Thread: Help! Object in Cylinder Head

Tweet

Hey guys, a little washer made its way into the cylinder head, I tried to retrieve it with a magnet but no luck.


Next course of action would be to remove the heads, however when I started removing the head bolts next to the spark plugs not the ones by the valves, engine coolant started coming out.

I had already flushed the system because I was changing out my intake manifold and stuff when this happened.


Need help, please and thank you.

Engine is still in the truck obviously, and I need to know what I can do to flush out the rest of the coolant.

I am not sure where the engine block drain is located. its a 350 small block.

Drains are on both side of the block, in the middle near the oil pan. They are regular pipe plugs. if haven't opened these up you will still have anti-freeze in the block.
This pic show a petcock drain when the plugs would be at..joe

Is the intake still off?
Can you see the washer?
Is it in an intake runner?


Try using a small hook made out of a coat hanger


Some glob of grease on the end of a small stick or end of screw driver


Never use stainless bolts or washers/nuts around open holes in the top of a motor(carb hold downs)


You can put a small diameter hose thru those head bolt holes and syphon the coolant level down below the spill level


clean up any anti freeze if any pets/other animals around

I have taped a small hose to my shop vac and gone through the spark plug hole to gge things out.

Originally Posted by shine

I have taped a small hose to my shop vac and gone through the spark plug hole to gge things out.

.... and it helps a lot if you empty the vacuum before you start this so you can easily see the washer w/o sorting through a bunch trash. Might be able to suck through the intake port w/o the small hose.

Thanks guys, I'll have to attack this, this weekend, I tried looking for the washer inside with a led light where it fell into and I couldn't see anything and couldn't get anything with the snake magnet. Looks like I'll be draining the rest of the coolant and taking this darn head off. Thanks again guys.

I sometimes when trying to suck little things up will attach a sock over the snout inside the vacume housing to catch items--------usually tho its not just a washer but maybe some ultra valve keeper, jet, etc--------moral? don't throw away any old socks--------
And a shop vac into the intake port with the spark plug of that cylinder removed can creat enough tornatic action to suck small items out of a cylinder back thru open intake valve into port area---sometimes lots easier than taking a head off in a vehicle----------
At the races-change engines

Be sure that's where it ended up, didn't bounce off and hit the ground.

So I got me a digital inspection camera, it's for sure in the cylinder, right underneath the spark plug hole on the piston, however the magnet attachment for the camera and just the camera itself I can't maneuver to get it, and the valve on top isn't open enough to put the camera in thru the top. Any suggestions? I still have yet to try the shop vac.

I should state I haven't taken the cylinder head off the engine yet, trying to try everything I can before I do that.

If its a stainless steel washer a magnet won't work------


Is the intake manifold on the engine?


If the washer is laying on the top of the piston---not stuck between the side of piston and cylinder wall---you can turn the engine to where oiston is nearing top of stroke with exhaust valve open and probable suck it out the exhaust--again tho, put a sock over where hose goes into buck on shop vac so you'll know that you have it

Only thing worse that dropping a fastener down the hole is thinking you dropped a fastener down the hole when you didn't.... I admit to even removing heads looking for a missing screw only to find it on the front crossmember.

Jerry, yes the intake manifold is off