Valve Clearance Measurement Question

If anyone has a chance to look at that picture and let me know what you think about the questions, I'd appreciate it.

The black build up you see is carbon, oil, gunk. You could clean it out if you want. That is where air is "injected" into the cyl from the emmisions on top of your valve cover. On the valve cover gasket I lightly scraped the gasket off with a straight edge X-acto knife, scotch brite could work. Just make sure all debris is removed. Logically speaking I would think the taper would be "up" so cap slids over easier, taper might be on both ends. I think the brown stuff is "heated" oil residue, it is the hot side of the engine.

Little B wrote:

... Is it safe to clean the gasket area around the cylinder head cover with a scotchbrite pad and acetone or should I use something else? Also, there is black stuff in the holes that go up to the reed valve assembly. Should I clean them out with a swab or something?

Important to remove all remnants of the old gasket without damaging (gouging) the surface areas of head or valve cover. Permatex Gasket Remover might be helpful. A little acetone won't harm anything (but may not be the best removal agent), and would go easy with the scotchbrite pad, and avoid allowing any pad slough-off into the head or valve cover areas. Complete removal of the old gasket helps prevent future leakage of the new gasket.

Am guessing the black stuff inside holes to reed valve assembly might be silicone or something used to intentionally block the holes. Don't have experience with that type assembly, but thinking many owners purposefully disable the vents with caps on the exterior or just connecting the external vents to each other with a hose. Could be off base here, so please do a search or await better advice.

Opinions differ about best procedure when replacing the valve cover gasket. I install them dry and have no leakage. Others apply a little oil or grease, and even Chapstick has been recommended. Often the gasket may be used again several times. I recommend against using any silicone or other gasket sealer, as this stuff should not be allowed to ooze into or come loose inside the cam shaft area.

Although probably not essential, I use a tiny smear of silicone on top of the half-moon head inserts where they seal against the valve cover.

Good Luck!

Post edited by: Patton, at: 2007/12/10 08:56

Little B wrote:

... Should the tapered parts of the sleeves that sit inside where the camshaft bolts go be facing up or down?....

Thinking the taper should point up to facilitate fitment into the valve cover.

Little B wrote:

The one valve I've tried measuring won't let the thinnest feeler gauge I have between them. Should I not be expecting to have the gauge slide between them even a little bit? I bought my gauge from z1 is that not the best one to use?

Little B
This is a little after the fact, but you're sure you had only one leaf of the gauge set you were using to check valve gaps, right? It is very easy to have two, or more of the thinnest leaves stuck together.

Thanks for the help everyone, much appreciated!

JimatMilkyWay wrote:

Little B
This is a little after the fact, but you're sure you had only one leaf of the gauge set you were using to check valve gaps, right? It is very easy to have two, or more of the thinnest leaves stuck together.

Absolutely positive. I do know what you mean about them sticking together though. Sometimes I had to really fuss with it to separate them.