Anthlo

Im changing my head gaskets and what is the best way to avoid scraping the material into the coolent jackets on the block

slogo

Try using a razor blade and shop vac. to keep stuff out of coolant system.
Leave what coolant is in the block in there, do all of your scraping then drain coolant out, then you can flush out the coolant area with a hose if you feel you need to.
There is a plug on the side of the block under cylinder 1 & 8 you can remove to flush it good
if you desire. my .02

unit

Which type of gasket do you have, MLS or the older composite material? MLS gaskets don't leave much to clean off. It's mostly light weight, powdery material that isn't much of a problem. Composite gaskets are a different matter. There will be a bigger, heavier pieces of debris to contend with.

SlasherVRGR

iTrader: (1)

I used a scotch brite pad and some oil, plugged up the bores and lifter area really well. Vacuumed the crap out of every cylinder and the entire lifter area, including the bores.

Edit: I had the composite gaskets on mine.