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418 Shortblock. Pistons hitting head?

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Old Jun 14, 2010 | 09:07 PM
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Default 418 Shortblock. Pistons hitting head?

Had a head lift this weekend.. When I pulled the head it had the FWD> imprinted in the head (every cylinder) ? These same markings (FWD>) are on the pistons?

The Driver side head had no markings?

I bought this shortblock, head gaskets from a supporting vendor..

Any suggestions on what could of happened?
Attached Thumbnails 418 Shortblock. Pistons hitting head?-head-piston-markings1.jpg   418 Shortblock. Pistons hitting head?-head-piston-markings2.jpg  
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Old Jun 14, 2010 | 09:16 PM
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is the FWD marking raised on the piston???

It's kind of hard to believe you wouldn't hear the knocking sound if that was what was happening......of course I'm not an engine builder by any means
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Old Jun 14, 2010 | 09:35 PM
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lets see the piston
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Old Jun 14, 2010 | 09:43 PM
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Here is the best piston pic I have.. The FWD is right above the reliefs..
Attached Thumbnails 418 Shortblock. Pistons hitting head?-block.jpg  
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Old Jun 14, 2010 | 10:07 PM
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Looks like the head and block are in pretty bad shape. Was nitrous a contributor?
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Old Jun 14, 2010 | 10:22 PM
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Yes, Im just throwing this out to see if anybody else has seen this before...

Im assuming the pistons pushed the head up,and gasket let go..

The letters FWD and an arrow are laser etched in each piston..

They have imprinted FWD into the passenger side head.. Nothing on the driver side head..
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Old Jun 14, 2010 | 10:25 PM
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Sounds like the passenger side of the block got decked too much/not enough gasket. Was the engine noisy?
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Old Jun 14, 2010 | 10:35 PM
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No noise at all?

infact, I had people compliment on how quiet it was..
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Old Jun 14, 2010 | 11:05 PM
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how much were the pistons sticking out of the block? Did the chamber match the cylinder diameter? I'm guessing the heads were slightly smaller than the cylinder wall diameter and you had thin head gaskets. Which heads are those?
The opposite of this is having heads with huge chambers and valves hitting
the cylinder wall.

Sorry for your loss. Post up your results. This is interesting to look at.
Like the other guy said, i've had motors burn holes like that when using nitrous.
Usually just melting plugs away, but often scarring internal stuff.
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Old Jun 14, 2010 | 11:13 PM
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Are those the head gaskets the vendor recommended?

Honestly, I've seen the pistons hit the heads a lot worse and not cause gasket failures. Then again, they probably weren't run as long since the problem was much more obvious. I'd try to take a measurement and see how far the pistons are out of the hole on both sides and see how much quench distance you had when the engine went together.

If the vendor just built the shortblock, you may be SOL, unless you can prove they recommended those gaskets. Even then, it's gonna be a longshot.
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Old Jun 15, 2010 | 07:42 AM
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I dont see any evidence of Piston to head contact.. but the pictures arent great...

Also if your pistons where hitting the head.. you would know... fast.
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Old Jun 15, 2010 | 07:55 AM
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mabe the berings and the rist pins where taking damage too......
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Old Jun 18, 2010 | 12:55 PM
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Any answers yet?
Talk to the vendor?
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Old Jun 19, 2010 | 07:45 AM
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The pistons are running to close to the head. You can run a slightly thicker head gasket to correct this if something is available. The piston skirt might be collapsed on the cylinder that hit the worst, it lets the piston rock more causing the hitting. Thrust is causing the pistons to hit on one side, the other side is leading with the other side of the piston so nothing touches. Check the pistons for hitting the cylinder above the top ring, this lets you know if the skirts are collapsed or the bore clearance is a touch high. Normally you will see some contact above the ring in a high power engine, but no contact is desired.

Kurt
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Old Jun 19, 2010 | 05:17 PM
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who did you buy the shortblock from?
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Old Jun 19, 2010 | 11:59 PM
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how long did you run it?
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