Posted by lug_wrench on November 26, 2011 at 16:14:34 from (209.180.64.9):
I have a blown head gasket on a 400 – S/N 154354 and I need help finding the cause. Here’s the history:
4 years ago I rebuilt this motor with an engine overhaul kit from YT – New sleeves, pistons, rods, bearings, seals, gaskets, etc. The valves didn’t look that great so I had the head rebuilt and checked for cracks at the local machine shop. They found a small crack around one of the exhaust valve guides, repaired it, installed new valves and seats and machined the head flat. This was my first crack at a tractor engine rebuild – I have rebuilt a couple auto engines. It has maybe 100 hours on the rebuild. I use it for moving hay, plowing snow in the winter and road repair in the summer so it doesn’t get a lot of use and sits idle for months at a time.
This summer it started cranking out white smoke and I have just now had a chance to work on it. A compression test showed all cylinders between 100-115 psi, but by the time I got to checking the last cylinder #4 was spraying coolant out the spark plug hole. Since the compression was reasonable, I figured it had to be a cracked head. When I tore it apart last night I found that the head gasket was shot around all of the water ports – see photos. The gasket is a TISCO. I used Permatex Copper Spray-A-Gasket Hi-Temp Adhesive Sealant on it. Coolant was 50/50 with distilled water. Head nuts were evenly torqued to spec.
So I’m stumped, what did I do wrong? Are Tisco gaskets junk? Any ideas and suggestions for the reassembly are greatly appreciated.
Also what is the best way to make sure all the coolant is cleaned out of the engine? Is changing the oil a couple times after it is back together sufficient or is there some type of additive that will help clean the water out?
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