ZZ28ZZ

Just got the block back from the machine shop.
Now the fun begins!
The machine shop guy said to use RTV on the rear oil galley plugs, and the yellow 3M weatherstrip adhesive (gorilla snot) for the freeze plugs and front oil galley plugs.

You guys who have built lots of engs, what do you use?

RB83L69

I don't know what you'd call lots of engines... but on the last few I've built, I've used the purple Permatex brush-on stuff. Something like that works better on the oil gallery plugs too.

laiky

Do Not use silicone on the galley plugs, don't put it anywhere near an oil pressure passage!!!

i use either permatex high tack( the sticky purple stuff) or i prefer permatex thread sealer with teflon. whatever you use use it sparingly so none gets in the passage. new galley plugs usually come with a sealer on them

for the freeze out plugs use the high tack

ede

i've never seen purple permatex, i doubt if it's made it's way here yet, we're always the last to get anything new. i use avation form a gasket on freeze plugs and teflon pipe sealer on all threaded plugs

laiky

i think its form a gasket, or high tack, i forget. its their non hardening sealer

ede

oh ok high tack i call it red not purple , use it all the time

ZZ28ZZ

Thx guys.
I got some of the Permatex high tack stuff and used it on all the oil/ freeze plugs.

When I installed the front oil galley plugs, I may have gotten a little more sealant than I needed in the left hole (as viewed from the front and with eng upside-down). I stuck the brush a little too far in the hole and a small amount ran down the inside.

Could I remove a rear galley plug and blow air thru the passage to check for blockage? Where would I check for air escaping from?

RB83L69

No oil really goes there, so don't worry about it. The last place that those galleries deliver oil to is the front-most lifter; so if you didn't put so much in there that it ran that far, it will have no effect.

You did of course drill the outer 2 plugs in the front, at the end of the lifter galleries, with about a #65 or #70 drill, to oil the timing chain, didn't you? Also, don't forget, there's a ½" one that goes under the rear main cap, in the vertical passage that runs from the main cap all the way to the oil pressure sending unit; if you don't put it there, you end up with a permanent full-time oil filter bypass.

Vader

My High-Tack is red, too. Both the spray on and brush on types. Must be purple west of the Rockies...

I've used High-Tack, brown Permatex (the original stuff), and gasket shellac on the press-in core plugs without any leakers. PST is my thread sealant of choice.

I hope they installed brass or stainless core plugs instead of the plain plated steel variety.

ZZ28ZZ

Thx RB83L69!
You probably just saved my $100 Cloyes timing set.
My crappy manual didn't mentioned anything abt the oil holes.
I assumed it leaked out the cam opening by design.
Luckily eng is still on the stand.
Are the holes like that from the factory?


Rear main plug is in.


I had my block vatted, bored, clearanced(383), and vatted again.
Do you think it would still be necessary to clean the oil passages with a special brush and flush with water like one of my Haynes manual says to do?


Any more little gotchas regarding block prep?

Thx!

RB83L69

No problem. You won't find that little tip in the manual, and they don't come like that from the factory. Too bad. All the timing chain gets is whatever comes out the front cam bearing, and the front main bearing.

I always make the macjine shop remove the plugs before they tank the block, I will even stand there and watch if I have any doubts. Then I take them to the car wash after the machine shop is finished with them, and use a whole bunch of diesel fuel, a small (toothbrush size) wire brush, and rifle cleaning brushes, to get every passage as clean as I possibly can. Especially the groves behind the cam bearings. After that I put the plugs and the cam bearings in. The usual machine shop vat procedure is to just drop the whole thing in the tank; then after it comes back out, pull the plugs and replace them, and install new cam bearings (a cold vat will eat the cam bearings). Those guys hate getting dirty too so they won't fool with the plugs until after cleanup. Problem is, if you do it that way, any particles that were behind the cam bearings may not get cleaned out. I've known more than one new motor built from a block with spun bearings to immediately wipe the new bearings, I suspect as a result of metal fragments from the former blow-up still remaining behind the cam bearings. I don't mind paying a couple of extra coiuns to get stuff done exactly the way I want it done.

ZZ28ZZ

The first time the eng was vatted, I don't know if the galley/freeze plugs were still in or not.
I know they were out the second time it was vatted.

After the first vatting, the machine shop removed all the cam bearings except for the front and rear bearings. I wanted them left in so I could check and grind for my cam/rod clearances (383).
After I was sastified all the grinding was done, I sent it back for another vatting to remove any grinding particles. Don't know if the 2 cam bearings were removed before or after the second vatting.


When I bought the eng (actually a whole car) I disassembled it and found #1 rod bearing with abt a 1/8" clearance!
Also found piston skirt chunks everywhere.


Guess I should check with the shop to see if the oil passages were verified to be clean before cam bearings were installed.


Thx again

FORMULA355TPI

The gorilla snot works real well I have also used the red loctite in the past.
Good luck

laiky

Moroso sells an engine brush kit for about 20 bucks, where ever you get it back from, you must do the final cleaning yourself!

I use gunk engine degreaser, rinse with hot water if you can ( run a hose to your water heater) and scrub every passage , recess, groove etc, visually verify that it is spotless. Scrub the Bores too! then once dry ( the hot water helps here) scrub the bores with brake cleaner until the cloth comes out absolutly clean ( it takes a while) and coat with light oil, i use tranny fluid.

Kingtal0n

one of mine started leaking like crap when i put my engine in. I fixed it good with 5 minute Epoxy.