Rocker Geometry Woes

[rossiz]

thanks for the offer of help - i might take you up on that!

i've been delaying the clutch due to a series of distractions: hernia surgery & recovery, then the head/valve train issues, then a new puppy (all-consuming) and now it's the holidays and i gotta put my z parts on hold to save up scratch for xmas presents. who knows, maybe santa will bring me z parts!

[71Nissan240Z]

Hey I just noticed your in seattle. I'm in portland. I'm considering making a trek to Tacoma picknpull as there are three z cars for the picking. I might even chop some metal off if I find what I need.

Glad everything seems to be working out. Centering the lash pad wipe dead center isn't absolutely required but as a professional I'd be concerned of why things aren't matching up across all 12 valves. You can actually gain a little lift in the valve by putting the wipe slightly offset. Seen it done once, but it they all exhibited the same geometry in the end.

I do have an eBay store that I'm currently selling a set of matching rockers n pads as a set on a bid stating at .01 just in case things go south. I think I'm the only person online selling these on a bid right now . Ohwelll....Goodluck

[rossiz]

there are a couple of z's that i've seen on seattle craigslist that are being parted out as well - might be worth it to contact some of them if you're gonna make the trek north...

[rossiz]

surprise on my porch when i got home friday:

 

nicely packed:

 

when i opened it up, it looked dirty - white gritty stuff all over it... thought it had been put in a dirty bag or something:

 

closer inspection revealed that there was a good deal of mineral deposits inside the water passages:

 

some of this crud had shaken loose in transit and got stuck to the oiled surfaces. i scraped out lots of big clumps and blew it all out with my compressor, but it doesn't make me feel very good... i thought hot-tank cleaning would get rid of that? what i saw didn't look so huge as to block water flow (not like the sludge that was in my block) but i plan on doing a couple of coolant flushes once i get her going.

 

today i hope to get it installed and check the wipe pattern - will keep y'all posted...

[240260280z]

It must have been an empty kitty litter bag that he used to bag it.

 

I'd not accept it.  

 

For the mineral deposits i guess pouring/flushing in vinegar or CLR may help.

[240260280z]

Once it is cleaned, rub black marker on all rockers then rotate to check wipe patterns.

[Zed Head]

It's a shame that DP is screwing up the good publicity opportunity.  Rusty rocker arm pads, used bolts.  Looks like a blend of rocker arms again also.  Hope it checks out this time.  Weird that he said he was rebuilding one for you but this one looks like it's been on a shelf for a little while.  Maybe that big glob of goop is sealant from the core plug in the back of the head.

 

It's all part of the challenge though.  I can't be sure if I see one hole in the cam lobe for internal oiling.  Check the back of the cam to be sure it's plugged.  Maybe fill the passage with oil and make sure all of the holes are clear.

 

It would be boring to just get parts that were perfect, and went on with no issues.  Good luck with it.

[240260280z]

Why are the chambers blued?

[Patcon]

Yeah I don't think I would be happy about getting a head that looked like that...just really hard to get all that grit off it with out disassembly.

C

[Diseazd]

What a bunch of crooks. I've never seen such crap in my life. How are these guys still in business? So sorry you've had such a bad experience Rossiz.........

[rossiz]

yes, i've come to expect a bit of disappointment from time to time with this project - but after reading hazmat's saga with rebello i'm not complaining. just means a little bit more of my time getting to know the parts before assembly...

 

the blob of stuff behind the core plug is an example of the mineral deposits - i chipped/scraped off quite a bit and blew out all the debris. the "kitty litter" all over the cam came off pretty easily - it was just loose bits of mineral deposits that had shaken out of the coolant passages and stuck to the oil film on the parts. a little cleaner, a rag & compressed air and all is well again. while i had it on the bench, i installed my oil spray bar from larry hassler - it wouldn't fit on the last head because the rocker geometry was so off that the rockers were all the way at the top of their adjustment in the back and bumped into his rail - yikes. it was reassuring to see the bar go on with clearance this time. just to be sure, i used a sharpie to mark the rocker pads and spun the cam with a crescent wrench and the wipe patterns looked good. 

 

i managed to get everything cleaned, installed all my bits to the head, torqued it up to the block, popped on the cam sprocket with little drama (my little pink barbie hockey stick worked perfectly this time!) and buttoned up the header, intake manifold & various peripherals.

 

don't want to jinx this, but i actually felt like i kinda knew what i was doing this time. i'm really beginning to appreciate the simplicity and straightforward design of these engines - a joy to work on. i wanted to get it running today, but ran out of daylight and was working outside in the rain under my carport - not getting directly wet, but chilly/damp with the occasional breeze sending some spray to the face so i called it quits before filling up the cooling system.

 

will jump back into it tomorrow and see if i can get a jolt of life out of it (cue gene wilder's mad laugh from young frankenstein).

[rossiz]

so i buttoned it all up last nite, added a bottle of lucas oil zinc break-in lube, did a quick double-check of all connections, primed the fuel rail and boom! she fired right up and idled quietly.

i was listening carefully to the valve train and inspecting for leaks as she warmed up, then noticed a huge plume of steam coming from my tailpipe... couldn't believe it. i watched the temp and pressure and waited for the thermostat to open, keeping an eye on the overflow bottle and expecting all kinds of drama. oddly, it continued running well, completely normal at the gauges, not pressurization of the overflow bottle, and a steady plume of steam from the tailpipe which stank of propylene glycol. 

 

i decided to drive around the block just for kicks, and when i got to the gas station to fill the tank the steam was completely gone and she was running perfectly. so i think what happened is my headers had filled up with coolant when i took the head off and that was boiling off during the warm-up. that is my sincere hope at least! i will drive it today and see how it goes - fingers crossed!

 

internal cleanliness notwithstanding, as mentioned in the previous posts, the head seems decently prepared as far as setup and machine work. i didn't find any damaged threads or any other issues - all looked fine. after a couple hundred miles i'll do a lash adjust, compression test and check plugs to see if the oil issue was in fact the valve guides and not the rings...

 

it does feel great to have her running again!