coolant pressure test and compression test good, no blown head gasket?

[stamina]

i thought i may have blown a head gasket on first startup or intake manifold gasket due to lots of smoke on first startup, (was also revving it to 2500 to do cam break in so this may have had something to do with it) so i went through some tests
i did a dry compression test with the results of
1 - 163
2 - 170
3 - 170
4 - 160
5 - 155
6 - 155

but this didn’t rule it out completely, only partially
second i did a coolant pressure test

i didn’t know it was supposed to be 13psi i thought it was supposed to be 15-16psi so i did 15 psi on it and it held the pressure for 20+ minutes

is there anything else i should do before running it again? or am i good to go? because in my mind that completely rules out any coolant or head gasket leaks but im not sure, also when i was doing compression test no liquid came out of the cylinder at all so i think i’m in pretty good shape, i’m about to prime it anyways cause this gave me time to get a priming tool so i’m very patient right now, any more input would be excellent and very appreciated

 

[dvdswan]

Smoke from where on start up? engine bay, tail pipe, exhaust manifolds? Assuming we are talking about the 2.9L I would say that it is a tired engine. IIRC, compression below 160 you are getting blow by either on the rings or valve/seals.

 

[stamina]

Smoke from where on start up? engine bay, tail pipe, exhaust manifolds? Assuming we are talking about the 2.9L I would say that it is a tired engine. IIRC, compression below 160 you are getting blow by either on the rings or valve/seals.

tail pipe only i believe and i’d say 155 is pretty dang good for a 32 y/o motor

 

[Angie]

1st question... why do you keep opening new threads for the same concerns?

2nd.... (from before) did you recheck all the lash settings? timing is ok? 5-6 are a bit low but should run ok with those numbers.

There would be no cam break in as you didn't take out cam/install new one.? is this new smoke?? as in newer condition since last threads? if you haven't started it back up why not? if so, whats different ?

as i said before, it should run ok even with low numbers on a couple cylinders, but it could point out to needing to check the valve lash and timing to make sure it is all good.

have you got it to run with out cranking for 10 minutes?

 

[stamina]

1st question... why do you keep opening new threads for the same concerns?

2nd.... (from before) did you recheck all the lash settings? timing is ok? 5-6 are a bit low but should run ok with those numbers.

There would be no cam break in as you didn't take out cam/install new one.? is this new smoke?? as in newer condition since last threads? if you haven't started it back up why not? if so, whats different ?

as i said before, it should run ok even with low numbers on a couple cylinders, but it could point out to needing to check the valve lash and timing to make sure it is all good.

have you got it to run with out cranking for 10 minutes?

cam break in because new lifters and no i have not run it since we last spoke so no new steam or smoke but i did those tests and i believe i don’t have a blown head gasket or coolant leak i will start it again here in a little while i believe

 

[Angie]

sounds good....

ok, here is what you posted before.... and you said you ran it for ""i didn’t let it run no more than 60 seconds and cut it off"" so did you get it to run for 10-15 mins to attempt to "cam break in" or only 60 seconds?

the popping sounds like timing issues. and if the lash is wrong it could run like you are saying.

I wouldn't worry about head gaskets or others for now. if put on correctly it should be ok.

cheers


i wanted to do lifters and rebuild cylinder heads/valve train, it took a good 10-20 minutes to get it to start and it kept trying to die if i didn’t rev it up and the smoke did. not. stop. it was constant, and i didn’t run it long enough to try to let it stop because it didn’t seem like it was going to it was coming out constantly in the sense that it wasn’t changing how much it came out. and yes i assume if i tried to start it again it would take a while because there is so much water getting in there, i didn’t let it run no more than 60 seconds and cut it off, i will do a compression test when i get home, what’s the best way of doing that? also the engine even with the spark plugs in was very easy to turn over right now. but not before i tried starting it for the first time and it made those crazy loud popping noises because the distributor was so off. i’m assuming that’s when it blew. after that happened it became very easy to turn no matter what and you can hear air whistling out even with the spark plugs in



and did you do what Ron asked last thread to see if water is in the cylinders?

 

[stamina]

sounds good....

ok, here is what you posted before.... and you said you ran it for ""i didn’t let it run no more than 60 seconds and cut it off"" so did you get it to run for 10-15 mins to attempt to "cam break in" or only 60 seconds?

the popping sounds like timing issues. and if the lash is wrong it could run like you are saying.

I wouldn't worry about head gaskets or others for now. if put on correctly it should be ok.

cheers


i wanted to do lifters and rebuild cylinder heads/valve train, it took a good 10-20 minutes to get it to start and it kept trying to die if i didn’t rev it up and the smoke did. not. stop. it was constant, and i didn’t run it long enough to try to let it stop because it didn’t seem like it was going to it was coming out constantly in the sense that it wasn’t changing how much it came out. and yes i assume if i tried to start it again it would take a while because there is so much water getting in there, i didn’t let it run no more than 60 seconds and cut it off, i will do a compression test when i get home, what’s the best way of doing that? also the engine even with the spark plugs in was very easy to turn over right now. but not before i tried starting it for the first time and it made those crazy loud popping noises because the distributor was so off. i’m assuming that’s when it blew. after that happened it became very easy to turn no matter what and you can hear air whistling out even with the spark plugs in



and did you do what Ron asked last thread to see if water is in the cylinders?

yes i only let it run for about a minute before i got spooked and shut it down LOL also yes there was no water and the popping happened in the very beginning when i had the distributor all out of wack, i didn’t mark anything or line anything up i just threw it in there thinking it would be fine LOL that’s, hasn’t done it since.

 

[Angie]

if you just tossed in the dissy... did you get the timing correct yet? if it is out one cog and out of the fire order you will have all kinds of troubles.

 

[rumblecloud]

Been following this thread(s) for awhile now ... In all the earlier posts, did I miss the part where the OP said:

"...i just threw it in there thinking it would be fine LOL"

I don't mean to be rude, but that's not an LOL piece of information. Getting good advice requires providing good information.

 

[stamina]

Been following this thread(s) for awhile now ... In all the earlier posts, did I miss the part where the OP said:

"...i just threw it in there thinking it would be fine LOL"

I don't mean to be rude, but that's not an LOL piece of information. Getting good advice requires providing good information.

if you just tossed in the dissy... did you get the timing correct yet? if it is out one cog and out of the fire order you will have all kinds of troubles.

yea i figured everything out now though, #1 tdc and mark first spark plug terminal get it to drop in the gears and oil pump shaft and line it up, run it til warm disconnect spout and set timing, boom. truck runs like a charm now, i believe the reason it took so long to crank when the fuel system was entirely depressurized is because the fuel pump is going out(have a lean code also) smoke went away very quickly this time, the smoke coming from engine bay was plastic i left sitting on exhaust LOL and tailpipe smoke was definitely oil/fuel, this time it was broad daylight and i could tell it had a bluish tint to it less than 2minutes of running and it all cleared up, timing is set good and coolant is burped, truck is running pretty good for a shitty fuel pump. and definitely got more pep in the step with the newly lapped valves. thank you all so much for words of wisdom and patience i could not have completed this project without the ranger station. <3 one last note, should i always run zinc additive in my oil changes as i have flat tappet cam or is this not necessary? never did before but after some research it seems like i should? would really like some input on this.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

I'm not sure about the zinc additive. Check with the cam manufacturer .

 

[Angie]

yea i figured everything out now <<<<<<<<<<<<<<< !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That is good to hear!!!

As for the oil, you are running the original cam and new lifters? as "floored" said, check with OEM, but you do ask a very interesting question. I would say yes run it as it probably wouldn't hurt anything. as I run the "old school hot rod (zinc) oil" in all my flat tappet engines.

cheers