I did a search, but to no avail, so here goes. I'm doing a cam and head swap on my 305. I've got all the accessories off, along with the headers, intake, etc. The engine is still in the car and I'd like it to stay there if possible. The rockers, and pushrods are removed from the driver's side head along with all of the bolts (save for two which are loose and backed out, but not removed completely in order to catch the head when and if I finally bust it loose). Here is the problem: THE EFFING HEAD WILL NOT MOVE!! I tried several times for most of the day to budge the thing, I even used my engine hoist to gently try lifting it, and it still won't move. It just lifts the engine slightly. I really don't want to yank the engine and trans but I will if I absolutely have to. I used a large wrench in two of the intake ports and pried up: nothing. I did the same thing in the exhaust crossover: nada. There doesn't appear to be anything hanging it up, and for the life of me I just can't move the SOB. Could someone tell me what the heck I'm doing wrong? Or, perhaps just tell me what I'm not doing right. Thanks, everyone.

 

WAG you don't have all the bolts out. should be 17 total.

 

Take the bolts all the way out. You don't pull the head off the block, you peel it. Having bolts in prevents that.

 

Thanks for your responses. I know there are 17 bolts. I left the last 2 in just a couple of turns to keep it from "flying" off the side of the block when I finally do loosen (if ever) it. All the bolts are at least loose, 15 are out completely, and the last two are there to save my steering system, master cylinder, etc. should just this situation occur. These are not seated completely. I should've been more clear about that, I probably seemed like a total moron in my original post. Those bolts shouldn't be preventing anything from happening, I just thought that someone might have encountered a similar situation in the past where the head was stuck with unusual tenacity to the block. Thanks anyway for your input.

 

Providing all the head bolts are completely out and there's no accessories bolted to the front of the head, all I ever do is stick a long pry bar into the exhaust crossover and lift up. You don't lift the head straight up. The intake side is lifted first off the dowl pins before the head can be taken off.

Because the head is rocked (peeled) off, all the bolts need to be completely out.

 

^^What he said^^

Actually in your first post I thought things were okay because I thought you had the bolts all backed out, including the two that were just resting in there to catch the head. So I figured that was all good and you just couldn't get the head off. When you said you had those two bolts threaded in still....

There are dowel pins that align the head on the block, and when you have the two pins and two bolts in, you have four points of contact, and pulling straight up on the head is like trying to slide it off with things holding it still. As stated, remove all of the bolts, and pry it off from one side and then 'rocking' it back and forth off the pins.

 

Thanks to all of you. I gotta admit, that "four points of contact" issue was one I hadn't considered. I also checked boxwrench.net's dvd I got last year. They leave two bolts in a couple of turns, but they use the corner ones (exhaust side, short ones). Plus, in the video, the guy pulls up pretty hard with a sharp hit to the breaker bar in the crossover (or intake port). I guess I was just going too easy on it. I didn't want to crack anything, plus getting good leverage with the block in the chassis can be difficult. Anyway, thanks very much for your input.

 

stuck on cylinder head + 24" long breaker bar+ a good healthy smack on that breaker bar+ using 2 short bolts threaded in a couple of turns along the exhaust side to "catch" the head instead of the ones I was using= loose cylinder head (on a Tuesday night at 10:00 p.m. no less)!! Onward and upward, hopefully with no more unpleasant surprises. Thanks again for all of your help, everyone.