SPArKy_Dave 8,881 Posted January 16, 2016 A few yrs ago, I purchased a one Elderly couple owner EL sedan. Fairly low km's at 175,000km. The only issue, is I suspected it had done a head gasket, which turned out to be true. I removed the head and got it hardness checked and trued, all the spring tensions checked, the valve guides checked, valves faced, etc. The head turned out to be in really good nick! While the head was being done, I cleaned up all the rocker gear, rocker shafts, lifters, etc, of the carbon/milk substance. I used a BTR trans dipstick to rod out the inside of the rocker shafts. The tiny passages, really highlight the need good servicing on these OHC's - to prevent carbon blockages. Once I'd gotten the head back, I cleaned the block surface of the old gasket material, with small scotchbrite rotary pads. With a clean block surface, I noticed black carboned area's around the front and rear water jacket ports, which I scraped out with a fine pick. Revealing some fairly decent corrosion - right up to the edge of the fire rings on no.1 and no.6. With that discovery, I oiled the bare metal surfaces, covered up the engine with plastic wrap, and left the vehicle in storage for a yr and a half, but have finally decided it's time to sort it out, and get the beast re-assembled. Without pulling the engine out to deck the block, what options are there to repair the above corrosion damage, for the head gasket to seal properly? I have consulted the book of 'what would Dave do', and the only thing I could come up with, was to use a JB weld type two part Epoxy, and then file it flat with the surrounding block surface. Thoughts? 1 dougie77 reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deankxf 20,292 Posted January 16, 2016 i used copper spray on My mates Rambler 343 V8 with similar pitting, drove all the way to WA from Vic towing a trailer and 20,000km before being sold with no issues still..i believe there is a surface grinder thingy that can be used on blocks in the car.. not sure who'd have one though 1 XTREME KARTS XF reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gerg 10,871 Posted January 16, 2016 I've heard silver spray paint does wonders, they call it "poor man's hylomar". You coat both sides of the gasket as well as both faces. The aluminium chips in the paint compress and fuse together, forming an ally coating. Just don't expect to get the head back off easily when you want to eventually do a legit job. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SPArKy_Dave 8,881 Posted January 16, 2016 I can use some Hylomar, if that's what will work. The worst of the pitting, would be 1mm deep I reckon. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Menice 331 Posted January 16, 2016 Change the block would be my suggestion, cheapest and simplest option Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nath 1,975 Posted January 16, 2016 We've found something Dave doesn't know... PS: What's that gold looking beastie next to the Falcon? 2 dougie77 and slydog reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dougie77 789 Posted January 16, 2016 We've found something Dave doesn't know... PS: What's that gold looking beastie next to the Falcon? Looks like a Lincoln but could be wrong Cortina for life 1 Nath reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SPArKy_Dave 8,881 Posted January 16, 2016 Looks like a Lincoln but could be wrong Cortina for life That it is. Same one you saw at that SNL meet a while back. 1 dougie77 reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Outback Jack 6,352 Posted January 16, 2016 I'd just fill em give the block a clean up after and start using that Evans waterless coolant stuff. No water..... no corrosion. That 2 part epoxy is pretty tough and will take a lot of heat as well once set. I'd let it sit for 3-4 days before I even sanded it so it bonded real well. Sent from my GT-S7583T using Tapatalk 1 SPArKy_Dave reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jiminy Kriket 133 Posted January 16, 2016 I'd go for a devcon or loctite 2 part epoxy. There are a couple of different types, the kneading type and the liquid type. I've used the liquid type with good success. The kneading type i have found to be labour intensive, takes a bit of effort to get into all the nooks and crannies. 2 Outback Jack and SPArKy_Dave reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mr Polson 10,214 Posted January 16, 2016 Change the block would be my suggestion, cheapest and simplest option This is Dave, he likes to keep everything original remember. 2 dougie77 and SPArKy_Dave reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mmzh351 63 Posted January 18, 2016 Where on the block does the gasket actually seal against? Most gaskets don't seal right up to the coolant passage anyway, so might not need to do anything. Got a pic of the gasket you are going to use? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Campo 869 Posted January 18, 2016 I don't think it'd be a problem looking at my mental image of a gasket Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thom 6,651 Posted January 18, 2016 Au gasket layed over a e series head, there's not a lot of wiggle room 1 Outback Jack reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SPArKy_Dave 8,881 Posted January 18, 2016 This is Dave, he likes to keep everything original remember. Like a book, I have been read........ 2 dougie77 and Outback Jack reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TUFE 284 Posted January 19, 2016 This looks like my childhood car. Mum and dad had the exact colour/model/year as this...memories. There are 80mctrillion of these blocks out there, why not swap the bottom end/block over and get it running and enjoy. All the while you could work out a good repair solution for the OG block face.(my method involves gratuitous amounts of extra work). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites