rookie engine rebuild

nwymbs · #1 (**permalink**) 03-28-2009, 08:52 PM

Hi all -

I'm rebuilding the engine in my 63 giulia spider which has been a pretty good educational experience to say the least. I do have a couple questions....

There was an unbelievable amount of debris and rust in the block surrounding the cylinders. Amazingly, none of the cylinders were stuck that badly but I was faced with a rather good amount of scraping and de-sludging. I knew this was going to be a chore because my petcock was totally clogged when the engine was first removed from the car.

1) My first question is related to this. There are a couple holes between chambers 1&2 and 3&4 that I assume, drain the coolant. Is this correct? Please see attached pics. Pic 1 and 2 are the holes, pic3 is the petcock drain. Regardless, they were all extremely clogged and I have been able to make some clearing success with penetrating oil and careful drilling. Is there a way to check whether these are cleared? Or should I bring the block to a specialist for a cleaning? If there's a cleaning method out there for fixing this , what would that be?

2) How do you remove the pulley from the water pump/impeller shaft? I have no idea....

Thanks
Nick

crashmctavish · #2 (**permalink**) 03-28-2009, 09:08 PM

How do you remove the pulley from the water pump/impeller shaft? I have no idea

Nick its usual to replace the whole pump, they are not expensive, you would only strip the pump if you had a new mechanical seal fo fit in its place which i doubt.
Dont forget the heater matrix may be in similar condition & the heated inlet manifold.

**Alfar7** · #3 (**permalink**) 03-28-2009, 09:14 PM

1- those holes are not "holes". They are not drains. You "drilled"?? If they are open to the crankcase the motor is now a "table bottom".

those are but machining post.
To clean you need good cleaner like Castrol Super Clean Purple cleaner and high pressure. In a day of soaking scrubing with the alkaline cleaner it will look new.

2- you don`t, without the correct fixtures & tools. contact Gordon Raymond on the BB. let him do it.

nwymbs · #4 (**permalink**) 03-29-2009, 11:51 AM

1) Ok, makes sense now. they were so filled with gunk - I wish I had a picture to show - that I delicately drilled the gunk so it was easier to spray out. I guess things are in good shape now.

2) I have a mechanic in town that can handle removing the pulley from the water pump. The pulley pictured on the pump offered by Centerline is larger than what I have. Another stupid question: does this matter? Hopefully, I'm not bringing on too much eye rolling here. In any regard, this was why I wanted to remove the pulley in the first place. If it doesn't matter than I'll forget the whole thing.

**Andrew** · #5 (**permalink**) 03-29-2009, 03:31 PM

That amount of crud in the block is normal after decades of use. I just cleaned a 2" depth of this stuff out of my 750 Berlina block, which hadn't been apart in 30+ years. As long as the head studs are secure in the block and not corroded/narrowed at some point, you should be OK. Clean the liner mating area well, esp the bevel where the liner o-rings seat. The rest of the area's not as critical to clean.

Andrew

**alphil** · #6 (**permalink**) 03-30-2009, 04:52 AM

What if the studs are loose in the block.Do new thread serts or heli-coils work in this situation,or is it time for a visit to the machine shop or for a different block?Where do you shop for head studs?Phil

**Alfa-Jerone** · #7 (**permalink**) 03-30-2009, 07:52 AM

I've used inserts and sourced new studs at Alfastop. It all worked out fine.

**pathung** · #8 (**permalink**) 03-30-2009, 08:33 AM

Nice job cleaning! What did you use to scrub it down so well?

**Andrew** · #9 (**permalink**) 03-30-2009, 08:33 AM

You can also just see if the original threads in the block are OK and use a stud installer and loctite to reinstall the studs. Normally the opposite is the case; that if you want to remove the studs they're stuck, and can break off in the removal attempt. this is an area in which to be careful.

Look carefully for corrosion on the studs, especially near where they enter the block. It's not good to hear one break as you're torquing the head.

Andrew

**Alfa-Jerone** · #10 (**permalink**) 03-31-2009, 01:59 AM

nothing special other than patience.
In my case the liner mating surface was heavily corroded and I grinded it down a bit to clean it up. I had the same amount removed of the top of the block to restore the liner protrusion. It all worked out fine and the engine runs like a charm.

Jerone

**Alfa-Jerone** · #11 (**permalink**) 03-31-2009, 11:38 AM

I welded a nut to the old studs which was a great help on removal.