aksparkey01

do a search on o-ring and head install, it is a legnthy process that i am in the middle of right now. dont just bolt it up and put the hammer to it.

merr6267

Yep . . .
you have to take your time with this . . .

Also, don't run too much methanol. It's fuel, like you said, from a sprint car.
What happens is that with the high compression and boost from a diesel (way more than a sprint car engine) the methanol ignites before the fuel is injected. Effectively doing the same thing that happens when you detonate a gasser . . . That's why they say never go over 50%. For higher boost, straight water . . .

Good luck,
Phill

AnArKey

The ticking you heard was pre-ignition, ie knock, just like on a gasser. The water in the mix is there to prevent that. Pure meth did it in. Even if you had 14mm studs and fire rings, it will still be hurting the motor if you run it to the point you hear that sound.

aksparkey01

btw i looked on the methanol msds sheet and its flash temp(the temp where it vapors off and becomes explosive) is about 55 deg f, and the auto ingnition temp is unknown. there is quite a bit of methanol where i work, and straight methonal is an extreme explosion hazard. that bieng said i would never put a vented bottle of straight methonal anywhere near the engine.

Aosipower

Fire rings can be cut in EITHER the head or the block. Like said the main difference is O-rings are used in conjunction with a normal head gasket or marine, there is wire seated in the grooves and the wire seats against the gasket. Fire-rings on the other hand are a solid steel ring, not wire. When using fire-rings the head gasket must be cut out for the size rings you use (there are a few different sizes). I would go with the O-rings and a marine headgasket for a daily driver and def 12mm studs as mentioned. IIRC 14mm can actually create stress points because you drill out the block creating thin spots. If you really feel you need extra clamping force go with custom age studs rather than 14mm.

All the other advice, like machining the head, magnaflux for cracks, etc is absolutely necessary when redoing the headgasket. Also if possible tell whoever is machining your head to make it FLAT, not within cummins specs (which are like 12 thousands across the length, I think). Have them get it as perfect as they can, within a thousandth or two if possible. The flatter the head the better the seal. Also make sure you get a straight edge on your block and a feeler gauge and make sure that it is flat as well, or at least within a few thousandths.

When you go to reassemble, if you decide to do it yourself, retorque is extremely important. You want lots ARP lube, cant really have too much. You want to do multiple cycles. Take them all down to like 20 then 40 then 60, 80, 90, 110, 125. Then I believe you let it warm up to operating temp and shut it down and let it cool down slowly (hood closed) until it is just warm. Then loosen 1 at a time and retorque to 125. Drive 1 week on it easy, retorque again to 125. (higher if you get custom age studs) Then I think you are good to go for about a month and after that its not a bad idea to retorgue again. By the way you, you probably know this, but each retorque requires you to take off the rockers and bridges and most likely the pushrods in order to get a good torque. Each time you do this before running you want to set the valve lash.

Other than that a headgasket is not THAT bad to do. Just take your time and dont rush, take careful note of where everything comes from and where it goes. Be careful not to nick the gasket when you drop the head back on.

As far as the cause of your blown gasket in the first place, it is MHO that it is almost all because of running 100% meth. Yes your headgasket might have been a bit weak, but what caused it was assuredly all that meth. Like said Meth does raise cylinder pressures, especially 100%meth. When you here that tick, its not a bad idea to water it down abit, my truck runs better when its not making that tick so thats what I do. Also I believe on snow's site they say max power comes at a 50/50 mix, dont know if I am remembering that right but they are the experts.

Good luck rebuilding and if you have the time, why not do it yourself, then you know its done right! I had my truck done by a local "respected" diesel shop after blowing it from water meth (50/50) and it blew a week after they had just fire-ringed and studded it. After it blew a second time, I said screw it and did it myself. At least if it blows you have no one to blame but yourself.

Hope this helps, and by the way none of this knowledge comes from my head, I do alot of reading on this site and have head tons of help from the real diesel experts on this site. This is what worked on MY truck so you can do whatever you see fit on yours, just trying to share some personal experience. If you have any other questions I just got done rebuilding not to long ago so most of the little details are still pretty fresh on my mind.

-Alex

blueboy16

Wow I love this site everyone is so helpful and it is greatly apreciated in my time of hurting LOL. So just take it slow and put everything back in the same hole it came out of and about how long should it take do you all think? To get it out and back in with two or three people helpin me?

Aosipower

How long? Well that really depends on how well you prepare before you start. The biggest time factor will be setting up an appointment somewhere to have your machining done, this is not a huge deal for a shop because they normally work with the machine shop on a regular basis, some machine shops can be backed up for weeks. Once you have done that just make sure you have all your instructions/advice in order so you dont get stuck in the middle. If you plan well it really shouldnt take that long. A few hours to get the head off. Machining time in the middle, and a few hours to put it back on. I think shops charge for around 8-10 hours but I might be off on that. I think when the shop originally did mine it was about 8 hours. In labor alone you can see how doing it yourself saves a TON of money. Its not really worth it to rush, just take your time and be super careful to have everything just right, you dont want to be doing it again anytime soon.

Other than that there were a few time saving tips other members shared with me.

1) Use the valve cover as a valve train parts holder. There are six divisons in the under side that you can use to put the rockers, pushrods, bridges and hardware in when you diassemble. This also allows you to put stuff back to the exact cylinder it came from. This means that in between torques you will have less adjustment on the valves to do. Plus it just keeps everything nice and neat and in order.

2) Take the fuel lines off in 2 sets of three. Not individually! Leave all the little blue clamps on so you dont have to figure out a fuel line puzzle when you go to put it back together.

3) The alternator does not have to come off, just take the bolt out of the top bracket, and pivot the bracket out of the way.

4) There is a fuel line at the very back of the head (alittle bit of a pain to get to) make sure you take it off before removing the head so you dont break it.

5) Even with people to help I would really reccommend an engine jack to prevent damaging the head gasket when you reinstall the head. Its pretty heavy and positioning it by hand would be pretty difficult.

6) You might want to consider bottom tapping all the block holes before installing studs. This cleans up the threads. And then suck the rest of the crap from the bottom of the holes.

7) Have all your parts ordered and on hand so you dont have to be running out or waiting on stuff. Headgasket, Arp lube, and any other parts you might want to replace just because your in there, like the washer that goes on that banjo bolt in the back of the head, or maybe your injector O-rings (the injectors come out anyway).

This is all I can think of at the moment, If I remember more, or if you have any questions just let us know.

-Alex

blueboy16

thank you all so much. where do i get arp lube from?

Aosipower

I'm sure you could get it from alot of online places. Summitracing online has it. Just look for ARP Assembly lubricant. Or when you go to order your other parts ask the shop you buy from if they have it or can get it. If you buy more than one part like say Headgasket, lube, whatever else you may need/want, they may give you a slight break on price.

pm me if you want my favorite vendor, extremely helpful/great prices/can get you anything you need....I would post it but I don't think its allowed.

-Alex

blueboy16

well i got all the parts i need to fix my truck except the m 12 x 1.75 bottoming tap. it was supossed to be in today but it didnt come in