Zed Head

The testing seems to show that the problem is in the back. If z89 keeps "doing things" he'll probably find the problem. Use the same logic that was used to isolate it to the back end. There are similar tricks that he could do if he thinks about the pistons in the wheel cylinders.

You can remove the screw/bolt from the junction blocks of the hydraulic lines down on the fender well and frame rail. That will give you a lot more flex in the lines to the MC and let you leave everything connected. You might find fluid leaking from the back of the MC though once you get it apart. That's the common reason the booster fails. Don't let any fluid leak from the booster on to your paint. It will stain it, or worse.

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Do you have the stock drums on the back? Sounds like you need to adjust them. The shoes are too far from the drums. Take the drums off and turn the adjusting wheel that moves the shoes apart until you can barely get each drum back on. Then pull the parking brake handle up and down a few times to get the final automatic adjustment.

It's been show to cause overheating. It bypasses the radiator and the front half of the head.

Actually, just remembered...if the heater core lines are looped, aka bypass mode, the coolant can make a loop through that path without entering the radiator. At low RPM there might be enough flow through at path so that the thermostat sees very little. Is your coolant port blocked or looped?

You removed it with the engine hot? Should have had some overflow. Anyway, carry on. Just seems like being focused on seeing what the coolant is doing instead of what can't be seen. The water pump is certainly full of fluid and will push it through the engine. The only way out is the thermostat. Air will easily make it through the tiny hole in the thermostat. Have to say though that the FSM is way behind in 1976. My coolant level sits at the top of the filler neck after some heat cycles, with the reservoir working right.

Is the engine "nose up" or nose down on your engine stand. The pump will fill the engine with coolant up to the thermostat if it's nose up. If it's nose down there could be an air pocket at the back of the cylinder head. With a heater core installed that air pocket would end up there, instead of in the head. Maybe you can "burp" it from the heater core supply port. And, just curious, but is "air in the system" really a problem? It's just heat transfer fluid, if it contacts the hot surfaces and absorbs the heat, then moves out to the radiator, all is good. I've seen quite a bit of discussion out on the internets about what happens in the system, but , really, there's not much to them.

There's a whole carb tuning section in the FSM's, plus ZTherapy has a CD that they sell, and I think that there is some stuff in the Downloads section of this site. I think that there's more to it than lifting the piston and seeing what happens. I could be wrong, I'm not a carb guy. Good luck.

Have you given the engine a thorough tuneup? Adjusted valve lash, new spark plugs, set ignition timing? How many minutes of running are on the engine since you got it restarted after sitting for 15 years? Might still be some rusted and gummed up parts in the engine.

They pelled it wrong on porpoise.

Not clear what you're bummed about. Old parts in the oil pan are pretty common. People find all kinds of things in there.

That looks/sounds about right. I knew that I had seen something similar in the past. Too bad I took my box of old u-joints to the recycle yard, I'd replicate the picture, to see.

Not really clear where you're at on the project. Could be that somebody already rebuilt the head and those parts are from the past. How does the head and valve train look? I haven't looked back through the 7 pages.

https://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/PROD/10-2041

It looks like ground up aluminum. I bought an old mystery transmission, filled it up with some old fluid and spun it on the back of my garage engine. The fluid looked like that when it came out. Ground up shift fork. With the lash pad, the seal material, and the silver, kind of looks like a camshaft might have damaged itself in the past. The camshaft tower bushing journals are aluminum. The cam rides right on the tower material. Lots of aluminum in other places too that could get rubbed on.

be boating. We were put on this planet to extract the oil contaminating the earth's crust, and burn it. Each oil well in the world is, in essence, a mechanical zit popper. We can't stop until it's all gone. Cars, boats and planes, (and trains) are just ways to have fun while we accomplish our mission. Just a thought.

You pretty much have to remove each gauge to check the bulbs. I would find a bulb that's n the circuit and easy to reach and make sure that you have power. Check the wiring diagram, Ithink that some of the heater control lights, or maybe others, are easy to reach but on the same circuit. Check the circuit before checking the bulbs. Here's that timing advance control solenoid that CO mentioned. It lets vacuum through to the vacuum advance can on the distributor when you're in 4th gear. There's an electrical switch on the transmission. I think that it's really an emissions device. It should probably have the dashpot hose connected to it. If those hoses are messed up. your ported vacuum and constant vacuum sources might be too. Better check.

It hasn't even picked over yet by the shiny bauble hunters.

Be careful. I see a socket lurking...

Looks pretty straight, unwrecked. The gaps are good. It's close to I-5 (The 5 in California) so easy to transport. No title so have to know your state's lost title laws. A person could probably have it transported for $500 and be in it for $2000 at their garage.

The hub is center of the damper/pulley. You'd want to compare how much bolt sticks out the back with the washer in place.

Have you measured the distance pieces? They get deformed.

The damper hub is probably thicker. Don't mix them up.

Have you checked the ceiling?