I just got my heads back from the machine shop, and opened the Fel-pro head set gasket set. It has a set of "blue, and metal head gaskets, there was an oem paper stating that I needed to drill out two holes on each head and 2 holes on each side of the block to improve cooling. These holes were to be drill ed between the middle two cylinders. I have never heard this, any comments from anyone?

Marc

 

Yes this is true. It was because of the middle cylinders the exhaust valves cause too much heat in this area. I've never done it but if you place the new gaskets on the block look for a hole in the gasket that doesnt have a matching hole in the block and this is where you'd want to drill. Same for the heads.

Kevin

 

the last couple of years had these holes.63,64.the engines survived before without them so its just up to you.

 

Don't drill any hole in anything!!! That engine was around and lasted the way it was before, so don't change it, if it worked the way it is before then it will again, i'm basically saying what user 312 said, Just use those gaskets as they are, or better yet, get the right ones that is supposed to be on there..When a person starts drilling holes in blocks and engine heads that ran years already, it would be stupid to change it now, besides something like that is best left to engineers, i'm not going to change an engine to suit a stupid head gasket supplier, but would change the gasket to suit an already more costly engine that worked for about 50 years!!! DONT DO IT.....Janet

 

I remember reading a pamphlet from Fel-pro gaskets in auto shop class (about 23 years ago), describing this coolant improvement.

Here's a magazine article that mentions it as well.

http://www.rodandcustommagazine.com/tipstricks/74739/

 

Good article thanks Kenny! Thats exactly what I was told by the guys who I raced with at EXPO. The reason ford changed was because there was a overheat problem between the two exhaust valves.

Kevin

 

This suggestion is also documented here http://www.rodandcustommagazine.com/tipstricks/74739/

 

The Y Block doesn't seem to have this problem as severely as the brand x small block, but it is there. When you put two exhaust ports together so closely, you cannot get the same 360* circulation of coolant around them as you do with the end ports, or with ports evenly spaced, like on Windsors, FEs, etc.

The fact that Ford engineers used this fix on the latest Y Blocks shows that they thought it was a good idea, and their lead, I suspect, is what prompted Fel Pro to make this suggestion.

You are not talking about a huge amount of water flow here, just a couple a small jets aimed at the trouble spots -- and this in an engine with ample reserves of cooling capacity. I'd suspect that most folks would never have a problem, but if you are using the motor for towing or HD use, it would be a good move. Other than that, my decision was guided by the fact that Ford engineers used this fix, themselves.

 

If both the heads and the block have been milled to make them flat, I think it might be ok to add the steam holes. My worry is that the scale from the walls of the cylinders would just clog the steam holes.

I ran into this with my 223; there's a bypass passage that's pretty narrow, about 1/4" diameter or less. When I disassembled my 223, that passage was so jammed full that I almost didn't even notice that it was there. I cleaned it out and soaked the engine in caustic and then in molasses, and then sent it to the engine shop to hot-tank it to clean the rust scale out of it. But when I tore the engine down after about 30 minutes of idling, more scale had sloughed off and was already threatening to reclog that passage.

I've considered how to try to prevent scale from clogging the steam holes. Fit tubes into the holes that extend into the water jacket and drill the sides of the tube to allow plenty of ways for water to enter. Put a nylon stocking over the radiator inlet to filter the coolant (I've done this with both the 223 and with a Model A. It works.)

I'm also wondering how to remove the scale. I suppose I should soak the next block in molasses for a longer time.

Bottom line; I'll be drilling a 292's block and heads as I assemble it in the next few weeks. Both have been surfaced.