I read with interest the many suggestions given to the owner of the '58 with
the 413.' I think they were all on the right track, but with one omission
that I thought I should address, from personal experience, and misfortune.
Take care to flush out the cooling system as well as you can before you
start. It will have all kinds of unwanted residue in it, from rust to
mineral deposits. The radiator was not designed to be dry and may clog
badly when you first start it up.
If you are going to get the gas tank professionally cleaned out, which
having done this project several times myself due to lack of funds to do
anything different, I recommend, get the radiator cleaned too. (Tank
cleaning is neither fun nor fast, and the chemicals definitely fall into the
hazardous materials class.) While the radiator is off, blast water and
cooling system cleaner through the block as often as you like. Removing the
water pump for greater access is a good thing too.
The gunk you will remove will astonish you, but your engine will thank you.
Once you have the engine running you should dump the cooling system contents
out again while still warm and the sediment is still suspended in the fluid.
Don't bother with that itty bitty radiator drain valve. Take off the lower
hose to it and get that stuff out quick.
My 58, with 392 Hemi, was restarted from over ten years idleness with a fill
of the radiator and the installation of a battery, and some gas in the tank.
It fired pretty quickly, too, and put an indelible black stain on the wall
in front of which the car had stood so long. The fuel pump took several
years to die, but the water pump got clogged and blew its seal very quickly.
I have never done that again. In fact, it wasn't me who did it the first
time, although I was there. It was someone else's would be project at the
time, but his enthusiasm paled rather quickly. Mine has just grown.
Once you have it running, your next order of business will be the brakes.
Can't go anywhere if you cannot stop. This project would test the patience
of Job. I will not ruin your enthusiasm at this point with what you MAY
find. I just hope it is a lot prettier than what I had to deal with.
All the best.
Hugh
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