[krankieone]

I've nearly finished porting the heads for my new engine('66 289) and have to deciede weather to fit press in or screw in rocker studs.

I've been told that taping the treads for screw in's is a tricky job and you will stuff the head if you get it wrong .(Having spent somewhere between 40 to 50 hours with a die grinder I'm not teribly keen to start again.)And then i'm told press in studs will pull out if you fit a bigish cam.


The Cam I intend to run is a Speed pro CS-1020R (.474/.498lift 214/224*duration.)Any opinions should I go Press in or screw in????

Has anyone fitted screw in studs if so did you encounter any dificulties or can you offer any tips or advice?

 

[jdh2]

A buddy of mine insists that he had someone cross drill the press in studs and towers and had cold rolled steel pins pressed in to keep the studs from backing out. It sure sounds like a good idea.

 

[63BGT66]

The cross pinning is a popular modification for Pontiacs with pressed in studs. I drilled and tapped my Pontiac heads..I assume it could be done on Fords as well.

 

[Gene_J]

There are 2 kinds of screw in studs. Service replacement which screw right in where your press in studs were. They are typically used when your press in studs pull out.

The other kind which is better requires machining down the pedestal so it is flat and the studs fit flush to the pedestal. This requires a machine shop to do it and may be worth the money for peace of mind.

 

[Art]

The worst part about installing screw in studs is pulling the press-in studs out!

The holes will be slightly oversize for tapping for the studs (7/16-14).

Can be hand tapped easily without much danger of the tap starting crooked.

Thread sealant must be used on the studs because the holes for the studs go directly into the water jacket.

Guide plates can be used after the stud bosses are milled down .300" (or the thickness of the guideplate).

Pinning the press-in studs is a good idea.(IMO)For the cam you have, the stock pinned press-in studs will work fine, although screw in studs are good insurance.

Stock non-pinned studs would probably work OK unless the motor is over-revved and the valves are floated.

 

[krankieone]

The studs had been pulled when I got the heads so the hard part is done ::

any advice on what not to do when taping the holes?

 

[camachinist]

any advice on what not to do when tapping the holes?

Starting the tap crooked. Easy to do when tapping by hand and if not using a taper or plug tap.

You're aware that you can't use a hex stud if merely tapping the stock bosses, yes? You'll need to double-nut a plain stud and screw it in.

Art was dead-on regarding sealant. I made that mistake years ago on my first engine and had an extremely slow but frustrating coolant leak which left only milkshake on the underside of my valve covers. Engine ran very well.

 

[jdh2]

Head Work for Dummies request! Please go into more detail about the "double-nut a plain stud"?

I under stand pull the stud, tap the hole, use sealer as it breaks into the water jacket area.

That leaves me with some sort of stud in my hand and trying to figure out how to put a nut on it before I screw it in...

It's been a long night, please forgive my ignorance.

 

[camachinist]

Double nut means to thread two nuts onto the stud and lock them together by turning the lower one CCW as you turn the upper one CW. This gives you a solid point to wrench the stud down tight. Then, once tight, you break the nuts loose by reversing the procedure and then remove them. Since you're not machining the bosses to accept a hex head stud (the boss must be machined the thickness of the hex), you'll need to do things this way.

Hope that helps!

 

[jdh2]

yes, jamb nuts! Please apply 2 x 4 to my forehead with just enough force to jog my memory.

 

[mikes69mach1]

I hand taped my bosses so it can be done. I just went slow and kept the tap oiled. I have heard that if you use the studs without the hex nut on the bottom to tighten them, that if you tighten them to much you may crack the bosses. It did not happen to me but i worried about it and if i had to do it over i would use the hex type and have the bosses machined down. By the way does anyone know how far the bosses should be machined down?

 

[Guest]

I've got a pair of '65 289 heads that are all cleaned, painted and lovingly ported. Only problem is... all the original pressed-in rocker studs have already been pulled. I bought the entire engine years ago for a whopping $50.00 and intended to have a machine shop mill down the pedestals, tap the holes and open up the narrow pushrod holes so that guideplates could be used.

More recently I realized that some of that was overkill and that all I needed was a set of threaded studs. I've seen a tool in Summit's catalog that is Chevy-specific, called a "Rocker Stud Remover and Tap Alignment Kit". Perhaps a similar tool is available for the Ford Windsor heads. It's pretty simple: just a steel block with two holes drilled through it. A steel pin is provided which is poked through one of the holes and which protrudes into the rocker pedestal (designed for a snug fit, to prevent the guide block from wobbling). Then, the other hole provides a guide for the tap.

The tools are marketed under several names, such as Proform, Tavia and Powerhouse Products (to name only a few). Anyone know of a SB Ford-specific version of that tool?

 

[krankieone]

Sounds like just what I need