Upper intake manifold inspection

[jamesdking]

Seems like a lot of pitting. I am nervous to move forward with this lower intake. Am I being overly worried about old dex cool???

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[Schurkey]

Looking at the swirl-marks, I'm wondering how much material you zipped off of the machined surfaces with the abrasive pad(s) used to "clean up" the gasket surfaces.

GM specifically recommends NOT using abrasive pads for this reason.

First Guess: At minimum, that intake has to go to a machine shop to be planed flat 'n' smooth again.

If the pitting isn't in the gasket-sealing area, it's largely inconsequential--although--it would be worthwhile to assure that there's no radiator voltage when the vehicle is put together again; and maybe a magnesium or zinc sacrificial anode is a good idea.

 

[jamesdking]

Looking at the swirl-marks, I'm wondering how much material you zipped off of the machined surfaces with the abrasive pad(s) used to "clean up" the gasket surfaces.

GM specifically recommends NOT using abrasive pads for this reason.

First Guess: At minimum, that intake has to go to a machine shop to be planed flat 'n' smooth again.

If the pitting isn't in the gasket-sealing area, it's largely inconsequential--although--it would be worthwhile to assure that there's no radiator voltage when the vehicle is put together again; and maybe a magnesium or zinc sacrificial anode is a good idea.

I used a bit of permatex gasket remover and a white plastic brush on a drill. Have I gone and done another dumb route?…

 

[Caman96]

It would be the perfect time…

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[Schurkey]

I used a bit of permatex gasket remover and a white plastic brush on a drill. Have I gone and done another dumb route?…

Define "white plastic brush".

Is this one of the abrasive-finger brushes? They seem to be "less" damaging than the non-woven fiber abrasive discs. GM specifically advises against either kind.

Non-woven fiber (Terrible):
www.amazon.com/3M-3-Inch-Coarse-Surface-Conditioning/dp/B000B8UPLU/ref=sr_1_54?

Abrasive-finger "brushes" (somewhat less terrible):
www.amazon.com/Bristle-Assorted-Attachment-Abrasive-Coating/dp/B08XW276DX/ref=sr_1_3?

 

[jamesdking]

Define "white plastic brush".

Is this one of the abrasive-finger brushes? They seem to be "less" damaging than the non-woven fiber abrasive discs. GM specifically advises against either kind.

Non-woven fiber (Terrible):
www.amazon.com/3M-3-Inch-Coarse-Surface-Conditioning/dp/B000B8UPLU/ref=sr_1_54?

Abrasive-finger "brushes" (somewhat less terrible):
www.amazon.com/Bristle-Assorted-Attachment-Abrasive-Coating/dp/B08XW276DX/ref=sr_1_3?

Oh the second one. And I felt like it was pretty hard to even get a gasket off let alone remove metal but you are correct when you see the swirls.

 

[Komet]

I use razor blades exclusively for mating surfaces and have never had a problem either getting them clean or sealing afterwards. The swirls are rough but it'll probably be fine with tactical rtv application. If the pitting is super bad at a sealing edge, use JB Weld to fill them back up.

 

[jamesdking]

As I learn how to jb weld the pit marks and laughingly hope I’m not wasting my time on this old rusty mountain rig…. And drinking

I first wanna thank all the smart and sincere responses. You guys make being a lousy home mechanic, fun and cool. My girlfriend won’t ever understand it, but I do really think this is cool stuff. I do my best to maintain our little fleet of cars, but I have been known to bite off more than I SHOULD chew.

I’ll update as I go, if not only, for some poor person who ends up with this as their “search” because that’s how we all learn and get through the hurdles of doing things like this and calling it fun.

ps. I wish jb weld was thinner or could be thinned like joint compound. It would make smoothing this out with a razor blade WAY easier. I keep getting the edges perfect and the center falls like a bad cake.

 

[Schurkey]

Clean the manifold gasket surface. Mix up your JBWeld. Fill in the pitting, let it harden. Smooth it with a fine file after it's hard.

 

[jamesdking]

Welp, I put it back together today and it went mostly well I think. I’m doing an oil change as we speak. Might do another in a week if it looks anything but clean since the chocolate milk I just drained out worries me. I’m assuming it was from the coolant I spilled when removing the intake. The smoke from the tailpipe initially I assume the same.

I was able to get it to tdc and dropped the distributor in first try ( f%#k yeah!) and had 5 and 7 plug wires mixed up. Otherwise it went smoothly. Fired right up.

I used a basic iPhone obd2 reader to watch the timing and got it within +\- 1 cmp retard. It’s my understanding that’s as close as I need to and the truck will do the rest. I hate the bolt that holds down the dizzy. It was the most frustrating part of the whole day.

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Reset the multitude of codes that initially came on and took it around the block before the oil change. No codes no major misfires and it seemed smooth.

Only had a couple wire harness clips that attached to the uim left over and I couldn’t see them being that important at the time.

Thanks again for all the helpful responses and if anyone reads this some day it’s not a hard job but it is a tedious one that very few shortcuts will help you. The sticky on here is pretty perfect.

Beer time!!!!!