1) Carb cleaner ..ok, use some emery cloth to clean the top of the block so the new gaskets will have a good surface to mate to.
2.) YES cover the rest of the internal parts to keep debris from falling in
3.) ORIGINALLY the push rods were the same on each end...BUT they probably haven't worn the same...the SOP is to keep them in the configuration that they ARE in....clean them one at a time and you'll be ok

 

What kind of parts? RoversNorth, BritishPacific, AtlanticBritish, Lucky8LLC, and Rovahfarm are the most popular.

 

Tappets are meant to come in and out of block holes. It's fine.

Carb cleaner will not harm any metal surfaces. Some surfaces like the tappets, bearings, and cam lobes need to remain lubed though, so if you spray them, just re-lube them.

Block and cylinder head mating surfaces need to be very clean, very flat, and very smooth. Clean them well with carb cleaner, but don't mess up the surface.

If you're having trouble removing gunk with carb cleaner, try Chemtool B12 carb cleaner. It's more powerful, and more nasty, so don't get it on you. It will even eat through your nitrile gloves

It's best to keep the rods, tappets, and rockers in the same positions.

 

Keep all those parts in their same original orientation.

Avoid scratching like Eric said. Verifying flatness is critical. Go slow and be patient.

Use the best quality parts you can find beware of cheap off-shore "Equivalent" parts.

There was a little shop that someone mentioned that was pretty incredible, I forget the name and exact location. Here it is: take a look at this site.

http://www.aluminumv8.com/about/about.htm

 

Ok, so I got the heads off the machine shop and the radiator to the radiator shop. Thanks for all the replies. Thankfully I took the push rods out in order and noted the correct top/bottom orientation and kept the rocker shafts oriented correctly. I'm starting to clean everything and think about gaskets. I had planned to change the sump gasket as I had a leak there. I think I have a leak in the front cover as well. Since I have everything off is this the time to pull the front cover and inspect timing chain and oil pump? Reading through RAVE the gasket(s) and timing chain seem fairly straightforward, but what is the Woodruff key? Is that a question that if I don't know the answer I shouldn't be doing it type thing?

 

Yes, this is a great time to fix your front cover gasket and inspect your timing chain and oil pump gears. If you remove the cover you must replace the front crank shaft seal though. It's easy and inexpensive.

The Woodruff key is simply a piece of metal that sits in a groove near the end of the crank shaft. It's what forces the oil pump gears, and crank pulley to spin with the crank shaft.

 

The best prices you will find are from Rovahfarm. The head gasket set is like $90 for the same ALLMAKES 4x4 everyone else sells, head bolts set is like $60. Timing chain $18, gears are like $12 and $27.

You will want the head gasket set before you get the heads back, so the shop that is doing the work has the valve seals.

Berkebile 2+2 is stronger than any carb cleaner I know of that comes in a spray can.

Permatex ULTRA GRAY for the oil pan. Make sure everything is completely DRY and OIL FREE. Do not use a gasket, it will just leak.

If you had a lifter or 2 come out when you pulled the pushrods you should coat the bottoms with assembly lube before you reinstall them. Not doing so greatly increases the possibility of wiping out the can lobe from a dry start.

 

Higgs, thanks for the info. On the oil pan, I've read everything from gasket only, to gasket plus light sealant, to make your own with Right Stuff and your suggestion of ULTRA GRAY. I take it you've had good results with ULTRA GRAY? There doesn't seem to be a consensus on this (at least not that I've seen). This will be my 2nd time doing it and the gasket only didn't work well (as you pointed out), but I didn't recheck the bolts after reinstallation and they had worked loose. I had half decided to do gasket with light sealant, but maybe I'll reconsider.

The one lifter that came out was coated in oil, but picked up some debris when it landed in the valley. I wiped it off and recoated with oil and slid it back in. Should I pull it back out and use assembly lube (namebrand on this?)?

Where can you buy Berkebile 2+2?

 

One additional item as far as the oil pan. Ensure that the surfaces are clean and flat. If the edges of the pan are not flat, it will give you problems as well.

Did you use a torque wrench? Are you using torqing patterns to ensure it seats well?

You do not want to be careless with the bolts. And always recheck basic things after you run it a bit.

Also make sure you know where to use thread locker (LOCKTITE) and where not to.

 

What shape is radiator in? You may want to go ahead and pull it out for a thorogh cleaning while so much is aprt and out of the way. Good time to clean between radiator and AC condenser as well. If you pull radfiator, you can flush it out or run it to a rad shop if needed.