Soo I blew a head gasket..... I hope

[duke7427]

Came home from work last night and wanted to take the 50 Chrysler out. Turned the key and found a dead battery. Charged it enough to get her started and let it run at high idle for 30 mins or so. Then it happened... She started missing and running like complete you know what. I looked down and there was water coming out the exhaust manifold. The radiator really screaming at me. Im an idiot for not checking the fluid level. I didnt take the head off last night, so today I am wondering what the chances of a cracked block are? If the block is good I guess ill take the head down to my local shop and have them mill it down. I have read that these heads can be milled quite a bit. How much can i safely take off it to get better compression, and what spark plugs do I need to use. Any help would be awesome

[Plymouthy Adams]

unless you introduced cold water into a hot non running engine..odd of cracking is less...as for milling the head..only shave that what is necessary and save your metal for the odd chance this could happen again..could be that the head is not even warped..it was just time for the head gasket to let go...happen anytime anywhere. remove the head by reverse torque sequence..

[greg g]

You can take .090 off before you need to run premium gas. But not knowing if it has ever been planned before, half that would be safe. You need to check the block to make sure its true with a straight edge and feeler gauge.

Spark plugs can remain stock. A compression test will show you where your problem may be.

[JIPJOBXX]

I had my head machined and the power difference is noticeably better! Not only did I get the head straight but added a few more horses to my engine.

[duke7427]

Thanks for the replys. Ill get that head off this weekend and see the damage. I guess in the long run this will help with my ongoing battle with deciding to build the Flatty or drop a 318 in her. One step forward and two steps back. I just got the new WWWs on her and the interior was going in next week.

[Rusty O'Toole]

Don't forget to chase the threads and clean the bolt holes thoroughly. If you plane the head add washers to make up the lost height.The surface of the block should be smooth and clean. Torque the bolts in 3 stages according to the factory diagram then check them one more time. After warming the engine up, check them again, and again after 100 miles. If you do this the gasket should last and last.

I don't know why our engines blow so many head gaskets but it seems they do. So it pays to be extra careful when replacing one. And check the head bolts periodically.

Any other suggestions would be welcome.

[Tom Skinner]

All good advice.

Some Head Bolts Enter the Water Jacket take note and use Silicon Sealant.

Another thing Some Exhaust Manifold Studs enter the Water Jacket.

Check them first befor taking the head off, you may have a long Stud let loose outta the jacket leaking anti-freeze and not a blown head gasket????

[randroid]

Duke,

Welcome to the forum. I don't know your level of experience so I hope you're not insulted by this, but when I first started wrenching an old red-headed mechanic told me to install the head bolts in a spiral pattern starting in the center. If you look at a diagram you'll see the spiral and by following it you won't need to keep referencing the diagram, and this holds true for any surface you may need to torque, not just heads.

-Randy

[wallytoo]

to install the head bolts in a spiral pattern starting in the center. If you look at a diagram you'll see the spiral and by following it you won't need to keep referencing the diagram

that spiral is hard to picture on these L-heads, because of the three headbolts per "row", and the sequence of center, ds, ps for each row, instead of the two per "row" common to valve in head engines which use the spiral pattern.

[randroid]

Wally,

You're right but if you squint a bit you might see it with some of the spiral obviously going outside the edges of the head. Or, just use a diagram but the squinting part worked for me the first time and now it's easy for me. It's just a suggestion that I thought I'd pass along.

-Randy

[duke7427]

Good news, it was just a head gasket. I took her apart, cleaned it up and measured for flatness. Everything looked great. While she was apart I gave her a fresh coat of paint and then put it back together. She runs better than ever now. Now all i have to do is clean up my wiring job, install the interior and get to an alignment shop asap. she drives like complete @#%$ since i lowered it. PICS to come soon. Thanks for all the help.

[Niel Hoback]

Somehow I have a good feeling for you. Maybe your happiness is psychic.

[Jerry Roberts]

If you haven't already done it , re-tighten your head bolts . I usually do mine several times .

[Niel Hoback]

And don't forget to go around one more time after it has been fully warmed up.

[duke7427]

PLanning to re-tighten the bolts tonight. Ran her for about an hour on sunday with a little driving. im sure they could use a few more pounds on them. The book says to tighten them to 80-85 pounds. Anyone have any other suggestions?