There is a very hard chalky buildup on the exhaust valves.

The buildup is 1/8 to 3/16 inch thick, and is ONLY on the exhaust valves of ONE piston.

The compression test revealed nothing unusual about that piston at all, in fact it compressed every bit as well as the others.

Any idea what this crud is and what has caused it?

130,000 miles on the motor.

This is the problem cylinder, look carefully at the lower (exhaust) valves.

Valves Cylinder 2

Compared to cylinder 1, which looks fine.

Valves Cylinder 1

[Edited on 12/11/05 by millenniumtree]

Did this engine have a head gasket failure before tear-down??

What is the engine? Has it been running with twin carbs where mixture could be different?

Cheers

If its got EFI, then I would be looking for a faulty injector. Have them all cleaned and flow tested.

Also, check the cam followers and cam for irregularities on the relevant valves.

The white deposits on the exhaust valves look completely normal for a high mileage engine - in fact the other three cylinders look abnormally wet and oily. I suspect that all four cylinders are alike, but during or after removal, three of them became contaminated with the stray oil and water that often accompanies this operation. You've probably got nothing to worry about.

The valves look absolutely fine & probably only want lapping-in. However I would suggest that looking at the cylinder chamber (central in the to picture), that the slight cleaning of the chamber face just above the inlet valves is indicative of the start of haed gasket failure (and steam cleaning effect) between the water way and the cylinder.

should have had this attached