head gasket 59 223

[19F10059]

HEY GUYS im starting to work on my 223 my truck sat for many years i was told about 28 years it has 49126 miles i bout gasket kit and was planning to replace them all oil pan timeing cover sideplate valvecover do ya think i should do the head gasket too i drove the truck home about 12 miles didint smoke at all had good power no knock or pinging what do ya think THANKS TERRY

[Earl]

Hi Terry,

Regardless of how you are going to use the truck I'd check the following:

- Do a compression test according to the shop or repair manual.
- Check for oil in the coolant or coolant in the oil.
- Clean up the engine block as best you can (maybe a steam cleaner?) and watch for any signs of leaks around the heads as you drive it easy for a couple of weeks.

All that stuff is cheap and easy to do so you don't have much to lose. If it stays cool and passes the tests above I probably wouldn't mess with the head at all if you're only planning on using it as an occasional driver. The fact that it isn't making any menacing noises usually means there's nothing terribly wrong inside.

If you're going to make it a daily driver you'll want to make sure the moving parts in the upper (valves, rockers, etc.) and lower (pistons, rods, crank, etc.) ends of the engine are in good shape. Some of the other folks here know a lot more than I do about ways to check for these problems without taking the engine apart. Personally, I've never been able to master those skills so I end up tearing everything down and redoing stuff. That's not always the best or cheapest way to go.

Good luck, keep us posted!

George

[bcwaack]