Well, that was short lived....(sigh)

[zigg]

Got it purring like a kitten. Took it for a couple short runs, everything seemed just too good to be true....shoulda' known....

Got bubbles coming up steady in the overflow tank

I can't imagine a head gasket leak, 'cause I did the engine on a stand, and I was so meticulous it was crazy. They're newly rebuilt heads by DAS that were tested good, and a completely newly rebuilt block bored .030over.

I'm just sick to my stomach, and don't even know where to begin...(sigh)

bAck to the drawing board...

Zigg

 

[The Warden]

Dumb question, but are you sure you got all the air out of the cooling system? Any chance this could just be air bubbles left over from filling up the system?

God I hope it's something simple...

 

[icanfixall]

Zigg.... I'm very sorry to read this but.... If you find you need to tear it down I have a complete hydro plate set I fabricated and your welcome to use it. It can be used on just the heads or the complete block. Again, very sorry to hear "things" are not going so well....

 

[towcat]

zigg-
keep in mind the thermostat sits below the cylinder heads. There's lots of nooks and crannies for air to hide until they are all bled out. It's pretty common for cars these days to have screwed up cooling systems with lots of air pockets, so there's actually a tool kit that puts a vaccumn in the coling system and you draw coolant in with it. Poor man's way of dealing with this is by parking the truck on a steep hill facing up and burp it there. If you have already done burping the system, put a radiator pressure gauge on it and fire it up. watch how quickly the needle rises and that should be your indicator if you really have trouble or not.

 

[rubberfish]

I hope it's nothing too serious zigg.
Sounds like you did the build OK.
You sound pretty calm about all this.
I'd be dropping "F" bombs all over the place.

I was going to mention in the other thread, nice truck.

 

[tonkadoctor]

If you have already done burping the system, put a radiator pressure gauge on it and fire it up. watch how quickly the needle rises and that should be your indicator if you really have trouble or not.

Also if you have combustion gasses getting into the cooling system it will most likely overheat within a few minutes and boil over. What kind of temps are you seeing.

I built a 302 about 10 years ago and my torque wrench broke, it would still click like it was supposed too but not at the right torque and I didn't catch it until after I blew the head gaskets with only 10 miles on my Maverick during the shake down run and went into investigating what went wrong. I hope something like that didn't happen and it's just trapped air escaping.

 

[Exekiel69]

Also if you have combustion gasses getting into the cooling system it will most likely overheat within a few minutes and boil over. What kind of temps are you seeing.

I built a 302 about 10 years ago and my torque wrench broke, it would still click like it was supposed too but not at the right torque and I didn't catch it until after I blew the head gaskets with only 10 miles on my Maverick during the shake down run and went into investigating what went wrong. I hope something like that didn't happen and it's just trapped air escaping.

Yep, We had something similar happen when doing Joe's head gaskets. Does anyone know a place that will do this kind of job, adjust the torque wrench?

 

[tonkadoctor]

Yep, We had something similar happen when doing Joe's head gaskets. Does anyone know a place that will do this kind of job, adjust the torque wrench?

I ended up replacing mine as there were some broken plastic parts inside. If you have a buddy that works on the Military base up there he can try to get it into the calibration shop, if they have one, to check it out for you.

I have 4 different torque wrenches, 2 clickers, 1 dial and 1 beam, and now I check them against each other at settings that overlap one another for a little bit of peace of mind.

 

[zigg]

If you have already done burping the system, put a radiator pressure gauge on it and fire it up. watch how quickly the needle rises and that should be your indicator if you really have trouble or not.

Well, I thought I had burped it all out, but I just did another run, and when I came home, it wasn't bubbling at all. (***?)

So once it cooled a bit, I pulled the rad cap, and it looked like the coolant is down a bit. so I filled it up, and then levelled off the overflow, and sealed it all up. I wasn't able to do any more runs today, so I just left it at that.

Checked the oil, and it's not up, and no drips anywhere, so I'm hoping that it's just releasing air, and the coolant is replacing it, and it'll eventually settle down.

I am a bit worried that if there's a leak or a crack, that leaving the cooling system under pressure until it cools could push coolant into a cylinder or whatever, so I blew off the pressure, and I'll get back at 'er in a day or so.

I do have a coolant pressure tester Calvin, so I'll try your trick here in the next day or so and see what that turns up.

Thanks for the support guys...

Zigg

 

[Darrin Tosh]

Hang in ther Zigg, I would guess air in the sytem as well. Keep an eye on it and see what happens with the level.

I purchased a Cavalier that was overheating with a bad head gasket, found out it just had air in the system that wasn't burped out. It did the same thing.

Keep us posted!

 

[Diesel JD]

You really can't burp all that air out until you drive it a bit, at least I haven't been able to. I'm really pretty sure you still had some air in there,
J.D.

 

[towcat]

Hang in ther Zigg, I would guess air in the sytem as well. Keep an eye on it and see what happens with the level.

I purchased a Cavalier that was overheating with a bad head gasket, found out it just had air in the system that wasn't burped out. It did the same thing.

Keep us posted!

That's the famous 4cylinder that caused GM fits due to the cooling system. Good for us now, the vac cooling system refill wouldn't have been thought up of if it wasn't for that.
zig-
these motors need ALOT of burp time. go find yourself a steep hill or a buddy with a flatbed carrier towtruck
guys-
If you want a torque wrench that will not let you down, buy a Snap-on. Very pricey to buy into, but I get mime tested every two years by them and it only costs me $15 bucks for the test. Bottom line is what you're doing needs reliability, a better quality product always pays off in the long run.

 

[RLDSL]

Yep, We had something similar happen when doing Joe's head gaskets. Does anyone know a place that will do this kind of job, adjust the torque wrench?

If you live in the big city, check the yellow pages or ask the snap on guy, if you're out in the boonies like I am, you'll have to send it somewhere. These folks calibrate a standard clicker for around $32 plus shipping : http://www.teamtorque.com/main.html

-------Robert

 

[Agnem]

AND give you a loaner while they do it. C'mon EZ. I plugged them in my headgasket article.

 

[sle2115]

That's the famous 4cylinder that caused GM fits due to the cooling system. Good for us now, the vac cooling system refill wouldn't have been thought up of if it wasn't for that.
zig-
these motors need ALOT of burp time. go find yourself a steep hill or a buddy with a flatbed carrier towtruck
guys-
If you want a torque wrench that will not let you down, buy a Snap-on. Very pricey to buy into, but I get mime tested every two years by them and it only costs me $15 bucks for the test. Bottom line is what you're doing needs reliability, a better quality product always pays off in the long run.

I have a KD which was about $200. I bought it for the tire shop I managed, then when the two year calibration came, the new owner said throw it away and go buy a cheap one. So, I did, threw it away into my box. Sent it off and paid $25 buck and it now resides in my toolbox and is checked every couple of years. As you said, while it costs some money, those $30 ones are great for lug nuts, but that is about it. I have a KD 3/8 in both ft/lbs. and in/lbs. also that I have since bought and used when building engines at the machine shop. I box all three up, send them to KD and they calibrate all three and return them for the same $25, which is only charged for shipping - so after all these years, I figure I am money ahead of buying a $30 every year!