Seedee

Hey everyone! Figured I'd revive this old thread, don't worry restoration is still on going...with life and family it's kind of hard to keep on track with everything! I haven't done much with the car itself but thankfully I have FINALLY saved up enough money to send the block and internals to the machine shop... It'll be a few weeks to give y'all an update on that but I'm just glad I was finally able to get the ball rolling. Also, I took the block to a fabricator to have a run stand made but at first glance it may look "tall" but I did that so I wouldn't be stooped over the engine and killing my back. Least I have enough room to mount the muffler, exhaust pipe etc underneath!

Title says it all. When I got my Olds 88 few years back the rocker moldings weren't with the vehicle, fast forward to now. I have the moldings but have no clue how to install these! The clips as shown below are the only thing I can find for the moldings. The parts book that I have says that you need 22 of these Now on my car there's no sign where you can "screw" these to or a spot what a J clip where go! All I can find was this on the inner rockers but there is no hole out the outer rocker panel So are the rocker panels supposed to have holes where you attach the clips to?! If anyone can shed any light on how I go about putting them would be great

surprised how well these are turning out! finally got the driver side trim on test fitting how the windshield trim and the wiper transmission looks. Having trouble with the transmission bracket but I sourced the brackets from a 1952 model....the brackets are inverted when comparing pictures for a 1949 model but I'm hoping it will work

Here are the clips I ordered to help you out, I have to warn you the ears on the upper molding clips don't like to bend too much and are easy to snap so get extras. For all the doors I think after shipping for me was just over $100... For the front and rear window I found a place on eBay that that has something that are "close" to the OEM but I haven't ordered them yet...the original seems to let the bolt slide back and forth and the reproductions don't. I'll be ordering them soon and let you know how they turn out ..I have enough originals to put on both the left and right front trim on... I have, however bought a center moulding trim from a Chevy fleetliner for the windshield and let y'all know if it fits!

we're slowly getting there with the clips! Still a pain in the backside to put on!Much better! Found out how to put the upper window trim on A LOT easier and faster. Just used a c clamp (make sure the jaw pads are on it!) And slowly tighten it along the edge where the clips are so the trim will push the tabs in and over the inner lip of the chrome! and the other side now, rinse and repeat! More pictures soon!

Hey everyone!!! I know it's been a long awhile since I posted...a lot of things have been going on but now back on course! I did make a part 4 which was the last bit of disassembly but I can't get the link to work on here so just scroll up and find it through the YouTube channel I got! The engine rebuild is on hold (still) but don't worry it will get done! Lately I've been starting to buff out the chrome for the Olds and surprised how well they are coming out! Excuse the messy workplace! It took me awhile to find some clips for the beltline and upper window moulding and for the price per clip i found a place in Cali called Truck and Car Shop. Now yes the parts they supply are for Chevys but some GM parts were interchangeable at the time Now these upper moulding clips were an absolute pain to install I ended up sitting one ear into the hole on the door and push the clip till the other ear slid into it. Normally it needed a light hammer to finish it off. I got this side mostly done but I'm having trouble getting the upper trim to "snap" onto the bottom side of the clip in some places. Any suggestions would be great! As time goes on, I'll add some more pictures

So, in my slow preparations before sending the block out to the machine shop I noticed these orifices or "restrictiors" that look pretty corroded. At the front of the block on both sides. I can't tell if they were casted (which I highly doubt) or are they a type of core plug punched in during assembly. Fearing they won't survive the cleaning process I'm curious if there's a mention of these "restrictiors' in anyone's parts book? Or I have to fabricate a replacement. You can't tell in the photo but there is a lip around the opening. I figured best would be just to drill the same diameter into a steel core plug and drive it in. But any insight would be appreciated!

Pretty much. But you know what... It's not so much as if it's a PITA. Which, to be honest anything that we work with that's going to be this old will be. It's the joy of taking it apart and learning from it. To me that's the most satisfying thing of doing this and documenting my journey on doing this is all the more worthwhile!

I suspect it's probably to do with the timing gears as the pitch change from 1/2" to 3/8"? I can't remember. I do also recall the ratio changed from 1.5 to 1.8 but thats not until the 324 was released? Again, I can't remember! If you need help with the camshaft I can let you know which one I got from them just PM me. Veering back on course. I FINALLY broke loose the dipstick tube, but. Don't bother with using a 9/16" deep socket. As I found out you just end up squashing the end of the tube and flare it out. What actually worked perfectly was a drive punch from none other than harbor freight. The punch itself was just a little smaller than the ID of the tube and the shoulder rested over the lip of the tube, a good 15 minutes with MAPP gas, few shots of freeze spray and solid blows shocked it loose. Now I just have to get a file and remove the flared material and off it comes!

It's very tough at this point....from what I've found the majority of suppliers that have the pistons are getting them made under contract from a foundry in Taiwan. As far as Fusick, I haven't asked them but most certainly they are getting it from the same place...Egge...I'm not sure if they still make pistons in house anymore. but charging almost $700 for a set they better be! Most of the parts I've gotten so far (camshaft, valve guides) have been from an eBay store called Falcon global. They sell the pistons as well so I might just get it from them and I'll update y'all with my untrained eye "quality inspection" when I get them! Now, piston size is a whole other story! Besides one supplier that has them at .020' oversize everyone else is .030' and beyond. Good luck getting these pistons from JE or Silv-o-lite unless you want to custom order them! But long story short...I'll probably go .030' over but that depends on what the machine shop says.

Quick update!! Machine work is underway on the cylinder heads! New valve guides, intake, exhaust valves and springs are being replaced, valve seats ground for the new valves but new seats aren't required ( thank goodness!) As far as the block goes. I'll have to scrounge pennies and save but the machine shop did offer to clean and measure everything on the block and coat everything in cosmoline afterwards so it doesn't rust the bare metal...which is nice! Least then my garage will stop smelling like old grease and oil! And I'll be more prepared for what's needed on the block.

Yeah, the bore does look pretty rough! Haven't had a chance to get back into disassembly. But I'll put a link in to the newest video I have up. It's not a short video by any means just a heads up!

Oof!!! I do see that I'll have to bore out the engine a minimum .030 to clean all that up!

Finally wrapped up filming this morning for the next part of the teardown series on YouTube just waiting for my video editor to finish doing it thing... It's pretty grim on the insides and I'm glad I'm doing this. I haven't seen any numbers or marks stamped on the rods so I'm safe to assume that no one else has been this deep into the engine... I'm not sure exactly what on earth has happened to the oil pump pickup but...did it get broken off or something?! There is a pin hole just below where it looks like it's broken off but the screen is low enough to catch the stuff!

Looking forward to seeing your work @Tford! thanks to @F&J I've figured out the conundrum about the camshaft thrust plate and why my camshaft wasn't coming out, a few days of soaking the bearings, pulling and rotating the camshaft with Free All worked like a charm! Safe to say though that the camshaft is pretty much toast but will serve as a nice keepsake. You'll see plain as day that the cam bearing closest in the picture had a REAL rough time!

There was a few lifters that were a pita to get out, and penetrating oil is what I have alot of! I'll give it go and see. Anything at this point won't hurt!

So I had a very quick look on my way out the door to work at those oil galley plugs, and sure enough it had the oil hole drilled through! And it was clogged up shut with a solid plug of sludge! Now why is the camshaft stuck. Someone I've talked to have suggested it may have "spun a bearing" but how would I know? This is all new to me! Should I just leave it in and let the machine shop deal with removing it?

I have the later crank pulley I think the made the change mid year and the block I have is a very early 1950 production. So I guess it would make sense that the thrust plate was deleted and the thrust button/spring replaced it, although. It makes no sense why the camshaft won't pull out. I guess I can always continue disassembling the engine and come back to it at a later time. Interesting! I didn't notice an oil hole in the plugs...then again there's crud covering everything so I'll double check the plugs. One must have the hole drilled because oddly enough. Both plugs are different diameter/thread pitch. Again. I'll check later and get back with you what I find. Thank you for the information!

One roadblock after another! I haven't had much time to get more done on engine teardown and I've only scrounge 10 minutes here and there, but I need some help on the camshaft thrust plate.... The Manual states that there is a thrust plate secured by 4 bolts and has a hole drilled into the right side for oiling. Here's a pic of it I found on eBay for reference Anyways, I took the camshaft gear and all that off expecting to see this plate... nothing! There was the camshaft thrust button and spring when I took the timing cover off though. I've tried to pull the camshaft out but it feels like there's something holding it in and I don't want to force it out, am I missing something??? There are two large plugs on either side of the camshaft but I'm assuming that those are covering the right and left oil galleys

Another quick update!!! Still working on part 3 I've made some progress and a ghastly discovery... It looks like everything upfront has been completely starved of lubrication! The chain is barely hanging on and with a good push from one finger the timing chain almost comes off! From what I've read in the books there's a 1/16" hole drills through the camshaft thrust plate to the right side main oil galley and "supplies continuous oil to lubricate the timing chain, gears and eccentric cam." Yeah...sure! Must've clogged up eons ago! And for an extra dose of anxiety there's heaping piles of rust flakes in the corner and into the oil pan! 😬 How long has the engine REALLY been sitting?! So much gunk and rust! The front main seal was completely shot but why would it matter it wasn't getting oil to the front anyways!!! I'm sure the oil feed to the distributor gear is clogged as well as that's a 1/16" hole as well! Next step will be to pull the crankshaft timing gear off with the puller and then hopefully more filming to complete part 3.

http://dandmrestoration.com/ I had them repair my instrument cluster for my '49 Oldsmobile... speedometer gear was frozen. $225 with 2 week turnaround and they also calibrated the temperature, oil and ammeter guage while they were in there! They also do radio repair as well but haven't asked what they charged

I have a question not sure if anyone can provide insight on this but it's to do with pushrod diameter. From what I've been reading the early Olds 303 has a pretty large diameter pushrod and seems like these are almost on a special order need basis and runs about $200+ for a set of these pushrods HOWEVER... When I check on a manufacturer like Melling and provide the information on the engine they say that a smaller diameter but same length pushrod is used. And these run at $80 for a set Is pushrod diameter critical in stock application as long as the pushrod length is the same? At max valve lift I believe the springs are only exerting 120lbs so, in my mind it's not an issue...what are your thoughts?

Hey everyone!!! Just a quick update for everyone, I haven't had a chance to work on the engine for part 3 of my videos (if anyone is following along!) But after some much researching I think I have found an interesting discovery... When I pulled the heads off there was a set of Victor gasket on the engine. And from what I have found GM was using Victor gaskets as part of their OEM line. So deducing from that my logic tells me that this engine has not been completely torn down and I am the first to do so which to me, is very exciting!

Here's part 2 of the teardown! Now, a question I did ask in the video of someone could help, is decoding the "cast date" on the cylinder heads...I see ln the same format all over the block and different parts and just wondered how to decipher them Here's some photos as well! I'm getting there!!

Ok everyone, I've finally gotten around to start making videos on YouTube to chronicle the teardown of the 303! Here's a link to part 1 : I didn't realize I had my cell phone oriented the wrong way while recording (my first time making a video on YouTube mind you!) but don't fret I won't make the same mistake on the next video, but regardless. I hope you all enjoy as you join me in tearing down the engine.