RE: IML: Dick B's valves

["Dick Benjamin" <dickb@xxxxxxxxx>]

Wow, Pete;
Ouch!  Yes, those are cooked all right. Mine were bad, but not THAT bad!
That looks a lot like the heads on my 413 out of the 64 New Yorker - with
165,000 on it.

That's the amazing thing about burned exhaust valves - the cars actually run
very well, and only by listening to the exhaust note are you even aware that
all is not right under there.  There is a definite chuff-chuff from the
tailpipe with valves like this, but the 440 still pulls like a train, even
in that condition.

Dick Benjamin

By the way, now I think I know what happened to my Snap-on 3/8 flex handle
ratchet.  You must have pocketed it when you were here!  (If you don't have
one, get one - they are outrageously expensive, but what a tool for tight
places!)

-----Original Message-----
From: mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Pete Engel
Sent: Monday, December 12, 2005 11:02 AM
To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: IML: Dick B's valves

Dick,

I was able to sneak into your garage and snap a few pics of the Imperial
heads right after you pulled them.  In this shot you can clearly see the
"hot" valves at each end of the head.

http://bos-engel.com/66newyorker/headsoff/2hotvalves.jpg

On closer inspection it's obvious that one of the valves is pretty badly
burned.  

http://bos-engel.com/66newyorker/headsoff/burntvalve.jpg


;-)


Actually, I suspect that Dick's Imperial heads looked an awful lot like the
heads I recently pulled off my 66 New Yorker 440.  I bought the car this
past Spring and it took some head scratching to get it running.  It turned
out that it had 5 stuck intake valves and 5 bent pushrods.  Ouch.  Once I
remedied that little problem and got it running it sounded pretty darn good
but there was obviously still a problem.  A very impressive backfire caused
the muffler to instantly change shape:

http://bos-engel.com/66newyorker/p7090005.jpg

Hmmm, I wonder if there's a bad exhaust valve?  With 97k on the clock it
seemed prudent to just pull the heads and have them reworked.  The machine
shop did a hard sell on hardened exhaust seats so I decided to do it (for
the first time ever).  Installing the seats cost $200.  The whole cylinder
head rework cost just over a grand, pretty much insuring that I will never
break even on this car.  I got 8 new exhaust valves, 16 new guide inserts,
glass-beading, 3-angle valve job, and surface heads 0.010"  I have yet to
find the time to put the 440 back together :-(

Pete in PA
Busy with a 6 month old baby








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