'06 Quicksilver Z06

Well, after reading what others have had to say about the issue, yes, it appears, at least to me, that it can be.

Are you saying that it couldn't be????

I'm taken aback though as to why you ask, as I thought this was commonly accepted as a possible potential contributing factor in the decrease of reported incidents and a key step in the overall management of the issue.

MyLS1Hauls

It isn't a contributing factor. It is THE factor. WORN GUIDES IS THE PROBLEM

MTIRC6Z

Don't try to tell Richard at WCCH that, he STILL believes THE problem is the stock hollow valves...thus there is little reason to wonder why any of his disciples would have difficulty in accepting such a simple concept

Cheers, Paul.

PS. And I rest my case because based on post#1393 it looks like were back to the theory of spontaneously combusting exhaust valves because unless you can prove it with your own thread, bad guides are apparently not necessary for the sort of valve failures the LS7 has been experiencing.

'06 Quicksilver Z06

Well Hauls if you are saying that "worn guides" are the "root cause" for all of the failures we have seen over the last 7 or 8 years, you might consider starting a thread of your own to include all of the cases where evaluation for guide wear in blown engines due to dropped valves, was done, and showed the two to consistently co exist.

Good luck. No one has proven yet that "worn guides" are a consistent pre requisite for a dropped, hollow stemmed stock, inconsistent valve stem wall thickness, LS7 exhaust valve.

And yes, the stock exhaust valves....well, they have already been described by among others, a supporting forum vendor in here no less, as having varying and inconsistent wall thickness. Even if that vendor won't openly disclose, and refuses to discuss, their apparent "proprietary" techniques utilized for determining this, I still respect their findings in light of the documented failures described right in here.

I would also add that I accept and respect their right of refusal to discuss, or disclose the actual methods they used to determine that which they claim to have found, and accept any such reasons whatsoever they give for refusing to discuss their techniques. That's their prerogative.

But all of the above said Hauls, I would be very interested, very interested my fellow forum member and Corvette brother, in knowing what the stem to guide clearances were in each of the cases of stock exhaust valve failure we have seen described in here, and I'll be looking for the thread.

Fifedogg

Just got my heads wiggle tested and every valve is out of spec intake and exhaust. I'm running stainless exhaust valves on stock guides. 26k miles on stock ported heads. Some way way out of spec. There is no doubt in my mind if I still had stock ex valves in there I would have already dropped a valve.

I plan on replacing them ASAP and won't drive my car until I do. I already have a set of stock cores I'm going to send off shortly.

'06 Quicksilver Z06

Good thing you caught it when you did Dogg.

Those powdered metal guides can wear out fast once the wear starts.

At least your valves were strong enough to keep you from suffering a very expensive mishap.

ctsv510

How many miles have you had the replacement exhaust valves installed?

Dirty Howie

Lets see now. Who am I going to trust has a better understanding of how valves, guides etc work in heads, you or Richard. Damn that was an easy discision

Seems that tons of guys with LS7 also trust his opinion. He recently processed 9 sets of LS7 heads in 5 days. And he reports that many other guys are moving up to the All Pro and Brodix heads, none of which run the stock OEM exhaust valve.


DH

'06 Quicksilver Z06

I didn't even realize that I didn't have you on the listing Fifedogg.

I just went up and added you, and good luck with the rebuild. You definitely dodged a bullet as your valves held together until you could first identify that you had a problem, and that is a good thing.

This could have easily gone the other way had you still had the stock exhaust valves in it. We would be reading about your dropped valve incident, and you would be shoping for a new crate motor right about now.

Instead, you are only looking to have your heads done.

Big price differential, without a doubt.

MTPZ06

Wait...you had your heads re-worked 26K miles ago, and the valve guides are all out of spec again??

Who re-worked your heads originally, and what precisely did they do?

MTIRC6Z

Dude get with the program, it doesn't matter, nothing matters as long as you've got SS valves in there and you got them from WCCH

I'd like to hear how our resident gurus or their best buddy Richard go about explaining how SS valves managed to wear out a bunch of valve guides when that wear is KNOWN (at least to our gurus and WCCH) to be the responsibility of the stock OEM valve

Cheers, Paul.

'06 Quicksilver Z06

At the very least, we know that he was on stock guides and running SS valves with them.

So that tells us that either someone installed new SS valves into his old stock guides, which has happened in here before I might add, and with similar results....or someone put in new stock guides with new SS valves. Another questionable approach if not an outright boo boo from all indication thus far.

Across the discussions in here, and across the continental United States, it thus far appears that new manganese bronze guides and SS valves are the usual manner in which this issue is typically addressed in the LS7, and a manner which has thus far proven to be successful.

Bronze guides are said by at least one forum vendor, in an exchange with one of our forum members, to have better wear characteristics:

And:

Mark2009

Is WCCH still using the manganese bronze guides? I thought they dumped CHE and began using some other brand that may be of different composition, so can you confirm that your claim above is still current?[/QUOTE]

'06 Quicksilver Z06

Can you confirm that it isn't?

I ask because I have seen no indication in here that it isn't, and I know that there is indication that you are currently in the process of addressing this issue in your own car, and thus your information as to what professionals are using and doing might be more current than my own.

If you know of more current information with regard to this matter, specifically with regard to which professionals are using what when it comes to valve guides, and what type of success they are having with these choices and over how long, well then I request that you indicate so in the thread.

Thanks for your assistance and your anticipated write up and input into the thread in this regard Mark2009.

Mike hoppe

where did you have the wiggle test done

Mark2009

So, you don't know what brand or type of bronze valve guide WCCH is currently using. Thanks for confirming that

'06 Quicksilver Z06

Do you?

And why are you discussing this non forum sponsor anyway?????

Well, actually it took no effort on my part, so no thanks is really needed.

Dirty Howie

Would you actually like to know the answer to your question ?


DH

ramairws6

That's VERY strange as WCCH is the only company I know that you can get the upgraded CHE bushed rocker from...

Mark2009

What is EVEN stranger is that it was posted quite some time ago that WCCH had switched to a different brand valve guide, or at the very least were not exclusively using one brand/type: