Hello,
I recently got my 216 running for the first time. It runs really well, but there are some concerns. I believe it is a '52 (or '62?) dealer replacement block.
I did a dry and wet (poured a bit of oil down the plug hole) compression test before firing it up. Results are below, (dry / wet):
1) 76 / 98
2) 76 / 90
3) 72 / 89
4) 70 / 86
5) 90 / 100
6) 89 / 110
I have read that the cylinders should not vary any more than 7-10%. Do these numbers indicate a potential head gasket leak? Likely between #4 and #5? I will do a valve adjustment soon to attempt to improve these numbers a bit.
Another concern is I opened the water jacket drain plug and the sludge that came out was oily. From what I have read it is normal for this to be rusty material, but oily can't be a good sign is it?
I changed the oil a long time ago when I first got the truck and it did not seem to be contaminated with coolant, but I am no expert. But if I do have a bad gasket, am I doomed to pulling the head and replacing the gasket or are there other options or potential causes of oil contamination? I am not 100% committed to keeping this engine, so I don't want to dump a ton of cash into it. Thanks.
James
