6.9 sitting for months w/ valve cover open- 5.5 gallons of water in crankcase-hmm...

[Polychlorinated]

Hello all, first time posting and it is a doosey. Barring the story leading up to it, the title says alot about why I am posting. Got the 1986 F-250 over to the shop after pulling it out of a field. It was running fair before; valve cover was off due to a valley pan gasket replacement (it had rusted thru on the pass. side rear, allowing water/coolant to enter intake) and never replaced. I pulled the covers off and all the jewelry, pulling the push rods. On the forward six on each side, they are rusty with granular corrosion. The rest have just regular carbon build up, actually not that much at all. The injectors are clean... and I am worried about that oil pump. Sigh..
So here goes. I come from a marine engineering background. Going thru various calls and beers, I get a variety of advice from compadres- Marvel Mystery Oil and start her up to ....shhwwweeeeelllll. Welp, ya gotta rebuild her. My gut tells me to pull her out, ship the heads off, clean her up/paint, replace oil pump... maybe $4-600. Kinda half-way between ya know?
Any thoughts? I will post more details as I get her out, probably in the next couple days, but I am open for any ideas, especially to diagnose severity. The rest of the truck is good, new brakes, good rubber, steering etc. I was thinking labor would be the major investment here... whaddayallthink?

 

[argve]

for me I would yank it and go through it. I suspect that the bearings are going to be gonners or soon will be...

 

[IDIeselman]

AHHH, Just pull The oil plug and drain the water out until you have clean oil then throw in a bottle of your favorite mechanic in a can and run it a few days. Then you'll know if it needs gone through or not. My money says if it didn't freeze it's in no worse shape than it was when you parked it.

 

[Mr_Roboto]

If the 5.5 gallons of water is accurate (and assuming on top of the 3 gallons of oil) then I would think the water would be into the crank at a minimum. Meaning rust inside the crank oil passages etc.

Sounds to me like it should be disassembled and cleaned out.

 

[typ4]

Well it wasn't quite full, the oil pump would be the least of the worries. If it had oil in it too you might be surprised how clean it is, kind of emulsifies if you know what I mean, drain it new oil and filter knock off the big chunks at least fire it up and have a listen, I would use some cheap oil couple qts atf and see hat happens.

 

[FordGuy100]

I say pull it out and go through it and clean it all out at the least.

 

[fireman438]

Being a diesel mechanic, I would tell you as a professional to yank it out and rebuild. However, what do you have to lose if you try IDIeiselman's suggestion? If it needs to be rebuilt anyway, anything that would get cleaned out, bored, turned, or otherwise looked at, will when the rebuild is done, if need be.

Rich

 

[Michael Fowler]

Oil Floats on water, right? So the 5.5 gallons of water should have been at the bottom of the pan.

Whatever you decide, do not try to pull the pan with the engine in the truck. I did that on my '86 some years ago, and said I'd never do that again. If you have an extra joint in the middle of your forearm that swivels in the opposite direction from your elbow, it might work. But for humans who have evolved normally, it is a pain.

 

[Agnem]

Rust only occurs where there is oxygen. If the water had oil over it, then there should be no rust where the water line was.

 

[rubberfish]

AHHH, Just pull The oil plug and drain the water out until you have clean oil then throw in a bottle of your favorite mechanic in a can and run it a few days. Then you'll know if it needs gone through or not.

You've got nothing to lose.
Drain the water from the bottom of the pan.
You'll know in a day or two of running if there's trouble.

 

[Polychlorinated]

Thanks guys for the responses- though I would like to just pour and go, I think I have to go on the disassemble route. Did I mention there was no oil in the truck at all? And the monsters in the closet, ex-mother-in-law coming over for dinner, and any other nightmares?
If there is rust in the channels, any suggestions of how to get it out? Is there a way to test bearings, cams, pistons without removing them? If it is labor and under 700ish dollars, I am good to go. Otherwise, I might just Mad Max it and go for mules and make her a buggy.

 

[Polychlorinated]

oh, and what are head size are those reverse torx head bolts sos I don't have to buy but the one socket? Also, I might measure them for stretch and reuse, but any suggestions on new bolts are appreciated.

 

[Mr_Roboto]

The head bolts are just regular 12 point bolts, any 12 point socket will fit them.

 

[Michael Fowler]

Well not just ANY 12 point.... A 1/4" 12 point won't fit, neither will a 3/8" 12 point etc. But any 12 point of the right size would be just fine.

Sorry, I am just having fun--work is boring.

 

[argve]

If memory serves it's a half inch 12 point... but it's been a long long while since I have wrenched on an IDI...