Delicious Milkshake

[The Hedgehog]

Anyone ever seen this before?

[Lenny]

Looks like one unhappy big block that didn't like the winter much... :(

[osur866]

ya wonder what the rest is gonna look like :( Steve

[cutwater]

Looks like one unhappy big block that didn't like the winter much... :(

I'm kind of lost. What am I looking at here?

[Lenny]

I'm kind of lost. What am I looking at here?

Oil and water in your motor as compared to "oil and vinegar" on your salad.

Head gasket/intake or BLOCK problem I would assume. And lots.

[ky-donzi]

Yea,, had this happen to a flat head jeep of my dads. I found out the hard way what happens when you add very cold water to a engine that wasn't running. I was young and didn't know any better

[BUIZILLA]

looks like my Critter engine when I bought it.. that one actually looks tons better, mine was encrusted rust 1/4" thick inside :smash: :hangum:

of course the seller said the engine was mint and strong and ready to go...

[The Hedgehog]

Lenny got it right, basically. Actually the rest of the block and heads was in decent shape. This was largely the effect of running a motor without a thermostat (the standard Procharger method of keeping things very cool to avoid detonation). The 502 has a lifter valley pan to keep heat out of that area and off the bottom of the intake. Condensation develops in that super cool area and the milkshake forms. A thermostatically controlled oil cooler would help in this case.

Curiously, no signs ever showed on the dipstick and underthe valve covers.

Anyone that has run one of these knows that it is hard to get the water temps to even 105 degrees in the cool spring. Running at 120 in the summer produce much better results.

[cutwater]

Lenny got it right, basically. Actually the rest of the block and heads was in decent shape. This was largely the effect of running a motor without a thermostat (the standard Procharger method of keeping things very cool to avoid detonation). The 502 has a lifter valley pan to keep heat out of that area and off the bottom of the intake. Condensation develops in that super cool area and the milkshake forms.

BG - So you're saying that it was probably a condensation issue since there was no evident damage to the block/heads/headgasket? In that case, this problem shouldn't show up for an engine running with a thermostat @ around 150deg, right?


I found out the hard way what happens when you add very cold water to a engine that wasn't running. I was young and didn't know any better

KY - What does this do? Do you mean bypassing the t-stat and adding cold coolant to an engine that was already up to temp but not running?

[ky-donzi]

KY - What does this do? Do you mean bypassing the t-stat and adding cold coolant to an engine that was already up to temp but not running?[/quote]


This was not in a boat,,,, but same result
If you add cold water to an engine that is low on water and not running the cold water will go to the bottom of the radiator and when the engine is restarted it will suck up the cold water into the hot engine and warp or crack something. In my case it warped a head. I'm hear to tell you..... The jeep was about 1/2 gallon low I shut off the engine (it wasn't hot probably 180) added cold water from a hose and restarted the engine..... poof what came out was white smoke and it sputtered and died.

If you add the water while the engine is running the hot returning water from the engine will mix with it and the the mixture will be ok.

[Gearhead99]

That's a bunch of condensation....I'd be surprised if that is all it is.

[MOP]

That looks like a 320 GMC 6 I had in a drag car years back, no Tstat and a big radiator. It freaked me out when I pulled the valve cover to go over the valves, believe me there was no water intrusion. I flushed the Crap out of it with kero put a 180 stat in it ran 3 tenths faster in the 1/4 and stayed bristol clean. Cold temps a very bad, being a marine mech for a lot of years I found a lot of rusted and broken valve springs that I am positive was caused by the condensation. Almost any engine builder will say heat is power, don't run them cold!

Phil

[The Hedgehog]

That's a bunch of condensation....I'd be surprised if that is all it is.

Oh that is all is is. Like Phil said, it will surprise you.

Yes, it is often the case of a leaky gasket. Not so here.

[DickB]

This was largely the effect of running a motor without a thermostat (the standard Procharger method of keeping things very cool to avoid detonation).

Wow - really? That's not a very good method for controlling detonation. I'm suprised.

[yeller]

Wow, that's crazy. I never ran a thermostat in my 16 and never saw any condensation like that....even in our cool summers and cold water.

[The Hedgehog]

Wow - really? That's not a very good method for controlling detonation. I'm suprised.

Yes, the out of the box Procharger way of doing things is pretty crude. They also run rich as heck until you get it reprogrammed. Careful tuning is a much better method.

That being said, there are a few really good engine builders that do it too. Especially when running iron heads. Iron heads don't dissapate heat like some of the alum heads. Super cool water helps there. Yes, I have heard the thermostate arguement many times and know that Merc uses them. What I have been told by my engine builder (Eddie Young) is the it also has to do with how long you stay in the boost. Those heads will really heat up after a while if you don't do something about it. There is a huge difference between running boost for a good while and just 10 second bursts.

I can definately see merit to both sides of the arguement and these pics are proof that if you don't set it up right, simply removing the thermostat and using a crossover will catch up to you in time. This was only two seasons and maybe 70 hours.

This next time around I will not be using one as well. Eddie says he will set it up correctly. He is a relatively small engine builder but after many days of research I have only heard good things about him. He has spent countless hours educating me on his processes, going through dyno sheets and discussing what he has seen. He stands behind his work and builds a number of engines up to 1,200 hp. He is not cheap either but I have seen those that charge a bit more as well.

[The Hedgehog]

Wow, that's crazy. I never ran a thermostat in my 16 and never saw any condensation like that....even in our cool summers and cold water.

It is crazy. I ran our 16 for a number of summers without one and did not see the same problems either. We don't have water as cool as yours but it is really humid in the deep south. Go figure.