madkaw

There is room but the crankshaft has to be in a certain position so no crank throws are sticking down around the rack and pinion area.

If you have .026 piston pop out and you use a stock Felpro gasket which is .049 , that gives you .023 . That would be a good number !

Don’t mind sharing my mistakes . I’ve learned reading about others too. It would be easy to blame my cheapy Ebay Perfect Circle old stock rings that gapped bigger than stock, but that’s not the real reason. Can’t expect rings to seal on a sketchy bore. In the end, I’m glad to know why this stuff was happening and not blame it on cheap parts

Don’t mind sharing my mistakes . I’ve learned reading about others too. It would be easy to blame my cheapy Ebay Perfect Circle old stock rings that gapped bigger than stock, but that’s not the real reason. Can’t expect rings to seal on a sketchy bore. In the end, I’m glad to know why this stuff was happening and not blame it on cheap parts

Yes - still lucky to be fortunate enough to play like this . And yes oil was getting by the rings somehow. My machinist is an old racer and has seen everything . He actually went thru the same thing . A ring defect was allowing oil to contaminate the combustion mixture . THe fact I’m pushing 225 psi amplifies the condition I believe . Im going to get some larger pistons and salvage the engine - AFTER I finish and get the 3.2 running .

#6 - where I had most if the issues . There was also a spot on #5 .

Well somehow I missed this bad spot at the bottom of my bore . Since this project has has spanned over so many years I cannot remember specifically what order I did or did not do things . I ran a cheap store hone in these cylinders many years ago and I obviously missed that this spot didn’t clean up. The hone marks hid the spot enough, and I didn’t look close enough. Rings aren’t going to seal against that wall. Amateur miss for sure , but live and learn. I moved on to the 3.2 , so maybe I could start another thread for now or just keep it here. The thread was more about the MN-47 , which will be going on the 3.2

Well it doesn’t even phase me that I’m pulling this motor again. It is a bit humbling , but hey, you play you sometimes pay. Pulled the intake to find oil in 5&6 runners - again, so not the guide seals . So it’s either seeping around outside if guides or rings are failing . Comes out today and it’s fate will be determined . Head will be broke down to check more thoroughly for oil seepage. Block might just get swapped with a good OEM 54 sitting here on a stand- untouched since Japan and with perfect wear. Hoping this will only be a one week venture . I need to move on to my 3.2 build .

My perfect circle rings came out with bigger gaps also - maybe because the cylinders were honed . I think your gaps would be okay . No where near wear limits . I would think ANY markings would identify top. Usually packages also identify rings by any type bevel or taper cut into the ring .

Disregard - mine isn’t worth saving . good luck

Pretty sure I saved a really clean set up somewhere. Most threw away the air pump stuff, but this was so clean I’m sure I held on to it.

Paper gasket or RTV gasket maker. Just clean both surfaces really well

You can buy them new pretty cheap

Coolant pressure test should really pinpoint the issue . Watch your pressure as the engine runs . If it starts to rise , start pulling spark plug wires one at a time until you find the one that stops the pressure from rising .

It’s typical for #5 to blow the HG . Go get a coolant pressure checker from a local parts store and do a pressure check

Not to disparage this thread , but that’s why recently I opted for a 71C for my 83 truck. You can t find B’s because they don’t last, parts are hard to come by , and have a weak counter bearing . C kits are cheaper and more abundant and they don’t break as much because they are stronger .

Depending on your build you might not want tor need the vacuum advance . I didn’t run one and ran between 17-20 degrees initial and had 35-38 all in . Ultimate would be a compromise between mechanical and vacuum , but if there is probably going to be a failure in any part of those dizzies it’s the vacuum advance .

Why not consider the ZX dizzy from 81-83 if doing the swap . 2 wires with a built in module and a decent curve for a modified motor.

Looks like you might be off one tooth/gear . Looks like you are sitting close to 12 o’clock. Good advice above , spark plugs out and crank till you see oil. I actually use a separate spindle that has no crank gear on it to spin the pump with a drill. Good way to prime motor

Drive the Bw-t5 and you’ll be hooked ?

I think you have to get them really far off to leak actually . I read all the FAQ’s about installing them , and I guarantee I didn’t get some of them ‘ perfect’ on my last motor, never had an issue . If there’s no gaping holes and you don’t plow them all the way down, I think you’ll be okay. The ones I suspect as leaking -HAD to be tapped on quite forcefully.

I made a spacer that straddles the guide . I also invested in some guide seal pliers. With pliers I didn’t have to tap the seals on . I had enough control with the pliers to ease them on and avoid the bulge .

Yes - “stacked “ gaps was a concern . Still hard to explain why top ring would be covered with oil and second ring not

We there was no smoking gun found. I took apart the head and put new guide seals all the way across. I used that Fel-Pro Ford seals that I’ve used before . I also pulled #6 piston to look at it. Nothing looked bad except all the oil on the top compression ring . Pretty soaked actually . Oddly, the second ring was pretty damn clean. The expansion ring was properly installed and not overlapped. Kind of hard to believe the oil is coming from the bottom of the piston and not getting on the second compression ring. Makes me think the oil is coming from the top . None of the guide seals “looked “ bad . I put it all back together and will be firing it up shortly. Checked cam degree and it was about dead nuts , so nothing changed there. I did play with putting together my coolant manifold . Not that it will do any good with a none running motor -lol.

My son just doesn’t want to get greasy dirty - clean freak, but at least his room was clean. My daughter probably understands cars more then most men her age (30). At least my son will have a degree and already has made his fame and the daughter will always be employed - SO - dad won’t be supporting anyone but the Z -lol