some head gasket repair questions...

Cyrus

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Apr 21, 2008
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im not using a stock elbow, so there is no lip inside to rest the gasket against during the install. unfortunately, this wont work for me. i bought a sheet of high temp exhaust gasket material and have cut out and appropriate shape to use instead.
 

SPOOLINLUST

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Feb 24, 2011
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nnj
I use permatex black RTV or the grey. Also for High temp stuff like exhaust parts they have a copper one, all good products if used properly.
 

Cyrus

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Apr 21, 2008
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ive heard that stuff is great for sealing and adhering, however it is very difficult to remove and also creates such a strong bond that it becomes difficult to separate the parts you have connected it with. i dont like the idea of making any permanent or semi-permanent gaskets... so we'll see how this sheet of exhaust gasket works. if it fails, i may have no choice but to go with an RTV.
 

SPOOLINLUST

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Feb 24, 2011
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nnj
IMO a sealed gasket is harder to scrap off than an RTV gasket, the RTV comes off pretty easy with some carb cleaner and a nylon brush as to a plain gasket usually needs a good scraper that can gouge the aluminum. P.S. if used properly and installed properly it will not fail! Again just my 2 cents lol.
 

Cyrus

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Apr 21, 2008
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got the gaskets and sealants figured out i think. at least, i know what i'm going to try. :D we'll see if they end up working after i get done putting it all back together.


got another question...

i've got the head off the car and am about to install the exhaust manifold onto it before i put it into the car. should i pull ALL The studs and replace them with the DM 7/16 coarse threaded stud kit?

when i removed the exh manifold, 2 of the studs came out, as the nuts were pretty much fused to them. they came out smoothly, though, and didnt strip the hole in the head or damage the threads as far as i can tell. they just unscrewed like a bolt. i have since chased the threads in the head and purchased new factory studs. i am wondering if i should be proactive and pull the other 5 studs and use the DM kit to create a more robust mating of the exh manifold to the head?

or am i just asking for more trouble if i try to pull the studs that are currently still in the head?
 

SPOOLINLUST

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Feb 24, 2011
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nnj
Yea thats a gamble old alum. is a beeee. Mock it up on a bench first and see if it all torques up if not well do what you have to do. I always go overkill on stuff like that so what I did was pull em all drilled tapped and put steel inserts and allll new studs. Time consuming, but peace of mind.
 

Cyrus

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Apr 21, 2008
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cool thanks for the input. yea i think ill try mounting the manifold while the head is still off the car. if the old studs work, great. if not, i'll replace the problematic ones (and hope replacement is easy i.e. no drilling! :D)
 

Cyrus

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Apr 21, 2008
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so i am getting ready to put the head on. just test fit the gasket and i noticed that the coolant channels on the drivers (intake) side of the block get partially blocked by the copper rings on that side of the head gasket.

is that correct? seems weird, but i dont see any other way to put the gasket on that wouldnt cause that overlap/blockage.

OTBUY.jpg
 

Cyrus

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Apr 21, 2008
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cool. thanks IJ!

sorry if my questions are basic with somewhat obvious answers... i'm a bit of a perfectionist and this is my first time doing a project of this scale. thanks for bearing with me. :)
 

IJ.

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MUCH prefer you to ask as it helps everyone than go off on your own get it wrong then we have to backtrack it! :)

NO ONE is born knowing all this shit and even old timers get it wrong now and again.... (me for instance)
 

Cyrus

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Apr 21, 2008
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thanks IJ. well in that case, here is another simple one for you (or anyone):

im planning to drain the oil in the car shortly, as soon as i get it ready for the first start up after the rebuild. before i do that, can i pour some fresh oil over the cams so it carries any little bits and pieces in the oil passages of the block down into the oil pan for drainage?
 

Dan_Gyoba

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Aug 9, 2007
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If you mean that you want to pour fresh oil to displace any dirty oil which might be occupying the oil passages, then knock yourself out. Not sure that it would do any appreciable good for just one time, certainly not as much as just making sure that the next couple of changes are done on time.

If you mean that the system has been open and there may be some dust and debris in the oil passages, then that's a conditional maybe, depending on the dust and debris involved.

If you mean bits and pieces of bearings or other metal detritus from a mechanical failure, then you need to have something more comprehensive done than that.
 

Cyrus

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Apr 21, 2008
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Bay Area, CA
bits and pieces from the head gasket scraping i did on the block, not to mention any crap in the cylinder head after the machine shop "rebuilt" it. i also imagine that dust and/or dirt might've gotten into the oil passages while the motor was disassembled for 2+ weeks.

also, i figure it wouldn't hurt to oil up the cams before initial start up?
 
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Cyrus

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Apr 21, 2008
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Bay Area, CA
so i had one exhaust stud that couldnt handle the torque when i was putting the manifold on. would you motor purists bother to fix this? it takes about 16 ft/lbs of torque to spin this one stripped stud, and the rest of the nuts i was able to torque to 29 ft/lbs. the problem stud is the very center one, right above the turbo mounting flange. i really dont want to take the manifold off to try to fix this, as i think that'll just lead to more of the studs having problems. and if more studs have problems, (especially the very back one) i wont be able to fix it, because i absolutely do not want to take the head off again. i cannot afford another head gasket + gasket kit for things like the egr and intake manifold and runners right now.
 

Cyrus

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Apr 21, 2008
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Bay Area, CA
not a head gasket repair question, per se, but related to my rebuild.

before i tore down the motor, the car was not starting. this was a recent development, as it had been started every month or 3 for the past 4 or 5 years and driven around the block. finally, just recently, it didnt start at all. it cranked, but wouldnt start up. the fuel tank is pretty low, definitely around the E mark on the gauge. the car is sitting on a slope facing nose downhill. i am wondering if maybe it just didnt have enough gas? what are the chances that because the car has been sitting with a small amount of fuel for over 1yr that something has clogged/damaged the fuel sending system?