If a seat is damaged, cracked, loose, receded or too badly worn to be recut or reground, it can cause a variety of problems loss of compression, valve burning, valve failure, valvetrain wear and breakage, even head and valve damage if the seat comes loose. For that reason, replacing valve seats is often necessary when reconditioning aluminum or cast iron cylinder heads. Another reason to replace a seat is if a valve has broken because the seat is not concentric with the guide. Misalignment between the seat and guide causes the valve stem to flex every time the valve closes. Eventually, this flexing leads to metal fatigue and valve failure. When this happens, the counterbore must be remachined if the head is salvageable to realign the seat with the guide. New seats may also be required if a cylinder head has been straightened or welded, if theres any evidence of corrosion around the outside diameter of a valve seat, or if the engine is being converted to run on a dry fuel such as propane LPG or natural gas. A comprehensive glossary of terms for use in the rigid packaging industry. Pipeline Packaging. Integral seats in cast iron heads are no less important even though the seats are part of the head itself. An integral seat may have to be cut out and replaced with a new insert if the seat has receded, is badly worn or damaged. How Often Some experts say when late model aluminum heads are reconditioned the valve seats should always be replaced to maintain correct valvetrain geometry. This applies to overhead cam engines as well as pushrod engines. Pontiac-P6.jpg' alt='Welding Cracked Aluminum Cylinder Heads' title='Welding Cracked Aluminum Cylinder Heads' />Its expensive but is usually necessary to restore proper installed valve height and valvetrain geometry. Rick Emert, product and technical services manager for SB International, says most valve seat failures more than 5. He also explains that preignition causes a lot of seat failures, too. When seats get too hot, microwelding occurs between the valves and seats. The valves are harder than the seats so microscopic particles of metal from the seats stick to the valves, says Emert. When the engine cools, these particles are then washed into the exhaust. This causes rapid recession of the seats and is most common in dry fuel LPG or natural gas engines. Emert said another reason for replacing seats in some late model heads is because the OEM powder metal seats become too hard to machine. The Rover V8 information Centre and web site, Its all in here, more free info on the facts, failings and fabulouse possibilities of this remarkable engine. Replacing valve seats is one of the basic jobs that is often necessary when rebuilding aluminum or cast iron heads with cracked, damaged or badly worn seats. But. The first Norton head was cast iron and had an integral intake manifold for a short prototype period of production. It was reported to overheat so only 6 heads were. Many late model gasoline engines with aluminum heads from Ford, GM, Chrysler and many imports are factory equipped with sintered powder metal seats. Powder metal seats are used because they are harder and more durable. Powder metal seats combine various materials to achieve special properties. Many powder metal formulas work harden as the engine runs. A new powder metal seat that has a hardness of RC 2. RC 4. 0 to 5. 0 after several thousand miles. Seats that hard are difficult to refinish by cutting, so one alternative to grinding is replacing the old seats with new powder metal or alloy seats. Emert says his company recommends alloy seats for most applications because they are easier to machine. We have eight different alloys in our product line, and each one is engineered for a specific type of application. His companys two most popular alloys are Cast XB an iron based alloy, and N Series a nickel based alloy. SB International also has powder metal seats for those who want to install the same kind of seats as original equipment, Emert says. But we dont recommend installing powder metal seats in diesel engines because powder metal seats cant take the heat and compression in this kind of application. They may shatter, says Emert. Other valve seat manufacturers offer a variety of different alloys for valve seat inserts, as well, including various powder metal formulas. But powder metal has been slow to catch on in the aftermarket. Although engine rebuilders are seeing more late model heads, many still prefer to use alloy inserts. However, Bill Dolak of Dura Bond says traditional cast iron seats wont hold up well in late model engines. He recommends one of two different alloy seats depending on the application, either the 3. Gold Series valve seat inserts made of finely dispersed tungsten carbide in a matrix of tempered tool steel and alloy iron particles, or his companys 7. Diamond Series inserts which use a higher temperature mix of tool steel and tungsten carbide. He says the 3. 00. Gold Series seats are easily machined and offer good wear and heat resistance for naturally aspirated and turbocharged engines. For high performance, heavy duty and dry fuel applications he recommends the higher temperature 7. Diamond Series inserts. Dale Mc. Kitterick of Precision Engine Parts clarifies what alloys are appropriate for which applications. His company offers high chrome alloy seats which are good for unleaded gasoline engines in most passenger car and light truck applications, nickel alloy seats and M2 tool steel alloy seats for severe duty, high temperature applications, ductile iron seats popular with many race engine builders and berylliumcopper seats used mostly in megabuck high end racing engines. Mc. Kitterick says he also has powder metal seats, but only a few customers have asked for them. Qualcast, Tucker Valve Seats, Martin Wells and others all offer a variety of different alloy seats for various types of engine applications. The important point here is to choose a replacement seat that is right for the application. Higher load, higher temperature applications require harder seats. Follow the recommendations of the valve seat insert suppliers because they know what works best in each type of application. Configure Wsus Software Update Point more. Cast iron inserts are still used for light duty intake valve applications but should never be used on the exhaust side. The metal is just too soft to withstand the operating temperatures. For exhaust valves, a hard insert made of high chrome stainless steel, high nickel alloy or a heat resistant alloy must be used. Stellite inserts, which are made of a nonmagnetic cobalt alloy and are the hardest inserts available, are recommended for the exhaust valves in heavy duty, high temperature engines and those that burn dry fuels such as propane or natural gas. Tom Tucker of Tucker Valve Seat, says 4. Silicone XB an iron seat with 1. But he also stressed the importance of choosing a seat thats designed for a specific application. We have a tool steel tungsten carbide material for natural gas applications that holds up especially well. We also have an E series material that provides superior hot hardness but is not as hard or abrasive as 3 Stellite. Roger Klump of Martin Wells says his company has been selling its Well Tite alloy for more than 3. It has the same wear characteristics as a 5. RC Stellite type of product but with a hardness of only RC 3. Klump. The Well Tite alloy contains 4. It also contains 1. Preliminary Steps. Welding Cracked Aluminum Cylinder Heads© 2017