Doing The Head Change, Get your head sorted

[MG_evolution]

Got this new head off Jay and I am going to give it a bit of a clean.
I thought I might as well share it with the rest of you, since I don't post much. This will go on over a few days edit: (now weeks), because I have not got the kit to do it in a weekend.

*If you wish to use this page other than on Ford Force please link directly to it*
http://s7.invisionfree.com/Ford_Force/inde...topic=2762&st=0

(Click to increase picture size)

10/04/2005

Got the 1.6 head and stuck it in the shed (not to be confused with mosukes shed)



Check the head over for any signs of cracks or weaknesses.
This head has got no build up of oil or thick deposits... (bargain)
(The old one that I am changing from, in the car, was covered in thick black gunk)

Ok first thing I decide to do is take the cam pulley off.
Make sure the head is on a solid surface.
The bolt holding the pulley on will be very tight.
I used a 8.0mm Allen key through one of the pulley holes to lock it in place. The bolt is undone anti clockwise. I put a 19 spanner on and gave it a good whack to help undo the bolt. Once loose I used the ratchet to make the job easier.
Put the bolt back in the end with out the pulley so you don't lose it.
(you can use a blowlamp to heat up the bolt, this breaks down the thread lock inside and makes the bolt come out easier).



Since I sell nuts and bolts at work I am going to put new bolts (stainless maybe) to hold the inlet and exhaust manifold on. So I need to get the studs off

Put the Head on its side and find two nuts to suit the stud size.



screw one nut on with 5mm clearance from the top and then screw the other nut on over the top. grab to spanners (13mm) and tighten the nuts up together. when the nuts are tight enough you can "undo" the bottom nut to unscrew the stud.

Ideally I want to get the head cleaned throughout so I need to get the rockers and hydraulic tappets out.

The rockers are attached with a flanged m8 nut.
un-tighten all the nuts but leave the rockers and nuts in place. You should have 8 bags ready to put the rockers and washers in (I will have tomorrow) keeping them in order.



Take off each rocker, 1 at a time and put them in separate bags.
(Remember the rectangular washer under the rocker).
next is to take out the tappets. they will be oily so fingers won't work. I used a pair of pliers with close around the grips so I wouldn't mark the tappets as I pulled them out. again put them in the bag with their rocker.

Next undo the camshaft retaining plate. these are the two bolts that sit on the head behind the pulley.



This Head does not have the camshaft cover on the right hand side of the head (opposite end to the pulley). you would have to take this cover and the old oil seal off, as the cam comes out of the head this way.

Ok then some pictures with the cam out and no rockers or hydraulic lifters.



I will hopefully borrow the Valve spring compressor from work tomorrow.

11/04/05

Ok got a few things sorted today.
I took the head gasket set back to the shop, lucasUK. They gave me DJ441, which is for a 1.6 CVH injection. I need DJ442, which is for a 1.6 CVH carburettor.
They did not like the fact that I had made a 4" cut through the packing, and kept telling me that the company will probably not want it returned, he took the head gasket set anyway. I will have to wait now till Wednesday to pick up the correct set and settle money matters, again.

I found my paraffin at work today to clean of the different bit of the engine.
found a stainless Hoover tub to put the head in when I clean it to stop liquid flying all over the place.

I "hired" (borrowed) the valve spring compressor from work.



Job today is to take out the valves and spring ..etc.

Put the head on its side on a firm surface.
I started with my number 1 (inlet cam pulley side)

*All the bits taken off here are put into bags with the followers taken off yesterday*

Before using the compressor get a soft faced hammer (brass or plastic) and hit the top edge of the spring. This is to loosen the collets from the spring letting the spring be compressed much easier.
I held the valve face against the head while hitting the spring, it makes a pinking noise until it has loosened and then it feels like your hitting a spring only (duh).

Use the valve spring compressor to apply pressure to the valve face and the top of the spring using a cloth under the valve face to stop any scratching.



Use the open end of the compressor on the top of the spring so you have room to get the collets out.



The Collets are quite difficult to come off so a small flat headed screwdriver and a small pair of pliers will help. Be careful if "flicking" them out as they are small and important. Once out add them to the right bag i.e. bag 1.
Below is a picture with the collets out.



Because the spring is compressed when you loosen it will spring back at you, so be careful. I nearly lost my coffee the first time.

With the compressor out of the way hold the valve face to stop it sliding out, then take off the spring and its head (inspect for damage). Put these in the bag i.e. bag 1.
Next slide the valve out and inspect it for damage or excess deposits up the length of the shaft. If there are deposits up the shaft it could mean that the head is worn.



All of my valves look really good so I’ll just have to clean them up at a later date. With the spring and valve out, you will have 2 items left to remove, the valve stem seal and the spring base.



The Valve stem seals are difficult to remove. I used a large pair of pliers and softly grab the seal then twisted from left to right while pulling. This takes out the Valve stem seal in 1 piece, leaving just the spring base in the head.



To get the spring base out use a small flat headed screwdriver again and lift up 1 edge. These come out easily so don't force it.



Again put the spring base I the correct bag. i.e. bag 1, leaving you with 1 set out and 7 more to go.

Head with no valves




12/04/2005

Right I started to clean the head today with paraffin but it is taking ages to get in all the little gap. A cut down paintbrush is working slowly but the toothbrush is too soft.

So I put the head on some soft material and sprayed alloy wheel cleaner on to the head, left it for about 1-2 minutes and then agitated it with my trusty paintbrush and washed it of with the hosepipe.

Here’s how it came out.




13/04/2005

I have not done much today, collected the head gasket set from Lucas after a bit of hassle, but at least I have it.



DJ442 1.6 CVH 1992 carburettor (not CFI)
c/w
1x Head Gasket,
1x Cork Rocker Cover Gasket
8x Valve Stem Seals (top hat type)
1x sheet of gaskets (inlet manifold, fuel pump, thermostat housing, carburettor to manifold)
1x Exhaust manifold gasket
3x oil seals.

I collected a Water/oil catch tank to go from the rocker cover breather into the carburettor.




14/04/2005

got home this evening and started to clean the bores and the cylinder face (valves) with a draper wire brush in a drill. I was careful not to press too much and score the face or to use it on the gasket face (which will be skimmed at a later date).
*use a face mask, eye protection and a ear defenders when doing this, it makes a very fine dust*
I made myself an attachment to allow easier access to the bores with the brush. A wiggly screwdriver attachment, so the shaft can bend around corners. The picture is shown with a hex fitting screwdriver, it also goes in the drill really well. and M4 hole was made in the end to fit a Socket set (grub screw) in, to tighten the brush in place.



Here is the Cylinder face after the clean.



Started to sort out the catch tank. The air filter on top was going to foul on the underside of the bonnet so I cut some fuel hose to extend the filter making it sit lower in the engine bay. I had to drill two 8mm holes to fix it to the rear plastic panel with stainless sets. Then I installed the catch tank next to the carburettor. .
It all seems to work except the oily air is venting out of the filter (cleaned) and does not seem to be going into the carburettor, to be re-burnt.
The car feels better and maybe slightly quicker with the tank on. I’m putting this down to, less shit getting into the carburettor.




16/04/2005 Weekend

I should be getting the valves onto a metal lathe this afternoon to clean them up so they should look cleaner than this.



I got to use the lathe yesterday Saturday and cleaned up about 3 of the valves. The inlet valves are really easy to clean, but the exhaust valves have got a carbon build up on them. Cleaning this off is time consuming and a pain.

I covered the valve stem in PTFE tape to protect it while in the lathe.



With the valve in it's a case of turning the machine on and getting to work. Be careful not to mark the valve face, once it has a shine stop...
I should be wearing gloves to protect my hands, I was lucky yesterday that I had no close calls with the main chuck....




23/04/2005

Haven't updated in a few days.
I have not done much really. The valves are still in the bags ready to have the seats re-grinded and the head has been off getting skimmed.
I only had 0.0001 taken off, this won't really improve compression but has taken any small notches off the face. I just wanted it cleaned really.
The head disappeared for 3-4 days to be skimmed and cost the grand total of £15. a very good, low budget job.
Cleaned out the M8 and M6 threads on the head with a second tap of the correct size. This is to ensure that the new bolts don't get cross-threaded as they go in.
I have also had a "shop" around work and I am replacing all the studs with stainless hex sets. with spring and flat washers. You can see on the pictures below the bolts and the skimmed head.




30/04/2005 Weekend

I have got the spring compressor back now to put the valve back in, and also bought a valve re-seating stick.... 0.39p

The new valve stem seals are ready and will go in once the valves have been ground in.



I have sprayed the valve stems with WD40 (not the face) before putting them in, so they are not twisting dry.
I have put the valves, in the correct order back into the head. As I finish grinding 1 in it goes back into the correct bag.
Doing 1 valve at a time.
Stick the larger end of the stick to the face of the valve to start then pull the valve out.



Apply some course grinding paste around the valve lip, about 2 pea sizes.
Put the valve back into the head and slowly twist the stick in your hands so the grinding paste spreads out around the lip.



After spreading the paste out, you can be rough with the valve, getting quicker when turning and also applying more pressure. Every minute or so take the valve out and wipe a little bit of the paste off and see how clean the valve seat is looking. Apply a more course grinding paste if it still looks black or there are a few carbon deposits still on, then carry on grinding.



Take the valve out, checking the (head) seat and give them a clean to get any excess paste off



I now put the fine grinding paste on the lip. This finishes off the valve to smooth out the seat. keep grinding till you are happy. (you will "hear" when the seats has smoothed out)



When you are happy that you have finished the valve, take it out and give it a good clean to get rid of any excess paste. I cleaned the (seats) head after I finished doing all the valves with a clean rag.

Only 7 more to go.

------------------------

Putting the valves back in, is really, the opposite of taking them out, only you have to be a little careful not to damage the new valve stem seals.

Before putting the valves in, I cut 8 lengths of insulation tape about 30mm long. These will be fitted on the end of the valve to cover the grooves where the collets fit.
I got the first valve and put it in, then put a length of tape around the top. Then get a valve stem steal sprayed with a little WD40, slide it over the top of the valve. Make sure that it does not catch the top and that the spring on the seal stay put. Slowly push the seal all the way down and make sure that the valve is sitting tight against the head.
On the picture below you can see the tap around the top and the seal.



Put the spring and the spring top back on to the new seal, and compress with a spring compressor. The collets need to back in.
They are tapered, with the thick at the top. apply a small amount of grease to the grooved side of the collets before putting them against the valve stem. The grease will help to "Stick" the collets in place, with out grease it will move around and test anybody’s patience. Use a set of long nose pliers to put them in. When the collets are both back in release the compressor and that is valve number 1 complete.



The rest of the valves in place.



------------------------

Putting the cam back is straightforward but you have a new cam oil seal in the head gasket set. Where the cam pulley sits you will see a black seal, fords own or probably orange/red if it's a 3rd party seal, like the one I am putting in. Get a screwdriver and place it behind the black seal and lever it out. it should just slide out if the head has not been standing. Then put the new oil seal in its place, insuring that the arrow on the seal is pointing in the rotation of the cam. With the cam slide it back in from the ECU/Distributor end through the head. Once in tweak the cam in and out so that the cam retain plate fits back in, and tighten the bolts.

I am going to put the newly painted cam pulley on now before I put the rocker etc. in. Because the Pulley has been sprayed the inside and lip will have to be sanded back, due to the tight fit back on the cam.



Week starting 03/05/2005

I have started to get the engine bay ready to accept the new head.
I have primed the rocker cover, thermostat housing, ignition coil housing, though I am not sure on the type of paint i will use.

Drain off the coolant water by turning the rubber plug at the bottom of the radiator. Antifreeze must not go into drains, collect and dispose of properly.

Remember to take off the water temp sensor (dash). it is to the right of the exhaust manifold and has a wire attached to it. The new head does not have the sensor, so i need it.

I started with the exhaust manifold and the thermostat housing. To make it easier to undo the nuts, take the manifold off after the engine has reached normal operating temperature. Undo the bolts holding the temperatures housing on. It may need a little twist to get the gasket to break.

The ignition coil is fixed to the housing by 4 bolts, undo the bolts then unplug the ignition coil to remove.
remember which spark lead go where.
The ignition coil housing as a suppressor on top, un plug this then undo the 3 bolts holding the ignition coil housing to the head.



I have taken the fuel pump off and placed it to one side, petrol will come out so have a rag handy.



I want to clean the inlet manifold, so the carburettor has to come off first.
Undo the auxiliaries that are attached to the carburettor and take off the water hoses from the inlet manifold and the auto choke (if you have one)
Undo the 4 torx head bolts that hold the carburettor to the manifold. Pull the carburettor away
I am not going to take off the choke and the accelerator cable, so the carburettor and cables still attached go to the left of the wiper motor (see picture).
The inlet manifold has 2 difficult bolts to undo, both in the middle 1 above and 1 below. For the one above you will need a 13mm open ended spanner and the one below, a 13mm socket with extension bar.
Due to the paper gasket on the manifold it may need a small twist to get it off.



The head with out the rocker cover, ready to have the head bolts removed. I have had to wait 24 hrs because i don't have solid socket bar to get the head bolts off. A ratchet would work but it will be knackered by the time you have finished. You will also need a solid bar to put the head bolts back in.



-------------------------------

It's a few months now since I started the Head Change on here and im sorry i did not update it a bit more oftern.

--------------------------------

With the Head of, best to clean the mating surfaces of the block. I have had the new head skimmed so i've already done the hard work. But the principle is the same.

If possible plug up the head bolt threads with some smaller bolts and be very carefull not to get any rubbish into the water or oil ways.

Take off the old head gasket from the block by gentle scraping it away. I used a a sharp knife to scrap away the large lumps and then used a 80grit wet/dry then 400 grit to finish. Be care the closer you get to the block you don't want to make a deep scratch on it.
If you have compressed air blow away any bits left on the head.

Undo the bolts in the threads of the head bolts.
1 at a time blow out the thread with compressed air, and using the correct tap clean out the threads, then blow out the bits again.

[Jay]

looks good! if you can.. get a new cam.. i no thats only dun 46,000 miles but it will make a HELL of alot of difference.

[Jay]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...ssPageName=WDVW

maybe that

[kolin_mc_reay]

good idea,
keep us posted!

[Georgio]

Good luck with your project m8

[Jay]

keep up the good work mate

[Georgio]

Nice.Keep up

[mosuke]

i see standard stem seals!!!! you best be putting moddified ones back in!

[MG_evolution]

By modified you mean ones out of a head gasket set. im picking the set up tomorrow.

[mosuke]

they are part of the spring seat so they don't float at high revs

[MG_evolution]

thats them yes, they come with the head gasket set.

[smidsy]

Nice!

[mosuke]

when i rebuilt the head on the engine that went pop, i told one guy at the local auto factors to F off when he gave me standard seals and then spoke to someone else

[MG_evolution]

I've had to have a go at the motor factor already they gave me the wrong gasket set.
I have done this before about 16 month ago on the head now in my car. but the tappets/cam are crap. and im bored.

[Georgio]

pure cvh!!

[MG_evolution]

small update, new thing. mmmmmm

[Jay]

where'd you get that from greg?

[MG_evolution]

i had aluminium catch-tank made for £20 (should be around £60-80) from a local firm *A H Fabrications* who make le-mans parts and other racing components
£6.50 for the filter of ebay

[Georgio]

Nice gizmo!! Is it baffled or is it just a tank with inputs?I have heared they have buffles in.....Have u got any idea?And what is the diff if u put this on?Excuse my ignorance....

[MG_evolution]

this one does not have baffles in, just inputs. i have yet to put it in but it won't help bhp but in the long run it will keep my carb cleaner for longer, as well as looking good for a cheap price....