Cylinder head removal

jasper53

Member
Has anyone taken the cylinder head off an SC complete with manifolds, carb. etc. Mate has head gasket to replace and trying to save time and gaskets. Everything else is fine, though may replace tensioner if it has a lot of wear. Does 'jingle' a bit. Had a look at our own SC and it looks as though it may come off as a lump? Cheers, Rob
 
Has anyone taken the cylinder head off an SC complete with manifolds, carb. etc. Mate has head gasket to replace and trying to save time and gaskets. Everything else is fine, though may replace tensioner if it has a lot of wear. Does 'jingle' a bit. Had a look at our own SC and it looks as though it may come off as a lump? Cheers, Rob
Many years ago I changed the Head gasket on my 2200 SC , in an afternoon, having never done it before and kept the carb and manifold attached.
 
Has anyone taken the cylinder head off an SC complete with manifolds, carb. etc. Mate has head gasket to replace and trying to save time and gaskets. Everything else is fine, though may replace tensioner if it has a lot of wear. Does 'jingle' a bit. Had a look at our own SC and it looks as though it may come off as a lump? Cheers, Rob
The jingling is most likely caused by low oil pressure and needing new main bearing shells. There’s a sticky in the 4 cyl engine section describing how to fix it. If you have original chain tensioners keep them as the new ones have a high failure rate. I would advise you to clean the gauze filter below the oil line banjo fitting on the cyl head as that can restrict oil flow to the tensioner and reduce pressure.

I don’t have any experience on the SC head removal, but my understanding is it’s a lot easier than the TC. The intake manifold is integral to the head and it has the cast iron exhaust mani so less to battle removing it. Of course always replace the oil O ring at the back of the head that sits in the head gasket, those leak at the best of times. With luck @harveyp6 will be along soon with more knowledge on the SC head.
 
Will have a look at the filter. Chain does feel loose though. Plenty of oil pressure 65psi cold 55 hot. Lifting the lump will be more weight, just wondered if anything got in the way. Got a new Renold tensioner with the spring missing, nice new body and pad though! He has been complaining of power loss over time. Cam timing has probably retarded itself with the worn pad and chain. Compressions are a bit low between 5-10psi from original, but motor is only 70k, No smoke and starts well enough so going to have a look at the cam clearances and the valves. The rubbish fuel these days doesn't help either. If the 'o' ring doesn't come with the head gasket, we will have one somewhere in our stores. Agree that is a must have item. One good thing, I will know how to do the job if our SC ever needs the top off!
 
Got the top off the car. Head gasket was gone in two places. 'o' ring looked OK but will replace anyway. Going to try a different section of ring in the car, one used for sealing hydraulic motors. These are a square section and will have more surface area. Did take the valves out and give them a quick grind in. Valve clearances are all about a thou too much, so they will be fine. Waiting for the head gasket to arrive. Did find a lot of wear on the top tensioner, see photo, will replace that one with the Renold item we got earlier on. The lower one had its oil feed hole plugged with Sh.. you know what. Took a 150psi air line to clear it. Hopefully with these two problems taken care of the thing may run quieter? Checked the mains and big ends, they look like new. Probably the reason for the good oil pressure.
 

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You might want to stick with a round section O ring as the seat in the block is shaped to fit one. Not sure how well a square section O ring would seal against it.
 
Forgot to mention we made an interesting discovery on removing the cylinder head !! If anyone needs one or two valve springs, you know who to call, as we have ordered a full set for the car.
 

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Forgot to mention we made an interesting discovery on removing the cylinder head !! If anyone needs one or two valve springs, you know who to call, as we have ordered a full set for the car.
I would just replace the whole set of valve springs. If one has gone, you can't be sure what sort of state the others are in. It could be down to over revving or just a bad original batch of springs when the car was built. I've not seen a broken valve spring on a four cylinder engine before.
 
Looks like a racing engine failure, seen it before due to over revving. Wouldn't have thought that on this car though as it's automatic, so must just be a bad spring. Anyway, we have a full set of new 'Terrys' springs on the way. hopefully we find nothing else falling off? Rob
 
This is the type of seal the guy wants to try. The last 'o' ring which came with the gasket set didn't last long before starting to leak again. He has been told by the seal supplier that these are a better product than a standard nitrile ring due to having a double sealing surface on both sides and the top and bottom and are also made from a material which can cope with heated oil. This ring is exactly the same imperial uncompressed dimensions as the standard 'o' ring. The bottom of the machined groove in the head is flat, so it should seal OK. His car, his money, we'll give it a go. Only time will tell. Cheers for all your replies. Rob
 

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The profile of the seal seat in hydraulic applications is different to the profile of the O ring seat in the block. I second what Harvey said, I think It's going to be less reliable.
 
All I can say is I've seen a flat ring used, and it failed quickly. The quad seal rings are designed for use in dynamic (i.e. moving) sealing. They are not designed for static use. I'd also point out that the DeDion tube uses quad seals, so Rover was quite aware and chose to use a round section ring there, as they have everywhere in the car where the seal is static. I suspect the failure you experienced with the last head gasket was down to substandard material, not the shape of the ring.

I consulted with Apple Rubber about this several years ago, the info I got from them was that the round ring was the correct design for the application, but they recommended a Viton material as an upgrade, as they couldn't be certain what grade of nitrile was originally spec'ed by Rover.

Yours
Vern
 
I second what Harvey said, I think It's going to be less reliable.

I never said a thing Guv'nor!

But I do agree with what you think I said. I replaced lots of those O-rings when doing head gaskets, and when the rings themselves were leaking, and I never had one leak afterwards, so if the O-rings on sale now are of the same quality I see no reason why there should be a problem. The only thing I did was coat the O-ring with Blue Hylomar gel, that holds it in place, and gives a bit of extra protection.
 
As with a lot of things on these cars, the idea was an afterthought, rather than designed in. At least the Ford OHV had a copper washer built in to the gasket, rather than a silly rubber seal expected to keep 65psi of hot oil at bay. That close to the edge of the cylinder head as well. Ford idea still failed though! I think it is probably down to the quality of the material of the rings these days as suggested. The seal he is proposing putting in is a viton material. If it leaks, guess what, he's paying for another gasket. Agree with harvey regarding the Hylomar, good gear. Why people insist on using silicone instant gasket everywhere is a mystery to me. Gets in places it shouldn't, radiators, water pumps, oil pumps. Horrible stuff. Just waiting for the new valve springs and we are go for launch. Or lunch, depending when they land.
 
I never said a thing Guv'nor!

But I do agree with what you think I said. I replaced lots of those O-rings when doing head gaskets, and when the rings themselves were leaking, and I never had one leak afterwards, so if the O-rings on sale now are of the same quality I see no reason why there should be a problem. The only thing I did was coat the O-ring with Blue Hylomar gel, that holds it in place, and gives a bit of extra protection.
Sorry mate, got you confused with that Vern geezer.....

I would add you want a modern head gasket kit not a NOS one. That way it's guarenteed to be best quality for the job. I've had good results with these guys: GASKETS for CLASSICS | eBay Stores
 
They do a nice conversion set and a cam cover gasket in a cork/rubber mix which we got for this car. Good to deal with and very fast delivery.
 
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