Info needed: Engine Pre-Lube after storage

[Phil Waterman]

Lynn

Brings up a very good point on valve stem rust on older engines that are store for long periods. Back in my teens (late 60s) I worked at a summer camp in New Hampshire that stored a number of vehicles for nine months out of the year. Every thing from a 1941 Chris Craft, 48 F3 Ford truck with 337 engine, couple of Covair Greenbrier vans, 53 Chev Station wagon with 216, to couple of Chevy vans with 6 cylinder engines.

From the age of the equipment they must have figure out the storage process. Other than the normal winteriseing. One step sticks in my mind, each engine was fogged out. Once the vehicle was in position for storage up on blocks the engine was started airfilter removed and with the engine running at a fast idle oil was squirted in until the engine stop. Yes there was a lot of smoke. Once they stopped we would pull the battery replace the air filters.

Must have worked pretty good because when I visited in late 80s many of the same vehicles were still in use.

I suspect that oil must have coated everything top end of the engines pretty.

A personal view I hate it when I see or hear people gun the engine once it starts to get the oil pressure up. My approach is to start the engine and let it run under 400-1000 RPM just fast enough to keep running. I like electric fuel pumps for priming the carb.

Having said that I try to run and hopefully drive all my trucks at least one a month during the winter.

Cheers Phil