M - Pulled the Cylinder Head...

[Ncarolinasailor]

So what do I find- Have a look. Cylinder 3 was half full of water because of open 3 exhaust valve. I am going to try to hone out the scale so I don't have to replace the cylinders/pistons though honestly it could use it. The lip for the open valve is also non-functional. Is there a better way than the wire brush on drill bit method of getting it to a point to grind a new valve into place. Also one of the valve springs/retainer were missing. No one seems to sell retainers. Anyone know where I can find just a single retainer? I don't want to take the thing to a machine shop. Will it work to replace the valves and not the seats?

 

[Ncarolinasailor]

(quoted from post at 12:50:44 11/14/16) So what do I find- Have a look. Cylinder 3 was half full of water because of open 3 exhaust valve. I am going to try to hone out the scale so I don't have to replace the cylinders/pistons though honestly it could use it. The lip for the open valve is also non-functional. Is there a better way than the wire brush on drill bit method of getting it to a point to grind a new valve into place. Also one of the valve springs/retainer were missing. No one seems to sell retainers. Anyone know where I can find just a single retainer? I don't want to take the thing to a machine shop. Will it work to replace the valves and not the seats?

 

[Janicholson]

When you get the valves apart you will likely find the seat is pitted and must be ground, or have a new hard seat installed and ground. Taking it to be
rebuilt is the solution and will save you money and massive disappointment. Unless you have access to valve surfacing tools and guide equipment, it will
be money ahead. The sleeve may have cracked and will certainly have to be replaced. Getting one sleeve is possible, but if there is a ridge in the
other cylinders that you can feel with your fingernail, it will require a sleeve and piston "kit" (this site sells them for a great price) There are
shortcuts, but they all lead into the place this was parked, not the field or hay rides. Jim

 

[Ken Christopherson]

That chamber looks to be in very rough shape. Not sure what climate you are in, but if you are in the cold areas, I'd be worried about freeze cracking. You'll be able to clean it up nice with a wire wheel on a drill (an assortment of sizes is useful), but you truly won't know if the head is usable without having it magnafluxed/pressure tested by a shop. I know ALL TOO WELL about dealing with head issues. M's are known for cracking around the exhaust valve seats (or so I'm told). Thankfully the head I have at the machine shop now (just got a call from them today) is usable and in much better shape than the original I had.

As you can see from the above pictures, I was in a similar situation, only all four of my cylinders had water in them. Some photos of before and after cleaning, but I truly didn't know what condition it was in until I had it checked over. I knew for sure it would need seats as they were pitted bad. The second to last photo was after a full service at the machine shop... New valves, guides, seats, resurfaced, etc. Ended up that the exhaust valve seat recession on #4 was cracked and kept dropping out the seat (last photo).. I've had this head off 3 times now this year. Finally had to replace it. Hopefully I will have it back together before the big snow hits and it is finger-numbing cold.

My advice - at least invest in getting it checked out and make sure it is good. I'd hate to see you clean it up and put it all back together only to find out that you need to tear it down again.

 

[Ncarolinasailor]

Thanks - What did it cost you to get it checked at a shop?

 

[rustred]

i have seen many an engine in this condition. there is one answer... head is machine shop work. it takes specialty tools for valve and seat grinding. the ordinary person has no clue even where to start. the seat has to sit in a specific spot on the valve. many people think the whole valve width is the seating surface, not so there is a specific width for the intake and exhaust seats.and there is angles for the valves and seats also.plus your stones must be kept dressed to keep the angles correct.the used valves must have enough margin left on them so they do not burn out. many times the guides are loose so they must be replaced before seat grinding. even the valve springs are checked for tension. no sense worrying about the head work or parts as a reputable shop will have access to all parts.i used to grind valves in the garage but once the guides are loose it had to be sent out anyway as we were just not set up to do all head work. its just the joy of fixing old equipment... you have to be prepared for the consequences. that is why i will not buy a painted or supposedly overhauled tractor, as thay call it overhauled when it only a patch up job.
as for the sleeves any pitting in them and they must be replaced, dont matter if they have little wear. and these people that loosen rusty engines with pitted cyl's and valves... how does the rust and garbage get removed from the engine? it is stuck in the piston rings and blown out the exhuast pipe if they get it started. the rings may even be cracked and broken. just think of a nicely overhauled engine nice shiny cyl's nice valve job and you throw in a hand full of rust and silt into the cyl's before replacing the head and torquing it down . that is my take on some of these ideas that just dont make sense.

 

[johninmn]

I just had my m head through the machine
shop. Pressure tested fluxed and milled was
$180. Now remember thats not having any
valves ground or parts replaced

 

[rustred]

it all depends on the repairs needed. worst case it might even be over 400.00. i have had a few 282 heads rebuilt for the diesel 560-660 and they were over 500.00.

 

[LarryM]

I have "fixed" heads like this a couple times to help people out and for what it will cost to get it fixed right you may consider buying a used engine.