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Steam vent tube alternative for an LS motor

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Old 11-14-2012, 08:53 PM
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Default Steam vent tube alternative for an LS motor

Ok, I'm building a 402 and still need just a couple of parts to complete it. Some of the parts I need are the steam tube crossovers. (I plan on running one on the back as well as the front) I just dont want to run the black offs in the rear.

Now, would this be a viable option for either one? Is the ID of these pieces roughly the same as the OE tubes? Does anyone see a problem running these instead of the stockers?

I'm debating these instead since I'm running a FAST 102 and would need to bend the steam tube anyway to clear my intake. My thought was that with these I can just use flex tubing to make it as long as I need and route the tube however i need it.

Any input is appreciated.

Thanks, yo!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/LS1-Steam-Po...08e088&vxp=mtr
Old 11-14-2012, 10:21 PM
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yeah that work if you want the bling bling. I just put another front crossover on the rear of my heads and ran a line from it to the pump
Old 11-14-2012, 10:23 PM
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I think the 5.3 coolant tubes work on the back. They have a pipe that goes straight up. You cb run a hose to it and have a y from the front
Old 11-14-2012, 10:25 PM
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i put a LS6 tube in the rear.......but it only connects the heads..........it does not meet up in the front.....thought it was better than block offs
Old 11-14-2012, 11:41 PM
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The Kurt urban kit is nice. Looks good functions good.
Old 11-15-2012, 03:30 AM
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i have a set of (4) -4AN coolant vent ports layin around if interested. I just ended up using another front crossover pipe for the rear, and ran a hose upfront to tie the front and rear crossovers together, to a T waterblock and then to the port on the radiator.
Old 11-15-2012, 04:06 AM
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Originally Posted by sjsingle1
i put a LS6 tube in the rear.......but it only connects the heads..........it does not meet up in the front.....thought it was better than block offs
Not really. Coolant is flowing in to the pipe on both sides, canceling each other out. Same as the block off's. You need to connect it to the front port in order for it to function correctly, or any different from the block offs.
Old 11-15-2012, 04:08 AM
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Originally Posted by Zmg00camaross
The Kurt urban kit is nice. Looks good functions good.
Very expensive given the small purpose it serves and cheaper alternatives available.
Old 11-15-2012, 03:39 PM
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There are various truck crossover tubes... the useful ones are these:
a. crossover tube with hose pipe sticking vertically up on LHS of engine;
b. crossover tube with hose pipe sticking vertically up on RHS of engine (i.e. mirror image of a.);

[ if the hose pipes sticking vertically up interfere with intake manifold, then try the crossover tubes that have the hose pipes horizontal or curved... there are quite a few variations of Gen III/IV crossover tube ]

put a. at rear (so hose pipe is now on RHS of engine) and b. at front (hose pipe on RHS)...

a T can now connect the hose pipes (via hoses) to the 2nd port on the radiator neck.


Edit: no I don't have the part numbers, sorry.

Last edited by joecar; 11-15-2012 at 07:56 PM.
Old 11-15-2012, 05:53 PM
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WOW, great solutions so far. So, I see on the Kurt Urban site that you can plumb the return into the stock WP. Anyone got any pics of their set ups? And since my idea of only the coolant crossovers (front and back) is shot down since they would cancel each other out, what should I do???

Originally Posted by AutomagicLS1
yeah that work if you want the bling bling. I just put another front crossover on the rear of my heads and ran a line from it to the pump
Originally Posted by bww3588
Not really. Coolant is flowing in to the pipe on both sides, canceling each other out. Same as the block off's. You need to connect it to the front port in order for it to function correctly, or any different from the block offs.
Anyone got any installed pics? I've seen some in the past, but I'm looking for applications using a FAST 102.
Old 11-15-2012, 07:22 PM
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^ Been thinking about this recently also. You may be able to get the adapters and just plumb your own system.

Not on a 102, but google wasn't finding anything for that.

IMG_7200.jpg?t=1338506685
Old 11-15-2012, 10:54 PM
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Originally Posted by bww3588
Not really. Coolant is flowing in to the pipe on both sides, canceling each other out. Same as the block off's. You need to connect it to the front port in order for it to function correctly, or any different from the block offs.
i disagree.....it can flow back and forth between the heads .........where the block offs go nowhere
Old 11-15-2012, 11:01 PM
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I can take a pic of my own custom system that I built when I did my ls6 intake swap. Ill get it to you tomorrow as it is pouring rain outside right now. I had some leftover steel braided line from another project and I ordered the AN adapters for the steam pipes. The system works very well.
Old 11-16-2012, 04:45 AM
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Can't remember where the hell this union block came from on mine. I don't have a FAST, but you could consider something similar. Run the lines in front around to the back then the single line back to the rad. Pretty clean deal.....

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Old 11-16-2012, 07:10 AM
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Originally Posted by LPE 403
Can't remember where the hell this union block came from on mine. I don't have a FAST, but you could consider something similar. Run the lines in front around to the back then the single line back to the rad. Pretty clean deal.....

That's a 6 port 1/8" NPT Vacuum Manifold Block which is the same thing but lower cost.
Old 11-16-2012, 03:11 PM
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Ok, so here's what I thought the vent tubes did.... I thought the coolant ran through the heads in a certain direction to cool the head (from one to the other in front). I thought the block offs kept the coolant circulating in each head instead of going back to the other (which seemed weird). Instead it seems that coolant flows through the head whether or not the crossover is on the back.

I wanted to put the crossover in the back so that flow would continue through the heads in a circular motion to really keep the heads cool, but I guess I have it all wrong. Right?

And does anyone have pics of water pumps with the coolant return line going back into it?
Old 11-16-2012, 03:28 PM
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so what would happen if i blocked off all 4 of the steam vent holes? (The two in the back of my 6.0 are already blocked from the factory)
Old 11-16-2012, 03:38 PM
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Any steam and/or air pockets will rise to the highest points (the heads).

The block coolant exit port is located lower than the head, so the steam/air pockets can't leave the heads via the block coolant exit port.

With the vents blocked off, the steam/air pockets will be trapped and will cause local overheating inside the heads.

With the vents connected to some place having a lower pressure than the rest of the cooling system (e.g. radiator top, or water pump low pressure side), the steam/air pockets are allowed to leave the heads.
Old 11-16-2012, 03:51 PM
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so would that really cause harm to the heads? or just warmer operating temps??
Old 11-16-2012, 04:11 PM
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Originally Posted by 68wagon
so would that really cause harm to the heads? or just warmer operating temps??
Everyone believes that it causes piston damage to number 7 piston/cylinder.


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