Intake manifold bolt removal

Yes, I know it said in the directions, "take care to not shear off the heads of the soft intake manifold bolts when removing the manifold." But shear off I did, 7 out of 8. It was either that or leav on those old manifolds that were wrapped with tape and ancient. I know I can get the bolt extractor tool, and it may work on bolts that have a few threads showing. But a couple sheared off flush with intake head. Anyone have a recommendation on a service that can handle this problem for me in the Dallas area?

 

Seamastertime, I feel for you I recently had the same problem, although only 3 of mine snapped off. It's something that can ruin your whole day, or atleast it did mine.

As far as recommendations, I took the advice that the guys here gave me, and took it to a machine shop, and let them handle it. I'd much rather let somebody who knows what they're doing fix it, that let myself butcher it up! As it was, the guy broke off his milling bit in the last screw he was removing. Said it was quite a pain to remove, and I ended up having that one hole larger than the rest, it is an M8, while the standard ones are M6s.

Whatever you do, don't rush to fix it fast. If you're like me, rushing, plus a headache like this equals broken bits, and more problems! :evil:

 

Seamaster, you can do the work yourself if you have the right equipment. The average wrench head isn't going to be set up for it so I'd recommend you pull the head and have it properly repaired by a machine shop. It may run you $150 for new gaskets and the repairs but it would be well worth it. Replace the valve stem seals while you have it out!

Pederacer, if your machinist did you the favor of breaking his mill off in your head and then sent you on your way with an M8 hole, I wouldn't go back to him again. He should have installed an insert to get it back to stock size. It isn't cheap but it isn't heaps of money either.
The shop I'm dealing with had to spring for a $250 drift to set the inserts they are using on my head (don't know why it was that expensive). The broken mill head can be EDM'd out or TIG'd to remove the bit.

 

I'm committed to having a machine shop back these bolts out for me. Do you guys know if it will be necessary for me to pull the head? Or can I just trailer the whole bike (sans tank, carbs, etc.) into the machine shop....

 

I would assume pull the head. If they want to mill them out I don't know how they could without it off.

 

Bummer. I rode this bike home to fix up and I just keep tearing it down further and further and further.

 

I had a broken bolt with a broken easyout in it removed by a weld shop. They TIGd a bit of metal onto the end of the easyout and simply twisted the broken parts right out of the hole, no thread damage, nothing. The heat cycle made quite a difference.
You might get away with trailering the bike in but you mention it is a machine shop so I'm going to lean toward removing the head.
You might want to ask around for a good weld shop.

 

i've never had to take those sacred bolts out but someday i will
all i could think of is if a small hole was drilled in the boss just past the end of the bolt some of that magic Kroil could get in there and maybe do something
it's been awhile since i looked in there, don't even know if it's feasible
it would take a steady hand and a big set of kahoonies but it just might work
if you mess up it might ruin the head or guarantee a snapped bolt buy thats what kahoonies are for

 

just sheared #4's lower right screw head... blank staring me right in the face.. heard of hittting head with torch and screw with upside down air blaster to freeze.. might try it, pick up air blaster. just read can of air blast : dont turn upside down, dont expose to flame... $&*!

 

You have crawled down into the Rabbit Hole.
Nothing is as it seems.

Take the Head off and let a Machine Shop take care of Removing the fragment.
Have them remove ALL the others while they are at it.
Both sides.

Let them run a Tap in all the Holes to refresh all the threads.

You:
Buy Hardened or Stainless New Fasteners.
Anti-Seize Lube for treating the Fasteners for the whole job.

Use Hardened Cap Screws.
Stainless Fasteners.
Hardened Studs or Exhaust Bolts.

Replace the O-Rings or apply Sealant to the Intake Manifolds upon re-assembly.

You can fool around with it.
I don't recommend that.

In the modern vernacular: You're phuqued. You need to get Un-phuqued; fast.

 

phuqued indeed... one screw extractor makes you taller, one helicoil makes you shorter... phuqued...
1st time pulling one of these heads...
any major DO NOT's?
major DO's?
and the while you are this far's....

 

Don't remove the cams, don't forget to tie a string to the cam chain so you don't drop it down into the block, DON"T pry on the head the wrong way/places and start breaking of the fins. Good luck. Go slow, and easy.

 

Treat the job like you're only replacing the Head Gasket and trying to save time.

Take the Cam Chain Tensioner off.
The Cams need to be removed.

Park the Crank at TDC-No.-1
Check the Cam Timing Marks.
LOOSEN the Cam Sprocket Bolts.
Take the one closest to the Chain OUT.
Ease the Sprocket away from the Cam a bit.

Secure the Sprocket to the Chain through the Bolt Hole with 2 Plastic Tie Wraps.

Do BOTH Sprockets this way.
Remove ALL the Bolts and Take the Sprockets off the Cams.

Timing is NOT Lost.

L@@K for the two HEX Nuts ... On the Front of the Head. Right where the Cam Chain Passage is on the Front of the Head.

I've seem them left-on by Pro's who forget and start using Nuclear Weapons!!

 

>take the cams off

Oh brother, I had such a list of 'dont's', that when I cut/pasted I forgot to change to don't to do for the cams. Correction you DO have to remove the cams. Ricks plan for keeping the timing is awesome. Good luck.

 

Rick, you can't get at the bolts on the cam sprockets without rotating the motor, imphuguingpossible.

 

I captured the Sprockets and didn't lose Timing, ... somehow!

Maybe I didn't lift the Chain off the Sprockets and Tie-wrapped the Sprocket to the Chain BEFORE taking the Sprocket off the Shoulder.
Maybe that's what I mean to say.

Anyway, ... If you can affix the Sprocket to the Chain before removing the Sprocket from the Chain, ...

You don't lose the Timing.

 

finished pulling the head about half an hour ago,
Rick- is there enough space in the bottom end for the chain to slip on the crank sprocket? and lose timing that way?

when actually pulling the head i noticed separation of the lower gasket in the rear. IS THIS BAD? why does the cylinder bank only have one bolt?

when i actually pulled the head off, found the head bolts had cracked up brittle plastic like tubes around the shafts, which put stuff everywhere. what is that tube?
what should i do to clean this mess up?

 

for my methods i first got down to cams with the engine still in frame. pulled exhaust from head then rear and lowered. Found TDC noted the sprocket mounting bolts and the position of each, rotated crank till other cam sproket bolts were available and with and assistant holding the crank popped those bolts. then brought it back to TDC and ziptied chain to next available spot in the sprocket. Then with assistant holding crank removed the remaining two sprocket bolts. THEN removed tensionier. next cam bearing caps removed in a cris-cross pattern and cams pulled out THRU the sprocketsand the sprocket and chain hung up by a string. I later found this a little difficult navigation thru the head but possible.
For removal of the head I first removed the head bolts in per manuals instructions. Separating what I at first thouht to be the gasket but turned out to be a rusted guide/heat bolt was tough. first i used a rubber mallet to give a few lovetaps. then i cracked a fin with a pry bar, just at the edge in front of a support pillar. abandoning my crowbar i picked up a thin ratchet strap and ran it thru two "bridges" on either side of the head and using that and the bar above put steady pull on the head and gave it a few more love-taps with my mallet, this working around the 4 corners worked the head free. then pulled it up, put the chain and spockets thru out with the head, pulled the string up and tied to bar, cold one opened, this written

 

Yes the cam chain can come off the bottom sprocket & I can tell you it is a pain to get back on, you have to remove the cam chain guides.
Rick, I think it is possible to tie the chain off to the sprockets, but you would have to remove the 2 opposing bolts, then rotate the mill back to tdc & tie off, not sure of the advantage, it's difficult to loost the timing on these bikes, if you follow the manual, more important is to make sure the cam chain is on that bottom sprocket. Wiz.

 

I dont think there is anyway to do it without removing the opposing two bolts and then rotate it back to TDC. that's how my book says to do it.. install it just says "bring the chain tight from the crank to the exhaust sprocket." well, ok, that's easy enough right...

im worried also about crap having fallen into the #2 and #3 cylinders. I vacuumed out the most of it but there is the small stuff around the pistons..