Just Fishing's 09 Tahoe Build thread

[Just Fishing]

Oh and i totally made a big mess on the garage floor last night.
Pulled the block drains with a 5 gallon bucket underneath, but it still went everywhere.
I wish the ls block had drains that were accessible from the wheel well like my 1st gen 350 that's in the vette.
makes it so easy, i can drain it in the driveway before i pull it into the garage.


and of course even with the block fully drained, the radiator still fkd me when i pulled it.
and the water pump is still holding coolant up high...

 

[iamdub]

...And i opted for the "cylinder heads off" method.
but i will be paying attention to how hard those bolts will be to get to now that i can see where they are.
it sure would be easier to install the heads on the stand vs with the engine bolted in the truck.

Today (Sunday), i need to unbolt the AC compressor from the engine, and drain the power steering fluid and disconnect the pressure lines going to the pump.

hopefully i can get the engine at least loose, if not fully pulled.


Also thoughts on the connecting rods?
I was reading that the rods can't be machined, and figuring that this thing has 180k on it, the area that rides on the wrist pin may be worn out?

I would love to reuse the rods if possible, however i also don't want to pull this thing apart again.
So I'm sorta leaning towards all new parts for the 6.0.

IMO, putting the heads on with the engine in the truck is easier than having them installed on the stand, then fighting the top bellhousing bolts.

Why are you draining the PS fluid and disconnecting the lines? Remove the alternator, unbolt the whole accessory bracket with the PS pump in place and lay it to the side. I think I may rotate it somewhere between 90°-180°, but it'll sit on the frame rail just fine with no excessive force on the hoses. No need to disconnect any lines or open up any systems other than the fuel inlet and coolant circuits.

 

[iamdub]

Oh and i totally made a big mess on the garage floor last night.
Pulled the block drains with a 5 gallon bucket underneath, but it still went everywhere.
I wish the ls block had drains that were accessible from the wheel well like my 1st gen 350 that's in the vette.
makes it so easy, i can drain it in the driveway before i pull it into the garage.


and of course even with the block fully drained, the radiator still fkd me when i pulled it.
and the water pump is still holding coolant up high...

Yeah, there's no real "dry" way to it. I have a large drain pan I use strictly for coolant that usually catches most of it. I pop off the lower rad hose from the water pump. When that's drained, I remove the upper hose from the rad side, stick my blow gun into it with a rag to seal it and gently and gradually pressurize the whole system to push more water out of the block through the water pump and lower hose. This keeps spillage to a minimum and the amount left in the block isn't enough to spill if I keep the engine angled back a little when lifting it out.

 

[Just Fishing]

IMO, putting the heads on with the engine in the truck is easier than having them installed on the stand, then fighting the top bellhousing bolts.

Why are you draining the PS fluid and disconnecting the lines? Remove the alternator, unbolt the whole accessory bracket with the PS pump in place and lay it to the side. I think I may rotate it somewhere between 90°-180°, but it'll sit on the frame rail just fine with no excessive force on the hoses. No need to disconnect any lines or open up any systems other than the fuel inlet and coolant circuits.

I'll give it a try, when i had the stuff unbolted for the camshaft and oil pump install, it moved but i was thinking it might be easier to just take it with the whole thing.

I think right now it has one or two bolts holding it in there, and i already have them loose for the cylinder head removal.

 

[Just Fishing]

oh and another thing i was thinking of,
when i installed the crank pully, i actually managed to install it just a tad too far.
resulting in wear on the edge of the belt

I was thinking this time to watch the alignment of the pully with another pully.

 

[Just Fishing]

garage heater on, sipping a monster energy drink...
motivation building...

 

[iamdub]

I'll give it a try, when i had the stuff unbolted for the camshaft and oil pump install, it moved but i was thinking it might be easier to just take it with the whole thing.

I think right now it has one or two bolts holding it in there, and i already have them loose for the cylinder head removal.

Found an overhead shot of how I do mine: https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/growing-up-doesnt-have-to-suck.93510/page-49#post-1424754

With engine removed. I hung the A/C compressor to the side with mechanic's wire, being mindful of the natural curving/twisting of the hoses: https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/growing-up-doesnt-have-to-suck.93510/page-51#post-1425131

 

[iamdub]

oh and another thing i was thinking of,
when i installed the crank pully, i actually managed to install it just a tad too far.
resulting in wear on the edge of the belt

I was thinking this time to watch the alignment of the pully with another pully.

I gotcha, boo: https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/growing-up-doesnt-have-to-suck.93510/page-56#post-1428052

 

[Just Fishing]

nice, and with your one image of the engine removed i can see exactly where those last 3 bell housing bolts are.

 

[iamdub]

nice, and with your one image of the engine removed i can see exactly where those last 3 bell housing bolts are.

Yup. And with the heads outta the way, they are really easy to reach. I wanted mine to go back together exactly as it came apart- every bolt in its original location, every nut, ground strap, etc. I took note and labeled everything with blue painter's tape. Them top bellhousing bolts/studs secure the transmission vent hose, fuel line bracket and transmission dipstick bracket. They may be half-assed accessible with the heads on and intake manifold outta the way, but I've never tried that since the engine coming out meant the heads were coming off, anyway.

 

[Just Fishing]

got them off, yup pita
big thing was those fkn double sided bolts.
used those little stubby sockets in my above post, they fit a 17mm on the outside.
so a ratchet box end wrench ftw.

engine should now be totally free, just gotta take a break and change to a dry shirt or i'm going to freeze when i open the garage door to make room for the hoist.

 

[Just Fishing]

aaand i just looked outside, wind's blowing and it's snowing (blizzard)
spring in utah!

 

[Just Fishing]

Engine is out!
found out my hoist likes to tilt to one side, and it drops very quickly when loaded.

landed on my rack, one of the hard lines looks a little bent...

Wife came home just in time, i didn't dare lower the hoist with the engine over front of the truck.
one wheel off the ground, me standing on it so it wouldn't tip...





and yup, it would have been way easier to lift that thing out with the mounts on the engine.
They got in the way when lifting out, put a little gash on the pan where the oil cooler sits.
luckily it's not on the sealing surface.

And i'll deal with the rack later, hopefully those hard lines mounted on the rack are replaceable...

 

[Just Fishing]

Welp, i think my lifters are fkd.
Odd, but i have little grooves in each roller.
maybe it's just part of the breakin?

i can almost catch my nail on them...

can't turn the engine in order to pull the main caps yet, i need to get some proper bolts to mount to the stand.

Headache, i think i'm done for tonight.


price keeps going up!

 

[Rocket Man]

 

[Just Fishing]

Yeah yeah, pictures soon.
I no have el pants right now...
(spanish for i'm not wearing pants)

 

[Sparksalot]

Yeah yeah, pictures soon.
I no have el pants right now...
(spanish for i'm not wearing pants)

TMI

 

[Tonyrodz]

Yeah yeah, pictures soon.
I no have el pants right now...
(spanish for i'm not wearing pants)

TMI

 

[iamdub]

Welp, i think my lifters are fkd.
Odd, but i have little grooves in each roller.
maybe it's just part of the breakin?

i can almost catch my nail on them...

can't turn the engine in order to pull the main caps yet, i need to get some proper bolts to mount to the stand.

Headache, i think i'm done for tonight.


price keeps going up!

There shouldn't be anything like that on the rollers or cam lobes. Sad day.

 

[pwtr02ss]

Glad you got it out!

Yes, **** those upper bell housing bolts. That was the biggest ***** of the whole process. I fought with them from the bottom, finally succeeded. Mine is going back in with the intake off the engine so I can get at them from the top.