Hi guys,

New to the site and just brought home a pretty rough '82 4X4. I had a beautiful '82 when I was a kid and have kicked myself every day for 30 years for selling that truck. My plan is to do a restore on this little guy but first want to get her running good. It starts and runs but not very well. I'd like to check the compression but don't know what PSI I should be aiming for a good tight engine.

Also plan to adjust the valves, rebuild/clean the carb, set the timing, etc., but I'd like to check the compression first to get an idea of what I've got. Just took it for a little drive and it's smoking a little when warm. Might as well determine if I just need to rebuild it..

Thanks

 

Adjust the valves BEFORE checking compression. Any tight valves might funkify (technical term) the results.

Anything over 120 or 130 are good, so long as the difference between cylinders is 10 pounds, or less.

A fresh engine might show compression near 170PSI.

 

^^^^^^^^^ What Millball sez is usually Gold.

 

x2 on what Millball said.

About 170 PSI for a fresh 22R sounds right, near sea level.

Also take into account your elevation. If you are located way up into the mountains, the compression will be naturally less than near sea level due to the "thinner" air.