428 coolant loss new motor

[Bob Gaines]

The 1246 felpros are soggy as hell and wavy between ports. They seem to appear as if they shifted as well. When I removed the 427 fuel filter canister bracket from the head you could follow the trail of coolant from the front corner of the intake manifold.  The oil did have a slight amount of froth in a couple places. However for the most part doesn't look completely compromised.  I bought another seven quarts of Penngrade break-in oil and a gasket replacement with Fel Pro 1246 S3.  I am debating if I want to just put five quarts of Rotella, let it run a few minutes to make sure most of the water is out and then change the filter and Penngrade break-in oil and a new filter?
Consensus would be nice from someone who has cleaned oil that has mixed slightly with water. Thanks again.

A slight amount of water in the oil is not a problem because it will evaporate when the engine warms up. A small amount of water condenses in the oil when it cools down just like it does in your exhaust every heat cycle . With that said I don't think you have to go to extraordinary extent to get rid of any small amount of water after draining the oil and changing the filter. That is if there is not anti freeze mixed in to the water in your radiator. Antifreeze will not evaporate and will cause a bearing to fail if it comes in contact with it. If it is a anti freeze mixture it can be real bad and you want to do what ever to try and minimize the possibility of it getting into any bearings . Of course you can try and clean it out and hope for the best but the only sure fire way after a anti freeze mixture circulates in the engine is a complete tear down .  I hope you were using water for the initial break in period like many do before adding anti freeze .

[2112]

I am a believer in re-torquing head gaskets even if they are supposed to be one-time torque.

Having worked with boat motors for years, I have had water in the crankcase issues. The water will kill your bearings and needs to be completely removed. Tiny amounts of water can be evaporated if you can get the oil over 212 degrees and keep it there without stressing the bearings.

The only way I have been able to get it all out was to drain all the oil, put in a gallon of diesel and run the pump on a drill to flush all the passages. Drain that diesel and repeat. If you capture the diesel in something you can see into, the water should separate to the bottom. I repeated until there was no water.

Diesel is cheaper than oil and scrubs the water better.

When you get all the water out, drain all the diesel. If you are not sure you are draining it all, pulling the pan can help immensely. Let it sit a day or two to drain out. Diesel drains better than oil, but can still hide.

Refill with your oil and reprime the pump up thru the rockers and fire it up.

Is it overkill? Well when you figure in the cost of the engine, no. Yeah someone will tell you it isn't necessary, but they don't have your time and $ on the line.

Water kills bearings. Mains, Rod, Lifters, Rockers....all of them.

[2112]

Forgot to mention, I would only run the first oil fill briefly before changing.

I also agree wit Bob that disassembly may ultimately be the best move.

[67350#1242]

I've had this same problem with small block aluminum intake using non metal core gaskets.  I think the differing expansion rates of aluminum vs steel causes them to shift and break apart in short order. Changed to the metal core Fel-Pros and no problems since.   I hope the metal cores solve your problem too.
Kurt.

[motorhead428]

When retorquing head gaskets, I have loosened one bolt at a time, then retorque that bolt and move to the next. Use the factory sequence.

[1967 eight barrel]

Well, the likely culprit is found.  The left head is the only leaker. It appeared that the two center cylinders are the only ones with water in the cylinders.  I took the intake and the head down to a highly recommended machine shop who I had check the intake and head.
The intake was so straight that a .002 shim wouldn't even fit under the straight edge at any point along the port flanges or base.

The head on the other hand did have an issue. I had it pressure tested and magnafluxed which it passed.  The surface was actually convex. .006 directly center. .007 was cut to fix the issue and the head surface is now square and flat.

I know that .006 doesn't sound like much, but the low point was centered about the middle of the head between the chambers and measured low at the center point side to side and end to end. 
I am not sure how the head acted once torqued.
I reinstalled the head today and used thread sealer on the head bolts during re-installation. I had block oil passages sleeved during it's machining process, despite there being no signs of any leakage or coolant loss in the 12 years it sat in the garage assembled and driven around the block on occasion.
I am going to do a pressure test once I complete the re-assembly before I even start the vehicle. Hopefully this ends the saga and I can enjoy the car for a while. Once again, this goes to the point that machine shops and good builders are far and few between. 
                                                                               
                                                                                                    -Keith

[pbf777]

.

I am going to do a pressure test once I complete the re-assembly before I even start the vehicle.
                                                                               
                                                                                                    -Keith

     I would recommend a procedure where water w/ coolant (always) is added just prior to start-up, a good heat cycling with thorough cooling, a proper retorquing of fasteners, a second heat cycle, and then if you wish a pressure test; as setting of the gaskets is often not accomplished without the heat cycling process and the retorquing, particularly in problematic applications.   

     Scoot.

     

[1967 eight barrel]

I contacted Fel Pro. They said do not disturb them once they are torqued.  I bought the big dollar gaskets. As for re-torquing, someone suggested loosening it up and then re-torquing one at a time in normal sequence.  I used sealer with the intake set, despite them having the steel shim for stabilization. The intake and head gasket should be water tight without starting the vehicle. I am also going to allow it to run for just a few minutes before shutting it down and draining it and changing oil. The last change will be the Brad Penn break in oil.
I am going to allow it to idle, as I don't want to load the bearings while I get the little bit of coolant from the oil.