Im swapping heads and cant get the damn torx bolts loose that hold the accessory brackets to the heads.I snapped/stripped 3 bits allready when I get them out their going right in the garbage.Does any body know if there is a easy way to crack these pieces of crap loose?would it be easier to I pull the heads then try to loosen them?

 

here ya go
torx

sorry mods gotta do it

 

Who sells good torx bits?

 

IMO
Snap-on, Mac, and Craftsman, in that order

 

yea i hater them mine alwassy twist. does anyone have the craftsmans cause i was think they have a lifetime warenty so if it twist i can get a new one, but i'd rather get really good ones that won;t twist at all. oh yea and wqut about husky? thats the home depot brand, there tools are real nice

 

Apex should occupy the #1 spot, then all the rest in your order. Since niether Snap-On nor Sears evens owns a cold former, they're both buying them from somewhere. I don't know for sure about Mac, but I'd suspect the same for them, too.

 

Ok this is like a really REALLY last case scenario option........but on my girlfriends camaro I had the same damn problem when I was swapping heads, and I didn't have hours on end to deal with it, so I busted out my hack saw blade and wrapped one end of the blade with duct tape.......gripped it by the duct tape (no room for the whole hack saw thingy) and cut through the shaft of the torx bit (and took a little bit of the accesory aluminum housing out along with it). To compensate for the little bit of housing that I cut off, I installed a couple spacers. nobody is the wiser and I got that pain in the *** out of there with about 5 minutes worth of hack'n. Remeber. LAST case scenario

 

My brother actually found some torx bits made for an impact gun, they're very good. Unfortunately he lost the smallest one, which fits my runner bolts, but I had another one that I picked up from Kragen, made by some chinese manufacturer. It works fine, just don't get cheap stuff for the intake bolts and accessory bolts. Try pep boys, they may have them because my brother is lazy and that's the closest place to my house.

If all else fails you can just drill the broken heads out and pull the accessories off, then use some channel locks to pull the bolt out and get some real hardware to put in there.

 

When I was disassembling my 87 TPI eng, I ran into the same problem. My good set of TORX bits seems to have grown legs and wandered off. After stripping a couple of bolt heads, I got out the air hammer. Used a chisel attachment and persuaded the bolts to turn in the right direction by chiseling straight down on one side of the bolt head, then aftermaking an impression on the bolt, leaned the gun over and forced it to turn. I had them all out in abt 10 mins.
I did however have the advantage of working with eng on a stand..
Of course they are unserviceable fasteners now, but I'll be getting some real hardware anyway.

While doing this, I ran across an intake manifold TORX bolt that someone had broken off a bit into the head. The broken bit seemed to be stuck in there pretty good, but after abt 2 seconds with the air hammer, it fell right out.

TORX=Crap

 

I tried the hammer & chisel method got pissed off and took out the good ole sawzaw 20 seconds later no more torx to deal with.I cut the brackets right against the heads just going to throw a washer in there when assembling every thing.Thanks guys!

 

This damn head swap has been nothing but a big pain in the @ss.Now the passenger side header is FUBAR driver side bolted right up.I go to bolt the passenger side up start at the front all bolts go in fine till I get to the #8cyl tube bolts wont go in I try pulling the header back to get the bolts in and cross thread one of the holes.No big deal run a tap through it's fine was only the first two threads.Try starting from the back this time the two bolts for #8 go in fine then try to get the center bolts to start wont go in so I try pulling the the header foward the air tube on #8cyl cracks off.Now I hope SLP will sell me just the passenger side header.Its not worth welding the tube back on since the header is tweeked.Im just venting Im really pissed off!

 

You guys forgot one Matco, snapon matco mac and then craftsman would be my way to go. vadar what is that other brand yoru talking about i have not heard of them before , were go u get them?

 

Having worked in the fastener business (for the company that holds the patent for Torx) I have a little more exposure to some more information. Apex is the company that makes the very punches that fit into the dies that form the recess and head in the cold-forming process. Apex also makes the driver bits for use by the installers (GM, Ford, and others) so they not only fit the best but are very substantial material. They are available through industrial suppliers, as well as some better hardware outlets (which leaves out the chain stores and home centers). Your only chances are a better stocked hardware store (possibly True-Value) or a real tool supplier (Mac/snapOn/Matco driver, McMaster, Fastenal, Grainger). Don't even waste your time anywhere else.

I hate to sound smug, but I've never had a problem with a Torx recess or head (either style) - even the "problem" body skin fasteners that were used on the POS Fieros I had. The big key is getting the recess fully cleaned out to allow FULL bit engagement. The next item of importance is to throw away all the bits that aren't made in North America (you know, the less expensive bits that you have that are supposedly made to the Torx standard - they usually AREN'T) and get some of the brands mentioned above. The final step is to use a penetrant where necessary, since the factory usually neglects to apply anti-seize compound where the steel meets the aluminum or iron. ANY type bolt is going to fight you if it's seized, and we've all damaged other types of bolts, probably a lot more often, and without nearly as much bitching. You just have to consider what you're working with and work a little smarter. Patience is a virtue.

 

Vader were can i get some apex stuff. Working on cars every day i have found that the crapsman stuff i have tend to round after a few months on the tips. I have snap on and others for a few i use a lot but I wouldnt mind trying this brand your talkin about Even the sanp on and matco stuff i ave especialy on torx 8 bits round very easy and i wouldnt mind having a much stronger bit, i dont know why they tightn those dam volvo remote batter covers down so much!maybe i just hate recalls

 

i use a huskey one that i got for $.99 in a junk bin at home depot, works great! surprisingly, its a whole lot stronger then i am.

 

Since this post is starting to chain off into removing stubborn fasteners (specifically Torx), rather than just accessory drives on cylinder heads, I''ll add my $0.02 to Vader's excellent advice.
For penetrants, my choice is Kroil, "the oil that creeps". After applying, it helps if you can vibrate the joint, either with a drift & hammer or an air chisel. The key here is patience & repeated applications of penetrant & vibratory motion. The latest trick I picked up, just last week, while trying to remove a Torx seat belt anchor bolt in a Ford. This thing was serious stuck. The end of threads were exposed, beneath the vehicle. The "trick" that finally worked, was to clean off the exposed threads with a wire brush, blow off with compressed air, and then"pick" the last exposed thread with a dental tool, cleaning away as much rust & crud as possible. I did this to allow the Kroil a fighting chance to creep up hill. Then I reapplied Kroil & vibrated the joint. Then I ate dinner. As it was, I still had to use a 1/2" breaker bar on my 3/8" Torx driver. BTW, it was a Mac torx driver I had for years, soley for Ford seat belt bolts. Remember, Kroil & never sieze is the choice of champions !

Oh yeah, one other thing. Spend time on the obvious. Make sure you are using the correct size torx driver. I even got tripped up using a T-30 when I should have been using a T-35.

 

If you're looking for industrial quality driver bits, try this link:

http://www.coopertools.com/catalog/p...pex_ft_cat.pdf

Or, if you want a real eye-opening experience for those who have loyalty to some well known brands, check this page to "check-in" with reality:

http://www.danaher.com/html/ourbusiness/group.asp?Plt=4

You'll see just who makes what for whom...

 

Apex is the only mfg of good quality bits, be it torx, phillips, allen, or slotted. They are what is used in the aircraft industry.

 

Sorry to revive this post, but this just happened to me last night at 9:30 when I tried to swap out the alternator. Only the bit sheered off right at the top of the head so I can't get anything to get the broken bit out. Anyone have any suggestions on this before I cut the head off the the dang torx bolt?? Input is much appreciated.

Thanks,
Andy

 

Put a socket on the head that will allow the broken torks bit to go inside, then hit the socket with a hammer to try to dislodge the broken bit. You can also try a very strong magnet.

 

After shattering my Craftsman Torx bit, I bought some offshore brand at Advance Auto that hasn't failed me yet.

And you'll learn to appreciate Torx when you replace your Torx bolts with hex head bolts and find out that you don't have room for a socket.

Almost forgot... if you can't break them free, melt candle wax around the bolt and put a little heat on the head of the bolt. The candle wax will work its way into the threads and help you get it out.

 

Thanks for the ideas guys. I am going to go home and give some of these a shot tonight. If not, I will put a sledge hammer and hacksaw to it. (maybe not that far) Thanks again.

 

Thanks Morley. The socket did it. The piece bumped right out. Got some higher quality Torx wrenches and the alternator went on with no problems.

Andy