Removing studs

Does anybody have any good tips to remove studs from the head of an engine. Is it a good idea to heat the head with a torch near the stud first? Is hand torque better than impact wrench?
Are there any really good stud remover tools?
Any other things to consider?

(quoted from post at 18:54:59 08/05/13) Does anybody have any good tips to remove studs from the head of an engine. Is it a good idea to heat the head with a torch near the stud first? Is hand torque better than impact wrench?
Are there any really good stud remover tools?
Any other things to consider?

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Several days of PB, a little heat, then get the pipe wrench out.

Just don't break one off like I did. Out of 18, I broke the last one.

I have used stud removers, they usually work good. They usually use a 3/8 or 1/2 drive breaker bar and are round with a hole in the middle where the stud goes in and it is held tight when you loosten the stud. It will make sence when you see it. Craftsman makes one and I am sure snap-on or other quality tool brands make them. Pipe wrench will also do the job just fine. Good advice to start a couple of days in advance with a rust penetrator. And just go easy with it. You deffently don't want to break one off.

Put a nut over the stud and weld it to the end of the stud.
The heat breaks the rust loose and you can turn it out with the nut.
If there's not that much sticking out, weld a washer to it, then
weld a nut to the washer.
If you don't have a welder, a machine shop is usually cheaper than a head.

Use hand tools not impact. A air hammer around the stud might help loosen but deffently do not use a impact driver.

I worked in a power house and we were always were breaking studs off in big cast iron water softner units. We would try every way possible to remove those broken studs.

Now this sound scary, but I've seen it done many times. Use a cutting torch with a fairly small tip and melt the stud out of the cast iron. The steel will melt before the cast, then run a tap in the cast to clean up the threads.

I've never tried it on a block, but I have on a Ford truck manifold and did no damage.

I have a 3 piece set from Harbor freight that I picked up years ago they look similar to a spark plug socket on the outside the inside just has a hole for the stud size and some type of cogs that grab the stud to remove it or reinstall work great less than $20.00 bucks too.

I have used these. joe
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i've used that same tool old-9 uses. works decently usually.

are your studs broke off or still intact?

(quoted from post at 21:54:59 08/05/13) Does anybody have any good tips to remove studs from the head of an engine. Is it a good idea to heat the head with a torch near the stud first? Is hand torque better than impact wrench?
Are there any really good stud remover tools?
Any other things to consider?

Click to expand...

IMO the primary reason the studs wring off is that they go into the water jacket and a layer of rust forms on the exposed threads. That layer of corrosion jams the threads when you attempt to remove the stud and the more you tirn the tighter it jams until the stud gives up teh ghost and wrings off.

The best technique I have found to fight that is to use a suitable tool - pipe wrench is my weapon of choice - to break the stud loose. As soon as you get it to budge STOP and screw it back into the block. That will allow some of the corrosion that is jamming teh threads to break loose and fall back into the water jacket. Repeat that operation unscrewing it just a bit further each time stopping as soon as it gets hard to turn and then screwing it back in a bit. It is tedious and you will be tempted to speed things up by turning it "just a little bit" further out when it begins to jam. Resist that temptation :roll:

It doesn't always work - sometimes the stud is so badly corroded in that it snaps before it gives the first time. But if you can get it to break free MOST of the time you can worry it out using that technique. Penetratng oil applied before you start and as you work it out is are your friend. If you are using a pipe wrench teh studs will be so chewed up from th ewrench that they will be toast when you are done. Personally I wouldn't reuse them even if they looked pristine.

FWIW I had an old block that was scrap (before I started) and I decided to try the burn it out with a cutting torch technique. I'm sure that works if you are good with a torch but apparently I am not that good - the result was ugly

TOH

The secret to burning out broken bolts or studs with a torch is to drill a hole down through the center first. Split it in three or four pieces and knock it out. Try it sometimes. It's quiet easy.

(quoted from post at 11:49:37 08/06/13) The secret to burning out broken bolts or studs with a torch is to drill a hole down through the center first. Split it in three or four pieces and knock it out. Try it sometimes. It's quiet easy.

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Interesting - having tried it without drilling I can see how the hole would be helpful. I'll have to give it a try sometime - on the scrap block ;-)

TOH

The simple way to remove the stud is to run two nuts down the stud as far as they will go. Put an box wrench on the bottom nut and back it out. You might want to put loosening pressure until you fear it will break. Move the wrench to the top nut and try to tighten. Keep doing this until you get slight movement then you're home free.

(quoted from post at 09:19:29 08/06/13)

(quoted from post at 11:49:37 08/06/13) The secret to burning out broken bolts or studs with a torch is to drill a hole down through the center first. Split it in three or four pieces and knock it out. Try it sometimes. It's quiet easy.

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Interesting - having tried it without drilling I can see how the hole would be helpful. I'll have to give it a try sometime - on the scrap block ;-)

TOH

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when you do this grind the stud flat then use blaster on it then use a center pinch get as close to center as you can, start drilling with a small drill as straight as possible then go to a larger bit until you are close to the threads in the block, Some of the time you can just pick the threads out, or before you get to far you can try a left hand drill bit pulls them out some of the time, but the last resort is when you are VERY close the threads in the block use the heat on the remaining bolt and chase it down with a tap. If you see you are hitting the threads in the block STOP and go to the next step. The torch!