1,000 mile new engine disaster

[franklin2]

I also remember reading people have problems with sleeved blocks on these trucks, even the mail ordered ones. It seems the sealing ring on the head gasket lines right up on top of the sleeve, so when the head is torqued down it can push the sleeve down in the block.

I remember them talking about this several years ago, not sure if they cured it with a sleeve with a lip on it or if they are still rolling the dice and trying to glue the sleeves in place.

 

[Macrobb]

My understanding is that you have to machine the block 'correctly'. The block needs to be machined so that there is a lip of metal at the bottom of the cylinder which will hold the sleeve in place.
If it just gets fully bored out, it's likely to drop the sleeve

 

[david85]

Ouch!! I hate reading stuff like this but thanks for documenting it.

Franklin, I remember those discussions. Played a big part in how I planned my overhaul.

Some of those sleeved mail order engines also used a loctite of some sort. That's when I came to the conclusion that the only way to have a good rebuilt IDI is to do it yourself.

As for the core plugs, the machine shop I used recommended not touching them because they were Stainless Steel and still in good shape. So far, that has been good advice.

 

[Garbage_Mechan]

Having sleeves in a 6.9 / 7.3 is a non issue if done correctly, been there done that for over 200k on a hopped up turbo engine (and many 3208 Cats as well) (636 cu in V-8 200-250 hp) The tricks to the sleeve job are boring and honing the block to precisely the right diamer to have the correct press fit on the bore, and machining a step near the bottom for the sleeve to rest on so it cannot "drop" below the deck. Then do the deck machining last so liners and deck are perfedtly flat together. Yes head gasket sits on liner but if all done correctly no issues. Where it becomes an issue is doing one cylinder on a block that is aready machined to finish bore on the other cylinders. Pressing in the sleeve in the cylinder being repaired distorts the diameter of the cylnder next to it.