BlownCorona Posted May 15, 2023 Share Posted May 15, 2023 dumb questions as title suggests, do i have to waste a head gasket in order to check piston valve clearance? i unfortunately dont have an old one, and new ones aren't cheap or even really available locally. surely there must be some tricks of the trade?? 18R-G for reference Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HumberSS Posted May 15, 2023 Share Posted May 15, 2023 Do you know roughly the thickness of gasket you will be using? If so just shim the head off the block by that thickness using thin material in a few places and then do your checks. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HumberSS Posted May 15, 2023 Share Posted May 15, 2023 Aim for crushed thickness obviously Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepers Posted May 16, 2023 Share Posted May 16, 2023 if your valve clearance is going to be close enough that the difference between torqued and non torqued gap is a deal breaker you got way more problems. just assemble it and nip up the bolts, if you want to get super pedantic take 0.5 off your measurements (if you can measure a piece of plasticine that accurately) 6 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KKtrips Posted May 16, 2023 Share Posted May 16, 2023 I measure mine with the head gasket off, so if I can see a thin area of plasticine when I pull the head off then I know its going to be fucking close, but I still have the thickness of the head gasket clearance. If I can see through the plasticine, I call it a problem. Not very scientific but hasn't failed me yet. 4 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlownCorona Posted May 16, 2023 Author Share Posted May 16, 2023 7 hours ago, sheepers said: if your valve clearance is going to be close enough that the difference between torqued and non torqued gap is a deal breaker you got way more problems. just assemble it and nip up the bolts, if you want to get super pedantic take 0.5 off your measurements (if you can measure a piece of plasticine that accurately) i don't want it that close. but i don't know if the combo i have is going to give me what i want, i may need to machine valve reliefs. but i absolutely didn't consider just not doing it up tight. thanks everyone! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlownCorona Posted May 16, 2023 Author Share Posted May 16, 2023 6 hours ago, KKtrips said: I measure mine with the head gasket off, so if I can see a thin area of plasticine when I pull the head off then I know its going to be fucking close, but I still have the thickness of the head gasket clearance. If I can see through the plasticine, I call it a problem. Not very scientific but hasn't failed me yet. after thinking about my above post, not knowing quite what ive got, this suggesting is also relevant to my interests. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HumberSS Posted May 16, 2023 Share Posted May 16, 2023 Do you have a build thread? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlownCorona Posted May 17, 2023 Author Share Posted May 17, 2023 Yeah but it's been dormant for like two years due to pandemic/house hunting/undiagnosed turn diagnosed and treated adhd. The discussion thread has a bunch of good conversation around what I'm doing - putting 20r pistons in am 18rg block to compensate for the block being machined for high compression and to also decompress the engine a little for mild boost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlownCorona Posted May 30, 2023 Author Share Posted May 30, 2023 lol the head wont even sit flat on the block with the valves closed and the piston at TDC. off to work out how to cut valve pockets i go. 1 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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