Rounded headbolts

BUGGER!!!! Rounded one of the head bolts off. Tried to drill it and snapped the drill off in the bolt. So as I see it I've got two choices, Weld a nut on the top, get a die grinder and buzz the head off or set fire to the fakin thing. Right ****ed off. I was using a 6 sided flank drive sockets and the head of the bolt still turned to toffee. I haven't even got to the head bolt right at the back yet. I'm really struggling to shift these bolts on the offside head for some reason. I'm using a 3ft breaker bar yet it's bloody hard going,the bar is actually bending!!!! If anybody has some other ideas to try I'm all ears.


Yours really grumpy

Doz

slightly smaller socket, go imperial, smack the socket on with a hammer so its good and tight and kind of remoulds the head bolt like how you'd do it with a larger allen key if you rounded off an allen bolt slightly

Dont know if there do thaem that small but you need someting like those locking wheels nut removers

Dr_evil said:

slightly smaller socket, go imperial, smack the socket on with a hammer so its good and tight and kind of remoulds the head bolt like how you'd do it with a larger allen key if you rounded off an allen bolt slightly

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If it's a V8 the head bolts are imperial. 5/8" AF 7/16" UNC. NOT 16 mm, that is why he rounded it off. Wrong socket. NEVER use a twelve point socket to undo or torque on these, specially one the wrong size.

wammers said:

If it's a V8 the head bolts are imperial. 5/8" AF 7/16" UNC. NOT 16 mm, that is why he rounded it off. Wrong socket. NEVER use a twelve point socket to undo or torque on these, specially one the wrong size.

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May have to go one down from that then if he can find a weird size like 33/64ths if not see if he can get a removal tool on them if they are the V8 ones

something like these i use snapon but others work,whacking bolt head hard helps too
https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&r...SNk0cklpc5BthtLLQ&sig2=0gUdwiz-zv5pYjr5eH-ZNg

Cheers guys. I never gave it a second thought they might be imperial. Now makes sense. 16mm felt a good fit but I guess there was just a little to much slip. Didn't use 12 point. I always try to use 6 sided sockets if I can. As for hammering the smaller size on I tried that but I just couldn't get it to bite enough to deal with the torque. I just don't get it. I undid the nearside head ok using a 16mm socket. Yea they were tight but they moved. The offside though is a joke. I've looked up the torque settings and they aren't particularly high. I've undone/done up much higher torques in the past. I haven't got any early history with the car I'm just wondering if somebody in the past did the O/S head gasket and just wanged the bolts up mega tight. I'll get a 5/8 6 sided socket tomorrow to undo the rest. As for the one that's now badly chewed up I'll get a die grinder in there and take the head off the bolt. Hopefully the shaft will then wind out the block without to much grief once the head is off. Feel a bit of a plonker now, Why didn't I check the imperial sockets.

they might be loctited as well as torqued

Head is off!!! Hurrah!!! I got a die grinder and buzzed off the heads on the two rounded bolts. I also got another 6 sided socket. Borrowed it from an old chap around the road. 1960's vintage Snap on part and when i put it on it made all the sockets I tried so far feel like a willy in a bucket. I still had to swing on the breaker bar using a piece of tube. Say about 5 foot long to loosen the remaining sockets. I think some where in it's past somebody has had this head off and just really wellyed the bolts up or maybe it had a leak on the head gasket so they just "FT'd" the bolts to stop it leaking. I took the heads to a local machine shop but I was horrified at the price he wanted for the work. To drop the valves out, face the heads, reseat the valves and reassemble the valves they wanted 408 quid!!!!! Bugger me the last time I had valves done they cost me 20 quid......... mind you that was probably 25 years ago when every town had at least one machine shop. Still I feel they're still being a bit greedy. What do you all think?

bit on the high side I'd have thought, might be worth getting a second quote and then haggling with him or take it apart yourself so he only has to do the machining rather than disassemble and reassemble them

I did thank of dropping the valves but I'm being a lazy arse at the mo. Also my spring compressor hasn't been used since the late 16th Century and it was rather crude when it was new!!! Will get some more quotes tomorrow.

new compressor for £30 might be a better option than paying the guy though

Aye, I'll see what quotes I get tomorrow and decide then.

When I got mine done a couple of years ago it was £35 a head, from a machine shop in Bexhill.

Blimey that sounds cheap. What work did you have done??

That was to skim them. I did the valves myself.

35 plus vat is about right for a skim £10 per seat new valves are only £5ish

2 heads, faced, chemically cleaned, 16 valves recut and seated and both heads pressure tested. £150 dropped off this morning, collected done this afternoon. Very happy with that

Thanks to the help from you guys my heads are back on and torqued up!!!! Will get the rest finished tomorrow. Cheers everybody!!!!