Thread: Help! Stuck headbolt on V8

Rattler with an impact socket. Cheers

Ok did give that a go...air rattle too powerful I think..? so will try Dewalt battery one again.

Sprayed wd40 on it nut doubt it will penetrate over night.

Also try heat.

My Repco cheapie special 1/2" pneumatic rattle gun has a knob on the bottom that varies from "gentle massage" through to "tear the head off".

As RANDLOVER says, heat is also often a winner, although for a head bolt it has to travel an awfully long way to reach the threads.

Silly question, but have you tried tightening it first?

Not tried tightening, that seems counter Intuitive??

Also try banging on the head of the bolt. Doesn't always work, but has worked enough times for me to appreciate that it can work.

I got that from Mike from Britrest, who shows it in some of his vids. Doesn't need a whopping great whollop, just a hit or two as you would a floor nail. In tight areas use an extended thing, eg. 1/2 drive extension or something.

Originally Posted by Tikka7mm08

Not tried tightening, that seems counter Intuitive??

Nope. Especially with judicious use of the rattler. A sequence of ( brief ) tighten/loosen, tighten/loosen will often free them up.

I too had problems with V8 head bolts, Make sure you use 6 sided socket, I made the mistake once, using 'normal' 12 sided, didn't end well.
This is what I used to loosen, 4-5 foot steel bar and pushed, 'walked' it loose. Have a mate hold socket firmly down.
When it finally gave, I thought it had snapped, horrible noise.

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