Cracked piston

[kleake]

I'm definitely ready!

That sucks,,, that's a pretty big leak. I might try to do that without pulling the cab, maybe just loosen it and lift an inch or two?

 

[Baysideburner]

Hello. Did u reuse your connecting rods?.how the he'll does anybody just know how to put this back together. I'm am completely fascinated and inspired by people who can rebuild engines in their garage. Like checking rotating assembly end play.who just knows and has tools for that. I wish I had half your knowledge. Its something I would love to tackle one day and if I keep this truck just may have to, but good luck sir and looking forward to your finished product

 

[kleake]

Hello. Did u reuse your connecting rods?.how the he'll does anybody just know how to put this back together. I'm am completely fascinated and inspired by people who can rebuild engines in their garage. Like checking rotating assembly end play.who just knows and has tools for that. I wish I had half your knowledge. Its something I would love to tackle one day and if I keep this truck just may have to, but good luck sir and looking forward to your finished product

Yes, I reused my stock rods. All checked out ok with no issues. Most of the time if you take it apart, install new bearings and gaskets then you won't have any issues going back together. When you start swapping out from OEM and go aftermarket is where you need to start inspecting closer. A lot of people don't check much of anything and come out just fine, others check everything with a fine toothed comb. I usually land in the middle. I'm not looking to modify a bunch of stuff and squeeze every ounce of power so things aren't as critical, but I am definitely not sloppy. I have a pretty decent set of tools (Fast times at Ridgmont High comes to mind), but not like a Ford mechanic would have. Torque wrench, feeler guages, plastigage and you are in pretty good shape. A couple of special tools for the front and rear main seals on these and the rest is just a good set of sockets and wrenches. These diesels do work a little different from gassers so if you take that into consideration, and keep everything as clean as possible then it's not that bad. I am actually pretty impressed at the engineering in these things. Nothing had to be forced into place, hammered on or tweaked,,,,, it all just goes together like a big puzzle. I remember lots of old school motors that needed a lot of silicon or wiggling to get things to seal up right. Patience is key for sure.

I spent all weekend assembling the rest of the engine, setting it back on the frame and bolting everything up. Now i'm waiting on the weather to clear so I can roll it outside and manouver it back under the cab. That will likely come this weekend, but i'll go over everything again before I take that step. Forget the wrong bolt, and it can create a big headache.

 

[Baysideburner]

Wow. Very cool. So when u sent the block to machine shop, did u have the block and heads decked as they say? And then does the machine shop tell u what size pistons ,main and cam bearings to order? ive also read on here that the newer rockers c an make valves hit pistons. Is this an issue you have heard of?

 

[kleake]

Wow. Very cool. So when u sent the block to machine shop, did u have the block and heads decked as they say? And then does the machine shop tell u what size pistons ,main and cam bearings to order? ive also read on here that the newer rockers c an make valves hit pistons. Is this an issue you have heard of?

No, the heads were new less than a year ago, so I inspected them and checked for flatness. I did have them check the block, but all was good there so a little buffing wheel to clean them up and all is good. Gotta be careful with the buffing wheel as you don't want to take off any metal, just clean up the surface to the gasket has a good clean surface to seal to. The machine shop does a little boring until all is cleaned up and then they tell you what size pistons to get. Once you have those, take them to the machine shop and they will match the bore to the piston. This way your tolerances will be exactly what the piston mfg wants. Machine shop also installed my cam bearings and had them check the crank for those bearings. In my case even with 250k on it, the crank was perfect.

Yes, I have heard of the issue with the newer rockers causing issues, and THAT is one issue I had on my first head gasket replacement at 225k. It's a long thread, but I detailed it out as much as I could here. The issues started at post #80... You will only have the problem if you have an early job1 truck and you change the rockers, just change the push rods at the same time and all will be fine.

 

[Baysideburner]

Lol come to think of it this is the thread I read about the rockers.. I read the entire thread backwards last night before I replied. Thanks for answering brother. Im in the gathering information stage. Once the weather getts better im going to check rocker tips and change as nessecary. I drive her like a baby and we really only use the truck on family trips. But in the event of an untimely cracked piston lol its guys like you who pave the way for guys like me with your willingness to share. Have great day

 

[kleake]

Lol come to think of it this is the thread I read about the rockers.. I read the entire thread backwards last night before I replied. Thanks for answering brother. Im in the gathering information stage. Once the weather getts better im going to check rocker tips and change as nessecary. I drive her like a baby and we really only use the truck on family trips. But in the event of an untimely cracked piston lol its guys like you who pave the way for guys like me with your willingness to share. Have great day

Man if anything I documented helps you, then i've accomplished my goal. We are all here to help one another and others on here have helped me with my questions. It sure made the job easier, so hopefully this helps you if you ever need to dig into yours.

 

[kleake]

Alright guys, I got it back together far enough to fire it up, but as I cranked it, 1 cyl did not have compression. Yea,,, back to that game again. I found cyl #1 is the culprit, so I pulled that valve cover and found the exhaust valve is just a teeny bit open and does not seal. Back the rockers off just a 1/4 turn or so and all is good. I've stopped the motor with the cam holding that valve open trying to get the lifter to bleed down but it's just not working. How long should it take for a lifter to bleed down while under pressure? How can I force it to bleed down? What's the best way to check it? I'm a bit frustrated because I ran into this exact issue when I did head gaskets in the other thread, but that was resolved with the correct push rods for the new rockers.

 

[kleake]

Either this block has been decked before, or the stage 1 cam lobes are a little taller on the low side. I was able to compress the lifter, so that wasn't the issue. I swapped push rods and valve bridges, no change. Ended up putting in one of my previously machined down valve bridges that reduce gives a little more clearance and all is good. Still not understanding which component was different, but all cyl are good.

Buttoned it up, went to fire it up and had a major fuel leak on the top of the HPFP. Took a while to dig may way in there and change out the O-rings again, but got it done and solved that issue. Man that's a tight fit down in that hole!!!

Anyway, got her fired up, she sounds good, but I haven't taken her for a drive yet. Still gotta put the hood, bumper, and headlights on but I've heat cycled it a couple of times and stalled it up to burn some of the oils off of the manifolds and such. So far, so good.

 

[sootie]

Ford changed the height of their rocker arm pedestals at some point, which caused a bunch of headaches for rebuilders as there was no part number change.

 

[kleake]

Ford changed the height of their rocker arm pedestals at some point, which caused a bunch of headaches for rebuilders as there was no part number change.

Yep, I was one that ran into that my first time around and documented all of my issues over here. Issues started at post# 80. BUT, I have already changed the push rods to match the new rockers. This is how it was running prior to the cracked piston. So basically all valvetrain is the same as previous with the exception of a new stage 1 cam and a different block (which I believe was stock deck height.) I'm betting it's the cam using a slightly taller lobe to maximize valve lift and it's just about .002 too much.

 

[kleake]

All is back together and she is running stronger than ever. Took it easy for the first 50 or so miles to make sure all was good, then started giving her more. Still haven't pushed her too hard, but definitely running good. I went with a lower than stock 4 disk converter too, and man, when that thing locks up it kicks your head back hard! Feels good to be back on the road!

 

[mohead1]

What converter did you go with....and what stall speed?

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[kleake]

What converter did you go with....and what stall speed?

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

DPC (Diesel Performance Converters) quad disk, 1500rpm stall.

I wanted a little lower RPM so as I'm just idling around it's not such a high RPM like stock, but I didn't want it too low. I can definitely feel the difference and I do have to hold the brake a little harder when stopped, but it has no trouble spooling up the turbo.

 

[6.4suicide]

contact the diesel doctor in Whiteville tn.he has the maxx force 7 pistons and a lot of good advise.honest Christian man

 

[kleake]

contact the diesel doctor in Whiteville tn.he has the maxx force 7 pistons and a lot of good advise.honest Christian man

Thanks. I'm all back together and all has been running great. I purchased a backup vehicle that is cheaper as a daily so I haven't been racking up the miles as much. I've towed the camper several times and made a trip to TN with it. Probably put on 5k miles and was towing for 60% of that. The sucker runs super strong!