26 JULY-SEPT 2011 engine professional AN AERA INTERNATIONAL QUARTERLY PUBLICATION

In today’s diesel engines, OEMs areforced to meet stricter emissionsstandards — balancing betweenpremature guide wear due to low sulfurfuels (ULSD) and the need to tightentolerances on valve-to-guide clearances.They push the limit by reducing theamount of oil a valve stem seal isallowed to pass through in order to meetthese stricter emission standards. TheGuide-Liner is an excellent, economicsolution to this new problem. I believe itto be of interest to take a closer look atwhat this system can do for you. Ifanything, by the end of this article, youmight have picked up something newand useful or freshened up on somethingold and familiar because the Guide-Linerhas been around for a long time.

The idea that the Guide-Liner is onlyfor heads with integrated or cast-in valveguides (like the old Chevy 350 heads) isin the past. The Guide-Liner has evolvedway beyond that and is an excellentsolution in all types of cylinder heads –from multi-valve aluminum cylinderheads with guides as small as 5mm tolarge HD turbo-charged diesels usingultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD).

The Guide-Liner is widely used inEurope, Latin America and Australia forengines running on abrasively dry,gaseous fuels. In the US and UK, thereare engine builders who use them in top-

fuel raceapplications withgood results. TheGuide-Liner, installedcorrectly, can and willwithstand the mostextreme applications.

As mentioned before, the Guide-Linerhas evolved. It started out as a smoothbronze liner, followed by the InterruptedSpiral to increase oil retention.

A few years ago, K-Line IndustriesInc. introduced the DFL PerformanceCoated Guide-Liner to offer the racingindustry an improved liner that allowsfor tighter tolerances and less drag dueto reduced friction.

The DFL Guide-Liner uses the samefoundation material (Phosphor Bronze)as the original Guide-Liner, offering thesame great malleability and heat transfer,enhancing it with the qualities of DFLCoating.

The DFL Coating is capable ofproviding lubrication under extremepressure (as high as 350,000 psi) makingit an excellent application for situationswhere side-loading, extremetemperatures or very abrasive fuels arean issue, as is the case in HD turbo-charged diesel engines.

I have seen success with the DFL inthese applications where low sulfur orbad quality fuels not uncommon abroad

Guide-Linersfor Diesel Applications

BY PIM VAN DEN BERGH PHOTOS BY RON REGAN

engine professional WWW.AERA.ORG/EP 27

A set of seat bushings, air drill, airhammer and a broach driver are thebasic tools required for the process.

For each guide size,there is a kit that hasall the tooling requiredto accurately installthe Guide-Liner.

Contents of a K-LineNX Deluxe Kit (listed inorder as pictured, fromtop to bottom):• Reamer and bushing• Brush• Go No-Go Gauge• Auto Installer• Ball Broaches (3)• Guide Top Cutter• Flex-Hone

®

• Removal Tool

are an issue. TheDFL Guide-Liner isinstalled the same

way as the normalGuide-Liner, however, there isone big difference — this linershould not be honed. The DFLwill damage or clog your honeand the hone will remove ordamage the DFL coating. Thenice bonus of the DFL Guide-Liner is that a ball broach getsa lot longer life sizing theseversus a traditional Guide-Liner.

The ProcessShort of reaming the guideand using oversized valves,when done correctly, theGuide-Liner process is thefastest and most accurate wayto reclaim the guide in acylinder head. The processdoes require special tooling(see photo above).

A set of seat bushings, airdrill, air hammer and a broachdriver are the basic tools andare a one time purchase. Thenfor each guide size, there is akit that has all the toolingrequired to accurately installthe Guide-Liner.

28 JULY-SEPT 2011 engine professional AN AERA INTERNATIONAL QUARTERLY PUBLICATION

GUIDE-LINERS FOR DIESEL APPLICATIONSBY PIM VAN DEN BERGH

4 Simple StepsTo Install a Guide-LinerCorrectly

1 Through the combination ofthe reamer pilot, the reamerbushing and the seatbushing, perfect alignment ismaintained between thecenter of the guide and thecenter of the seat during thereaming process. This is thefoundation of the Guide-Liner. That perfect center ofthe guide to the center ofthe seat drastically reducesthe amount you need tomachine the seat to aminimum. Lets face it,cutting a valve seat on anymachine available in today’smarket depends on thecondition/position of theguide to the seat. The betteryou keep the two in line, theless work you have cuttingthe seat.

2 After reaming the guide, theGuide-Liner is installed. TheGuide-Liner is a split,phosphor bronze, thin wallbushing that can be installedin the guide from the seat orthe spring side. Using theAuto Installer (provided inthe kit) and a short strokeair hammer, the Guide-Linerslides effortlessly into thereamed guide. Preference isto install the Guide-Liner ina clean, dry guide; no oilrequired. No need for theuse of any type of adhesive– as a matter of fact, Istrongly advise against it.

The seatbushing withthe pilot ensurethat the guideis alwaysreamed to thecenter of theseat.

The AutoInstaller isused to drivethe Guide-Liner into thereamed guide.

1

2

engine professional WWW.AERA.ORG/EP 29

3 Sizing of the liner can bedone using a ball broach,carbide sphere or rollerburnisher. With a light oil orspecial lube (like the K-LineBronze Lube KL1224 and aguide brush, provided in thekit) pre-lube the ID of theGuide-Liner. This allows theGuide-Liner material to sizeor “flow” better during thebroaching process. This stepserves two purposes – one isto “lock” the Guide-Liner inplace inside the existingguide, the other is to size theGuide-Liner to its requiredsize.

4 After the desired size isobtained, the excess of theGuide-Liner is removedusing a guide top cutterprovided in the kit. Thisstep removes any excessGuide-Liner material andsquares off the guide.Always do this on both sidesof the guide and alwaysafter the broaching or sizingoperation. It is veryimportant that no Guide-Liner material is leftprotruding out of the guide;on the spring side, this canprevent oil from entering theguide. As for the valve headside, it can cause the Guide-Liner material to overheatand burn, especially in theexhaust guide.

These four easy steps –Ream, Install, Broach and Cut –with all the tools in place, takesan experienced operator lessthan a minute per guide, onaverage.

NOTE: In the pictures, alightweight aluminum head isused for demonstrationpurposes. In reality, working ona big diesel head, the steps arethe same with one big difference— you don’t easily flip a 100-lb.head over to trim the Guide-Liner. The system works fromthe seat side and can becompleted without having toturn the head over. Most shopstrim the spring side as the verylast step, before it goes onto theseat and guide machine.

The Ball Broachprocess servestwo purposes –one is to “lock”the Guide-Liner inplace inside theexisting guide, theother is to size theGuide-Liner to itsrequired size.

The excess ofthe Guide-Lineris removedusing a guidetop cutter.

4

3

30 JULY-SEPT 2011 engine professional AN AERA INTERNATIONAL QUARTERLY PUBLICATION

For the reaming operation, there arejigs or stands available to align and assurethe seat bushing is pressed in the seatduring the reaming of the guide. Thesetools are a great benefit, however, notpractical when doing big diesel heads. Alot of machine shops prefer holding theseat bushing by hand or using a drill-mounted fixture due to speed, flexibilityand ease of use. In all cases, the long piloton the reamer and the seat bushing haveno problem making sure the reamer stayson center, especially having the weight ofthe head keeping the work piece steady.

The tooling kit contains a few moretools that I did not mention in theprevious steps.

The Go No-Go Gauge: This tool is used tocheck how your reamer is performing inregards to size and whether the reamedhole is straight. It is important tosporadically check the reamed guide fromboth sides, spring side and seat side toverify how your reamer is performing.

The Flex-Hone®: This used to be the fifthstep of the process, however, when usingthe DFL Guide-Liner, honing is not anoption. When using the traditional Guide-Liner you can hone, but it’s not required. Ihave a love-hate relationship with this

tool. It is great for finishing off the guide,removing burrs the top cutter might haveleft behind and leaves a nice crosshatchfinish (in addition to the InterruptedSpiral). The problem after honing iscleaning out the honed guide. The honingprocess, especially being an abrasiveoperation, always leaves debris behind. Itis extremely important to thoroughly cleanthe guide. The Interrupted Spiral is greatfor oil retention, however, it also can storehone residue that can severely damage thevalve stem if not cleaned out properly. Hotwater, soap and a brush is the best way toclean the guides. Solvent-based cleanerstend to enclose dirt or debris rather thanremove it.

The Removal Tool: When one follows theabove-mentioned steps religiously, theGuide-Liner will not move, come loose orfall out. As a matter of fact, I challengeanyone to remove the Guide-Liner – andnot damage the reamed hole – without theRemoval Tool that is included with thekit. The Removal Tool will remove a guidethat has been in use for many yearswithout damaging the original reamedguide and will allow you to reinstall a new Guide-Liner.

Reasons why guides failin diesel applications:

1 Oil supply, or lack of, mainly regulatedby the valve stem seal.

2 Type of load the engine functionsunder. A constant load cycle or dutycycle (marine, industrial) tends to pushoil out of the guide. Much more than aconstantly changing load and variableor changing speeds seem to allow freshoil to enter the guide.

3 Excessive turbo boost can starve anintake valve guide.

4 Stem to guide clearance – Too muchand it will cock the valve and wear.Too little and it will scuff the valvestem.

5 Inadequate oil retention of the guideID – Often HD guides are spiraled forbetter oil retention.

6 Side loading of the valve stem due torocker arm actuation or incorrectmachining of the seat – too much seatrun out.

7 Excessive temperatures in the guide,especially when it protrudes into the

GUIDE-LINERS FOR DIESEL APPLICATIONSBY PIM VAN DEN BERGH

The Go No-Go Gauge is used tocheck how your reamer isperforming in regards to size andwhether the reamed hole is straight.

The Flex-Hone®

was once the fifth stepof the Guide-Liner process, however,when using the DFL Guide-Liner, honingis not an option. When using thetraditional Guide-Liner you can hone,but it’s not required. (Flex-Hone

®is a

registered trademark of BrushResearch Manufacturing Co. Inc.)

The Removal Tool will remove aguide that has been in use for manyyears without damaging the originalreamed guide and will allow you toreinstall a new Guide-Liner.

engine professional WWW.AERA.ORG/EP 31

port or the valve seat heat transfer islimited due to incorrect seat width, orimproperly installed seat insert.

8 Cylinder pressure – The higher thecombustion pressure, the higher therisk of the valve being pushed around,causing side-loading or misalignment.

9 Heat dissipation –Most of thedissipation is done by the seat; if it isnot doing its job, the strain is on theguide. The guide needs the ability togive off its heat to the head.

10 Incorrect machined guide, taper or outof round.

11 Uneven seat wear causing cocking ofthe valve.

12 Excessive heat in the valve, causing oilcorrosion and metal-to-metal contact.

13 Excessive valve rotation.

14 Abrasive wear due to poor airfiltration, especially on the intake side.

15 Corrosive wear, especially in theexhaust valve, due to fuel impuritiesand additives (or lack of). With today’slow sulfur diesel, proper guide materialis more important than ever. Going toextremes, there may be chemicalformations at high temperatures thatcause breakdown of the oil film or, onthe other end of the spectrum, lowtemperature condensation of acidicgases that form at idle and break downthe oil film.

16 When replacing a guide, two commonfailures can occur with improper headto guide clearance. First, if it’s tooloose, it can move or cause over-heating because it can’t dissipate theheat properly. In some cases, if theguide bore was damaged duringextraction, an oil leak can form aroundthe OD of the guide and the head.Second, if it’s too tight, the guide IDwill distort and require reaming.Another reason for failure is materialchoice. Replacing a guide is not justreplacing a cast iron tube (unless youinstall a Guide-Liner); not all guidematerials are made the same.

Guide-Liner AdvantagesIf we look closely at the reasons for guidefailure, lubrication, heat and load are thethree main factors. This is where theGuide-Liner excels.

The chosen material for both the DFLLiner and the traditional Guide-Liner isPhosphor Bronze. It’s an alloy of copperwith 3.5 to 10% of tin and a significant

phosphorus content of up to 1%. Thisalloy is notable for its toughness, strength,low coefficient of friction, and fine grainallowing cold workability. Thiscombination of ingredients provides goodthermal conductivity required to dissipateheat.

1) Lubrication – In addition to theinterrupted spiral, the phosphor gives theGuide-Liner lubricating qualities that actas oil reservoirs providing constantlubrication to the valve stem. On the DFLversion, the coating is capable of workingwith a lot less oil.

2) Heat – Good heat dissipation is key.Phosphor Bronze adapts very well to thereamed hole and this is why it’s best to beinstalled in a dry, clean, reamed guide tomaximize contact, thus heat transfer. Thisis also why using any type of adhesive isnot advisable; most adhesives don’tdissipate heat very well and act asinsulators.

3) Mechanical – The Guide-Linerprocess might use a malleable materialduring the installation process howeverthe finished product is case-hardenedduring the sizing of the Guide-Liner by theball broach. This gives the Guide-Linergood resistance to mechanical wear. Butthat is not all – on the DFL and thetraditional Guide-Liner, the PhosphorBronze has such a low coefficient offriction and high wear resistance, causingit to act as small slide bearings thatcontact the valve stem, but do not abrade it.

So, why use the Guide-Liner process?Why not just replace the guide and be donewith it? Well, removing the original guide isnot always the easiest process and candamage the guide bore in the head,especially in smaller aluminum diesel heads.Pressing in the new replacement guide willrequire reaming of the replaced guidebecause you will distort the guide,especially if you have too much of aninterference fit with the head.

Finding the right part – When workingon newer late model heads, some partsmight not be available. There are caseswhere the OEM recommends replacing thehead and no parts are available. If youhave the Guide-Liner process in place, youcan basically tackle any head that comesinto your shop. The process does notdiscriminate to size. For example, if youhave a 7mm kit, you can do any headwith 7mm guides. No need to stock guidesfor each type of head. Seat to guideconcentricity = less machining. Onperformance heads where the guides arepart of the porting job, replacing a guide

can be time consuming. The Guide-Lineronly repairs the ID, avoiding the need tore-work the port.

Speed – The time it takes to press outthe old guide, press in the new one, reamit to size and re-work the seat isconsiderably longer than the Guide-Linerprocess. Just the time alone savedmachining the seat on center pays offusing the Guide-Liner process.

Flexibility – The Guide-Liner allows youto fine tune the size using the broachingprocess weather you use the carbide ballsor the ball broaches the guide can bemanipulated to the size you want and ifyou make a mistake you can simplyremove the Guide Liner and start over.Same if a head comes back after manyyears of use remove the old Guide-Linerand press in a new one.

Cost – As I explained earlier, each guidesize requires its own installation kit and anew user starting from scratch will runinto the fact that costs add up. I havefound that most successful users build uptheir tooling coverage over time, startingwith the more popular sizes. That is thebeauty of the system – you are notrequired to buy all sizes at once. So, youcan start out with one or two sizes and seethe profits recover your investment.

TroubleshootingAs you are using the Guide-Liner process,you will run into situations that raisequestions. For starters, the Guide-Linerprocess is a great repair system, but it isnot Superman. There are situations wherethe liner won’t work. For example, if atiming belt breaks or there is another typeof catastrophic failure, chances are thevalves hit the pistons and they are bent tosuch extent that they cracked the guides,making them unsuitable for any type ofrepair. Other examples are:

• Some powdered metal guides are a lotharder and more brittle, which will require youto be more careful in the sizing process.Where a cast iron guide will flex, somepowder metal guides won’t and will oftenrequire the use of a thinner wall liner thatrequires less expanding. All these differentwall thicknesses are available. I have alsofound that some guides on smaller cardiesel engines can crack on the thinnerstem seal side. A thinner liner (requiresless expanding) often solves this problem.However, I often leave the seal in placeuntil I use the guide top cutter. The pressfit of a positive seal is often enough toprevent the guide from cracking in the sealarea.

32 JULY-SEPT 2011 engine professional AN AERA INTERNATIONAL QUARTERLY PUBLICATION

• Some guides may be too long and there isno standard liner available. I have solved thisproblem by installing two liners in theguide. Insert one from the seat side andone from the spring side and have themmeet somewhere in the middle. In caseswhere the overall length of liner is short 4 to 6mm or less, I will insert the Guide-Liner from the spring side. The broachingwill stretch the liner out and whatever Iam short (remains recessed inside theguide), stays that way. The fact that theliner is somewhat recessed into the guideactually helps it, especially on the exhaustside, by protecting the Guide-Liner fromdirect exposure to high temperatures.

• Tooling wear. Just like with any toolingout there, there will be times the reamerswill eventually wear. However, given theproper care, they last a very long time.The nice thing is that Go-No-Go gaugesare available to verify the reamers functionto size. The ball broaches are most proneto wear and require upkeep using a lightlube. Their life can be extendedconsiderably with proper maintenance.

The alternative to ball broaches is the useof carbide sizing balls. These are notcheap, but will not wear. There is also therisk of losing them and replacement costscan be expensive. I have seen attempts toweld the carbide balls on a metalextension, trying to combine the ball andthe broach concept into one – combiningthe benefits of both. And finally, the bestbut most expensive way is the rollerburnisher. Its cost and speed make it theleast popular.

The last thing I want to mention is thechrome ball broach. The fact that it wearsmakes it a tool that requires control of itscondition. Once the industrial chrome layeris worn, it will stop working. At that point,it will either push the Guide-Liner out ofthe bore instead of sliding through becauseits surface is too rough – or, it will score theID to such an extent that the Guide-Linermaterial turns into a coarse surface that cancause premature stem wear. Whenever I runinto a situation where a customer has aproblem or premature failure, in most casesI can trail it back to tooling not being

maintained or not working correctly.I have been calling on machine shops

around the world for more than 10 years.I have also used the Guide-Liner processat the PER level for many years prior tothat. Everyone I talk to, who is successfulusing the Guide-Liner process, says thesame thing – “It’s great, it works, but youhave to follow the steps.” As long as youfollow the steps and maintain your tools,the system works, saves you time andmakes you money.�

Pim van den Bergh is the International Sales Managerfor SBI, the premier worldwide supplier of cylinder headcomponents to the aftermarket. SBI is the worldwidedistributor of the K-Line Guide-Liner system. You maycontact him at 616-990-1843 or email pim@sbintl.com.

GUIDE-LINERS FOR DIESEL APPLICATIONSBY PIM VAN DEN BERGH

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