Great! Be sure to check the dwell before you check the timing.

- Eric

 

As Eric said...dwell needs to be at 30, then set timing.

 

As I replaced plugs he noticed plug 8 something was wrong with it...so he checked for compression..8 barely got to 50....so we took off passenger valve cover and we noticed a bent lifter... This week the cutlass started running a little rough...so...hes going to replace bent lifter change gasket too cause it started leaking this week too...

So that's where we are at now...I will keep you all updated..work I've needed to do but NVR had the right tools...hes only charging me 50.00...

 

Of course, now the question is why it was bent...

Glad you found something wrong, though.

How were the dwell and timing? Were there signs of the carburetor actually flooding?

- Eric

 

A bent what? Lifters don't bend...

 

We never got back to the dwell and timing...
Once we check for compression all of them had good compression, except the last one so we took off the valve covers cz he wanted us to check for a loose rocker arm, they were are firm, so thats we noticed the bent lifter maybe and uall know me I calling it the wrong part heres a pic

So he loaned me a car and Im at home...wow OMG I learned so much today it was frking awesome....

 

Hard to see perfectly, but I believe you mean a bent pushrod.

I had ASSumed you meant a bent (or worn) rocker arm.



- Eric

 

Yes the pushrod we removed all the bolts to intake manifold...trme going back to work...so he thinks it may be a collapsed cam...bright side I had my gaskets to valve cover and the intake manifold...he will send me pics tmrw...but for now going home again without my sweet cutlass.. It's a Bitter Sweet kind of thing

 

That would make sense, if it was backfiring up through the carb than it could be a bad cam lobe. Your getting lots of help from many guys here and your friends shop. I hope you get things ironed out soon.
Eric

 

so here's the run down, yes 76 olds
Once we replaced the distributor cap and rotor she started right up, but was backfiring... so we turned it off,
so he dbled checked the line of fire it was good, checked the timing was good, but still back firing and hell ya she was spitin up gas like Ive nvr seen before, he said to me I hope its not the cam
So then he wanted to check the plugs so we took them all out and he noticed that plug 8 was fouled out, so then they checked each hm dont know what its called the spot where the plugs go he hooked something up to check something I had gone to bathroom so I missed what he did
when I came back all he said that checked out good, then he wanted to check for compression all was good but the number 8 spot...
So then he asked us to take off the valve cover and check the rocker arm to see if it was loose...all the rocker arms were steady and thats when we noticed to bent push rod, so then he took off the arms TO PULL OUT THE ROD and it wouldnt come out, then he showed me how it was suppose to come out...I was like yikes man....then thats when he was explaining to me about the collapsed cam..
It was already 6 so we started to take off all the bolts, so tmrw he will remove the intake manifold to check inside and check the heads....then instant headache ayayayay but glad cause I knew I needed some kind of work done....it was something I needed to see under the valve cover etc...you know what I mean...so then my brain shut off and rest of what he said sounded like charlie browns teacher...heres a few pics maybe u all can see these...On the bright side I learned a HELL of LOT today...It was too kool man Ive always wanted to work in a full mechanics shop....Ive always heard about the parts inside the motor but today I was able to see what the heck a rocker arm was...push rod and a cam....and much much more..He was great he showed me explained why and hows things work....

 

Looks like you're on the right track.

Let us know when you've seen the lifter and the cam.

- Eric

 

X2?

 

Hope the lobe isnt flat , flat lobe wouldn't break the rocker or the push rod it would just slide around in a cricle and not open valve and would back fire. I think your problem is just the rocker stand arrangement and push rod only.

 

Cams are good...just need lifters and pushrods..I will post pics when I get home

 

So what bent the push rod ?

 

I'm not sure what bent pushrod...
Just dropped off intake manifold gaskets. Car parts every where..didnt have time to talk to owner...
VolunteerIng with my daughters band...
Hopefully it will be ready later...
He's only charging me 200.00 for pushrod lifters and to put cutlass back together...
Can't wait I'm so excited...been busy I will pose. Pics later

 

bad lifters and pushrods.jpg

new pushrods.jpg

gutted out.jpg

1bent pushrod.jpg Getting really excited holy smoke

Dropped by the shop took a few more pictures and left them the intake manifold gaskets..

It will be ready by Monday

he ended up only charging me 250.00 for the parts and labor that was needed, who cares If I'm broke

there is still so much more that needs to be looked at and replaced...yes Eric I am headed in the right direction....

Not sure If I mentioned to you guys I am finally working on organizing the classic cruise in...for the Thomas Jefferson High School Band - the band my 10th grader is in...We are planning a trip to disney world next year, The band director mentioned to me that we could have it at a new walmart in the community.still working on details and dates...Every one loved the idea and parents are ready to help...

Hey did I mention how excited I am about the new parts for the motor
Forgot the before pic, he did a great job cleaning it out

 

Glad your mechanic is working with you on the costs. How worn are the bottoms of the lifters? Has the timing set been changed yet?

 

It looks like your mechanic is really doing you a solid.

If the car runs when he's done, you really owe him a case of beer or a nice dinner or something.

- Eric

 

Ahhh he need some new signs...yes I will probably start to cry...when I pick up the car..

It's a long story how we met last year, when he needed a sign for his shop, but he's the nephew of my sisters husband.
They cleaned it up really nice...

 

I know I am asking a lot but if I could get you all to share this post on your facebook with the pictures

we would really appreciate..

Need to get the message Fast and Loud and Clear

Thank you

Pllleeeaaassseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

 

He put everything back together and plug8 still has no compression

last time I told u wrong plug info on plug 8

All the plugs check good the compression check starts at 50-75- 100+
plug 8 not even getting to 30 lbs of pressure

He said we will need to go deeper into the motor So back to drawing board he wants to check the valves

I'ma go back and break everything down again this weekend...

Any suggestions to check

 

My guess is a valve. Something caused the bent push rod.

 

Should have done a leakdown test to check the valves first, before opening anything other than the valve cover.
A bent valve could certainly lead to a bent pushrod and poor compression.

Leakdown test first, then there's a good chance the head will have to come off.
At that point, well... there's no telling 'till you get there.

- Eric

 

ok so next step

do a leakdown test to check the valves first,

then go from what the test tells us.. ok

 

Woke up got out of bed dragged the comb across my head

Got in the loaner car and the battery was dead

Terry's Law strikes again, I cant help but laugh when I really want to cry
If anything can go wrong it will
If there is a possibility of several things going wrong it will

Just last week a lady from work said hey Terry how things going, I said GREAT Karla..its been about 5-6 weeks of nothing happening smooth sailing I said....

And then that week my bad azz KENMOORE coffee pot that Ive had for about 8 years, perks coffee in 2 mins, never ever failing me once a part broke inside, then you know the rest of the story..lol

So I called Chris from the shop and said I guess Im working on the cutlass today, and I need to come by and jump the mitsubishi...and dont yell at me either Chris cause I wore my man beater shirt on

On the bright side is I was going to put in a day off for monday to work on the cutlass, but I guess destiny had another plan....got my greaser clothes on and ready.....just in case any of u wondering what a man beater shirt is...and here's my attitude today go ahead skin that smoke wagon and see what happens.....Do you feel lucky....

 

Terrys law is AKA Murphy's Law. Welcome to the wonderful world of wrenching(WWW)! Ive been dealing with it since the 70s! If I ever meet that Murphy in a dark alley... why Ill.....

Do a wet compression test before pulling the head. If the compression goes up significantly this is generally a sign of poor rings to cylinder wall seal and or a cracked piston. If it stays about the same its top end... eg valves or seats.
If it just needs a top end do all of it; eg cam, cam bearings, rockers, trunions etc...dont skimp and no chinese junk.
If its a complete rebuild then shop for a good machine shop and use the best parts you can afford. IMO if it needs a top end you are half way to doing all of it. I never saw the sense in just doing a top end on a gas engine. Your close enough just rip it out and do it all. Why strengthen the top end and have a week or questionable bottom end? Then have to rebuild the bottom end in a year. More coast effective in the long run to do a long block.

 

Here it comes! Once you open an engine EVERYONE wants you to spend all of your money to rebuild it. Doesn't matter if you have good oil pressure or not. Doesn't matter if the rings and pistons are in good shape or not. Doesn't matter if you have the money or not, just spend it all on rebuilding your engine. BTW, according to some on this site, a rebuild is not done properly unless it costs you $5K or more!

Spend a few hours and dollars diagnosing exactly what is wrong with the engine before you take any more apart. Leak-down test should be next. If the heads come off, obviously the head gaskets will be getting replaced. Check the freeze plugs while it is apart, they are much easier to replace while the heads are on a bench. Once you know what needs to be repaired, find out what your mechanic says it will cost, add 20% and decide if it is cost effective to repair or rebuild. Or maybe buy a good running engine from someone else.

If all you need is the valve train freshened up, by all means, replace the timing chain and gears if that hasn't been done already. That is good common sense. And replacing those gaskets will resolve any leaks you may have on the front of the engine.

It is easy to just say "Go ahead and fix it!", but you need to know everything about what is gonna happen and how much it will cost before you make that decision.

Hoist.gifHoist.gifHoist.gif

 

The pushrod got bent again....and btw he's not charging me on the labor I'm doing the labor.....if I don't have money for parts he's buying the parts...so far in the hole 50.00..pushrods' and lifters were 140.00 I bought the gaskets...what ever it is IT needs to be done.....��

 

If the pushrod was bent instantaneously, and the cam, lifter, pivot, and rocker are all good, then the valve is bent.

Hit the valve with a small hammer - it should bounce up and down cleanly.
I bet it will just go "Thunk."

- Eric

 

funny thats exactly what I heard Chris says what r u giggling at now..
I said Eric from classicoldsmobile.com the website I get valuable advice from said it was gonna have a thunk sound and it did

its a stuck valve and I mean stuck...we removed the head

I was able to almost do everything myself this time but I did need help lifting the intake manifold and the head and I pooped out on the last bolt attached under the pipe to exhaust manifold...the air tool got to heavy for me...
heres a few mo pics..taking it to the machine shop
SAM_0531.JPG

SAM_0535.jpg

SAM_0536.jpg

SAM_0537.jpg

SAM_0540.jpg

SAM_0546.jpg

SAM_0538.jpg

thats the MOST work I've ever done before...other than my finger tips, my hands, neck and shoulder being sore as hell I fell ok..

 

Nice job. You done good.

Now that the head is off, you can unbend those evil sheet metal lock tabs and remove the exhaust manifold bolts.
Olds didn't use exhaust manifold gaskets, and if the sealing surfaces look really great you don't have to either, but they are readily available and most people do use them when reassembling.
You'll want new exhaust manifold bolts with lock washers as well (hardware store, use Grade 8 fasteners).

So, the next question is, what does the piston crown look like?
If the valve bent, that usually means that it hit the piston. It may have hit it hard, or it may have just tapped it.
If it just tapped it, then don't worry about it.

Next on your MAW list, since one head is off already, and going to the machine shop, is the question of whether you want to remove both heads, and have them both milled a bit (maybe about 0.080" - 0.100" if you're using aftermarket head gaskets) to increase your compression a point or so.

Also, the aftermarket head gaskets (Fel-Pro 8171PT1, about 0.044" thick, about $21) are about 0.025" thicker than the originals, and will lower compression by about half a point, so, if you are just doing this one head, you need to decide whether to have the machine shop mill this one head about 0.025" so you can use a cheaper aftermarket head gasket, or whether to use an expensive and hard-to-find factory head gasket.

- Eric

 

FINALLY GOT BOTH HEADS TO THE MACHINE SHOP

After a small delay due to my daughter birthday and had to put the cutlass on hold, I finally got both heads off and into the machine shop on Monday Nov 2, 2015

Some men are so easily amused that I can work on my own car, the machine shop I took it too I talked to him when I was looking for my shifter cable..

He's going to resurface both heads and all the valves and replace the stuck valve and check this out paint my heads my favorite color metallic blue
for 200.00 bucks man ..I should pick up my heads on saturday then start to rebuild ayayayayay
My bday is November 19th so hopefully I will have it back on the road by then

 

I want to congratulate you and say that you are now a MECHANIC - you have done work that many have never attempted.

One thing I wondered about is how clean that #8 piston looked in the picture. Kinda odd to me that it was so clean compared to the others. Did y'all clean it up or was it like that when you pulled the head? It makes me wonder if there was a head gasket leak and coolant got into the cylinder and steam cleaned the top of the piston. Water is not compressible so if there was some in the cylinder it could have caused the bent valve (I had that happen way back in the 80s). This is all just internet musings, though, as I don't have all the info.

 

Congrats on getting the heads of and to the machine shop. Inspect that cam lobe and make sure there is no damage.

 

Eric (Mdchanic) brings up a great point about having your heads milled Terry, I had my 350 refreshed with new valves ( just a resurface skim) etc. I wish I had of known back then to mill the heads. I felt the loss of power after getting the car back. I have since done alot of bolt on stuff to get a bit of the power back. It has costed me way more than having had the heads done a bit better.
Its all good if your not concerned with a little power loss.
Cheers on getting greasy and working away on your car !! You go girl Awesome work!!
My wife helps me out at times to I love it when she gets her hands dirty. I just costs more money when she has to go get her manicure and nails redon afterwards lol.
I hope everything goes good here on out .
Cheers
Eric

 

Ive seen a few heads throughout my life

But these must be the most beautiful ones Ive seen yet

Got my gaskets so tomorrow I start to rebuild...

My birthday is on the 19th so Im hoping to have it ready by then wish me luck....

they feel smooooth nice LOVE the gold...cant wait....200.00 well spent

Im a happy soul right now...even though Im broke it will all work out

 

Purty

 

Painted chambers ? Now that's detailing !

 

They look great