Help On Taking Off Head

[new_2_z]

before you even ask yes i do have the rebuild your nissan and datsun engine book as well as how to modify. i see what sequence how to take off the head in the book. but these 10mm allen bolts are tough. well to start i bought a L28 (n42 block) and im taking it apart. this engine has been out of the rain and has been sitting in a garage for some time. so the oil is stuck on everything. i already drained it and got all out of the oil pan. im trying everything i can do to get these bolts off. should i spray with oil pentrator or not. since i plan on cleaning anything anway i dont see it hurting it but i dont want to do something if it effect my head in the long run. i plan on getting a n42 but also plan on selling the n47 head. what ways have yall got your heads off.

thx

mat

[Bambikiller240]

Use a LOOOONG Breaker bar (or slide a Looooong pipe over your ratchet) You need to gain leverage to loosen them.

[new_2_z]

thx bamb it worked and only one bolt broke off. yea i had to fab up a long bar. the weird thing was this the one bolt that broke off had rust on it. so i guess i have to drill out the part that broke in the block?

[Bambikiller240]

Not sure what the best method is to get that out. I've never had that happen. If you drill, be carefull to keep metal bits out of the cylinders (or other parts of the engine), and to not damage the threads in the block. This isn't the sort of thing you want to make mistakes doing.

Hopefully other people can give you more advice on how to get the broken bolt out.

[26ounce]

I take it you got the head off and now have a broken head bolt remaining in the block. If there is much of the bolt sticking out I would get a welder, or someone who knows how to weld, to weld a nut onto the end of the remaining bolt. The you get the breaker bar back in action.

If the bolt is flush with the block, or inside, be careful about using those cursed ezy-out things. They have a nasty habit of snapping and leaving the tip inside the broken bolt. I don't know what they are made out of, bloody hard whatever it is, but they are an absolute mongrel to drill out.

If you have the block out of the car and stripped down (ie easy to move) I would consider taking it to a professional.

[new_2_z]

yea i got the head off the the one bolt that broke off is stick out of the block so it might be able to be saved.(vise grips mabye) now im just trying to get the flywheel off and the pulley. trying everything i can to keep it from turning

[beandip]

If you are going to hot tank the block and hone the cylinders , while the block is in the shop have them remove the broken bolt . If you couldent brake it loose with a socket and bar the vice grips won't come close. As was stated the EZ-out are made of steel as hard as a file and are brittle. They snap off and then you have a real problem . Believe us the little it costs to have the bolt removed , it is well worth it. Be sure to keep track of the main caps and where they came from the same for the rod caps and each of the rockers. They must go back to the same position when you reassemble the engine.

[Chino 240Z]

Spraying that broken bolt and or any other with penitrating oil and letting it sit for a bit may help in the tear down procedure. Also masking tape, a sharpie marker and ziploc baggies make organizing hardware easier when you disassemble, also makes things go back together quicker. If you take your stuff to a shop, they will like you for labeling everything and not just dropping off a bunch of parts in a box.

That welding a nut on a broken bolt worked for me in getting a broken V8 header bolt out once!

[new_2_z]

thx for the help ill try to get some pics up

[LanceM]

Yea, welding on a nut is the easy way to go if you have bolt above the block. The heat generated by the welding breaks loose the rust bond and usually they come right out making you wonder why they broke in the first place!

[mlc240z]

welding a nut sounds like the best course.

i have an old 6" pipe wrench that has saved my butt more times than i can remember. the hardened jaws dig into anything and have backed out a lot of broken bolts, rounded nuts and mashed studs after a good soaking. i find it works much better than vise grips.

pay the extra money and get a good quality wrench since the cheap ones have softer jaws. OLD wrenches bought at a flea market seem to work better than some newer ones.

[MikeW]

OLD wrenches bought at a flea market seem to work better than some newer ones.

Yep. I've got a couple of old pipe wrenches that the previous owner of my house happened to leave behind. I decided to drill holes in the handles to hang them up on my peg board. The drill went right through one of them. The other wrench - which appears to be much older - now has a very small dent in the handle where I tried and tried to drill. Even with a carbide bit it barely got scratched.