Great DIY solution. One tip. Sharpie the head surface before you sand paper it. Once you start to sand you should remove all of the sharpie. If there are areas where you still have sharpie, then those are your low spots. This will tell you if you got all the material off or if there are issues with your method.
This dude is unbelievable! Just popped up in my feed and he is 💯 better than any other automotive channels I watch! GREAT VIDEO MY FRIEND 👍 I JUST SUBSCRIBED!😊
After cutting the necessary material to straighten the head, you need to finish the head with 180 grit sandpaper, to achieve around 0.80ra surface roughness so that the steel nitrile-viton gasket seals and also have enough grain to grab against blow out.
@steinfabgarage love your videos but yeah love it or hate it a 20$ more of 180 sandpaper, would makes a world of difference down the road. I used to work at a machine shop.
Any stone countertop shop will have lots of sink and cooktop cutouts. They will be more flat and also free. They have to pay to discard them so most shops would be happy to give you a piece or two.
Please show how to do it in car your content is so in depth and entertaining I’m learning lots for the at home garage worker. My 06 Impreza has signs of head gasket failure so I’m very interested in doing this with out removing the entire engine!!
I attempted removing the heads without pulling the engine, but couldn't reach one of the valve cover bottom bolts. Gave up and pulled engine, though pulling the engine is not the worst job. Once you are down to the heads, there are only another 10 or so bolts to take out
Yup.. that’s exactly how I resurfaced the block on my ‘01 Forester which had previously overheated. The trick is to pass the stone on top on the block/heads without putting extra weight on them, just let the weight of the stone do the job with several passes and measure for warping with a straight edge. Use 1,200 grit sabd paper. After I was done with the passes, not even 0.002” went under the straight edge on mine. After replacing its H/Gs with an MLS, that n/a 2.5L engine became a tank!
I agree 110% with your head resurface method. Also I was was WAS going to nag you about HOW THE HELL a clogged heater core could cause engine overheat (time stamp 1:17). But I stopped, did some research & learned (to my amazement) Subaru (EJ based at least) are designed to run coolant thru heater core 100% while engine is running. ((There exists no control valve to stop the flow in summer etc like in vehicles I'm more familiar with)) So I can see how a clogged core could INDEED cause problems that the design does not tolerate. So I apologize & glad I researched BEFORE "firing off" at you!!.
That’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever read. Most the clowns on the internet speak without knowing a thing, which is why I ignore my comments section now. All the Subaru owners who use stop leak are dooming their car for problem after problem. Then they wonder why the headgaskets blow in 50k when the originals lasted 150k This method works 100%, AS LONG AS YOU CLEAN ALL THE METAL OUT AFTER. The same goes for any machining process tho.
@@steinfabgarage previous owner of my 2005 Outback XT ran some coolant system stop leak to clog up a radiator leak... radiator still leaked but it clogged the heater core lol Fortunately, coolant was still able to run through it but barely... didn't blow up the gaskets, but still had to replace a heater core ! Not a fun job haha
I love your videos. My 2010 Forrester lost a head gasket, and your video is the most informative one that I've watched. Yes, I would like to see you do a video of you pulling the head without removing the engine. Thank you for your content.
Enjoyed watching this, a past machinist for many years. If head touch-up resurfacing with coated abrasives is something you do enough, might be worth picking up a good used Starrett granite inspection plate for a few hundred bucks.
I Used a piece of glass with rounded edges used contact adhesive to glue the sand paper down on both sides one side finer grit for finishing and put it on a wooden work bench didn't move one bit and valve grinding compound and lapped the valves with a drill and a bit of vacuum hose on the stem and put them through a dish washer actually worked bloody well runs like a champ ej25 heads on my 08wrx pushing 18psi through it 270,000 km on the odometer so far
How did you calculate how much mm of material is removed during resurfacing onvsandpaper? How do you select how much thick head gasket to install to keep timing true?
@@lordjaashin I didn't. It's just sanding to get the surface straight. It's not removing enough material to justify a thicker gasket. I've heard that back in the day guys would do it to steel heads on their concrete driveway. Average daily driver cars will tolerate more abuse than people think they will. YT has convinced people that every engine build requires a clean room and thousands $ in machine work.
You posted this just days before I start a head-gasket/re-seal job on a 2009 outback ej253. Great timing! If the surfaces don't seem too bad, I may consider this budget method. If they are bad, I'll suck up that machine shop decking cost. Great post! (also your ej25 engine pull video came in handy as a reference!)
The amount of stuff I've learned in one day of watching your videos is incredible. Keep up the good work and I really enjoy the videos you're putting out on Subarus
I've found that dish soap with some water works better than WD-40 at washing the swarf away. With that i've basically been able to just keep grinding endlessly. Also if you're worried about cost, then you can get large sandpaper sheets without the glue and just get a can of spray glue.
I’ll give the soap a try next time. I’m not worried about cost, time is critical for me. I started doing this when I would offer 24 hour headgasket/ timing jobs. Most of the time it was for the external oil leak, 1 hr and I’d be putting it back together
Remove the spark plugs first. Also, pressure wash or clean the heads any other way before you do this. I have done this many times when I had no money, it does work. Also, aluminum heads need a much higher grit finish than that, at least 150.
Negative, you want a little roughness to hold the gasket. 7 year machinist here, and over 120 (60) cars done like this. Bmw N20 motors are notorious for slipping timing, the updated parts are LASER ETCHED to provide friction and reduce slipping
@@steinfabgarage Only for Iron blocks/heads with traditional head gaskets. Modern aluminum blocks/heads and MLS head gaskets require at least 150 grit to 180, sometimes more like 220 grit. The RA for aluminum with MLS is 30 to 20, or 180 to 220 grit. Look it up.
I've done something pretty similar with a mazda BP 1.8 head and block and it worked great. Used one of those pneumatic long sanding boards for the block to flatten it enough the MLS gasket sealed fine. A trick I learned for carbon and crud on valves from a grey hair.. use a brass punch and a hammer to strike the stem of the valve (on the cam side) which briefly shocks the valve open/closed helping it seat. Edit: also.. awww kitty...
Mate, love the content. It’s first class. I want to see you to a Suzuki Jimny if you can get your hands on one state side. Got one here in the UK. Think you’d love working on that and it’d be great content!
Good technique thx for the tile idea 😆 may use glass but wish I had a long milled block like 2 or 3 ft by 1 ft however thick, Yayy N20s lol, just rebuilt the entire Mitsubishi made turbo on my sister's N20 in her f30 (14 320i X) plus a catted d/pipe and res delete. Wanted to get a Shuenk turbo kit because the wastegate flapper design is totally different and 10 times better then the stock setup that wears out, Ended up just getting an upgraded cartridge and replaced the wastegate flapper assembly.
You are up there with Mr Subaru. This video is on another level for doing head work. Thanks for this and demystifying resurfacing heads. Brilliant work. After resurfacing can you still use the recommended gasket, or because you have shaved off a few thousands off, you need thicker gaskets? And, would you say this is only for Subaru's or any car which have aluminum heads? Have subs. Bloody good work. Cheers
Sweet video i forgot all about that way to do a head been a long time since i did that my son just got a 08 legacy with 116k i think then i found out they have issues like that plus i have found a few on marketplace with bad headgaskets and i need a vehicle i can put rools in like a wagon or suv but something good on gas work isnt so good right now and my 10 f150 has the tranny going out i cant change it wven if i liked the truck lol had heart surgery back on February 1st so trying to get back to working right now on our condo it coufht fire on February 16 on February 7 when my youngest brought me home he totaled my 08 sonata my oldest already did that 3 years ago but was a easy fix lol he had to get a car i havnt been able to get his explorer on the road tet have it filled qith new parts but with everything going on its been undoable lol i would love to see a in care video on getting the heads off would help me out if i decide to get one also looking at a couple older diesel something i can use black diesel in no dpf or what ever its callled lol thanks for the video!!!!!!!!
2006 Forester non turbo I see oil leakage on the passenger side where the head meats the block. Not seeing loss of coolant or power. No overheating Just hella annoying to have it drip on the exhaust and smoke up the cabin Can I do this job on the 2006 without having to remove the engine?
It's not that they're stronger it's that they are multilayer steel (MLS) gaskets that allow some flex when the engine goes through heat cycles. And, yes. Use the MLS gaskets. I recently ordered the master seal kit from Subaru (10105AC380) and it came with the non-MLS gaskets. I did not use them.
Thank you for the video, I plan on doing this on my daughter's 2011 outback soon, I pulled the motor. I set the timing marks before pulling the heads, 1 head all valves are closed, the other has intakes wide open. I'm guessing I'm going to have to close them before doing this, And reset the timing when installed. Would it be a good idea to lightly spray the head with something to see where the low spots are? It was getting very slight bubbling into the overflow tank. I just drilled a small extra hole in the thermostat to get her by for a few months until we could put the car down for a bit. Car ran excellent but ran a little cold. Thanks again
Wouldn't let me edit again, Meant to say both intake valves widen open, and on other cylinder next to it exhaust valve open. Guess I'll just mark it, roll the cam to close valves and move back afterward
Rotate the cams till there’s a 30 degrees in either direction with zero load. No, just start resurfacing it and it will be obvious. Time the block first, they don’t time at TDC, so with the block set, your free to rotate the cams, not the other way around as the valves will be open
@@steinfabgarage Thank you for the reply, Appreciate it. The block is still set, I noticed there was a notch,.and a arrow on the crank pulley, I went with the notch as that was the only way to get crank and cams to all match timing marks. 1 head is still set exactly as I pulled it, The pulley hasn't spun and still sitting as it was, So is the other, But I'll have to rotate that to close valves. I'll probably just mark it, Rotate, When reinstalling, Turn cam back to original mark and install...Put the belt on, crank over by hand a few revolutions, And cross my fingers..lol I was not aware they didn't time to TDC. I guess that's what all the extra paint dots/marks and arrows are for. I'll just want to make sure this thing is correct, As I never want to do it again. Thanks Again for your reply and your videos in general, A lot of help for sure.
Hey mate love your vlogs. What's your take on 2006 EJ20 versus EJ25 with respect to continued head gasket issues. Correct me if I'm wrong.. And I know you will! The EJ20 (non turbo) engines have a better cooling system as there is more water cooling the engine?
Here in the US, the only 20’s we got were turbo in the WRX, so I don’t have experience with the NA’s. But even the turbos were open deck VS the 25 semi closed deck. So yes I would say more coolant is good and leads to less head-gasket issues. Also, less power, less issues
Great video man, i do have a few questions. Will 80 grit work with mls RA requirements? also, I've found almost all aluminum blocks like to warp as well. do you surface the block too?
Yeah 80 grit is good for MLS ( I’ve used 60 so 80’is super safe) Razor blade the block surface so get the gasket material off, and your good, even if it’s out .002” that’s fine
I’ll be 62 in a couple of months and have spent the last 2 years pretending to be a mechanic. Why, you might ask? Because I bought a 2003 Subaru Baja site unseen. Even paid stupid crazy money to have it transported across 2 states. I’m concerned about how my brain is aging. About a year ago, my radiator lost the will to live in the middle of I-10 in San Antonio. At the time, I had not attended TH-cam University (had no reason to) and thus just replaced the radiator with a big hole on top with a new one. That’s right, I never questioned why it offed itself, I just replaced it. At this point, I have replaced a great deal of my engine one piece at a time and wouldn’t you know, it’s still overheating. If an engine could do a middle finger salute it would look like the Subaru doorstop in my driveway. So, you mentioned if one person commented that they wanted you to provide a video on how to get to where this one started then you’d produce one. Considere it requested. And now, I leave you (anyone who bothered to read this far) with one question: is a blown head gasket the only thing that would cause overheating and white smoke out the tailpipe (which dissipates after driving for 5-10 minutes)? I SERIOUSLY DON’T WANT TO PLAY MECHANIC ANYMORE! I’m old, not even close to how strong I used to be, I have “authoritis” in my hands, bursitis in my elbows and gasketitis in my DNA. In other words, PLEASE let there be an alternate reason for the plume of failed dreams puffing out the ass end of my Baja. It’s embarrassing.
Sounds like it's the headgasket. Do a leak down test and see what comes from it. Actually you can test if it's a headgasket if you fill put a funnel full of coolant in your open your radiator cap (make sure it's cold) and if bubbles come up when you're giving it gas, that's your headgasket. I'd do both before saying it's a headgasket. Also sorry for your taste in cars (subarus) 😅
I would like to see your video of in car head removal ... Preferably the complete year down ... I have a 2009 outback 2.5 non turbo if it's possible to do that
Loved the video, I’ve been thinking about doing this for my neon I need to put back together. I’ve seen heads on neons be out .004 that didn’t leak on a turbo race car. But they knew they were running a risk at the time.
They headgasket is meant to compensate for flaws, that’s it’s job. But most manuals state that .003 is the limit. . I’ll be trying my skidsteer head this week (4cyl), to date, 3cyl heads (v6) are the largest I have done, so we will see….
@@steinfabgarage might be worth it to get a longer slab and sandpaper for a belt sander. I’ve seen people doing v8 heads I just don’t know what they were using at the time.
Just out of curiosity why do you use 80 grit sandpaper? Seems like everyone online is using 200-320 grit with this method. Is there any chance 80 grit will leave too rough of a surface?
Because 80 leaves the gaskets a surface to “hold” on to. It’s the same theory as why port and polish is good for airflow, but bad for fuel atomization. Sometimes rougher is better
No, too smooth is bad, you want to “hold” the gasket, please look up “bmw N20 timing slip” the updated bmw parts are LASER ETCHED to provide friction. This is because there’s no key ways on the crank, everything is sandwiched, just like a head gasket. Same concept.
This concept is definitely a respectable way to "clean up" an aluminum head as long as you don't sand to much. However it is in no way an effective replacement for having the head surfaced at a machine shop. It's so much better than using those little 2 inch discs on a high speed air grinder that I wouldn't even compare it to that kind of butchering type of clean up.
As a 7 year machinist I can tell you, this IS a effective replacement for a machine shop. It pretty hard to sand TOO MUCH. Trust me, we used to mill .020-.030 tho off customer heads all the time. I HIGHLY AGREE with the BUTCHERING done with the 2” discs, we would see them come in “cleaned” by those and often have to have the head welded due to low spots around the fire ring (combustion chamber)
If you worked in a machine shop then you should understand that you have no clue if your sand paper method is keeping the head surface perpendicular to the crank shaft and cam. I doubt as much as .003 difference from one end of the head to the other would cause any valvetrain or bolt alignment issues but your not measuring anything so you don't know if it is off or not. Those tiny 2 cylinder heads are the best case scenario for attempting this in the first place. A 4 cylinder head could easily become off over .005 end to end by trying this.
@@crazyoilfieldmechanic3195 Y U Hate in on this man? I bet u never did a head job in your entire life!!! U might have GAVE SOME HEAD but mechanicly u probably never did any head gaskets a day in ur life!
Lol! Amazing!
As a previous mechanic, I gotta say, you're breaking all the rules in the best ways.
Great DIY solution. One tip. Sharpie the head surface before you sand paper it. Once you start to sand you should remove all of the sharpie. If there are areas where you still have sharpie, then those are your low spots. This will tell you if you got all the material off or if there are issues with your method.
@ yes I do. I’ll correct it in my post.
@Lagos3sgte Great tip regardless. I deleted my comment. Thank you!
This dude is unbelievable! Just popped up in my feed and he is 💯 better than any other automotive channels I watch! GREAT VIDEO MY FRIEND 👍 I JUST SUBSCRIBED!😊
Thanks for the love!!!!! These comments make me unbelievably happy!
That's the coolest TH-cam channel I've discovered this year
Thank you SOOOO much for this! Everyone repeats the same mantra "take it to the machine shop". I figured there was another way. Now I know!
After cutting the necessary material to straighten the head, you need to finish the head with 180 grit sandpaper, to achieve around 0.80ra surface roughness so that the steel nitrile-viton gasket seals and also have enough grain to grab against blow out.
Na
@steinfabgarage love your videos but yeah love it or hate it a 20$ more of 180 sandpaper, would makes a world of difference down the road. I used to work at a machine shop.
The glass top of an old electric kitchen stove works too.
Any stone countertop shop will have lots of sink and cooktop cutouts. They will be more flat and also free. They have to pay to discard them so most shops would be happy to give you a piece or two.
Interesting. Thanks
Life changing stuff going on here!
So I just found this kid while searching milling heads at home for subaru. Im happy I did. Thanks brother for your channel 🙏 😊
Please show how to do it in car your content is so in depth and entertaining I’m learning lots for the at home garage worker. My 06 Impreza has signs of head gasket failure so I’m very interested in doing this with out removing the entire engine!!
I’d pull it with that car, it can be done, but it’s soooooo tight. The bigger body 10-12 outback/ legacy is the only one I’ll do in car.
I attempted removing the heads without pulling the engine, but couldn't reach one of the valve cover bottom bolts. Gave up and pulled engine, though pulling the engine is not the worst job. Once you are down to the heads, there are only another 10 or so bolts to take out
Thank you for doing it in car! Throw a link up to your auto zone parking lot pull!!!
Dude… definitely one of the best videos I’ve seen on DIY, thanks for uploading all your videos, gained a subscriber
Yup.. that’s exactly how I resurfaced the block on my ‘01 Forester which had previously overheated. The trick is to pass the stone on top on the block/heads without putting extra weight on them, just let the weight of the stone do the job with several passes and measure for warping with a straight edge. Use 1,200 grit sabd paper. After I was done with the passes, not even 0.002” went under the straight edge on mine. After replacing its H/Gs with an MLS, that n/a 2.5L engine became a tank!
I agree 110% with your head resurface method. Also I was was WAS going to nag you about HOW THE HELL a clogged heater core could cause engine overheat (time stamp 1:17). But I stopped, did some research & learned (to my amazement) Subaru (EJ based at least) are designed to run coolant thru heater core 100% while engine is running. ((There exists no control valve to stop the flow in summer etc like in vehicles I'm more familiar with)) So I can see how a clogged core could INDEED cause problems that the design does not tolerate. So I apologize & glad I researched BEFORE "firing off" at you!!.
That’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever read. Most the clowns on the internet speak without knowing a thing, which is why I ignore my comments section now.
All the Subaru owners who use stop leak are dooming their car for problem after problem. Then they wonder why the headgaskets blow in 50k when the originals lasted 150k
This method works 100%, AS LONG AS YOU CLEAN ALL THE METAL OUT AFTER. The same goes for any machining process tho.
@@steinfabgarage What do you think of the subaru coolant system conditioner?
@@steinfabgarage previous owner of my 2005 Outback XT ran some coolant system stop leak to clog up a radiator leak... radiator still leaked but it clogged the heater core lol Fortunately, coolant was still able to run through it but barely... didn't blow up the gaskets, but still had to replace a heater core ! Not a fun job haha
This is the most useful and entertaining channel on TH-cam
Seriously one of the most usually tips out there in head work
I love your videos. My 2010 Forrester lost a head gasket, and your video is the most informative one that I've watched. Yes, I would like to see you do a video of you pulling the head without removing the engine. Thank you for your content.
I watched all type mechanics i be watching a video or two but man your videos is where its at 🔥🙌
Enjoyed watching this, a past machinist for many years. If head touch-up resurfacing with coated abrasives is something you do enough, might be worth picking up a good used Starrett granite inspection plate for a few hundred bucks.
I have a machinist straight edge, I’ll look into the Starrett plate! Thank you
Ya or just a peice of machinist check granite@@steinfabgarage
I Used a piece of glass with rounded edges used contact adhesive to glue the sand paper down on both sides one side finer grit for finishing and put it on a wooden work bench didn't move one bit and valve grinding compound and lapped the valves with a drill and a bit of vacuum hose on the stem and put them through a dish washer actually worked bloody well runs like a champ ej25 heads on my 08wrx pushing 18psi through it 270,000 km on the odometer so far
👍 I've done this to 2 Subies. First one went >100k before it was totaled. Second one is at 50k. Both no problem. Felpro MLS HG.
What grid of paper? I think 80 is agresive
How did you calculate how much mm of material is removed during resurfacing onvsandpaper? How do you select how much thick head gasket to install to keep timing true?
@@kamil8149
I don't recall.
@@lordjaashin
I didn't.
It's just sanding to get the surface straight. It's not removing enough material to justify a thicker gasket. I've heard that back in the day guys would do it to steel heads on their concrete driveway. Average daily driver cars will tolerate more abuse than people think they will. YT has convinced people that every engine build requires a clean room and thousands $ in machine work.
Good tonknow on that degreaser.
Seriously the best 👍🏻
You posted this just days before I start a head-gasket/re-seal job on a 2009 outback ej253. Great timing! If the surfaces don't seem too bad, I may consider this budget method. If they are bad, I'll suck up that machine shop decking cost. Great post! (also your ej25 engine pull video came in handy as a reference!)
If there barely blown, this beats waiting for them to be milled. But sometimes a few day break isn’t bad, depends on your situation
The amount of stuff I've learned in one day of watching your videos is incredible. Keep up the good work and I really enjoy the videos you're putting out on Subarus
You totally rock bro 💪🏽
I've found that dish soap with some water works better than WD-40 at washing the swarf away.
With that i've basically been able to just keep grinding endlessly.
Also if you're worried about cost, then you can get large sandpaper sheets without the glue and just get a can of spray glue.
I’ll give the soap a try next time. I’m not worried about cost, time is critical for me. I started doing this when I would offer 24 hour headgasket/ timing jobs. Most of the time it was for the external oil leak, 1 hr and I’d be putting it back together
24h headgasket job would stress me out 😂 how much did you earn for one job?
@@steinfabgarage If I could find 24 hour turnaround near me I would be throwing work at them (Upstate NY)
Remove the spark plugs first. Also, pressure wash or clean the heads any other way before you do this. I have done this many times when I had no money, it does work. Also, aluminum heads need a much higher grit finish than that, at least 150.
Negative, you want a little roughness to hold the gasket. 7 year machinist here, and over 120 (60) cars done like this. Bmw N20 motors are notorious for slipping timing, the updated parts are LASER ETCHED to provide friction and reduce slipping
@@steinfabgarage Only for Iron blocks/heads with traditional head gaskets. Modern aluminum blocks/heads and MLS head gaskets require at least 150 grit to 180, sometimes more like 220 grit. The RA for aluminum with MLS is 30 to 20, or 180 to 220 grit. Look it up.
Love your videos bro im about to benge watch since im off thursdays and fridays!
Yup nobody at HD knows what’s on the shelf and the online info is often bad which is why i go to a local store if possible
The same procedure works for some exhaust manifolds as well.
I loved your note about how a head being off my 3 thou will run, but its shit work. good for you
Here's a comment, how do i remove the heads in car? I've found one other video but two or more videos are always more helpful!
In works :)
Thnx
New to working on cars. Would you want to do this to the block surface as well? Does that warp as well? Or not as much?
I’d love to see you do a video on the fa/fb Subaru engines your videos are great
Nice! I've got heads machined rougher than this at a machine shop!
Mad respect, honestly very good explication
I've done something pretty similar with a mazda BP 1.8 head and block and it worked great. Used one of those pneumatic long sanding boards for the block to flatten it enough the MLS gasket sealed fine.
A trick I learned for carbon and crud on valves from a grey hair.. use a brass punch and a hammer to strike the stem of the valve (on the cam side) which briefly shocks the valve open/closed helping it seat.
Edit: also.. awww kitty...
Mate, love the content. It’s first class. I want to see you to a Suzuki Jimny if you can get your hands on one state side. Got one here in the UK. Think you’d love working on that and it’d be great content!
Also this is genius. Great ingenuity my man. I love your balling in a budget style!
Life long tool maker he is spot on the tile is ok a large piece of steel that looks like it has two sides ground flat would be better
Good technique thx for the tile idea 😆 may use glass but wish I had a long milled block like 2 or 3 ft by 1 ft however thick, Yayy N20s lol, just rebuilt the entire Mitsubishi made turbo on my sister's N20 in her f30 (14 320i X) plus a catted d/pipe and res delete. Wanted to get a Shuenk turbo kit because the wastegate flapper design is totally different and 10 times better then the stock setup that wears out, Ended up just getting an upgraded cartridge and replaced the wastegate flapper assembly.
Thanks Colin! Great video!!
Just subscibed, very smart dude!
Wow...that's amazing man!
usefull and informative: 10/10. cats: 11/10
You are up there with Mr Subaru.
This video is on another level for doing head work.
Thanks for this and demystifying resurfacing heads. Brilliant work.
After resurfacing can you still use the recommended gasket, or because you have shaved off a few thousands off, you need thicker gaskets?
And, would you say this is only for Subaru's or any car which have aluminum heads?
Have subs. Bloody good work.
Cheers
very helpful. doing this exact process to my 06 forester right now. very mild overheating, should be ok I think.
Thank you
Hello, love the video, ive herd upgrading to the gasket that the turbo car had is better? Do you happen to know?
But what about the deck on the block?
Sweet video i forgot all about that way to do a head been a long time since i did that my son just got a 08 legacy with 116k i think then i found out they have issues like that plus i have found a few on marketplace with bad headgaskets and i need a vehicle i can put rools in like a wagon or suv but something good on gas work isnt so good right now and my 10 f150 has the tranny going out i cant change it wven if i liked the truck lol had heart surgery back on February 1st so trying to get back to working right now on our condo it coufht fire on February 16 on February 7 when my youngest brought me home he totaled my 08 sonata my oldest already did that 3 years ago but was a easy fix lol he had to get a car i havnt been able to get his explorer on the road tet have it filled qith new parts but with everything going on its been undoable lol i would love to see a in care video on getting the heads off would help me out if i decide to get one also looking at a couple older diesel something i can use black diesel in no dpf or what ever its callled lol thanks for the video!!!!!!!!
Bruh, I'd like this video multiple times if I could!
unironically based. seems easier on H4 cuz it's more like 2x I2.
Why would a clogged heater core cause engine over heating? Don't all cars have a bypass loop for the heater core??
Great video
Awesome video, thank you! Do you do any other gaskets/seals when you do a headgasket job? I'm guessing I will need some intake gaskets as well.
it was better to do a figure 8 rather than crosshatching?
Thankyou for your informative video. 🦘
I wanna see you do it in the car!
Coming soon! Let me go buy another car real quick
+1. no rush.
2006 Forester non turbo
I see oil leakage on the passenger side where the head meats the block. Not seeing loss of coolant or power. No overheating
Just hella annoying to have it drip on the exhaust and smoke up the cabin
Can I do this job on the 2006 without having to remove the engine?
Thick glass is what I use
When replacing head gaskets can you use the stronger gaskets from the turbo models? I’ve heard that’s a better fix.
It's not that they're stronger it's that they are multilayer steel (MLS) gaskets that allow some flex when the engine goes through heat cycles. And, yes. Use the MLS gaskets. I recently ordered the master seal kit from Subaru (10105AC380) and it came with the non-MLS gaskets. I did not use them.
I suppose this only works on aluminum heads ? Most modern cars are aluminum heads. Mostly Chryslers still use steel on the bigger motors
It will work on iron, but will dull the paper fast and require multiple paper changes
Did you make the in car headgasket video?
AWESOME SAUCE !!
... roll that beautiful in-car footage
what do you recomend to flat/check the block deck? smaller tile? in engine bay ofcourse ;)
Clogged heater core might lead in engine overheating? That's crazy!
Hello, do i need to also sand the head cover?
Gotta love the 80 grit!
Bril advice bruh!
Can you show us how to remove the head off a Subaru 2.5 2003 thanks.
Normally take the engine out like he said early in the vid😊
Thank you for the video, I plan on doing this on my daughter's 2011 outback soon, I pulled the motor. I set the timing marks before pulling the heads, 1 head all valves are closed, the other has intakes wide open. I'm guessing I'm going to have to close them before doing this, And reset the timing when installed. Would it be a good idea to lightly spray the head with something to see where the low spots are? It was getting very slight bubbling into the overflow tank. I just drilled a small extra hole in the thermostat to get her by for a few months until we could put the car down for a bit. Car ran excellent but ran a little cold.
Thanks again
Wouldn't let me edit again, Meant to say both intake valves widen open, and on other cylinder next to it exhaust valve open. Guess I'll just mark it, roll the cam to close valves and move back afterward
Rotate the cams till there’s a 30 degrees in either direction with zero load. No, just start resurfacing it and it will be obvious.
Time the block first, they don’t time at TDC, so with the block set, your free to rotate the cams, not the other way around as the valves will be open
@@steinfabgarage Thank you for the reply, Appreciate it. The block is still set, I noticed there was a notch,.and a arrow on the crank pulley, I went with the notch as that was the only way to get crank and cams to all match timing marks.
1 head is still set exactly as I pulled it, The pulley hasn't spun and still sitting as it was, So is the other, But I'll have to rotate that to close valves. I'll probably just mark it, Rotate, When reinstalling, Turn cam back to original mark and install...Put the belt on, crank over by hand a few revolutions, And cross my fingers..lol
I was not aware they didn't time to TDC. I guess that's what all the extra paint dots/marks and arrows are for.
I'll just want to make sure this thing is correct, As I never want to do it again.
Thanks Again for your reply and your videos in general, A lot of help for sure.
i can only get fel-pro gasket are they any good?
Hey mate love your vlogs. What's your take on 2006 EJ20 versus EJ25 with respect to continued head gasket issues. Correct me if I'm wrong.. And I know you will! The EJ20 (non turbo) engines have a better cooling system as there is more water cooling the engine?
Here in the US, the only 20’s we got were turbo in the WRX, so I don’t have experience with the NA’s. But even the turbos were open deck VS the 25 semi closed deck. So yes I would say more coolant is good and leads to less head-gasket issues. Also, less power, less issues
@@steinfabgarage Thank you
@@stephenbrown7167 thanks for checking out the video. I appreciate all my viewers 🤙🏻
Great video man, i do have a few questions. Will 80 grit work with mls RA requirements? also, I've found almost all aluminum blocks like to warp as well. do you surface the block too?
Yeah 80 grit is good for MLS ( I’ve used 60 so 80’is super safe)
Razor blade the block surface so get the gasket material off, and your good, even if it’s out .002” that’s fine
I’ll be 62 in a couple of months and have spent the last 2 years pretending to be a mechanic. Why, you might ask? Because I bought a 2003 Subaru Baja site unseen. Even paid stupid crazy money to have it transported across 2 states. I’m concerned about how my brain is aging.
About a year ago, my radiator lost the will to live in the middle of I-10 in San Antonio. At the time, I had not attended TH-cam University (had no reason to) and thus just replaced the radiator with a big hole on top with a new one. That’s right, I never questioned why it offed itself, I just replaced it.
At this point, I have replaced a great deal of my engine one piece at a time and wouldn’t you know, it’s still overheating. If an engine could do a middle finger salute it would look like the Subaru doorstop in my driveway.
So, you mentioned if one person commented that they wanted you to provide a video on how to get to where this one started then you’d produce one. Considere it requested.
And now, I leave you (anyone who bothered to read this far) with one question: is a blown head gasket the only thing that would cause overheating and white smoke out the tailpipe (which dissipates after driving for 5-10 minutes)? I SERIOUSLY DON’T WANT TO PLAY MECHANIC ANYMORE! I’m old, not even close to how strong I used to be, I have “authoritis” in my hands, bursitis in my elbows and gasketitis in my DNA. In other words, PLEASE let there be an alternate reason for the plume of failed dreams puffing out the ass end of my Baja. It’s embarrassing.
Sounds like it's the headgasket. Do a leak down test and see what comes from it. Actually you can test if it's a headgasket if you fill put a funnel full of coolant in your open your radiator cap (make sure it's cold) and if bubbles come up when you're giving it gas, that's your headgasket. I'd do both before saying it's a headgasket. Also sorry for your taste in cars (subarus) 😅
thank you!
You're welcome!
tought what 10 Dollar for one sheet?! i never seen this in any shop in switzerland..
I would like to see your video of in car head removal ... Preferably the complete year down ... I have a 2009 outback 2.5 non turbo if it's possible to do that
Would the process work on a nissan inline4?
One in the car
Loved the video, I’ve been thinking about doing this for my neon I need to put back together.
I’ve seen heads on neons be out .004 that didn’t leak on a turbo race car. But they knew they were running a risk at the time.
They headgasket is meant to compensate for flaws, that’s it’s job. But most manuals state that .003 is the limit. .
I’ll be trying my skidsteer head this week (4cyl), to date, 3cyl heads (v6) are the largest I have done, so we will see….
@@steinfabgarage might be worth it to get a longer slab and sandpaper for a belt sander. I’ve seen people doing v8 heads I just don’t know what they were using at the time.
why not use glass?
Does this work for inline 6? Sticking two sandpaper together?
I’ve never tried it, to be honest, I’d just take that to a shop
An you do this on a 2000 honda accord 2.3l lx with the ulev engine green in car? Like both head and block?
He loves animals so we can be friends lol
Please do a video in the car!
Coming soon 😎
Could you also please do that budget rebuild video you talked about in a previous video? Love the videos!
If those supplies are “expensive” for redoing a block, then you shouldn’t own a car. This is a very good deal.
Just out of curiosity why do you use 80 grit sandpaper? Seems like everyone online is using 200-320 grit with this method. Is there any chance 80 grit will leave too rough of a surface?
Because 80 leaves the gaskets a surface to “hold” on to. It’s the same theory as why port and polish is good for airflow, but bad for fuel atomization. Sometimes rougher is better
Why does everyone use 80 or 120 grit for this... wouldn't you want it to be a flatter surface with 1000 grit or something?
No, too smooth is bad, you want to “hold” the gasket, please look up “bmw N20 timing slip” the updated bmw parts are LASER ETCHED to provide friction. This is because there’s no key ways on the crank, everything is sandwiched, just like a head gasket. Same concept.
Aww kitty!
She’s New Mexican, so she’s “all sad” 😞
Do it the Collin way.
This concept is definitely a respectable way to "clean up" an aluminum head as long as you don't sand to much. However it is in no way an effective replacement for having the head surfaced at a machine shop. It's so much better than using those little 2 inch discs on a high speed air grinder that I wouldn't even compare it to that kind of butchering type of clean up.
As a 7 year machinist I can tell you, this IS a effective replacement for a machine shop. It pretty hard to sand TOO MUCH. Trust me, we used to mill .020-.030 tho off customer heads all the time.
I HIGHLY AGREE with the BUTCHERING done with the 2” discs, we would see them come in “cleaned” by those and often have to have the head welded due to low spots around the fire ring (combustion chamber)
If you worked in a machine shop then you should understand that you have no clue if your sand paper method is keeping the head surface perpendicular to the crank shaft and cam. I doubt as much as .003 difference from one end of the head to the other would cause any valvetrain or bolt alignment issues but your not measuring anything so you don't know if it is off or not. Those tiny 2 cylinder heads are the best case scenario for attempting this in the first place. A 4 cylinder head could easily become off over .005 end to end by trying this.
@@crazyoilfieldmechanic3195 Y U Hate in on this man? I bet u never did a head job in your entire life!!! U might have GAVE SOME HEAD but mechanicly u probably never did any head gaskets a day in ur life!
@steinfabgarage
Thanks for your comment. I'm gonna do this. Will also do a lapping and valve seals too!
@@williamhorsley7799Good thing a hillbilly dumbass weighed in.
A glass shop always has scrap glass you can get either free or like $5-$10, and will be SUPER flat
Great tip!!
Wanna see it in car
I’m still looking for the right car to film it on. Coming eventually! :)
If you do this on a flat concrete surface you won’t have to worry about warping a glass/ceramic tile
late !!do it in car tho yo
It’s done, it’s my most recent video
Machine shop local cuts my heads for 15$. Same day while i wait most the time.
What do you do about the block?
Some people live too far from a city so this is very good content for those people
In car