Pulled the head off my 88 2.6L SWB this evening, this is the first time I have pulled a head on a motor. My truck has 137K on the odometer and I have know clue if this is the original motor. My guess is that this is not the original motor. When I purchased the truck nine months ago the truck was eating coolant and a few weeks ago the Truck got hot and I immediately turned the truck off. When I opened the hood I noticed that the water pump bolts had backed out from the block and coolant had escaped from a gap between the engine and the water pump.
The car sat for two weeks before I removed the head. I know that I need to check the deck for squareness. The top of the pistons are black with what appears to be carbon. What should I look for on the cylinder walls or the underside of the cylinder head? The oil in the motor looks good with no trace of water. I am this far and the last thing I want to do is have a potential problem in the lower end and have it rear its head a month after I put the new head on.