Lahti35 Posted August 14, 2023 Author Share Posted August 14, 2023 (edited) I have been to the mountaintop and have returned a changed man! What a rough ride... I got my pushrods in after 3 weeks but I made a mistake measuring and they were too short! Out came the tools again and I went through it all over, ordered another set of pushrods and waited another 3 weeks. The pushrods came this last week and I set about prepping to install the intake manifold. This is no small feat as it weighs in at 85lb and has to be put in place without it sliding around, you get one chance or you have to start over. I dry fit everything and it was ok, it sat a tad proud at the back but within acceptable limits. The problem with these is that if you machine the heads too much you have to machine the manifold also or it will sit too high and the ports and bolts won't line up. Yesterday evening I went ahead for real... 1. Clean every mating surface and then clean it again. 2. Run a bead of non-hardening sealer around the gasket cooling ports, two per gasket. 3. Set intake gaskets against heads making sure head gasket interlocking tabs interlock. 4. Run a bead of weather-strip adhesive on front and back of block where it meats the intake manifold cork gaskets. 5. Run a bead of weather-strip adhesive on backside of cork intake gaskets. 6. Wait for weather-strip adhesive to tack. 7. Position front and back intake cork gaskets on block and press firmly, allow time for sealer to stiffen up. 8. Run a bead of non-hardening sealer around intake side of intake gasket x4. 9. Run a thin bead of black gasket maker on top of cork gaskets with a blob in each corner where the intake and heads meet x2. 10. Gird you loins and lift up 85lb of cast iron intake and place it near perfectly in place the first time. 11. Install the 10 bolts that keep the Titanic from falling off and torque to 32ftlb 12. Stand back and watch all your hard work go out the window as the front cork gasket squeezes itself out of position bulging out from between the block and intake. 13. Take it all apart and clean 2/3 of the mess up before you throw in the towel and go get a drink. Before I hit the sack I was able to find a set of intake gaskets locally and ordered them for pickup this AM. After retrieving the new gaskets I set about going a round with this devilish powerplant again only this time I made a few changes... I took a punch and dimpled the faces on the block and intake manifold where they meet the cork, it gave them some tooth to bit into the cork. I also used less black gasket maker on top of the corks in an effort to keep the slippery to a minimum. Round two was steps 1-11 all over again but this time the gasket stayed put, I watched it like a hawk and it moved a tiny tiny bit but stayed where it belonged! Yay, nobody knows how to party like me. I celebrated by installing the push rods, the oil restrictors, and finally the rocker arm assemblies. Good gravy what an ordeal. Next up is modifying my engine stand for break in, painting the block, and mating it with the transmission in place on the stand for final assembly of all the accessories. Edited August 14, 2023 by Lahti35 (see edit history) 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laughing Coyote Posted August 14, 2023 Share Posted August 14, 2023 38 minutes ago, Lahti35 said: This is no small feat as it weighs in at 85lb I know the feeling to well. I made a bar just for that so me and my wife could just set it in place. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted August 14, 2023 Share Posted August 14, 2023 That's a big milestone. Looks like an engine now! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericmac Posted August 17, 2023 Share Posted August 17, 2023 I am really enjoying following this project. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted August 20, 2023 Author Share Posted August 20, 2023 (edited) I spent this last week getting everything clean on the outside of the now assembled block and priming the few areas that still needed it, turned out good! But wait a minute, what is this!?!? ...and this? ...and these!?!? Yup, my brand new oil pan gasket is leaking on an engine that hasn't even done a single rpm yet. The back story on this is that when I got my gasket set (Felpro) I noticed the oil pan gasket and timing cover gasket were this strange black rubbery stuff I had never seen before. Now I had a choice with the timing cover gasket as there was a traditional paper unit in the kit also which I opted to use. I was stuck using this mystery gasket for the oil pan though. I had my suspicions from the start but maybe they had come up with something better than the typical rubber/cork type. I installed it in my typical way I do on newer engines with ultra black on the pan, then the gasket, and sealant on top of the gasket. I installed it into place with guide pins and lightly tightened the pan bolts allowing the sealer to set up overnight, torqueing the bolts to spec after 24 hours. I've never had one leak doing this until now. After install I found some info on online forums about how these gasket suck but had forgotten about it until now. I would not have noticed this had I not primed the block. I wire wheeled it off one day and re-primed but the leaks were back the next day. I got curious about the gasket material and ripped the 2nd timing cover gasket provided in two (same material). It's some sort of felt looking stuff... very fibrous in there. Definitely not a cork rubber composite. What it looks like is they punched the gasket out of a fiber sheet and coated it with rubber. Just looking at the gasket from the side you can see it's porous, the rubber coating has holes. All I can think of is the oil is coming through the gasket inside and wicking to the outside. Keep in mind this is only the bit of oil I put in each cylinder for the rings that has been running down the inside of the block wall slowly over a month and passing over this gasket on the way to the sump. I'm sure things would be more exciting with oil spraying all over inside the engine when running. There was nothing left to do but pull the oil pan and timing cover off and reseal. My new gaskets (good old cork/rubber composite and a new paper timing cover one) arrived via Fedex this AM so I peeled the thing apart... I found nothing wrong with my work, the gaskets were tenaciously stuck to oil pan, timing cover and the block surfaces. The Permatex ultra black had done its's job just fine as I cleaned the mating surfaces spotless before install. It took me an hour to clean the mating surfaces again with razor blades, vacuum, and a Dremel wire brush. I got the timing cover back on and when dry I'll torque it tomorrow, then install the oil pan and do the same with it. I can confirm what I read on other forums about these Felpro black gaskets being crap. They are basically a wick with a rubberized coating full of holes. Just more junk foisted on us car folk... chuck 'em if you have 'em! I had always considered Felpro a great brand, what a shame. I'm gone to Indiana Sunday to pick up some rims for another project but I hope to have the engine reassembled and painted by Wednesday. The plan is to get it in the test run stand by next weekend and take a final tally of parts needed to fire it the week of the labor day holiday. Truly gonna need a miracle for that to happen with this project but I'll give it a go! Edited August 20, 2023 by Lahti35 (see edit history) 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laughing Coyote Posted August 20, 2023 Share Posted August 20, 2023 That sucks. I used Victor Reinz gaskets on my 352. Didn't have any issues with them squeezing out or leaking. Even to this day I have no leaks. Worth looking into. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted August 20, 2023 Author Share Posted August 20, 2023 2 hours ago, Laughing Coyote said: That sucks. I used Victor Reinz gaskets on my 352. Didn't have any issues with them squeezing out or leaking. Even to this day I have no leaks. Worth looking into. I think this is the last Felpro stuff I buy, doesn't bother me to switch after this. Luckily they still sell the old cork and paper gaskets separately. I don't anticipate any issue with the cork/paper but you never know! Why they switched to this terrible gasket material is a mystery to me, probably some dumb upper management plan to save a buck. Next time I shop gaskets I'll look at Victor Reinz, I've used their oils seals and never had an issue. Thanks for the tip! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted August 20, 2023 Share Posted August 20, 2023 (edited) Victor Reinz is the way to go, and also the only thing I know of resembling the factory gaskets for an FE. When I replaced the cam in my 390 I had a very difficult time finding any. Edited August 20, 2023 by Bloo (see edit history) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted August 27, 2023 Author Share Posted August 27, 2023 The little engine that couldn't... More gasket fun this week. My replacement cork oil pan gasket came mid week and I installed it with clean mating surfaces and some ultra black. Everything went ok until the next day when I went to torque the oil pan down after the sealer was set. On my way to 10-12ftlb the cork gasket started squeezing out before I got close, what the heck. By the time I got to the torque spec it was squeezing out way too much for my comfort level at multiple spots around the pan. There was nothing to do but pull it apart again and clean the block and pan, at least the cork gasket came off much easier than that fiber one. I looked around some online to find a suitable gasket made by someone other than Felpro... I couldn't find a Victor R gasket so I settled for a Milodon "crush proof" unit. It had good reviews so I snagged one and set about installing it this AM. Same drill with prepping the surfaces. This gasket does not require sealer but I put a dab where the timing cover and rear main bearing cap meet for some extra insurance. I also took my oil pan and pounded the bolt holes down so they were concave in relation to the flange. I had flattened them before but I wanted some extra insurance! Installation went smoothly and when it came time to torque the oil pan bolts that gasket did not squeeze out anywhere. Third time is a charm I hope! I'll keep an eye on it for a few days and see what happens but I think I've finally licked it! 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted August 27, 2023 Share Posted August 27, 2023 Maybe the UltraBlack wasn't set yet? I can see where that would make it want to slip out. Maybe consider High Tack next time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted August 27, 2023 Author Share Posted August 27, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, EmTee said: Maybe the UltraBlack wasn't set yet? I can see where that would make it want to slip out. Maybe consider High Tack next time? I do have a can of that high tack stuff (good stuff, on this engine I used it around the water ports on the intake gaskets). I'm sure the ultra black was set, I always give it 24 hours before I torque and haven't ever had an issue. It was definitely set when I removed the gasket. I'm not sure what to chalk it up to except there are gremlins alive and well within the engine! When the cork gasket failed and squeezed out you could see that the cured ultra black had lost its adhesion to the metal and was pushed out with the cork, it appeared to move on the block side vs. the pan side. Very strange. So far the new gasket is holding fine, no squeeze out and no seeping. Fingers crossed! Edited August 27, 2023 by Lahti35 (see edit history) 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 3, 2023 Author Share Posted September 3, 2023 Will wonders never cease! It's painted, temporarily mated to the trans to allow the starter to be installed, and now sitting on the break in stand... 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laughing Coyote Posted September 4, 2023 Share Posted September 4, 2023 Looks purdy. You may want to put an outrigger from side to side just incase it wants to roll from the torque. Hate to have anything happen to it after all you've been through. Getting closer. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 4, 2023 Share Posted September 4, 2023 Beautiful! Maybe it doesn't even need to run... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 4, 2023 Author Share Posted September 4, 2023 1 hour ago, Laughing Coyote said: Looks purdy. You may want to put an outrigger from side to side just incase it wants to roll from the torque. Hate to have anything happen to it after all you've been through. Getting closer. Yup, will do. I'm going to run braces so it can't go over. I've also got to bolt down the tail shaft. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 4, 2023 Share Posted September 4, 2023 What kind of oil are you planning to use for break-in? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 4, 2023 Author Share Posted September 4, 2023 1 hour ago, EmTee said: What kind of oil are you planning to use for break-in? I've got some Maxima straight 30wt conventional break in oil. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 5, 2023 Author Share Posted September 5, 2023 (edited) I spent most of the day out in the shop getting the bits attached... The carb went on with some new nuts and washers. I installed the fuel pump fittings and hooked up the stainless fuel line. This replaced the 2" chunk of rubber fuel line that was there when I got it. The fuel line is supposed to screw directly into the carb but I didn't want to mess up the carb threads taking it on/off as the need arises, which is why so many of the carbs have screwed up threads at the fuel inlet. If you recall the original carb body had a fuel fitting JB welded in and I was unable to salvage it. In this case I installed a brass fitting, cut the threaded fitting off the stainless line and flared it. A short chunk of fuel hose is all that needs to be removed now for unhooking, the fitting on the carb never has to come out again. I also installed the pulleys but ran short of fasteners for the fan so I'll tackle that shortly. I had to slide the speedy sleeve back a bit to make sure the inner lip of the crank seal was riding on it. Some fussing around but nothing to arduous. I spent the next 1.5 hours cleaning the valve covers and straightening the flanges. They were pretty bad, I used some sealer between the cover and cork gasket to hopefully stop any leaks there. No sealer between the gasket and block. Once the valve covers were installed and the breathers plugged in I moved on and got the radiator mounted on the run in stand. Nothing fancy, just a framework to hold it at the right height and distance. I'll take stock of what I need to order to finish up shortly. A starter, exhaust hose and a muffler are on the short list of what's left. Edited September 5, 2023 by Lahti35 (see edit history) 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 10, 2023 Share Posted September 10, 2023 Nice solution! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 13, 2023 Author Share Posted September 13, 2023 As we inch closer to fire up a few more things off the check list... My starter came in this week. One of the few concessions I had to make was a starter from a Ford truck a bit younger than the original. The reason for this is the headers are very tight to the stock starter and prevent it from being removed without removing the headers. The headers themselves replaced the cracked original manifolds that are of a terrible design and not cost effective to replace. The starter is the end result of a series decisions that require some space creation, since it's 1/3 smaller than the stock starter it'll do. Sunday AM I set about checking the dwell on the distributor. I wanted to make sure it was right on so it fires asap when I start cranking. I set up a test bench with a battery charger, coil, vintage Sears dwell meter and the distributor run with a drill that it came in at 30 degrees. Perfect as the spec is 26-31 degrees. I also got a nice shock that left my hand tingling for 15 minutes when I grabbed a wrong wire, huzzah! I just set it in place for now, I still have to be able to access the oil pump drive to prime the system prior to firing. Later that day I finished up the heater hose bypass, blocked off vacuum ports that won't be used during break in, installed and routed the plug wires, hooked up the battery cables, and temporarily mounted the headers. I found that my engine mounts interfered with said headers so I had to move the braces to the front and carve some relief cuts to make it all work. Nothing crazy, just the stuff that pops up and needs to be taken care of. My muffler, Y pipe and flex hose came today so I can mock up my temporary exhaust system this week. I don't really want to listen to wide open headers for 20 minutes. All of the parts I'll be able to reuse for the permeant exhaust system (except the flex hose) so the cost will be negligible when all is said and done. Some pics of how it sits as of tonight... 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 13, 2023 Share Posted September 13, 2023 Getting close! Is there anything you need to do to the truck before the engine goes back in? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 13, 2023 Author Share Posted September 13, 2023 2 hours ago, EmTee said: Getting close! Is there anything you need to do to the truck before the engine goes back in? Not much, it's 95% ready to go. I've done the electrical, fuel system, and mechanical on it. Everything's been lubed and new tires mounted. All that's left is to replace the rear axle seals (just for good measure) and put a new rag joint in the steering, The rest is just cosmetic stuff after it's up and running. I could spend a little more time cleaning the frame under the hood if I wanted also but it's much better than it was. I'm sure there will be a few bugs to work out but nothing major. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 13, 2023 Share Posted September 13, 2023 8 hours ago, Lahti35 said: ...and put a new rag joint in the steering. That's one job that would be easier to accomplish with the engine out of the way... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 13, 2023 Author Share Posted September 13, 2023 1 hour ago, EmTee said: That's one job that would be easier to accomplish with the engine out of the way... That's definitely the plan! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 18, 2023 Author Share Posted September 18, 2023 Today I put the headers on for real and torqued them down. No typical gasket on these... the instructions called for putting a bead of silicone on the raised header flanges and allowing it to dry before install. Seemed a little weird to me but when in Rome... I wondered if the silicone would crack and squeeze out under torque but it didn't. I also hooked up my fuel priming system consisting of a squeeze bulb and some hose, very high tech stuff here! This will allow me to fill the carb without cranking the engine to do it. I want it to fire asap, not spend time filling the carb bowl. Since the cooling system was all buttoned up I decide to run my vacuum test to verify there were no potential leaks. I used my vacuum filler to pull down the system, close it off, and watch for the vacuum to hold or drop. I did get a bit of a scare when I first started as I couldn't get it to draw down much. First freaky thought was an intake gasket leak but after checking everything over I realized the rubber seal on the vacuum tool had not sealed off the radiator overflow. A quick change to a different rubber seal pulled some good vacuum. The gauge held it's reading when I closed off the air, success! Since the cooling system checked out I felt it was safe to add oil so I filled it up. Start day is Thursday evening. I'm waiting on some copper exhaust collector gaskets, I need a small piece of exhaust pipe, and I picked up a temp gauge to wire in for start up. I'll wait for Thursday evening to prime the oil system and set the timing. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 19, 2023 Share Posted September 19, 2023 On 9/17/2023 at 8:58 PM, Lahti35 said: I'm waiting on some copper exhaust collector gaskets... Are the ones at the other end also copper? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 20, 2023 Author Share Posted September 20, 2023 On 9/19/2023 at 9:07 AM, EmTee said: Are the ones at the other end also copper? The end that meets with the head? That is silicone which is what the manufacturer recommends. I did however use high temp copper instead of the ultra black called for... I do have a concern as it looks like it's pushing out over time. I've got an experiment going now with some silicone to see if the ultra-black dries stiffer. The whole concept is strange to me... Apply silicone to header flange and let dry, then install and torque to 20ftlb. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laughing Coyote Posted September 20, 2023 Share Posted September 20, 2023 The high temp copper silicone works fine. Used it on my 73 Corvette header flanges and it's working fine with no leaks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 20, 2023 Author Share Posted September 20, 2023 14 minutes ago, Laughing Coyote said: The high temp copper silicone works fine. Used it on my 73 Corvette header flanges and it's working fine with no leaks. Good to know, thanks! Did you let it dry first and then install? Did you have to retorque? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laughing Coyote Posted September 20, 2023 Share Posted September 20, 2023 I just put a bead on it and tightened it up. Some oozed out and wiped off the excess. Everything is still good. Also used it on the 61 Mercury on the heat riser block on both sides of it and it's fine there too. I would let it cure out for at least a day or two before running it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 20, 2023 Author Share Posted September 20, 2023 1 hour ago, Laughing Coyote said: I just put a bead on it and tightened it up. Some oozed out and wiped off the excess. Everything is still good. Also used it on the 61 Mercury on the heat riser block on both sides of it and it's fine there too. I would let it cure out for at least a day or two before running it. Great info, thanks! The instructions that came with my headers said to lay a bead on the raised header flange, let it cure overnight and then install and torque. This seems very odd to me and I'm noticing more of what looks like cured silicone squeezing out every day... I'm not feeling very comfortable with their instructions at this point. I would feel better about the way you did it which was my first thought when I learned silicone was used for the gasket. I ran a bead of the copper silicone on some metal to cure overnight and will try to squish it against some steel tonight in my vise. I want to see what happens when I take it back apart. If I have to redo it, no biggy as it's easy to get to right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laughing Coyote Posted September 20, 2023 Share Posted September 20, 2023 The exhaust manifolds that came on these old FE engines didn't have gaskets from the factory. I just installed exhaust manifold gaskets on mine and have no leaks. It does seem kind of odd to do a bead and then mount after it cures. I guess they figure it would conform to any surfaces or imperfections on the mating surface. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 21, 2023 Author Share Posted September 21, 2023 (edited) I've been watching the cured silicone evacuate itself from the mating surfaces at the header flanges for a day now... Tonight I checked the torque on the studs and 2/3 were loose, I'm not liking this system. I followed the directions and no dice. Last night I put a bead of the same silicone on a 1/4 steel bar to simulate the header flange using the same prep and cure time of 24 hours. I put it up against a larger piece of bar stock to simulate the head surface and put the whole thing in a vise and slowly applied pressure. It didn't take much force for the silicone to start migrating out of the sandwich and start splitting. I applied some more force and then took it out and opened it up to find the silicone had lost any adhesion to the pieces. Hmmmmmmmmmmm.... I decided to undo the headers and take a looksee at the state of the "gaskets" I had been instructed to make. Not a single one was intact, they all looked like pumpkin spice goose poo. Now I guess I get the idea here but how I was ever going to get to 15-20ft/lb of torque on the headers when the cured silicone started spitting out at less than 10ft/lb is a mystery to me. Since the headers are new and the exhaust side of my heads was shaved flat I just cleaned again, laid down a thin layer of the same silicon, and torqued the headers to 18ft/lb. We'll see what happens. Interestingly while doing research this evening it seems people do everything from installing them with wet silicone to 48hr cured silicone and have everything from success to failure at both ends of the spectrum. There doesn't seem to be much consensus, even among the header manufacturer that had at least two different methods depending on when you bought headers from them. I'm going to give it until Friday to cure, a full 48hrs+... Kinda a bummer that start up gets bumped back but that's China town Jack. Edited September 21, 2023 by Lahti35 (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 21, 2023 Share Posted September 21, 2023 I asked about the gaskets thinking you may have used these: http://catalog.remflex.com/category_s/97.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 21, 2023 Author Share Posted September 21, 2023 56 minutes ago, EmTee said: I asked about the gaskets thinking you may have used these: http://catalog.remflex.com/category_s/97.htm Great minds think alike! Those are plan C if the last plan fails. I'm defiantly going to use their collector gaskets, I'll see how things do during break in and go from there. I do enjoy the easy access having the engine on a break in stand affords me, issues like this are easy to address with it out in the open. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 21, 2023 Share Posted September 21, 2023 12 minutes ago, Lahti35 said: I do enjoy the easy access having the engine on a break in stand affords me, issues like this are easy to address with it out in the open. If it was already in the truck you'd probably have enrolled in a 12-step program by now... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 23, 2023 Author Share Posted September 23, 2023 Some more gyrating in circles but almost there... I went to set the initial timing today and bring the engine to TDC on the compression stroke of No.1 cylinder when I found the crank would not turn without a lot of force. Way too much force in fact and when it did finally turn I could here metal on metal. It didn't take long to find the source of the issue. The starter housing was contacting the gear teeth on the flex plate so out came the grinder and in a few minutes I shaved it down to clear... No issues after the clearance was opened up and the starter reinstalled. I also had to find a way to run the fan/water pump from the crank without the alternator installed and use of it's pulley. The belt goes around the crank pulley, fan, and alternator normally. I was able to cut a belt and make it the exact size I needed for reference at the local hardware lawn mower repair counter today at lunch. I did find one that fit, clearance around the water pump is tight as no belt was ever supposed to run in that location but it will work. Interestingly enough when the guy at the parts counter asked what the belt was for and I told him he had just broke in a Ford 352 and had to come up with a similar solution! I also had an issue with my control panel on the break in stand. While doing checks with a multimeter I was not getting any voltage to the starter solenoid when I pressed the button. Turned out to be the button's fault as it has a weird contact inside that connects the two + terminals and two - terminals to themselves instead of - to +. Weird, but I got it fixed and now have power to the coil and starter solenoid both. Last thing I did tonight was set the initial timing to 12 degrees TDC and test oil flow of the pump. I was able to get a 1/4 long socket down into the oil pump drive base and onto the hex pump drive shaft. Combined with a socket speed handle rotating counterclockwise I was able to get oil up to the rocker arms and a reading of 40lb on the gauge. Good deal! Tomorrow I'll prime it again just before I set the distributor in for good measure. It's hard to see but that's oil dripping out the end of the rocker shaft... 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted September 24, 2023 Author Share Posted September 24, 2023 It lives... Break in was a little hair raising... I forgot to pull the tag of the radiator so the fan attacked that, lol. I was so focused on setting the gas/battery/wiring up I neglected to remove it. I had to shut it down at 7 minutes as the heat kept climbing, I'm glad I installed the temp gauge. It got to 220 and I stopped it. It was a very slow increase but it just kept going up. I waited 20 minutes until it dropped to 160 and ran it another 6-7 minutes until it got hot again. I have a 190 thermostat it in. I ran two fans at the radiator, a Vornado that puts out a good stream and a box fan I had. The thermostat was defiantly opening as the radiator was hot. I assumed a hotter temp during break in but I did get nervous! Initially the lifters were noisy as I installed them dry and then needed to pump up, which they did after a few minutes. During the second stretch of run in I started getting some loud ticking and man I gotta tell you my heart just sank. I'd been reading all the flat tappet failure stories for the last two years and figured I was doomed. There was nothing left two do but finish breaking it in and go from there... After it cooled again I started it for the third and final time and noticed right away the loud ticking was gone. Hmmmmmm I got to thinking and did some exploring while it was running and it would come and go at different RPM's. Turned out to be exhaust leaks at the collectors ticking away, boy did they freak me out! The third leg of break in went 9 minutes and while the temp did creep up it was doing it much slower and topping out at 210. I think my fan setup was less than optimal, too high on the radiator and too far away. The wind was also pushing all the heat back into the garage, no help there. After break in was over I dropped it back to 800 rpm and it ran smoother than when it first started. Oil pressure was 20psi at idle, 50psi at 2300rpm which is more than acceptable. Timing was at 38 degrees at 2500rpm, just a hair under spec which is 27-38 at that rpm in the manual. The smoking cleared up 99% by the end of break in with only a small puff when blipping the throttle. I'll put some load on the rings when the truck starts driving to seat them the rest of the way. Throttle response is fantastic, and vacuum came in at 20 without fine tuning anything yet. Start after break in: The cam seems to have made it, the thing ran without self destructing, and it restarted after all was said and done. I win for today! 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GARY F Posted September 24, 2023 Share Posted September 24, 2023 Great work and sounds good from here. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 24, 2023 Share Posted September 24, 2023 Whew! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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