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A WWII vet friend of mine has a M37 and is no longer able to continue the rebuild he started years agow he says its almost complete and has all the parts needed. Ive always wanted an m37 and cant help to jump at his offer to sell it to me for ( never mind).
I havent payed him yet, because its in a shed that the doors are frozen in ice.
due to his health issues details have been sketchy at best ( he thinks its a 52)
assuming it looks good and I buy it.
Im most afraid of the motor, is there a websight, or book or video detailing how to asses, inspect and finaly start an engine thats been sitting for several years, without wrecking it first thing as Im inclined to do.

An engine that's been sitting for several years could be stuck, but if it was running ok when parked it can probably be saved. I'd suggest seeing if you can turn it over by hand before applying juice to the starter. If it won't budge, squirt some penetrating oil into each cylinder and let it sit for a few days. Then try turning it by hand again. Often that's all it takes to free stuck rings. DON'T just jump in and hit the starter. If the rings are stuck, the starter may pop them loose, but it can also result in broken rings. The lands between rings could break, too. Go easy with it until you know exactly what you're dealing with.

I've heard people say to pour brake fluid into cylinders on a stuck engine to free it. I can't vouch for any validity on this but I have heard it.

BTW - If an engine gets stuck then you free it, won't there be score marks around the walls of the cylinders where the rings had been sitting for all that time? Won't that need to be addressed at some point? I've always wondered what kind of pitting results from an engine sitting in place for years then gets restarted at some point later in time. Just curious in this regard.

There won't always be score marks. If the piston(s) got stuck because of dried-out lubricant and/or carbon residue, the oil should dissolve it and allow the piston(s) to move. I've rescued several old single-cylinder Maytag washing machine engines that way. I only had to replace the rings on one of them.

Once you free your engine up enough to turn, removing the head and having a look inside would be a good idea. That would be a good time to do a "rings, mains, and inserts job," even if you don't opt for a complete rebuild.

Nothing to fear-this forum is a great source of info for all things M37. Many of us that currently own an M37 started exactly where you are: unsure of where to begin, how to work with a flat-head engine, what to fix first, etc. Check some of our historical forum posts to determine what's best for you, but I'm certain everyone on this forum that owns an M37 (and there are hundreds) will tell you not to skip this opportunity to own one if it's in any kind of reasonable shape.

Welcome aboard!
Gary

Cal_Gary wrote:Nothing to fear-this forum is a great source of info for all things M37. Many of us that currently own an M37 started exactly where you are: unsure of where to begin, how to work with a flat-head engine, what to fix first, etc. Check some of our historical forum posts to determine what's best for you, but I'm certain everyone on this forum that owns an M37 (and there are hundreds) will tell you not to skip this opportunity to own one if it's in any kind of reasonable shape.

Welcome aboard!
Gary

Yep, and they ain't making any more. Those of us who do own an M37 can count ourselves lucky because there is defintiely more demand than there is a supply. At least that's the feeling I have gotten.....

poor rich wrote:A WWII vet friend of mine has a M37 and is no longer able to continue the rebuild he started years agow he says its almost complete and has all the parts needed. Ive always wanted an m37 and cant help to jump at his offer to sell it to me for ( never mind).
I havent payed him yet, because its in a shed that the doors are frozen in ice.
due to his health issues details have been sketchy at best ( he thinks its a 52)
assuming it looks good and I buy it.
Im most afraid of the motor, is there a websight, or book or video detailing how to asses, inspect and finaly start an engine thats been sitting for several years, without wrecking it first thing as Im inclined to do.

We have built many starting from all sorts of conditions, you can check out some on our website. Feel free to give us a call with questions concerning your initial start up, glad to help. Shop phone, 704-474-4683.

Hey Rich,
Someone on E-Bay has the M37 manuals on CD "cheap", much cheaper than to buy the hard copies, as long as you have Adobe on your PC. I have the CD and it's very comprehensive. The only M37 manual it does not include (to my knowledge) is TM9-8030.

I recently started my first dodge project and it was a '45 truck that had been parked outside 30 years ago. The engine was stuck and I did as the others recommended and let penatrating oil soak for a few days. Then 100 to 150 ft-lbs on the crank broke it loose. #6 spark plug was so rusted the ceramic seperated from the base when I tried to remove the plug wire. To be on the safe side I disasembled it to clean and check for problems. To summerize, the cylinder walls were good and only needed to be honed. The valves and seats needed a touch up at a machine shop but could have probably been fixed with polishing compound. I found a lot of slude in the oil pan and oil pick up strainer and it would have been a problem if not cleaned out by hand. I was most surprised by the amount of rust, sediment, etc in the water cooling passages and I removed the freeze plugs to get at it. The cooling tube needed to be replaced and some of the sediment had to be broken loose with a screwdriver. I assume it was 30 years of operational buildup followed by 30 years of sitting. Some of the rings were stuck in the grooves of the pistons but freed up OK. It will be several months before I try to fire it up but I am glad I took it apart. It is the original engine according to the title.

Hello cal-gary, I bought that M37 CD too. I do like it and i'm sure I'll get use out of it.

I looked on Ebay but couldnt find the manuals on cd. are they still listed?

For the hard copy see
portrayal press.
For the deal of the century go to:
http://military-media.com/military/inde ... ucts_id=40
$20

Looks like someone beat you to it, Rich. Peter E perhaps? Anyway, they get relisted every now and then so it pays to search M37 on e-Bay daily-you never know what you might find. I also checked this morning and the seller is militarymedia. I couldn't find any other details.
Gary

Guess I should have checked the post by JBXX-it has the info you need to obtain one.