So I just upgraded the turbo to the GT25r kit from LCE and I bought head studs to help with the added boost I plan on running with the intercooler and BOV. The only problem is when I installed the head studs they didnt allow the valve cover to fit on correctly. I talked to the LCE rep and he said to break off a piece of the ribbing that lines the inside of the valve cover but Im not sure where. I tried the whole witness mark but it seems like its the oil baffle that gets in the way...

 

There is another thread about this..search and you will find it.

Basically, your holes where the head studs go into still have crap in them. You need to clean those out really really good to make sure the stud is seated all the way. Sorry, but to do it right you will need to break the motor down, clean out those studs super super good and then build back up the motor.

 

He should be able to use compressed air to clean them out.

 

Probably, but remember that compressed air throws crap everywhere. Better to use a shop-vac (and maybe both to get stuff loose at the bottom of a narrow hole.)

 

...and pray!

 

I chased my threads with a tap, then I cleaned out the holes with Q tips with acetone on them. Made sure they were good and clean. I had no problems with ARP head studs clearing valve cover. Be damn sure that the tap is going straight and not cross threaded or you'll be a sad panda.

I'm sure not everyone will agree with this, but it worked for me and hasn't had a problem in 2 years since that. I sold the truck to a friend, but I still see it around.

 

I heli coiled mine when I installed ARPs.

 

you can clean the threads with an old head stud, just use your die grinder to cut a deep grove straight down through the threaded area... junk will get picked up and fed from the block threads into the groove, and you won't be removing any metal from the block threads.

I had a motor that had threads that didn't fully clean out using that method, and I wanted to run a tap through it, even if it would have removed metal from the block threads... unfortunately I didn't have the right kind of tap, what you'd probably need would be a bottoming tap, that doesn't have any taper on the end, or maybe a plug tap, that doesn't have a full taper on the end.

 

I believe it's called a Bottom tap. According to Fastenal anyway.

 

"Late valve covers need the inner rib cut down to clear the ARP studs in most cases. Both sides. Easy fix :-) " -tim at doa

I would not pull the head just for this.

 

according to grainger, and many others, it's called a bottoming tap:
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/ecatalog/N-1z0dyp5

the u.s. navy calls it a "bottoming hand tap":
http://navyaviation.tpub.com/14001/css/14001_34.htm

you wanna argue with the u.s. navy? lol

O.T.: google "hole flow" and "electron flow" ...different names for the same thing... why does our military always put a different spin on things?

 

I argued with the Navy... all it got me was NJP lol.

Well that's what I was planning on doing but I didn't want to cut a groove into my current bolts without making sure they would work. I do have an 1988 so I'm not sure if that qualifies as a late model. I'm going to try cutting a groove in my old bolts and hoping that I can break the crud free and anything else will come out with a shop vac and some brake cleaner.

 

That's exactly what I was going to suggest...

 

Now one final question before I get started... Do you really have to torque these things down to 90 ft/lbs? I know the stocks are only around 60 so I just want to make sure that isnt a little overkill.

 

I knew a guy who punched his c.o. right in the nose they were on a submarine... there was a big hearing, and he somehow got away with it! the c.o. was apparently a real jerk... how does someone like that get to be in charge of a nuclear submarine? scary

90 ft/lbs for the nut on the stud? some bolt materials have to be tightened down until they actually start stretching, for instance, there are rod bolt stretch gauges that you are supposed to use for certain materials.

4crawler is running arp head studs, I wonder what his website says about the torque.