Date:         Sat, 24 Feb 2001 19:21:39 -0700
Reply-To:     Blake Thornton <thornton@MATH.UTAH.EDU>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Blake Thornton <thornton@MATH.UTAH.EDU>
Subject:      Heads are off
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

Ok, disregard the last post regarding my stuck cylinders.  I spent some
time looking in the archives and found a suggestion of David Bayer to pry
using an open end wrench.  It worked great.  I got both heads off in less
then an hour.

Anyhow, now that they are off here is my unprofessional view:

A) The heads look pretty good.  Not too much pitting, but I really don't
know what I'm looking for.

B)  The old head gaskets were in terrible shape.  Lots of holes and
everything.  I was quite happy to see these as that meant I didn't
overlook an easy to fix leak such as a leaky fitting.  Surely these holes
were letting water out.

Now for my questions:

1) Cleaning?  How do I best clean the heads?  Gasoline bath?  Take them to
my usual mechanic (who I really like) to get an opinion.

2) Cylinders and pistons.  I read conflicting advice in the archives about
this.  Should I take the cylinders off the pistons and replace the gaskets
on them (I read somewhere there is some servicing that can be done with
the cylinders off).  So, what is the cost-benefit of this?

3) Valve job?  Should I get a valve job now that the heads are out.  My
mechanic says it is a good idea, but the cost is around $150.  Worth it?


Hopefully I can get these head problems solved soon, and my head gaskets
come in the mail and then I can start putting everything back together!

Thanks in advance for any help,
Blake
SLC UT
84102