I adjusted the valve lash on my 292 today and noticed a considerable accumulation of a yellowish jelly like goo on the inside of both valve covers, and it wasn't just a light smearing. There were blobs hanging from end to end. The rocker assemblies and troughs in the heads were clean though. I have also noticed this residue when I cleaned out my road draft assembly. It is not sludge as it is a rather clear jelly  with a light yellow tint. I am thinking it might be detergent condensing out of my motor oil. I have been using 10-30 Quaker State  for all engines. I also have been adding a risolone zinc supplement with each oil change. Does anyone know what this goo is? Is it harmful?

I don't know but about 20 years ago someone told me that Quaker State can leave a coating of paraffin.  Just a thought.  

That "goo" sounds  a lot like emulsified water/oil

Very common in marine engines that might have a cracked block or other water intrusion into the oil



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1955 F-600/272/E4OD// Disclaimer: No animals were injured while test driving my F-600 except the ones I ran over intentionally!

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This post was created using OpenSuSE Linux x64 and Firefox

Agree with above, water vapor in with the oil film. I get this sometimes, you need better crankcase ventilation or just run the car longer/harder. Maybe the thermostat not working? 

I have not noticed a drop in coolant level over time . However, I am retired and live in town and do mostly short trips and a lot of them. I guess that the goo will not harm anything and  assume that it only accumulates on the outer sheetmetal assemblies, such as the oil filler tube, the stock valve covers, or the road draft tube assembly. By the way, this situation has come up with various oils I have used : including Rotella, Valvoline, Quaker State. Quaker State is the only non synthetic oil I can find in stores.

Well,

There's certainly nothing wrong with synthetic oils.  I run them in everything I own. 

If you have a low temp t-stat installed, and/or  don't drive it much it or not for very long, the oil may never get up to operating temp..  Then when you do run it, if it doesn't make it to at least 180-200 degrees F (oil temp) any water accumulated inside due to condensation will collect in the oil and condense on the cooler surfaces (like the top of valve covers etc

It's very common in (raw water cooled) marine engines because they typically have 140 degree F  T-stats so the oil in them rarely gets hot enough to evaporate the water out of the oil.  Air cooled aircraft engines also have a similar problem when operated in winter time for short periods where the oil temp doesn't get hot enough.

That water will also combine with any acidic combustion products to produce corrosion causing components that can only removed by changing the oil.






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1955 F-600/272/E4OD// Disclaimer: No animals were injured while test driving my F-600 except the ones I ran over intentionally!

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This post was created using OpenSuSE Linux x64 and Firefox

Your reasoning seems to correlate well to the problem I have been having. Seems like the best solution would be to do frequent oil changes. I rely on the stock temp guage in my car and it never seems to go past 1/4. I can't remember what thermostat I put in during my build years ago. What temp thermostat would be recommended for my car?

The thermostat temp depends somewhat on the health of your cooling system in general and the cap pressure.

Napa indicates that for a 1960 F100 292, the OEM  thermostat is a 180 degree F (opening) unit. (I don't think it's different for cars)


Newer engines operate at MUCH higher temps for emission reasons and all gasoline engines seem to run at  higher efficiencies when operated at a higher vs lower temp. (200+ vs 170-180)

The problem is that the older cooling systems aren't really designed to handle the pressures needed at the higher temps.  (hence the 7psi caps on many 50's cars and trucks)

When I had my radiator completely rebuilt and the 3-row core replaced with a 4-row core, I asked the "Rad-Man" what (MAX) pressure cap I could use on this radiator. 

He told I could use up to a 13PSI cap   ( almost double the pressure with the original 7PSI cap)

I then started looking at temp/pressure curves for 50/50 mix ethylene glycol based coolants just to satisfy myself that I could safely raise the thermostat temp to 190-200 F  and use say, a  10PSI cap for a limit

Here's an interesting article on cap selection. 

https://www.dewitts.com/blogs/news/13852841-what-pressure-cap-rating-should-i-use

Maybe someone can jump in here with experience using higher pressures with stock Y-block cooling systems


I will be putting a gage on mine if I raise the T-stat temp just to make sure I do not exceed whatever cap I decide on.

All the above is based on a using a 50/50 mix of distilled water and (concentrated) antifreeze.







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1955 F-600/272/E4OD// Disclaimer: No animals were injured while test driving my F-600 except the ones I ran over intentionally!

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This post was created using OpenSuSE Linux x64 and Firefox

OH...THAT goo.  Forget what I said earlier.  I would bet that your short trips are exactly the problem.  I know my 292 takes a LONG time for the gauge to show operating temp.  I run a 170* (Napa #6, I think) thermostat.  Start making extra time for longer cruising.

100% pressure test in the garage before using a modern pressure cap.

The engine itself won't be the limiting factor in the cap, in fact higher pressure caps help eliminate hot spots from localized boiling at the engines hottest parts. the head gasket will see well over 19psi on the cylinder side of the gasket vs the water jacket side.

We just ran a 19psi cap seal level to 12,000ft and temps up to 220° for over 3,000 miles. The cap was a help, not a hindrance. We did have an aftermarket radiator and heater core which would be #2 and #1 guesses on parts that won't tolerate the added pressure. Not because of design, but due to age and deterioration. If either won't hold 19psi, it's not very far off from failing at 3psi IMO. Both components new, or good used condition ,would take the added pressure with no issue.