I bought an 84 K10 with a 305 and i believe a 350 trans, well upon driving it home I figured out this truck has no power at all going up hills, the PO said that it needs the valve seats redone cause it burns oil and leaks like a stuck pig. I get the truck home and tried to clean up as much of the oil and grime, now to the point will new heads help the lack of power issue i am having? not a whole lot of money to throw into this thing, but i did however pick up a complete gasket set for it and now i am waiting to see what i should do so as not to waste the gasket set
First, In case I haven't yet, Welcome to GMSB Brian. And thanks for your service.
Yep, do keep in mind, it's a Wee O Five, they're not really a powerhouse in the first place. I think I'd start at the top to make an educated evaluation of the motor's health.
Good or Bad Oil Pressure will give you an idea on the condition of the Main and Rod Bearings. So what is your oil pressure like after the motor has warmed up to normal operating temp? Hopefully at least 30PSI or more well warmed up going down the freeway. If you're only getting 25PSI or so going down the freeway, then it's workable for sure, but it's a sign of a well worn bottom end and I wouldn't throw to much money and time into the top end knowing it's going to need freshened up on the bottom end very soon.
Next, Compression test. Pull all the spark plugs and do a compression test.Hoepfully all cylinders are within 10lbs of each other in either direction. Meaning, if most are at about 120lbs, and 1 or 2 is at 130lbs, and 1 or 2 is at 110lbs then consider it good enough and a well worn engine. Or you might have most cylinders around 115-120 and one may dip down to 85-90 lbs, then you know you have at least 1 weak cylinder but that's still enough to function fair and get by for awhile. Point is, I'd test it first, then make a determination of what it's worth as far as throwing money at it.
Many times you can find a good running used 350 for $300-$500, but do the same tests on it before buying it. My bro is running a $100 used 350 in his El Camino. A few puffs of smoke at start up and a quart of oil about every 2-3 weeks depending on how much he drives it, but it's been in there for over 2 years now and he drives it back and forth from OKC to Ft Worth occasionally with plenty of power and runs smooth. Now that's a motor that just has tired valve seals and why it smokes with the first start up of the day. Past the initial start up, it's fine and he's got almost 40PSI going down the freeway warmed up.
