Mark Maras

I hope a member or friend takes advantage of this one. C.L. Seattle. 75 and 76, car and parts car. Looks like more than enough there to finish one and sell what's left to finance the refresh. $999.00 takes it all.

Thanks John I haven't seen those types of taps and dies before. I can think of hundreds of times I could have used those tools. A good share of my time spent on a repair is dealing with broken fasteners, corroded threads, etc. These will speed things up.

Give the man a cigar. I hadn't considered the "Band-aid" theory. It's the one that makes the most sense. We screwed around with catch cans, pan baffles and windage trays on dragsters in the sixties. Even tried blocking it all off and sealing the crankcase. Oil started seeping out of any place it could. If the air being pushed and pulled up and down under pistons wasn't enough the added pressure from leakage past the rings all had to go somewhere and it did. The best catch cans were made from a windshield washer reservoir bottle. Slide in, slide out bracket made it easy to clean.

Now that the valves are adjusted. IMO it would be wise to use your friends borescope before the "Italian Tuneup". IF there is a broken ring the damage to the cylinder and piston is only going to get worse.

The crank bolt and washer DO hold the harmonic balancer to the end of the crankshaft. To prevent the h. balancer from turning independent of the crankshaft, they share a key. Here is how it is disassembled. Remove crankshaft bolt and washer. Remove six bolts, remove unwanted sheave (pulley). Reinstall the crank washer and the bolt, torque it to specs. The sheave (pulley) that you're removing has no effect on the crank bolt length.

I'd use a six point deep socket on the sheave bolts. They won't have much torque on them because of their size. Put the trans. in first, parking brake on. That should prevent the engine from turning while you're attacking the crank and the six bolts. 1/2" drive socket and a long breaker bar will ease loosening the crank bolt.

The crank washer and bolt don't hold the pulley (sheave) on. I found one in my parts and took a look at it. I don't think you're going to find a socket thin enough to get to the six bolts without removing the washer first. IMO, Remove the crank bolt and washer. At that point you can either remove the sheave(pulley) from the harmonic balancer while it's on the crank or remove the whole assy. and separate them on your workbench (Good time to clean it up and mark the timing mark(s) in a contrasting color).

If the idler bearing is OK use a stethoscope or a short piece of garden hose to one ear and listen to the AC clutch. When they start to go bad they can make a lot of noise.

What is piston soaking and what is it supposed to fix?

I get it now. You may want to look for a thin wall socket at Harbor Freight. I found one there a while back on another project. Had to buy a set of cheap sockets to get the one I wanted. At least the set was inexpensive. Removing the crank bolt isn't a hard as it may seem. I'd remove the crank bolt & washer, leave the harmonic balancer on the crank, remove the six bolts, Remove the unwanted sheave, replace the washer and bolt, torque to specs.

I've not had one apart but just looking at it, the bolts are the only thing holding it on. No need for washers or nuts on the backside, plenty of casting to thread into. If it was attached any other way, they would have used fewer bolts. I don't understand the lack of room to get to the bolts. Seems like whatever is blocking access to the bolts would also block access to the crank bolt and pulley removal.

Found it. Jan. 31 "Alum for stud removal vs vinegar - garage experiment". This is worth a try. Nothing to lose except a little time.

Don't break them! Is the hole too big to thread with a M8 heli-coil tap? If not, I'd buy the M8 Helicoil kit if that is original. Drill, tap and install a M8 helicoil. if the hole is already too big, you're probably looking at the next size up. Some alum. is going to be removed for a heli-coil or a larger bolt. Measure the depth of the hole and wrap a piece of tape around the drill bit the same distance from the end as the hole depth. Also possible to mark the bit with a Sharpie.

I'm surprised. You may have to cast your net a little farther away.

Cliff's idea is the probably the fastest easiest. Re drill it and tap it to the next size. Depending on the availability of heli-coil kits or single heli coils in your area, if you can confirm the bolt that came from that hole is metric like the rest, buy the coil(s) that you need and install it. You may have to buy the kit to get the tool.

Wow, I hope so. I hadn't thought of that possibility. Also I've never dealt with that problem so I don't know how much effect that has. Kinda makes sense tho because of the fresh build. Five good cyls. One bad. You may get by with just spinning the rings to their proper position and reassembling it. Labor and gaskets. Engine in the car. This may have a happy ending yet.

Yeah, Rossiz is right about the blocks. I wouldn't be too surprised if you can still see honing marks from the rebuild. You may be able to just re ring it if there is nothing else wrong but I'd want to know why the ring(s) broke? Got to be a reason.

Unfortunately, a poor sealing valve wouldn't leak into the crankcase or the valve cover creating the fog and pressure coming from the crankcase. A leaky intake valve would leak back into the intake port. A leaky exhaust valve would leak into the exhaust port. That much compression loss and resultant back pressure is almost certainly piston, piston rings, bore or any combination of them. Sounds like one way or another the engine is coming out.

Agree with Zed Head. Poor ring seating doesn't cause that much compression loss. It's looking like a broken ring. You'll want to take a good look at the bore in #6. A broken ring can leave vertical scratches in the bore. Give the valve cover a try. Unbolt it and give it a good bump with your palm. Unless someone glued it on both sides, it should come loose easily. As you lift it, be sure the entire gasket either stays on the head or on the valve cover.

OK, Check the valve lash clearance on #6. If the lash is tight, adjust and check the compression on #6 again. Squirt some oil into all of the cyls. and check it again. Compression in #1 - #5 will probably raise a little. #6 will probably raise a lot. This would indicate a problem with the piston rings sealing properly. If #6 raises about the same as the others, the top side is the problem. A bore scope in #6 might tell you more. My gut feeling is the same as grannyknot's. For some reason the rings on #6 haven't seated. You might want to find out what kind of rings were used on the build. I don't have much knowledge about rings but IMO moly rings are the most forgiving during break in. Chrome rings are considered a step up from moly but they have had problems seating and sealing. I've always used moly rings for the street. Another plus with moly is they will reseat, even on on old engine that has been sitting for a long time. "Surely" there are members that can add their knowledge about rings. I think the discussion is about to arise.

"Level" is at the top of the mixture screw jet. It's no more complicated than the innards of a toilet tank. If the water is too high, bend the float rod (or tab, SUS) down. Set the level where ever you want it. But the fuel (float) level is always best set at the top of the jet (2 1/2 turns down), with the car level. Then if you raise or lower the jet to fine tune the mixture the carbs will be sensitive to small adjustments.

Jarvo2@, KiraK@ is looking for the front one too.

Don't assume the compression is fine just because it runs solid. There's reason for that much blow-by in the crankcase. I'd want to find out why, before I dumped it all back into the intake and then fret about, is there anything wrong, how long will it last. A compression test is cheap and easy.

I've always used movers' blankets draped over all four sides of the bay. I predict you'll have little, if any, trouble doing it yourself. It'll slide in there just fine. Cushion anything of value, take it slow, think ahead and don't tighten any one bolt in an assembly until all the bolts are in. Easy Peasy.

I'd buy one too. Muscle car calendars are OK but I'd rather have a Z calendar any day. Maybe a joint effort, CZCC and our beloved aftermarket parts suppliers could get it done.