headgasket question

I

IJ.

Grumpy Old Man
Mar 30, 2005
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I come from a land down under
I always budgeted $2000>$2500 anytime the head had to come off for any reason, if it came in under that I was happy.
(it's ALWAYS worse than expected so a small "I'll just pop the head off to check" something can easily blow out to a 2K+ job)
 
grimreaper

grimreaper

New Member
Jul 2, 2008
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Dallas
IJ.;1563152 said:
I always budgeted $2000>$2500 anytime the head had to come off for any reason, if it came in under that I was happy.
(it's ALWAYS worse than expected so a small "I'll just pop the head off to check" something can easily blow out to a 2K+ job)
Click to expand...

If you'd stop with the titanium coatings and gold retainers, I'm sure it would be a bit cheaper. :icon_razz
 
kotu100

kotu100

Active Member
Nov 23, 2006
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Easton, Ma
I'm putting my spare motor together this week. Doing a hone, new oem pistons/rings, clevite77 bearings rod and main, cometic mhg on machined block and head that was recently redone. What else would I need that it would cost so much?
Not arguing or anything, just curious where that price comes from. I figure about a grand tops.
 
WillWorkFoBoost

WillWorkFoBoost

that guy
Sep 1, 2009
130
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Maine
okay so between these two options, which would be the best: 1: stock hg and my arp headstuds, sprayed with halomar blue, or 2: dare to sand the block and head with various grits to attempt a close to mirror finish, and clean viton off of the mhg and seal with halomar. I know this would be controversial, but if the block is flat and the head was just done 2k ago, the only problem with a mhg sealing would be the block and head finish, correct? If theres any doubt at all Im gonna run the stocker, even if it only lasts me a while.
 
grimreaper

grimreaper

New Member
Jul 2, 2008
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Why would the OEM hg only last a while?
I wouldnt even consider a MHG with out redoing the block and head surface. If your tune/supporting mods (or lack of) killed an OEM hg at say 400whp and you run the same setup with a MHG, you will still have problems down the road. A MHG or forged internals is only going to give you more room for error. If you dont fix the error, they will fail as well.
 
WillWorkFoBoost

WillWorkFoBoost

that guy
Sep 1, 2009
130
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Maine
The only issue was that I didnt machine the block which was a mistake, hindsights 20/20. Its just leaking by boost into the water jacket very slightly, hot air bubble passes the guage sender and temp fluctuates, not even any oil in water or water in oil or noticeable consumption as of yet. so as it stands now, Its either oem gasket and arps, or a combination of sanding the block and hylomar to try to make the mhg seal. just merely asking input as to whether anyone has done this to salvage a mhg that didnt seal, or should I go oem. I have an oem hg and some hylomar blue ordered so my options are open. so youre saying that oem should be sufficient at safe levels? Im probably only ever planning on doing lexus/550s and some fine tuning in the future.
 
black89t

black89t

boost'en down 101
Oct 27, 2007
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humboldt, ca
^OMG!!!!! just use a stock hg already. felpro, ishno, or oem w/arps will be just fine.




and i agree anytime you tear down a block get ready to whip out a grip of cash...
 
WillWorkFoBoost

WillWorkFoBoost

that guy
Sep 1, 2009
130
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0
Maine
k thats what I wanted to hear thanks. I think polishing the block by hand and tossing the mhg on will be an experiment for my second car i just picked up for 1000$
 
A. Jay

A. Jay

Search.
Jun 3, 2009
671
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Bay Area, CA
WillWorkFoBoost;1564619 said:
k thats what I wanted to hear thanks. I think polishing the block by hand and tossing the mhg on will be an experiment for my second car i just picked up for 1000$
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If you're just looking for someone to tell you what you want to hear, then just tell yourself since you're gonna do what you want regardless. And the proper ra spec for an MHG (which differs between the brands/types) will not be acheived by hand with sand paper, which is required for it to seal properly.

Edit: Sorry, bad mood, that's not the best advice I can come up with. What I suggest is that you change that way of thinking. The people of SM don't have anything to gain from you doing it right (or the opposite), so that's why you can trust what they say. That, and the fact that everyone is required to back up their statements with facts. Please use more logic when making decisions, it'll help you out more than us, we're just in it for the post count lol.

And btw, some shops don't have the machinery to provide some of the ra specs out there, so that makes it that much more unlikely that you can do it with sand paper.
 
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7M-KDL

7M-KDL

Seeking high numbers
Jan 26, 2009
533
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16
Greenville, North Carolina, United States
x-man put down well over 500, maybe even 600 on the stock hg, obviously not from the factory, but composite gasket. ill see if i can find the thread.

edit: oops, didnt read the whole thread, it may have already been covered,if so, ill delete this after reading the rest of the thread
 
7M-KDL

7M-KDL

Seeking high numbers
Jan 26, 2009
533
0
16
Greenville, North Carolina, United States
right. i wouldnt recommend that an inexperienced person do what sean has done but it just proves that the gasket isnt really the problem is all. here is another thread, i believe its the samecar just with a few adjustments.
http://www.supramania.com/forums/showthread.php?11797-Another-500-rwhp-MKIII

i also thought i had seen one of his with 640rwhp but maybe that was on his stock block/mhg build before he got it dialed in.
 
7M-KDL

7M-KDL

Seeking high numbers
Jan 26, 2009
533
0
16
Greenville, North Carolina, United States
i am not sure but at the time sean had said it was running at 360 for 4 years on the setup and at 450 for about 1000 miles. it is on the second page of that thread but i have not personally asked him if it is still holding that power
 
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