Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?


IHC in the early to mid-fifties.

Freshly Restored
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Post Fri Sep 06, 2019 2:22 pm

Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?

I know I have been flipping around on this but I have decided to spend the money and do a full blown rebuild on my SD220. What other things are likely or do you suggest repairing/replacing when pulling the engine? I know when I pulled the tranny on my Mustang I was told to replace the clutch while I was in there unless it was new looking. Assuming like everything else on this truck that the clutch will be worn, can somebody provide info or a link to a clutch I can get for this truck? I have a difficult time looking for parts for this truck sometimes because nothing comes up when searching specifically for it.

Golden Jubilee
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Post Fri Sep 06, 2019 3:15 pm

Re: Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?

Surge clutch in South Holland Illinois as recommended to me by CB89. These guys are great, they had a disc right in stock and had it out to me right away. The y rebuild and reline as well.

The rule of thumb when the engines out is to replace the clutch, pressure plate, throw-out bearing and pilot bearing unless you can confirm very low miles on those pieces. I cheated and reused my pressure plate as it showed no signs of wear and I was willing to risk having to go back in again but so far so good.

NAPA Auto has throw out bearings but BEWARE! they are cleaning out old stock and some of the castings that hold the bearing in the release fork are total garbage and won't line up when you try to put the transmission back in. I had a bad time with this (three tries) before I figured out what was wrong. If the cast iron bearing holder portion of your throw-out bearing is good I'd suggest just getting the bearing itself, it's cheaper and may save you from a big head ache!

Also plan on replacing your motor mounts.
56 S120 4x4,

Golden Jubilee
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Post Fri Sep 06, 2019 6:38 pm

Re: Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?

I think the OP should be taking this engine to a machine shop that is familiar with engine rebuilding.
My first clue is when a person asks, "what else should I do?" Rebuilding an engine is much more than replacing a bunch of parts. After an assessment of the engine condition, the machinist will make choices that may involve boring and grinding. The engine may be junk if it is cracked from years of heat-cycling and maybe a little frost. The 60 years of coolant will have left corrosion in the cooling passages. This crud may lead to hot-spots and an overheating engine. There is no substitute for doing it right.
There is no harm in considering a non-IHC engine. Members of this forum have installed a variety of engines. The most notable is and Oldsmobile Quad 4. I am putting a Cummins 4bta in my "L".
The 4.0 Jeep in-line 6 is a fantastic engine option. The IHC 304 V8 will bolt in without any modifications, except for the steering column. Even the fan on the 304 fits into the OEM radiator shroud, like it was made for it. The IHC 304 V8 will bolt to the original transmission and if you look around you might find an automatic transmission. I found and installed a Chrysler 727 that was made for the IHC V8.
My friend installed a Mercedes 300TD automatic in his IHC. He went to the extra bother to install the Mercedes modular front and rear suspensions. I asked him, "How does it run?" He, predictably said, "Like a Mercedes." His "L" gets over 30mpg on the highway and 25 in town. Meeting or exceeding the posted speed limits is not a problem.
These old truck need modernization.
I will bet it was the charming styling that got your attention and not the ancient noise making, oil leaking underpowered lump under the hood.
If I had a dollar for every running SD220 I took to recycling, I would have $20.00. I have no regrets.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive

Golden Jubilee
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Post Fri Sep 06, 2019 8:00 pm

Re: Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?

nikkinutshop wrote:I think the OP should be taking this engine to a machine shop that is familiar with engine rebuilding.
My first clue is when a person asks, "what else should I do?" Rebuilding an engine is much more than replacing a bunch of parts. After an assessment of the engine condition, the machinist will make choices that may involve boring and grinding. The engine may be junk if it is cracked from years of heat-cycling and maybe a little frost. The 60 years of coolant will have left corrosion in the cooling passages. This crud may lead to hot-spots and an overheating engine. There is no substitute for doing it right.
There is no harm in considering a non-IHC engine. Members of this forum have installed a variety of engines. The most notable is and Oldsmobile Quad 4. I am putting a Cummins 4bta in my "L".
The 4.0 Jeep in-line 6 is a fantastic engine option. The IHC 304 V8 will bolt in without any modifications, except for the steering column. Even the fan on the 304 fits into the OEM radiator shroud, like it was made for it. The IHC 304 V8 will bolt to the original transmission and if you look around you might find an automatic transmission. I found and installed a Chrysler 727 that was made for the IHC V8.
My friend installed a Mercedes 300TD automatic in his IHC. He went to the extra bother to install the Mercedes modular front and rear suspensions. I asked him, "How does it run?" He, predictably said, "Like a Mercedes." His "L" gets over 30mpg on the highway and 25 in town. Meeting or exceeding the posted speed limits is not a problem.
These old truck need modernization.
I will bet it was the charming styling that got your attention and not the ancient noise making, oil leaking underpowered lump under the hood.
If I had a dollar for every running SD220 I took to recycling, I would have $20.00. I have no regrets.


Different strokes for different folks but put me firmly in the the category of keeping the stock motor if I can. I can appreciate your diesel conversions and might go that route if I couldn't find an IH straight six but for my taste a small block V8 would be a last resort, I love the charm and originality of an inline six. One factor for owners might be the traffic they will have to deal with and in my case I live in the country and acceleration is not really needed so I enjoy life in the slow lane. Considering I live at nearly 8,000 feet in elevation my SD220 moves my truck along alright with the gearing I have. I also liked Kevin's solution of turbo charging his six for the modern traffic where he lives.

It might be interesting in another thread to see how many here favor stock over aftermarket power plants!
56 S120 4x4,

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Post Fri Sep 06, 2019 8:53 pm

Re: Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?

Binder Mike wrote:Surge clutch in South Holland Illinois as recommended to me by CB89.
Also plan on replacing your motor mounts.

They got my attention when I walked in with an mid-70's Peugeot 504 clutch disk and set it on the counter, before I could ay what it was from, they guy said "Peugeot , we've got one in back"! Peugeot was never a big player in the Us market, and less so in the mid-west. To Id one with a casual glance, you must really know your clutches! Only stumped them once with a 17" single dry plate clutch from an English bus, the lining thickness was 11/16 on each side of the disk!
When I was tearing up damper spring in my semi clutches when doing heavy haul, they made a ridged disks for me, chattered a bit on starting but held together while doing that hard kind of work. The down side was it wore input shafts, but never left me stranded like the dampened disks did.
Now I run dampened disks once again as I am no long doing heavy work.

Freshly Restored
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Posts: 211

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Post Fri Sep 06, 2019 9:09 pm

Re: Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?

Binder Mike wrote:Surge clutch in South Holland Illinois as recommended to me by CB89. These guys are great, they had a disc right in stock and had it out to me right away. The y rebuild and reline as well.

The rule of thumb when the engines out is to replace the clutch, pressure plate, throw-out bearing and pilot bearing unless you can confirm very low miles on those pieces. I cheated and reused my pressure plate as it showed no signs of wear and I was willing to risk having to go back in again but so far so good.

NAPA Auto has throw out bearings but BEWARE! they are cleaning out old stock and some of the castings that hold the bearing in the release fork are total garbage and won't line up when you try to put the transmission back in. I had a bad time with this (three tries) before I figured out what was wrong. If the cast iron bearing holder portion of your throw-out bearing is good I'd suggest just getting the bearing itself, it's cheaper and may save you from a big head ache!

Also plan on replacing your motor mounts.


Thanks for the info. Helpful.

Freshly Restored
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Posts: 211

Joined: Thu May 10, 2018 7:15 am

Post Fri Sep 06, 2019 9:13 pm

Re: Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?

nikkinutshop wrote:I think the OP should be taking this engine to a machine shop that is familiar with engine rebuilding.
My first clue is when a person asks, "what else should I do?" Rebuilding an engine is much more than replacing a bunch of parts. After an assessment of the engine condition, the machinist will make choices that may involve boring and grinding. The engine may be junk if it is cracked from years of heat-cycling and maybe a little frost. The 60 years of coolant will have left corrosion in the cooling passages. This crud may lead to hot-spots and an overheating engine. There is no substitute for doing it right.
There is no harm in considering a non-IHC engine. Members of this forum have installed a variety of engines. The most notable is and Oldsmobile Quad 4. I am putting a Cummins 4bta in my "L".
The 4.0 Jeep in-line 6 is a fantastic engine option. The IHC 304 V8 will bolt in without any modifications, except for the steering column. Even the fan on the 304 fits into the OEM radiator shroud, like it was made for it. The IHC 304 V8 will bolt to the original transmission and if you look around you might find an automatic transmission. I found and installed a Chrysler 727 that was made for the IHC V8.
My friend installed a Mercedes 300TD automatic in his IHC. He went to the extra bother to install the Mercedes modular front and rear suspensions. I asked him, "How does it run?" He, predictably said, "Like a Mercedes." His "L" gets over 30mpg on the highway and 25 in town. Meeting or exceeding the posted speed limits is not a problem.
These old truck need modernization.
I will bet it was the charming styling that got your attention and not the ancient noise making, oil leaking underpowered lump under the hood.
If I had a dollar for every running SD220 I took to recycling, I would have $20.00. I have no regrets.


The engine is going to an experienced engine rebuilder. I’m questioning things that generally get replaced or looked at closely in addition to the engine when it’s pulled.

Golden Jubilee
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Post Fri Sep 06, 2019 9:25 pm

Re: Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?

It might be interesting in another thread to see how many here favor stock over aftermarket power plants!
All of that information is buried in this forum. It might take some research and reading, but it is there. My guess is there is a majority who want OEM.
A forum, such as this forum is and should be a discussion. I do not care if another IH owner wants to set their hair on fire. My mentioning options are just that, options. If a person does not like my options, so be it.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive
User avatar

Golden Jubilee
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Post Fri Sep 06, 2019 9:37 pm

Re: Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?

If I had a dollar for every running SD220 I took to recycling,


Your killing me,, say it's not so.. :h0212:

Golden Jubilee
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Location: Northern New Mexico

Post Fri Sep 06, 2019 10:05 pm

Re: Other Repairs When Pulling Engine?

nikkinutshop wrote:It might be interesting in another thread to see how many here favor stock over aftermarket power plants!
All of that information is buried in this forum. It might take some research and reading, but it is there. My guess is there is a majority who want OEM.
A forum, such as this forum is and should be a discussion. I do not care if another IH owner wants to set their hair on fire. My mentioning options are just that, options. If a person does not like my options, so be it.


I wan't knocking what you do or what your saying and do enjoy the different opinions here, I not looking to stir the pot.
56 S120 4x4,
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