Previous post are good information.
As you stated the final hone is done with the pistons in hand so any minor tolerence variations can be allowed for. Some shops wont do any machining until the parts are on hand.
Tony

Thanks, Chipper. The Carquest is on Wilder Rd. that I am using. There are other Carquest shops that were old automotive/paint dealers. Bay City still has the feel of an old auto town with places that have been around for a long time. Did you ever run into Kenny Charron the carburetor guy. He and his dad had an old auto repair garage. He must be in his mid 80's and is still rebuilding carburetors in his 2 car garage. He heats his place with a wood burning stove, has parts hanging from the rafters and a large metal salad bowl that he washes his parts in. The bowl is full of gas and he has his hands in it all the time with no gloves on. They don't make guys like that anymore. His mind is razor sharp, a real pleasure to visit. Mike

Mike - For your information I used to live next door to the Charrons in Essexville and he helped me clean up a carburetor back in the late 60's. He used to race six cylinder Chevies in the 50's, I believe. He used to have a garage in Bay City near the Court House and he specialized in carburetor work.

Walt, you need to join me on a road trip to see Kenny and his place??? Mike

Mike,
They may have moved from downtown near the river.

Never ran into Charron. Am trying to remember the machinist that did the work in that engine. He was a member of Saginaw Valley Old Car Club that became an AACA Region.

Chip
Ben Hotchkiss did a lot of engine work, Ben worked at Bay City auto parts and machine shop down by the river in Bay City. He did my 37 P/U engine back in 76 and still running strong with 25K plus miles. He did several engines for me.
Ben also was the Guruu for vacuum tanks and rebuilt vacuum tanks for people all over the world, and he did not advertise.
Ben passed away about 10 years ago and his son dispersed all the equipment or scrapped it. I got his main test bench and passed it on to someone local. I also have a tank repair manual.

Walt,
You nailed it buddy. Couldn't think of his name. Sure was an asset to the old car hobby. I had forgotten about the vacuum tanks until I read your post. The engine Ben did for me is still running some 40 years later.