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Valve Guides

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dcarlg

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First, Kudos to Editor Reid for another great newsletter! Informative, entertaining and interesting.

February issue of Healey Marque had a technical article by Mike Salter. He did not recommend bronze valve guides for use in cast iron heads due to thermal expansion differences.
Does this apply to the silicone bronze guides also?
Any experience with hardened steel guides?
What do the seasoned veterans suggest?
I am planning to R & R my cylinder head soon.
Interested in reliability and durability. Not racing.
Thanks.

Douglas Glesmann
BT7 Tricarb with BJ8 upgrades.
 
In more than forty (>40) years, I have yet to replace a valve guide with anything but commercially available "bronze" valve guides (though I suspect the vast majority of them, if not all, were actually silcon-bronze).

I haven't read that article yet, but thinking that the worst things that could happen would be either a sticking valve, displaced guide and/or excessive oil burning, I cannot report any of those scenarios have taken place in one of my engines.

Now I'll have to read the article...

I don't know Michael Salter, but I do know that he is held in high esteem by those that do, so I'll be interested to learn what his reasoning is; so far the bronze/silicon-bronze guides have been working for me. The last set of them I purchased and (had) installed__twnety-four of them__went into a DOHC 4-valve/cyl I-6 with an 8800 RPM redline :cheers:
 
Re: Valve Guides
I have yet to replace a valve guide with anything but silcon-bronze in any of my BJ8's
​
 
Thanks for the advice.

Silicon-bronze guides it is, then.
The Salter article seemed to describe problems in the (not recent) past. Perhaps the alloy has been improved?
I am trying to evaluate all the info I can find so that I can get it right the first time.

What about uprated valve caps? Are they worthwhile?
AH Spares and Denis Welch seem to encourage them.
I'm also considering stainless steel exhaust valves and hardened valve seats for the exhaust valves.

Suggestions?

Thank you for your help. This is my first engine refresh/rebuild.

Douglas
 
dcarlg said:
Thanks for the advice.

Silicon-bronze guides it is, then.
The Salter article seemed to describe problems in the (not recent) past. Perhaps the alloy has been improved?
I am trying to evaluate all the info I can find so that I can get it right the first time.

What about uprated valve caps? Are they worthwhile?
AH Spares and Denis Welch seem to encourage them.
I'm also considering stainless steel exhaust valves and hardened valve seats for the exhaust valves.

Suggestions?

Thank you for your help. This is my first engine refresh/rebuild.

Douglas
Click to expand...

The valve guide issue was kicked-around on the email list. There was a consensus that proper machining contributed to good results with bronze (slightly more clearance IIRC).

Stainless valves and hardened seats is a no-brainer (aka a 'lead-free head'). I don't think a competent machinist would do otherwise. Can't speak to the valve caps..
 
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