AFM Delete Double Checking

[Dustin Jackson]

No. For less than $20, you have absolutely nothing to gain by trying to. That gasket holds a large volume of pressurized oil passing from one galley to the other. It's vital. I used Mahle B31822 and ARP 134-1002. I did not want the Gen 4 countersunk plate and screws.

@iamdub what about intake manifold gaskets? I just realized I don’t have a new set of those

 

[iamdub]

@iamdub what about intake manifold gaskets? I just realized I don’t have a new set of those

Definitely change those as well. They can cause all kinds of issues ranging from a nearly harmless imbalance in fueling to heavy fuel trimmings, rough operation and multiple persistent codes if there's a leak. @swathdiver knows all about this. They're reusable, but not after 160K. Now, six months or a year after the delete, if you need to pull the manifold for some reason, you should be able to reuse the gaskets. I used Mahle #MS16340.

 

[Dustin Jackson]

Today was a slow day, just organizing tools and parts, cleaning mating surfaces.

I found that I am probably not qualified to clean the heads. I have experience cleaning iron blocks so I went to town on the aluminum head with a steal carbide blade and then a razor. It felt like those tools were being too aggressive on the head and the plastic blades didn’t have much affect so I’ll take the heads to a machine shop to be cleaned and undo any damage I hay have caused.

Cleaning. The block went well, used a steal carbide blade and a shop vac to get the top, sides, and front cleaned and prepped.

Used that A-37 bearing and hammered them in. I found that when I did it pieces of the block would chip off, I tried using a hammering pin to press it in directly on the bearing but the edge of the block still seemed to flake like in the picture. I made sure to run a shop vac through the top of the block after I put those in.

 

[iamdub]

Today was a slow day, just organizing tools and parts, cleaning mating surfaces.

I found that I am probably not qualified to clean the heads. I have experience cleaning iron blocks so I went to town on the aluminum head with a steal carbide blade and then a razor. It felt like those tools were being too aggressive on the head and the plastic blades didn’t have much affect so I’ll take the heads to a machine shop to be cleaned and undo any damage I hay have caused.

Cleaning. The block went well, used a steal carbide blade and a shop vac to get the top, sides, and front cleaned and prepped.

Used that A-37 bearing and hammered them in. I found that when I did it pieces of the block would chip off, I tried using a hammering pin to press it in directly on the bearing but the edge of the block still seemed to flake like in the picture. I made sure to run a shop vac through the top of the block after I put those in.

View attachment 374249
View attachment 374248

View attachment 374250

I'd always invest in having a shop do the heads. A 3- or 5-angle valve job and cleaning pass on the deck can do wonders.

Crank up that compressor and blow out the oil galleys from every way you can reach.

That valley is clean!

 

[Ivanhoe]

Oil Pump Pickup Girdle Tube Pipe Hold Down Brace with Screws Oil Pump Girdle Bracket Replacement for LS1 LS2 LS3 | Walmart Canada

Buy Oil Pump Pickup Girdle Tube Pipe Hold Down Brace with Screws Oil Pump Girdle Bracket Replacement for LS1 LS2 LS3 from Walmart Canada. Shop for more Additional Auto Replacement Parts available online at Walmart.ca

www.walmart.ca

I added something like this to secure the oil pickup pipe and avoid any o ring issues down the line.

Dont forget Assembly lube to give the moving parts some love before the oil flows everywhere.

 

[Geotrash]

Today was a slow day, just organizing tools and parts, cleaning mating surfaces.

I found that I am probably not qualified to clean the heads. I have experience cleaning iron blocks so I went to town on the aluminum head with a steal carbide blade and then a razor. It felt like those tools were being too aggressive on the head and the plastic blades didn’t have much affect so I’ll take the heads to a machine shop to be cleaned and undo any damage I hay have caused.

Cleaning. The block went well, used a steal carbide blade and a shop vac to get the top, sides, and front cleaned and prepped.

Used that A-37 bearing and hammered them in. I found that when I did it pieces of the block would chip off, I tried using a hammering pin to press it in directly on the bearing but the edge of the block still seemed to flake like in the picture. I made sure to run a shop vac through the top of the block after I put those in.

View attachment 374249
View attachment 374248

View attachment 374250

+1 on sending the heads to a shop if there is any question about the sealing surfaces. And, I also agree that a valve job is a wise investment.

When I did my heads, I didn’t do any of that though because my engine was relatively low mileage. I used permatex chemical gasket remover and it worked perfectly. No damage.

 

[Sparksalot]

I'd always invest in having a shop do the heads. A 3- or 5-angle valve job and cleaning pass on the deck can do wonders.

Crank up that compressor and blow out the oil galleys from every way you can reach.

That valley is clean!

I grew up doing 3 angle grinding on heads. It was really satisfying to see the end result

 

[Dustin Jackson]

Now that I am starting to assemble the motor what kinds of things should I know as far as keeping the internals of the engine clean and what to do for my first startup? I was told a few different things, one person said to use engine cleaner like kerosene and let that idle for a bit and then change the oil immediately to help get all the gunk out of the motor, should I also flush the coolant? Another person said to pour a quart of oil over the valves before installing the valve covers.

So far I've just been using a shop vac to try to keep things clean. Occasionally I'll run a magnet on a stick around to see what I find but I haven't found anything of concern.

 

[Ivanhoe]

When Installing cam I put a generous coating of assembly lube on it as well as the pushrod tips, springs, rocker arms. I used a L96 cam to keep VVT in my LMG which appears to work well.

Put some oil in new oil pump so it wasn't bone dry. Lifters came from texas speed as a kit and were in a bag of oil to which i added more to soak them for and hour. Started up with injectors disconnected so system primed and then connected and fired up and had instant strong oil pressure show on gauge. I had a drive after letting engine warm up and leak check etc, did more checks after and changed oil after a few hundred kms. Using synthetic oil for every change now, several thousand kms later I have not burned any oil like I did before .

 

[Geotrash]

Now that I am starting to assemble the motor what kinds of things should I know as far as keeping the internals of the engine clean and what to do for my first startup? I was told a few different things, one person said to use engine cleaner like kerosene and let that idle for a bit and then change the oil immediately to help get all the gunk out of the motor, should I also flush the coolant? Another person said to pour a quart of oil over the valves before installing the valve covers.

So far I've just been using a shop vac to try to keep things clean. Occasionally I'll run a magnet on a stick around to see what I find but I haven't found anything of concern.

There is only so much you can do working in a home shop to keep dirt out. I used disposable shop rags and parts cleaner to keep everything as clean as I could. I used compressed air in the cylinder head bolt holes, and just did the best I could.

For startup, here was my process:
-Used assembly lube on the cam, lifters, and rockers.
-Removed the front cover from the oil pump before installing it and put a couple of fingers worth of red grease in it. I didn't pack it, just got enough in it to help seal the rotor so it would prime easier.
-I didn't bother with unplugging the injectors. You can get the same effect by putting your foot to the floor on the gas pedal while you crank it the first time and it will shut off the injectors automatically. But I didn't do that either. I just cranked it and left it fire up. Had immediate oil pressure all 3 times I've done it.

Changed the oil after the first 100 miles.