Day Sixteen - Pulling off the head

Cleaning the oil pan

Wasn't sure how I was going to tackle removing the pistons yet, so I decided to start with a cleanup job first. The oil pan was filthy and I wanted to clean out any residual particles that may have fallen into it. I noticed what I thought were shavings from the destroyed bearings, so I had to make sure none of that was lingering. Using a bunch of engine degreaser, a bunch of old towels and some elbow grease, I think I got it looking pretty good.

Removing the head

So I had to eventually bite the bullet and get to it. I marked each of the 10 head bolts and removed them in sequence. I was trying to be careful with every little thing. I got a chance to see what a 147K+ mile engine looked like. I didn't really know what to expect. To my untrained eye, it was interesting to see all of the carbon buildup. I suppose it makes sense though. I took a lot of reference pictures, figuring I might need to show them to others for advice. 

I was particularly interested in seeing how the cylinders made out. Again, without any experience I was just making guesses. They seemed to look alright and I didn't see any scoring that I was afraid would have come from the destroyed bearing. I took reference pictures of the valves. You know, just take pictures of everything I thought.

Removing the pistons

Next came time to remove the pistons. One by one I unbolted the rod caps and slid the pistons out, making sure I labeled which one was which. I wasn't sure what I was going to do yet, so labeling them still seemed the most prudent thing to do. With all the pistons out, I got a good look at the crankshaft rod journals and they didn't look so good. Especially the one with the spun bearing. 

I boxed and labeled the pistons. Not sure if I was going to use them again. From what I read, it looks like I would go the over-sized route, which meant buying new pistons so the cylinders could get bored out. Of course, this required some consultation on the part of others who have more experience with this than me.

 I was done for the weekend. Off to do more research on what I'm getting myself into. Heh.