Removing Head Cover

[ken52]

On my 87 rude 140 one of my plug threads were sleved due to previous owner or shop stripping. It has a little bypass of what looks like thin oil. When it was in the shop for repair I was told some of the bolts were frozen and they didn't want to snap the bolt heads off and open a can of worms for me. They gave me a head to replace it with but was wondering what the best approach would be to remove old cover or should I wait until the sepage gets really bad? Any suggestions greatly appreciated.

Ken

 

[ken52]

Re: Removing Head Cover

Still haven't addressed this problem yet. Any motor guys out there have any suggestions?

Would you let a dealer do it?

If bolt snapped are you into replacing the cylinder assy or what happens when a bolt head snaps off when trying to remove the cylinder head?

any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[Joe Reeves]

Re: Removing Head Cover

If you're speaking of removing the water jacket from the head, that's not necessary.

Removing the cylinder head itself...... Use a hand held propane torch to heat the aluminum area surrounding the steel head bolts. This will expand the aluminum somewhat, helping in loosening the bolts. Usually no problem but there are times when this is a time consuming job.

And of course, remove all items from the area that would be affected by heat such as wiring, coils, etc.

Breaking one of those bolts, unless you're experienced in such matters, it is best to leave removing the broken stud to a reliable machine shop.

Along with the hand help propane torch, have a fire extinguiser and a garden hose (turned on) handy just in case.

 

[tx1961whaler]

Re: Removing Head Cover

I'm not sure that I would do anything about the seepage past the helicoil. It does not seem that it is a performance issue.
Broken head bolts are a bigger risk item than the helicoil.

 

[ken52]

Re: Removing Head Cover

Joe, thanks for reply. The spark plug was helicoiled and I getting some seepage/bypass from inset so having another head just wanted to fix it up.

Dealer wants 2hr labor(95/hr) plus parts, but I forgot to ask what happens if bolt breaks. I have impact tools and I'm pretty good with my hands(work on fighter jet weapon systems for years) and mechanical things was trying to save some money on dealer labor but don't want to open a can of worms either. Thats why I was looking to see if someone here has done a job like this.

Whaler, thanks too for the reply. I didn't what a small issue turn into a major project like you suggested. Thought I may be loosing some compression on that cylinder due to the bypass but haven't checked compression either to verify my doubts about the loss. Sure no even going to attempt this until off season, probably Nov or Dec time frame if I do it.