Have found a good 1927 152 ci W5 4 cyl Continental (with a Star plate) to replace my original 1926 cracked block; and am going thru a rebuild. Initial bore was 3 and 3/8 inches and cylinders currently have 20 thou natural wear and will by honed 30 thou.
My question is "What was the claimed compression ratio and expected cylinder pressure (lbs/in) for this engine?"
Will accept any other advice on rebuild.
Tx Guy

Where Are You From? www.bcsaggregates.com

Do You own a car built by Durant? Grandpa's 1926 Star Touring

Hi Tx Guy.
Sorry for taking so long to answer some of your questions. Been to to busy. The compression ratio is 5.5 to 1 and the cylinder compression should be up around 75 to 80 pounds.
We have found that when replacing the pistons we go to a 3 ring piston instead of the common 4 ring piston Continental used.
Cuts down on drag and gives a little HP boost. We also regrind a lot off the back side of the stock cam to increase lift and round the lobe some to ad duration. There is a lot of room up in the head for more lift and as much as 1/8th of a inch. The tappets are adjustable of course and the value springs will take the compression OK. This gives you the most horsepower increase of anything.
We also mill the head at least 100 thousands and that helps some. We also ream the intake and exhaust manifold and block ports and polish. All these older Continental engines are starved for air. We also increase the tailpipe size for better breathing. After the increased cubes and porting you can jump up to the 14L Zenith new carb that club member Frank Witkowski sells.
Would also recommend x-ray each rod and have them pinned. They break fairly easily. No engines back then were counterbalanced so they shake and vibrate pretty good. There is engineering companies out there that can add counterbalances on any crankshaft of course. We also cut out the cork front seal and weld in a retainer for a modern seal in the timing chain cover and we add modern split seals at the rear. Big help as these engines run some pretty high oil pressures. Check your timing sprockets and chain for wear. We also add a extra external oil line from the line going to the dash oil gauge to the top of the timing chain cover. Chain needs more oil. Send me your cam and I will have my grinder grind and polish it for much more horsepower. Have fun.
Faithfully Lance Haynes San Diego CA

Where Are You From? www.lancedurant.com

Do You own a car built by Durant? Many

Thanks very much for info Lance. I have a good machin e shop here and babetting can be done in Edmonton (300 miles). 30 below here today.. so my ambition is somewhat limited for a bit.. Enjoy a good 2009 to you and all club members. Thanks again.
Guy

Where Are You From? www.bcsaggregates.com

Do You own a car built by Durant? Grandpa's 1926 Star Touring

You might want to consider using a late 50's flathead Willys engine. I think they were the most modernized of the flathead fours, and they look pretty antique. They date back to about 1928. Also used in Henry J.
It seems like the industry has settled on 2.5 liter or less for a four these days. The old Tempest 4 was bigger, but that illustrated the problem.

Do You own a car built by Durant? yes