98 GMC Suburban Revival

[Yukon6.2]

So 141...
It wasn't it's first dance,first thing i found which lowered my expectations...
Cork gaskets on the valve covers and pan
Heads are decent only one small crack on one cylinder,"A" precups
Pistons marked std
Rods had marks on them not the way it should be done when you take on apart for the first time.They had dots punched into the bottom of the cap instead of matching numbers on the same side of rad and cap.
Number 5 has a bad score that they said good enough and tossed in new parts.The cylinders were honed without cross hatching the marks are parallel with the deck.
I popped out number 5 piston to check it out better an it must of ingested something in it's past life, bearings are std but they nicked the crank on the journal which put a grove in the bearing,i am sure there will be more.
2 web cracks and one head bolt hole crack very front bolt on the outside of the head at cyl 1.Cracked to the outside of the block.
So not a lot of parts to feel good about.
I have one more swing left
I have a 94 crewcab that i got from a yard cleanup,5 speed 4x4 low milage for the year work truck.It's been sitting for a long time.a PO hauled it from Northern Alberta to Haines Junction for some reason probably not the body.
The guys yard it came out of was trying to get it to run without any luck,at the time i advised him to put a mechanical pump on it as it was a 5 speed.Being a 94 the injection pump is year specific that seemed the way to go with unknown issues.They never had any luck.Somehow a buddy of mine was asked to change the timing chain in it which he never did before the owner died.
It's got clean oil in it,so today i will investigate it and see if it's worth pulling.Wish i had a compression guage that was accurate then would use it to see how healthy it was.No chance of it running without a pump change as the truck is too cannibalized to try to run it in place.Steering column has been removed and who knows what else.
PMD is still on the pump so my guess is that was the reason it would not run.
Staring down the hole of the outhouse where i just dropped a $50
Trying to decide if i toss another $50 in there if it will be worth my time to jump in and get them.
Have a great Sunday everyone

[Robyn]

Sounds about right with 6.5 stories.

Keep us in the loop.

Something good has got to pop up

[a5150nut]

So 141...

Staring down the hole of the outhouse where i just dropped a $50
Trying to decide if i toss another $50 in there if it will be worth my time to jump in and get them.
Have a great Sunday everyone

Once on a job site I came out of a portable toilet to a truck driver standing there waiting his turn. As serious as I could I asked him if I could barrow a $10 bill, I'll give it right back I told him. He was reaching in his pocket then asked why I needed it? I told him I had just dropped one in the ****ter and it wasn't worth reaching for it. But if there were two of them floating down there it would be worth it! He withdrew his hand from his pocket and looked at me in disbelief.

Truck drivers are fun to mess with. . . . .

[Robyn]

ROFLMAO.....SNORTING COFFEE OUT MY NOSE......

Yessssssssssssssss....I have seen that joke pulled a few times....

Always fun to watch the look on peoples faces....

[Yukon6.2]

For some reason i thought yesterday was Sunday...
I now i have 2 days that i didn't realize i had yesterday.
Nothing to report on the 94 yet,my SIL came by yesterday and wanted her new tires on her horse trailer and bearings checked.
I thought briefly of stealing her engine,kinda like salt in a wound when i had to move it.6.5 truck.jpg6.5 yardart.jpg
And a shot of the yard art 6.5 not holding out a lot of hope on it.
The idea forming is to try and get a piston for the 506,use the heads from the 141,buy the Victor parts on sale,gaskets and head bolts buy some Double Bubble and hope for the best.Will not be much coin in it just a buttload of time.
Then when the snow goes see my buddy with the scrap yard,load up all the 6.5 stuff laying around his place and see if there is anything good enough to spend money on.
A worm hole that i wasn't expecting for sure,i should have picked the straight body gasser as the road tripper.

[Yukon6.2]

So i am leaving the Yard Art 6.5 as is for now
Water in the oil pan,it didn't have a hood on it and water got inside because the tuna can hole is empty,and that is the only opening that i could see.
Robyn
If you are willing to send me a piston that would be awesome,as i don't have anything that can donate a stock one.I thought i may be able to get one from a 93 that is tore apart in the back of a buddys truck,but it's .30 over,his block is pouched as well.I could pay for postage with Paypal if that works.
I have decided to go the Double Bubble way,the original block is the best i have to work with,bores are good the heads from the 141 checked out as straight and one tiny crack about halfway between a couple valves,
Pre cups have an A om them and are all matching no big cracks in them.I will go with Felpro head gaskets.
If it wasn't for the bad cylinder i would be driving the Burb without any worries about the crack in the block.
So i guess if it was going to be an issue and die on the trip,it will still have that chance to mess up our trip.I will get BCAA for roadside assistance as a way to lessen the blow of something happening.
Unless a good running 6.5 shows up i have to get this one back in the truck.

[Yukon6.2]

So i placed the Bubble Gum order
Gaskets,seals,headbolts.injectors and a chain.
Order says it will be here by the 6th of May,which gives me time to prep all the parts for reassembly.If i didn't have a list of spring things to be done i may have rebuilt the injectors myself.Time is getting short to get the truck on the road to use for our road trip,plus my spring list helped me decide to get the new ones.I have a couple commercial truck inspections to get done before the end of the month,my first load of containers are showing up around the end of the month which i have to go to Alaska to pickup.That presents the Covid challenge,can i get back into Canada without a vac card? Time will tell i guess.
Thanks all who chimed in and offered suggestions and encouragement.

Plus i still need a piston,so hopefully i can connect with Robyn for one of those.

[Robyn]

Piston all packed up for ya.....
I was going to get it out today....but things got sideways this morning....Tomorrow we have to go to town to get groceries....I will drop the package off at the Post Office.....

USPS FLAT RATE BOX.....

[Yukon6.2]

Hi Robyn
Came home to the beep of the answering machine...
And the was the message from you telling me the piston is on it's way,
Awesome and THANK YOU...
If there is anything Yukon related that you want/need just ask.
I wish i would have been home it would have been great to B.S. a bit.
If things were different due to covid,we would have been taking a trip into the US from Vancouver,but neither my partner or i have the required jabs.
Thank you again,snow is starting to dissapear quick now that it quit freezing at night,the days are ticking away.
Road Trip coming soon.

[Robyn]

Hope the part will help fix the beast.

If you decide to make a road trip...let me know and I will PM my address.

You folks are welcome at our camp fire....

We did not get jabbed either.....Everyone we know that got poked got sick....

I had two bouts of the nasty virus..

More of a nuisance than anything else.....
All better now....

[Yukon6.2]

The Burb has been on the back burner for the last week or so
Gaskets and head bolts showed up.
I have been getting my Kenworth ready for the summer,replaced a few things,service and oil change.It's a wheel off inspection this year.All was good and the CVIP sticker and license plate purchased.$700.00 big ones to drive it for the summer.
Back to the Burb ,i have a tube of "The Right Stuff" and a tube of black silicone.I think i am leaning to "the Right Stuff for sealing up the tins on it.
The injectors that were advertised were out of stock,so depending on time i may look into getting some nozzles and try to rebuild a set.
Anything else that should be done now while it's apart? Front tranny seal is on the list.
Thanks All for the helps so far.
Thomas

[arveetek]

I used the Right Stuff on my valve covers and oil pan. It's definitely the right stuff! Seals up great; no leaks. Just a real pain if you need to remove those items later because they are glued down well.

I ordered injectors and a bunch of other items from here for my recent build:

https://quadstartuning.com/

Great products at great prices. I'm not sure what the costs of shipping to Canada would be, though.

Casey

[Yukon6.2]

Box O Pistons showed up yesterday,Thank You Robyn
I will spend today washing and prepping.
Clean the threads for the head bolts ,water pump and the rest of the block
I am assuming that when a person takes the timing cover and pump off,that the plate should be removed from the water pump and resealed.Factory looked like some kind of sealer ,no gasket.What have the rest of you done for successful sealing of the cover and pump assembly? I think there are gaskets in the Felpro Kit,are they worth using or should i go with just a sealer like "The Right Stuff" and make life miserable for the next person taking it apart?Thread sealer looks like a must for the water pump bolts
I have a factory manual for a 90 6.2 and am assuming all torque specs will be the same for the 6.2 and 6.5.
I did pop the rear main off to look at the bearings.
This will end up as a good quality "Bush Fix" as the block has a crack.
For that reason no new bearings or rings.
If i end up keeping the truck for years maybe there will be a revile in a few years to see how the block progressed from one crack to either more or stayed the same.
Any tips or suggestions from those who have the 6.5 rebuild fresh in their minds?
Thanks Again the end of this chapter looks closer now.

[Robyn]

YESSSSSSS

Reseal that plate.

I usually use HI TEMP RTV TO SEAL THE PLATE .
I use a "smear" of the RTV on both sides of the gaskets too....

A very good way to keep the various liquids where they need to be.

"The RIGHT STUFF" WILL WORK TOO.
I have never used it myself.

I use the high temp RTV on the valve covers too.

A generous fillet of the goop in the channels of the covers and then gently set them on the heads (I install a few long Allen set screws in the head to pilot the covers) Mush the covers down and then install the regular bolts and SNUG UP gently to finger tight or a tad more.

Let the RTV cure overnight and then snug the bolts down....

Make sure the cover flanges are not bent...if so straighten them up with a small hammer keeping the cover flanges on a steel plate....

Any areas like where the timing cover and the pan fit together can benefit from a fillet of RTV IN THE CORNERS.....

[DmaxMaverick]

Correct, no gaskets on a factory build, and any subsequent competent rebuilds. Some aftermarket kits supply gaskets where there were none before, but I suspect it's more out of habit than an actual solution to any problem. The Right Stuff is only slightly more inconvenient at disassembly than traditional gaskets and RTV, but if it's there when it's torqued, it won't leak until someone/thing breaks it loose. The Duramax engine (at least the early models that I know of) are sealed with the Stuff and few/no gaskets. My 21 Y/O truck with original Stuff, and with the top end resealed 3X (original warranty, 2X injectors, + 1X return lines) with The Stuff, doesn't leak or weep at all. I'm confident that if gaskets and/or RTV were used, I'd be adding oil regularly at this point, and there would be no dust where I park it (doesn't currently lose any oil between 10K mile changes).

Verify torque values for the 6.5 model/casting. Some thread size changes and updates happened over the years. I don't recall which are different, but I make a conscience effort to never memorize torque values (or apply what I might remember). Always verify.

Anaerobic thread sealer for the water pump pass-throughs (and head bolts, if no pre-applied thread sealer, and especially studs!). New Fel-Pro TTY head bolts should have pre-applied thread sealer. You could use RTV or The Right Stuff, if you have a week or more to let it cure before adding coolant.

[Yukon6.2]

Thanks All for the tips
My parts washer got a work out,the formerly clear fluid now has a definate 6.5 black look to it.
Got everything cleaned up,Robyn's replacement piston measured and fitted,new timing chain on then before i left it last night i turned it right side up and fogged the bottom end with diesel to hopefully rinse out any crud that mad it's way into it from being open for the last couple weeks.
Found some interesting numbers on the block.Looks like someone changed their mind on the one set.
This 6.5 was very clean on the outside,the valve covers were a bitch to get off,same as the pan.Edges have been trued up and holes dimpled up slightly.I used to do the same to my small block valve covers.
I picked the piston that Robyn unintentionally sent some BTU's with...
Found a nutshell in the ring grove.
Today the heads will go on,maybe the oil pan will get glued on along with timing chain cover.
Or something will come up and decide today is not the day to finish off the 6.5
robyn.jpg6.5 numbers.jpg6.5 numbers2.jpg
It looks like the original engine by the date.

[Robyn]

OH MY
I grabbed the pistons and sat then in a bucket full of shells and carried them upstairs to package them up...

Sorry about that....I did look at the pistons...There were a few pieces of shell...Thought I got them all....

Ah well...no extra charge..

[Robyn]

JUST AN FYI

Piston clearance on the rear pistons to cylinder wall is factory spec'd by GM at .0042" - .0052"
The remainder are at .0037"- .0047"

When I built the fresh AMG BLOCK for the Dahooooley some years back we set the piston to wall clearance at .0045" on all of them.

Good spec to avoid a squeaker.....

[Yukon6.2]

After a busy week which included my first C can run of the summer the 6.5 is ready to go back in it's hole.
6.5 ready.jpg
My trip to Haines Alaska was a beautiful drive,leaves and green grass in Haines that was nice to see as on Wednesday morning i woke up to snow going past the window horizontally.
Saw my first Grizz of the year too.
If i get lucky and no big interruptions today it may be rattling away this evening.

[Robyn]

Sweeeeeeeeeeeeet....

Gonna be nice to see it back on it's feet....