I posted on here a week or two ago about having a problem with my 235 not getting oil up to the head. It was suggested to look for a special head bolt with holes or a groove cut in it for oil to get past. I pulled that bolt out today and lo and behold. There is a regular head bolt in the location where the special bolt should be. I'm thinking that when the engine was rebuilt the bolt was probally put in the wrong spot. My question is: Can I just loosen one head bolt at a time, Check to see if it's the right one, then torque it back down again, then move on to the next one or should I loosen all the head bolts then torque them back down in sequence? What torque specs should I use? What pattern should I tighten the bolts back down in? I just wanted to say thank-you for all the great advice I've gotten on here. The wealth of knowledge is amazing. Someone always has an answer for me right away. Thanks, Clint 59chev
I would do maybe two or three head bolts total, but only one at a time. Any more than that is risking the head gasket not sealing again. Look on all the head bolts for a line or notch ground in it, or a different marking on the head of the bolt. This will take work to clean them all off, but you might spot the funny bolt this way. But also check what year the head and block are, because the head bolt trick was used only on some years, iirc. torque spec is 90-95 #ft
I had another junk engine at home with a cracked block that I checked for that special bolt and brought it back with me. It looks like someone just cut a small groove in it with a cut off wheel. It doesn't look like a whole lot of oil will get past that way. Can I just cut a little deeper with a cutoff wheel? What did the stock bolt look like? Can I just make one with the spare I grabbed from the engine at home? I looked at all the bolts in the head and none of them looked any different form the others. I also plan to run the auxilary oil line from the filter ***embly to the hole where the pipe plug was on the side of the head. The engine in question is a '62 235
I've seen stock bolts with holes thru them, and with a shallow groove ground on the shank of the bolt. According to the 58 truck shop manual, the oil should go up thru a p***age next to the head bolt, not around the head bolt itself on these newer engines. But they redesigned the block in 58, so that if you have the 57 or earlier solid lifters, then oil will not be able to get thru the lifter oil p***age, and so the top end will be dry. The correct 58-later lifters have an "annulus" around them to let the oil p*** (like Chevy V8 lifters). Early lifters are straight sided, with an oil hol near the bottom. Maybe you could pull off the side cover, and pull out that plug in the middle. See if the hole in it going sideways is open. Pull off the rocker shaft, and squirt oil down the little hole that the rocker shaft oil tube sticks into. If oil comes out the plug hole in the pushrod area, then all is well. If not, see if you can find where it's plugged up. I don't have a shop manual newer than 1959, so it's possible that something else changed by 1962... Did you verify the year of your engine by decoding the date codes? Just checking....
Jim, I appreciate all the info. This is my first attempt at trouble shooting engine problems. If I pull off the rocker shaft, how much trouble is it to put it back on? will things like valve lash need to be reset? I will go out to the garage and check the numbers off the block and head. Is it a good idea to put that special bolt in anyway regardless? How much of a groove should be in it. The one that is the bolt I removed out of the engine at my parenets place doesn't look very deep, It barely goes deeper than the depth of the threads. Is it a good idea to run oil off a T at where the oil comes out of the block for the oil filter directly to the where the pipe plug on the side of the head on the p***engers side, even if I do fix the other oiling problem just to make sure it's getting oil up there? Thanks, Clint
Hey, Can you get to the engine casting number? It's on the block, not on the head. Not sure where on the one you have, but on mine it's on the fuel pump side, along the oilpan rail. You can e-mail that number to Tom Langdon (www.stoveboltengineco.com) and he can tell you if your engine needs the bolt or not. If it doesn't, you might have the problem elsewhere. The special headbolt was not used on all years, mine (a 59) doesn't have it. As for the torquing sequence, mine did have a very specific sequence and I got it out of a Chevy shop manual. AS far as the oiling idea you mentioned, not sure about that, but Tom Langon can tell you about that too. He was really helpful when I contacted him. Stacey
The numbers I got off the engine are: Block: (flat machined surface next to distributor) W993883 Head: 3836848 I'm checked a few websites but I've been unable to find either of these numbers yet. The engine came out of a 62 chevy 3/4 ton, and was supposedly rebuilt and parked before I got it.
The place that was working on my truck figures that there is a cam bearing installed wrong. Could that be an issue on these trucks. Is there anyway to check for that? I'm getting good pressure on the gauge I have coming off the oil filter line, so it's pumping oil. Any ideas? Thanks, Clint
You need to find the casting date codes on the head and block. The head is usually under the valve cover, the block has it kind of hiding behind the starter. These are cast numbers, about 1/2" tall, with a sequence like this: C 13 7 which translates as: C = 3rd month = March 13 = 13th day 7 = last digit if year (may also show 57) means 1957 It could be a cam bearing in wrong, but I'd check other things first, such as having the late model lifters if it's a late model block, and then check to see if there's an oil p***age from the side of the block up to the rocker arms. You can pull the rocker arm shafts off by just loosening the 6 bolts evenly till they are all backed off (turn each bolt one turn, then the next one turn, etc). Be careful lifting it off because it will come apart in the middle, and there are some springs and washers that need to go back the way they were. Keep it level so things don't fall off. It would be a good idea to adjust the valves again after you get it all working.
Check out this post. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=UBB1&Number=545733&Forum=All_Forums&Words=headbolt&Match=Entire%20Phrase&Searchpage=0&Limit=25&Old=1month&Main=545526&Search=true#Post545733
My question is: Even if I don't need an oiling headbolt, It shouldn't hurt anything to put one in there should it? I pulled that bolt out of a junker 235 I have at home that was the motor that came in my 59 pickup when I bought it and it had another take on the oiling bolt. It had a shallow groove cut in it vertically the length if the threads. If I decide to make an oiling headbolt myself, does it matter where on the bolt I drill a hole. Obviously by the picture it should be righ at the top of the threads but can I drill a hole on any spot around the bolt at the top of the threads or do I need to do it in a certian spot to ensure correct orientation when I put the bolt back in the head? Or should I just take a cut off wheel and cut the existing groove in the bolt a little deeper?
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