Head Gasket for a White HT

[mkoloc]

You know in retrospect, there are simple things you can do to make Halftrack Life so much easier when you don't have your head up your third point of contact! 

As many of you know thru my various posts I've been struggling with a slight issue with my tracks engine.  Solid rebuild on the carb and fuel pump, distributor check, coil, vacuum leak check etc... but still questionable.

Grand kids were here last weekend and I decided to take them for their 1st ride and it was the 1st time I've driven the Queen since the Carb install several weeks ago (did I mention fnnn work and overtime?).  Queen started and ran nicely during her warmup, but when we hit the road I still noticed that she was not quite running right and power was not where it should be.  All had fun, enjoyed the ride etc except yours truly. 

Fast forward to today.. ordered a OTC compression tool set which arrived last Wednesday.. work has been crazy, heat has been insane and so I waited till today with the cool weather that just set in .. not only that but I've never had a compression test set.  Instructions are good but I decided to modify my approach and did not warm up the Queen before testing.  Figured if everything was close regards values I'd reinstall the plugs and follow the instructions.

Cylinders 1-4 and 6 ran 118 psi each, cylinder 5 was dead!!!  So I believe I now have my culprit identified.  Valve issue!!!
Going to remove the head and start there.  Bad valve? Broken spring?  Significant carbon buildup?  No matter, I feel so empowered and excited to find the issue, I can't wait. 

I gave notice and had my last day at work Friday as all my earnings were being plowed into my nonprofit.. actually retired from active duty Army in 2011, so it had been a few years, and what passes for management was driving me nuts.  Not sure how companies make any money if the Ass Clowns that ran this place are a sample of what is out there.  Ego's and not enough brains between them to pour piss out of the proverbial boot!!!

Anyway going go tear into it this week. 

Question 1:  Who still has head gaskets?

Question 2:  If the valves or springs are crap, who carries those goddies? 

Will shoot some pics of my progress and what I find on my explorations!!

Markus

[mkoloc]

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[steve1973]

Rod Shaver and David Yamulla has head gaskets. I can get them also along with the side cover and oil pan gaskets. Liberty Engineering has a limited number of plunger assemblies. That is all you need for the lifters as long as the main body is OK. Be prepared to pay $$$ for them. They are not cheap.

Steve A.

[steve1973]

Before pulling the head off I would remove the rear side cover and check the movement of number 5 valves first. It may be broken rings on the piston. You can also try putting a little oil if you can direct it into number 5 cylinder and check compression. Just a thought. Let me know if you need any help.

Steve A.

[mkoloc]

Number 5 intake valve is stuck open ... not much but enough to mess with my compression .. checked it out with my camera. 

So pulled my carb, intake and exhaust manifolds,  side covers  and will pull the head tomorrow .  Must have some carbon build up on the seat or stem either way should not be a difficult fix.  Ordered a upper gasket set from Gary .. opps, meant to say Jill  so that covers everything to include the exhaust pipe copper gasket.

Pics tomorrow!

[R.E.Co.]

I had a similar issue. Rotate the crank pulley until the valve is at the top of its open position. Take a soft wire wheel brush or plastic wheel brush and gently go underneath and around the valve. Best bet is to do all of them just to be sure.  Good luck!

Jon

[mkoloc]

Jon, great minds think alike, Dremel with soft brass brush is standing by LOL.  If I have to I'll pull the lifter assembly and pull the valve ...in looking thru the manual, I realized that it is the exhaust valve that's stuck open and probably has been so for years ... Lesson Learned, Always run a compression check 1st!!

[steve1973]

You will need some shims to hold the valves open. I used these and worked great!! https://www.mcmaster.com/slotted-shims/slotted-tapered-shims/



Steve A.

[mkoloc]

Great idea Steve, will have to pick up a set for future use.  Used a different technique today but achieved the result I was looking for.  Valve opens and closes nicely!!  Just a bit of crud on the stem.  Cleaned seat and valve with Dremel and brass brush .. ran it several times thru it's cycle and it open and closes nicely as do all the other valves. 
Pic for u to view.  Now just waiting on new gasket set.

Question, my head bolts are quality bolts, and have only been used one time.  The threads look fine, but to be on the safe side I'm thinking of replacing them.  Any thoughts on reusing quality grade bolts on the head?

Mark

[mkoloc]

Have a short video not sure how to post ..

[mkoloc]

Checking the manual for the Torque value for the head bolts believe the manual is wrong .. should the value be in the 100-120- Range?

[R.E.Co.]

I ran 75 ftlbs, ran it abit, then went upto 85 on all of them. no leaks, good compression.

Jon

[steve1973]

The correct torque value is 75 foot-pounds. After you get the engine up to temperature you will need to re torque the head bolts again. Don't forget to use copper coat on your head gasket, both sides.

Steve A.

[Torque]

The Motors manual I have lists the head bolt torque for the White A150 and A250 as 105-110 lb ft. These are the civilian versions of the halftrack engine.

[spillmk1]

Seems like these different torque values come up every time this question is asked with strong opinions from
very knowledgeable folks on both sides of the discussion.

I went with the 75 ft/lbs on mine with a couple of re-torques.

Low compression engine and a lot of head bolts.
Torque on a flathead Ford around 60-70 ft/lbs.

These engines aren't 14 to 1 fire breathers. 

My 2 cents.

Thanks,
Keith