Should there be steam out the exhaust

[allen]

When I got my "new"manifold, the restriction on its input was gone and I had great cooling. When I ran at high speed, the manifold and head would feel cool. Not cool, cold. I could put my hand on them but it was uncomfortable because it was so cold. After some trial and error I put a ball valve on the line between the water pump and the manifold to simulate the restriction of the old manifold. I also removed the temp alarm sensor and replaced it with a Sierra temperature sensor and gauge. My thought was to close the valve until I got 140F on the gauge. But with the valve where the temperature is over 120 I see steam out the exhaust. Is that normal? I seem to remember seeing some steam with the old exhaust.

This is not like the steam I would get when my water pump would fail. That was like being followed by a cloud. This is just some puffs out the exhaust that dissipate quickly.

I am looking for some guidance as to what is normal in terms of steam out the exhaust. I would like to get to 140 but am a big concerned because even with the temp gauge reading under 120, I am reading 190 with an IR thermometer on the freeze plug that is on the center of the head.

I want to reduce the amount of water going through the engine to improve performance and possibly improve the issue in the other thread I started.

Allen
L-36.com

[rcvesselstyn]

Hi Allan, if it were truly steam then something's hitting that water at 216°. It could just be condensation from the temperature differential. The hot exhaust gases with lots of moisture condense when it hits the colder air. I'm sure you've considered this but I just thought I should mention it anyway. It makes sense that limiting the amount of water going through the system might keep you from drowning the engine. On some of my older engines even when the blocks weren't clogged with debris there would be hot spots. As long as you have an accurate temperature gauge and your thermostat is working properly you should be able to run the temperature up to the appropriate gauge measurement. Adjusting the flow of water might take a while unless you can find a spec for the original water pump. As the thermostat opens and closes it might require a different level of flow. Just some thoughts. Hopefully a little helpful. Sure sorry to hear you're still fighting the engine problems. I have to admit the constant problems on my Atomic four in the cal 28 helped motivate me to buy the Cal 229, just to get away from that engine. Good luck!

[allen]

You are giving me too much credit. I had not considered condensation so thank you. I am also not sure how to tell the difference.

What I am asking is how much condensation do people see out their exhaust and what basically does it look like?

PS. I don't have a thermostat. I am doing it the old fashioned way, with the ball valve.

Allen