Wild Cranker

ezone

There's 16 valve springs that make it hard to turn the cam.
Every quarter turn you are opening and closing different sets of valves.
It's supposed to be that way.

What did the machine shop do to it?
And what did the seller say was wrong with it?

Wild Cranker

Should I take it to a machine shop first?

Nothing. Yet...

Seller = Newington Auto Parts, Newington, CT (yes, Connecticut. Salvage yard, "Specializing in Hondas.")

They said nothing was wrong with it and that it was pulled from a good running engine.

Now, the latest: (today)

Ok. Either tonight or tomorrow morning, going to rent a shop Vac (wet/dry) so I can CLEAN UP THESE WALLS on the Block. I put some Automatic Transmission FLuid to help break up the carbon on the two "up" cylinders - 1 and 4. (1 is closest to the BELT so should be DRIVER side, right? .)

So that "Stuff" is ATF on top of Cyls. #1 and 4. Will leave it on "until it is time to scrub." Got SOME off with a green Scotch pad, and Brake Parts Cleaner. Some. Very little.

Will be taking a knife to get that oatmeal-like substance out of the jackets..



The "Tonight vs tomorrow" thing is dependant on if Mom needs the Envoy. Tonight, she may.

ezone

Sup to you.
If it came off a running engine it should be ok, but you have no idea how good it ran nor what happened to the car it came from.

You could do a valve leakage check....turn the cam so the valves are closed completely on one cylinder, then fill the combustion chamber with liquid (not water) and see if it seeps past the closed valves into any port.

Or turn the head on its side and fill ports, see if liquid comes out the valves. You can only do one or two sets at a time though (because not all valves are closed at any time)...., then turn the cam to close the next set for another test. Repeat for intakes and exhausts, on each cylinder.

And measure it for flatness, make sure it wasn't overheated and warped.
Or let the machine shop check these things?
#1 is closest to the pulleys, yes.

Carbon buildup on top of the pistons is absolutely normal, it will come right back after the engine is running again.
I don't worry about it at all when I have an engine apart, just remove any loose chunks and put it back together.

Smear some oil or ATF on the cylinder walls on the other 2 so the exposed walls don't rust while it's apart.
What is it? This I would try to remove.

Wild Cranker

That's Carb cleaner







.... and, lower timing cover is off. Wheel is coming off again, too. I will have to get a pic of that.



I got an assistant.

















And, we just got 2 large Stuffed Crust pizzas from Pizza Hut, including the new one with the crazy crust. Score.



So. We continue...

ezone

Did you check for valve leakage/sealing yet (liquid test)?

Any valves that are open (there are always a few open) can be damaged by laying the head down flat. They are fairly fragile. I use a whole bunch of towels if I have to lay it flat, or set it up on a couple blocks of wood so the open valves are not in contact with anything. Or keep the head on its side or upside down.

HTH

Wild Cranker

This was my lower Timing Cover.



This is the engine, supported.

Wild Cranker

ezone

Looks like you still have a bunch of crap buildup on the edges of the cylinders that needs scraped off, that's probably what's causing the straightedge to lift (measure a gap) on the ends.

BTW congrats on the purchase of a precision instrument.

Wild Cranker

Wild Cranker

rstynal

these videos are extremely helpful.

Wild Cranker

Updates!

Wild Cranker

Wild Cranker

ezone

Typing as I watch the videos here



Vid1

Don't clean with soap and water unless you oil the hardware immediately upon drying. Oil prevents rust, and rust is bad.

Use compressed air or suction to get ALL liquid out of the head bolt holes, all the way to the bottom of all 10 holes.
Brake cleaner with the red straw can work for cleaning, shoot the holes from the bottom until clean and let the cleaner evaporate out or shoot compressed air into the holes to dry them.



I sure hope CLR won't attack the water pump gasket or shaft seals. Be sure to get it all out of the block and rinsed before installing the head.

YOU CAN FRACTURE THE BLOCK IF YOU TIGHTEN A BOLT INTO LIQUID!
(see: fracking, hydraulic fracturing)


Video 2, what are you trying to do--- screwing a head bolt into a hole and it's squeaking because it's too tight?

You should be able to spin head bolts in with your fingers.
If you let it sit with the head off or got water in there, is there now rust in the threads of the block or bolts?
I would use a wire brush to knock the rust off.
Is there still liquid in the bolt holes (see note above)?

Vid 3,
LOL at the can of air. Where did all the crap in the holes come from? All that needs cleaned out. Again, I'd use brake clean to clean and the can of air to dry the holes after cleaning.

Yeah I would not use the bolts like that. Did one of those come out of the hole that squeaked?
Find 10 good clean bolts.
If need be, you can make your own thread chaser out of a head bolt (for the holes).
Figure out the bad hole first, if it's gonna need repairs you need to figure it out before you assemble.

Wild Cranker

About the thread chaser out of a bad bolt: I have a "file" .. Could I utilize that?

And I blasted the water jacket with.. a lot of water. Diluting the CLR, after it sat, and such, I know its messy in there but.. I lubed it all up again with WD40, aired out each hole, and sprayed each with a good shot of Brake Cleaner.. Now it sits overnight.

ezone

A thread file can clean up the external threads of a bolt (if it isn't really boogered up), but how are you gonna chase the threads of that tight hole?

Are the head bolts a standard common thread size, that's easy to get a thread tap for?


Your block is cast iron, isn't it? (Will a magnet stick to it?) I'm just thinking any goobers of rust (or goobers of anything, really) can clog up threads and make them bind as you try to turn in a bolt (that one bolt creaking as you tried to turn it in was bad).

Wild Cranker

TL;dr - all the bolts in the back seem OK and all the bolts in the front seem to show resistance to turning the bolt in the hole. (5 and 5)

Wild Cranker

Wild Cranker

I keep hearing it said to "Take an old head bolt and grind one side off to make a thread chaser."

ezone

Ever seen a real thread chaser?
Ever seen a real thread tap?

Can you slice up a bolt to resemble one and make it do a similar job?

BRB

Mad Dog Tannen

Aren't those stretch bolts? If they are, then you should not be reusing them.

Aluminum threads should not rust without the steel touching it (dissimilar metals, aluminum).

Fix that thread First thing. They need to be clean and lubed for proper torquing of head.

Wild Cranker

ezone

The red case holds a tap set (for comparison or whatever).
The 2 items standing up in front of the case are a tap on the right and a 'sliced' bolt on the left.
In front of that is a thread file with a sliced bolt laying on top of it.

The slices can be made with a hacksaw. Cut 3 or 4 slices.
(I used a cutoff wheel on these, but you probably don't have one at your disposal.)
After cutting with the hacksaw, use the thread file to clean up the edges of the freshly cut threads.

The bolt is still softer than a tap but its purpose is only to clean up existing threads, not to cut new threads.

If cleaning up the existing threads is futile, deeper surgery may be needed to effect reliable thread repairs.


@Mad Dog, those are not TTY bolts.

Wild Cranker

I have a hacksaw, a vice, and a thread file.

I will give this all another shot today

I will use one of the messed up bolts as this thing I see

Jogging first.

Yes, I am back at it!

ezone

Use a bolt that has good threads for this.

Wild Cranker

File, saw, messed up thread.

I also have a Harbor Freight Tap and Die set, and a Heli Coil on the way (10x1.25mm)

Wild Cranker

ACTUALLY upon closer inspection, this bolt will do well since its just dirty. Cleaning it up now...

ezone

If it has the correct size tap, why not use it?