Blown head gasket?

[92Ty#1524]

3 month old coolant appears to be turning dark in overflow tank. The coolant smells burnt and leaves a residue stuck to the upper half of the overflow tank that does not rinse away as rust or dirt would. No coolant in oil (that I can tell). Lost one pint of coolant in the past several months. Spark plug #1 had a sorta rusty residue near the top of the electrode. This is the first time that the truck has been exposed to freezing temps. wondering if the gaskets are leaking by, possibly.

Ive replaced head gaskets before but did not retorque as suggested in recent posts. Am using Victor metal gaskets and ARP studs. Also, the studs are torqed to GM head bolt spec, not the higher ARP spec. I didnt know any better at the time.

Any ideas?

 

[jwaller]

look for bubbles in the rad when your eng is running. and look for coolant disappearing. you might not have killed a head gasket. u might have a leak in the upper Ic. putting crap into the ovr flow tank.