Forgot to update my thread.
Ordered Fel Pro full gasket set FS 7961 SB-1
Once it came in I pulled the valve covers - popped pushrods on 1, 3 & 4. #3 intake valve solid frozen, 1 & 4 super slow.... pull the heads
Set out my metal bench and started disassembling the top end. Took a ton of pictures for reference. They're on my Flickr account feel free to browse
https://www.flickr.com/gp/79753808@N07/a67a50
The heads are **** heavy! So much I got out the garage scale to weigh them. Just shy of 70# dressed. I've got a 14 year old daughter that doesn't weigh much more.
Cylinders look good.
Pulled the rocker bar off, removed the springs and pulled the valves. Intake #3 had to be tapped out. Varnished in. They all got cleaned and polished with flitz. #3 slid in and out smoothly with no sign of being hit by a piston. No marks on pistons 1, 3 & 4.
Those are some big bores, my quart can of Flitz fits right in cylinder #1
Cleaned all the top end components. Valves got cleaned in diesel at the house. Didn't want to mess up the order, I kept them all where the were. Everything else went to work and into the parts cleaner.
All external parts were degreased, power brushed, degreased and painted.
Re-assembled the heads with springs, valves and retainers in the same positions. New valve seals.
I bought a factory manual for torque specs and torque sequences from a seller on Amazon. Of course I click the address for my niece I buy text books for. Seller promises to fix so I don't have to cancel order. Guess where manual get shipped to....
Several awesome members of the 60-66 GMC Truck Club and 67-72 Chevy Truck Forum helped me with specs.
Got her re-assembled, torqued and lashed. Fired her up to less than stellar results. Trouble appears to be timing and or carb. Valves move freely and are hot lashed to factory specs.
Well after all that work she still wasn't running worth a hoot above idle.
Started re-checking everything. Valves lashed properly, checked the carb for vacuum leaks checked the distributor cap & wires for good connections, checked the spark plug wires twice to make sure they were in the correct spot (I marked them where they came from) - see a flaw in my thinking
Yes folks I didn't check to see if the plug wires were in the RIGHT order before marking. 1 & 2 were flipped. DOH!!! Stupid human tricks again.
She still wouldn't stay running for more than a few seconds. Start tapping the gas tank....hollow, hollow, hollow.... You have to be kidding! I need a new gas sending unit! Empty 5 gallon (fresh) mower gas can into tank.
WooHoo!!
I twisted the distributor till it sounded decent and tightened it down. **** with the timing light I was going for a ride!
It's amazing how much better they run when you use the factory firing order.
A few laps around the development weren't enough so I got adventurous and grabbed my wallet and cell phone. Drove all the way to the local gas station to put 10 gallons in and then back home....2.5 miles round trip, maybe 3 if you count the neighborhood victory lap, but it still felt good , **** good.
Manual steering, bias ply tires and 4 something gears definitely made her feel like a truck.
Now I'm even more impressed! Cylinders 1, 3 and 4 had stuck valves or popped push rods - 0 compression. Cylinder 2 had the wrong plug wire. So she was running on 2.5 cylinders. That's impressive.
https://youtu.be/PBLQRVSzU2U