I am trying to remove a set of heads from a 350. I removed all the bolts and the exhaust manifolds but the heads won't budge what should I do? I don't think they have ever been removed from the car before.

 

You're sure you emoved all the bolts? There should be 15 per cylinder head. If so, use a pry bar to "break loose" the head. Short of telling you where to pry so you don't hurt the cylinder head, you could also try a pipe in the intake port. Remember, if you really have to "climb on it" to break loose the head, something else is wrong.
regards, FJK

 

Justin,

Sorry, but I have to ask. You mentioned the exhaust manifold, but you DID already remove the intake manifold, right?

FJK has the right idea. If you've concerned about having forgotten or overlooked a bolt (like on some odd-ball foreign POS engines) you can use a compressed air source and adapter hose from a leakdown or compression tester to raise the head with air pressure. If you forgot a bolt, you are less likely to bend a bolt or break a casting using this method. As I said, on unfamiliar engines, this works fairly well.

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Later,
Vader
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"Make Me Bad"
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i was thinking 17 bolts per head, not sure so don't quot me on that. if all the bolts are out try to pry the head off or result to the BFH method.

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ICON MOTORSPORTS

 

Assuming all the head bolts are out, stick a prybar into the exhaust crossover and pull up. It will pull the head off the guide pins in the block.

MAKE SURE all the head bolts are out first! You shouldn't need to use excessive force to remove the heads.

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Stephen's racing page

87 IROC-Z Pro ET Bracket Race Car and knocking on the SuperPro ET class
383 stroker (carbed) with double hump cast iron heads and pump gas

Best results before the engine blew up
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Best corrected ET: 11.163
Best MPH on a time slip: 117.87
Best corrected MPH: 126.10
Best 60 foot: 1.662

Racing at 3500 feet elevation but most race days it's over 5000 feet density altitude!

Member of the Calgary Drag Racing Association

 

Yep, 17 bolts per head.

Probably didnt get them all out.

 

Ede is right, 17 head bolts. I know how to count, but obviously need help reading. A double wammy for me. I checked the manual before I replied.
Regards, FJK

Note to Vader: At least some POS engines keep it simple: # of head bolts = # of fingers

 

I must be missing a couple of bolts on each head because I only recall removing 15 per head. Here is what I did. First I removed the intake which was I think 12 bolts (6 per side). Then I removed another 18 bolts from the actual heads (9 per head). Now that equals 15 bolts per head. Where are the other two bolts located?

 

Dumb question, but did you remove the valve cover? The intake bolts hold the intake to the head but not the head to the block. There are 5 head bolts around each cylinder with adjacent cylinders sharing one, giving a total of 17. 8 bolts are just above the exhaust manifolds and 9 are under the valve cover.

 

There are 17 head bolts per head. That doesn't count the 12 intake manifold bolts, or the 6 exhaust mainfold bolts on each side; just the actual head bolts themselves.

There are 8 short ones, along the outer edge of the head under the exhaust manifold; 7 long ones, in a zig-zag pattern among the rocker studs (you should remove the rockers, they're easier to see that way; and 2 medium length ones, one at each end of the head, in the oil drainback valley. Those last 2 are often buried in the funk and are consequently overlooked.

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"So many Mustangs, so little time..."

 

To expound slightly: The short bolts are outside the valve cover, the others mentioned are under it.

If you didn't take the exhaust manifold completely out of the way (removed from Y-pipe), you can easily miss those short bolts. In fact, you may not be able to get to them without the manifold out of there.

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57 Bel Air, my 1st car. Currently 396 .030 over, Weiand Action+, Edelbrock 1901 Q-Jet, Jacobs Omnipack, 1-3/4" headers, TH400 w/TCI Sat Night Special conv & shift kit, 3.08 10-bolt, AMSOIL syn lubes bumper-to-bumper. Best 15.1 @ 5800' Bandimere. Daily driver while Camaro was being put together.

 

Just wanted to restate what stephen said. You can use a pry bar in the exhaust crossover/water outlets to get a little leverage to break it free. Still, it shouldn't require much force to actually get it to seperate.
Also, keep in mind that iron heads are HEAVY. a good 50lbs or so each. It might feel stuck, but really just be it's weight and your poor grip on it making you think so. The easiest set of handle to use is to thread intake bolts about half-way into the accessory holes at the ends of the head.
...ed

 

Yeah I totally missed the bolts that are near the exhaust manifold. Thanks guys.