Best way to remove cylinder head

On Wed, 03 Oct 2007 14:34:34 -0700, I said, "Pick a card, any card" and goodfella instead replied:

I'd suggest that you first use the very tightest fit of wrench that you can beg, borrow or buy. That way you won't risk making the insides round by accidental slip of the hand.

Then, clamp the engine in a vice with rags wrapped around it leaving the head exposed. Using firm, steady pressure on the bolts should do the trick. They'll make a nice loud snapping/squealing sound when they go and if your knuckles are exposed to something like the edge of your workbench you may suffer a bit for your hobby.

For stubborn bolts, I have used a product that is available for electronics work called Freez-Mist, used for cooling components to see if they fail under low temperatures. Spray the bolt to shrink it and give it a good go.

If the head is gunky with resins from long use, soak it over a few days in anti-freeze in a heated crock pot. Do that outdoors and away from pets just to be safe.

An aside to the idiots here: Don't let's start another MEK debate over this one, folks. It's just common sense.

Last resort, take it to a machine shop for removal of the bolts. They've got all the goods needed and on the off chance they break one or the threads get bunged during the process, they can fix them on the spot for you.

-- Ray

Try heating up the head. A hot air gun set on "crispy" won't hurt the head and might let you get those bolts out...

/daytripper

Ray, I was with you on the MEK but I'm going to have to say that putting an engine in a vice is a bad idea. I've ruined an engine that way(I was 13 years old). You can distort the crank case(in my experience) or the cylinder head. That is: Been There Done That advice. To the OP may I suggest that a constant pressure on the wrench might help as the goo that holds it might give slowly, like gummy sugar. Also heat, but even heat, like the whole engine(no carb) in an oven, hold with pot holder.(safety first) as opposed to spot heat of a torch or heat gun. mk

On Wed, 3 Oct 2007 23:38:14 -0500, I said, "Pick a card, any card" and "MJKolodziej" instead replied:

I should have been more clear on that. You don't actually grip the engine, you just make it tight enough so it can't turn when you apply pressure to the head bolts. The rag will keep it from scratching.

Pot holder or rag, you need something to keep it from spinning out of your grip while you apply more torque to the bolts. One guy I know used a short piece of square metal tubing to hold the engine.

-- Ray

I'll second all of that. You can also soak the engine in a jar of fuel or plain alcohol to loosen the gooey oil. Be sure to get the crud out of the screw heads to allow the tool to get seated properly on the screw.

Your best bet for loosening the threads is heat.

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Bandsaw...

Ed Cregger

I might suggest that you use your Dremel cutoff disc to create a 'new' unrounded end of the Allen wrench before starting, then use a slow steady pressure.

Cheers -- Lyman

"On so-called global warming or climate change, let us not scare ourselves with catastrophic forecasts, or use them to defend and promote irrational interventions in human lives."

I must be a piker because MY heat gun only has hot and cold settings....

Ray, you really shouldn't be talking about idiots because that is off topic.

On Thu, 04 Oct 2007 08:51:01 -0400, I said, "Pick a card, any card" and Ed Cregger instead replied:

Ah, now that's what I like! Turn this into an "X-treme Hobby" in one grinding, metal chip rendering pass!

-- Ray

On Thu, 4 Oct 2007 16:36:28 -0500, I said, "Pick a card, any card" and "Six_O'Clock_High" > and

It could be the next reality TV show. RC Flying With the Stars.

Give them weak batteries, dead cells, no frequency flags, bad fuel, jiggling power switches and stripped servo gears; then let them run the AMA pattern with only a single day of practice. Do it next to a skeet range and you have maximum entertainment value.

-- Ray

One way to keep allen head bolts and phillips head screws from slipping is to dip the wrench or screwdriver into fine auto valve grinding compound before trying to loosen them. It will increase the "bite" almost magically...

Also, the screws will not be actual "Phillips" type, but "JIS" type screws. Use the proper tool for the job, and success is much more likely....

Cheers,

Bill

I like to use the "cooking an engine in a crockpot full of antifreeze" overnight. Remove the engine and while it is still warm all the screws should come out free and clear. Works great if the piston is frozen too.

Been working on engines , auto and model , all my life and never heard of this one. Thanks for that tip , I will try it.

The bolts are " socket head ", " hex head " , and are also called "allen head" ....... all the same. JIS is a standard , Japanese Industrial Standard I believe.

Ken

You've gotten a lot of good advice from the other guys , but ifall else fails , I have used a Dremel tool to cut a "slot" in the heads for a flat screwdriver. You will cut the head a bit , but it won't matter as long as you just cut the surface a bit.

Ken

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You really topped it all off by placing the flying site next to a skeet range. I liked that.

Ed Cregger

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You really topped it all off by placing the flying site next to a skeet range. I liked that.

Ed Cregger

It was a small "trial" turn. I think I stripped the glow plug threads and either want to replace the head, rethread the hole off of the engine to prevent metal shavings getting into the cylinder or put a helicoil in the head.

BTW, thanks for all of the advice and guidance to all of you.

"goodfella" wrote

In another post, someone objected to putting an engine in a vise.

I have found it necessary to do this on occasion, and I "pad" the engine from the jaw marring the engine by using blocks of wood. Also, to keep from distorting the engine, I barely put any squeezing pressure on it, but instead orient the engine so the lugs or some part of the engine will prevent rotation.