I'm going to have my TPI intake apart for porting pretty soon. I suppose since I'm already part way there, porting the heads might be a good idea too. So what do I have to do to pull them? Is it like this....

1) remove rocker arms
2)remove pushrods
3)remove roller lifters
4)unbolt exhaust manifolds
5)unbolt 17 head bolts
6)lift head off engine


or is there more to it? thanx

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91 Trans Am WS6
Bright White
5.0 TPI auto
Flowmaster 3" 2 chamber catback
Trans Go shiftkit
2000 stall converter

Built on Wednesday

 

that's pretty much it ,you'll also have to unbolt anything bolted to the front of the heads. when i unbolt the rockers i measure the distance from the top of the stud to the top of the nut with the depth gauge on a dial caliper then when you put it back together all you have to do is get the measurement right and you don't have to adjust rockers.

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ICON Motorsports
1st & 3rd

 

MrJ,

You really don't have to remove the lifters and rockers, just the push rods. The rockers can make good handles to grasp the head once the gasket seal is broken and the dowels are clear.

And of course, you should drain the cooling system BEFORE removing the heads, not as a result of it.

If down time is a constraint, you could purchase a used set of 416 heads before hand, spend all the necessary time doing valve and port work, cleaning, etc., and have them ready to install once the old ones are removed. There are no VIN codes on the heads, just the deck surface, so you would still have a "numbers matching" engine for your vehicle. A used set of heads is probably a $50.00 item at bone yards and swap meets.

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Later,
Vader
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"I cannot take this any more... Saying everything that I've said before..."
Adobe Acrobat Reader 4.0

 

Thanx a lot guys, for your quick answers. I've got a few more questions

1) Do I HAVE to get the heads hot tanked? I want them clean before I port them, but I'll be away at college and won't have a way to get them to a machine shop. Is there another way to clean them?

2) Vader, refresh me, which heads are the '416's? I've got 081 non-swirl 305 TPI heads now, what engine did the 416s come on?

------------------
91 Trans Am WS6
Bright White
5.0 TPI auto
Flowmaster 3" 2 chamber catback
Trans Go shiftkit
2000 stall converter

Built on Wednesday

 

Opps, Vader let one slip. 416s are perimeter-bolt 305 heads that came on LG4s and L69s, not applicable to your car.

His point is valid though, get a set of the same part # heads as you have and port them at your leisure, then swap them. Head porting and all that is some serious downtime, probably a week minimum, depending on your local shop's schedule.

Hot-tanking is pretty much a must. You will have to do something about the debris from porting them. Plus, it wouldn't make a whole lot of sense to put a pair of heads with a however-many-mile-old valve job back on a motor that's supposed to be better than before, now would it? Get them worked, hot-tanking and a valve grind come with it. That's the advantage of doing all this to a set of heads besides the ones that are on the car right now.

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


[This message has been edited by RB83L69 (edited January 07, 2001).]

 

I'm not sure what you mean by downtime.... the car has been off the road since October and will be that way until April. Looks like I'm not gonna be able to port the heads then, I have no way to get them to a machine shop. I'll probably just get some spare heads sometime down the road and go that route.

------------------
91 Trans Am WS6
Bright White
5.0 TPI auto
Flowmaster 3" 2 chamber catback
Trans Go shiftkit
2000 stall converter

Built on Wednesday

[This message has been edited by MrJ (edited January 07, 2001).]

 

RB, wouldn't that need two hot-tank jobs, then? A first one to clean the head & let a magnaflux be done, then a second hot-tank to clean up the porting debris?

I thought porting debris could be cleaned up with a good brushing.. no?

Thanks,


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-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l) from http://www.f-body.net/mailbag/3rd/3rd_mailbag.html message boards
---Think your car could be pic of the week? Visit http://www.f-body.net for details!

 

I disagree with the hot tank and magnaflux job

I bought used heads with a recent rebuild on them and ported them heavily, and they never once saw a machine shop, only alot of easy off oven cleaner and engine degreaser, 0 problems with them

but then again, dont take advice from me, i use generic parts store brand 20w50 oil, the parts store brand coolant, and the cheapest gear oil possible, i even used a used flat tappet cam!

Im the engine boogy man.. boooo

 

Hot tanking cleans out the water passage areas...
If you reuse your heads, then you can skip the hot tanking and magnafluxing. Im not really a firm believer in magnafluxing, its an imperfect process. I used to do it, so I speak from experience. I suppose its something you can do just as a precaution but its not the end all to possible cracks, some can and do slip by.

 

Pablo makes a good point: if your heads are already cleaned up and have a good (translation: new) valve job, then you don't need any outside services. You can clean up behind your porting with a trip to the quarter car wash, which you're going to need anyway, just to clean up all the parts you'll have off.

On the other hand, if your heads haven't had a new valve grind within 20k miles or so, then it's kind of dumb to put them back on with that part less than ideal. Doesn't make a whoe lot of sense. That's would be kind of like buying a Porsche for the handling, then put $19.95 tires on it.

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