Waking Up Bolts

[Brozoar]

So I'm about to embark on my first belt change soon (yippee!) - and btw, if anyone in the Ann Arbor/Plymouth area wants to help me out, I can pay you in good beer (Smithwick's, Guinness, Sierra Nevada, your call ) and mediocre conversation. Only thing is I have to work outside.

But the Clark's Garage directions for waking up bolts are a little vague, and I sure don't want to strip anything because that's a headache I'm not entirely equipped to deal with. So would anyone care to elaborate a tad bit more how to do it? Or any other methods you know of for dealing with tough bolts? Or if all else fails, the easiest methods you know of extraction of a stuck bolt?

[John_AZ]

Allen Head and Cheesehead Bolt Removal


Introduction--reread carefully.

Allen head and Cheesehead bolts can be extremely difficult to remove, particularly on 944 engines. Since most of the 944 engine is aluminum the steel bolt thread tend to bond to the aluminum. Because of this, almost everyone who has ever worked on a 944 engine has stripped an Allen head or cheesehead bolt at some time. To help prevent this, I'll share this tip I learned from a mechanic friend of mine.

"Waking Up" the Bolts

1-Using a punch or socket extension and a hammer, tap around the outside head of the bolt.

2-For Allen head bolts, tapping on the inside of the Allen head opening with a punch and hammer is effective as well.

3-While attempting to remove the bolt, ensure that the Allen head tool or cheesehead socket remains inserted straight into the head of the bolt.
This requires using two hands, one to hold the tool straight into the head and the other to turn the tool.

4-If the bolt does not break free easily, tap the head again.
Clark's Garage © 1998


Extraction:
If you strip an inside cam housing bolt---drill the head off

If you strip a nut or bolt get a set of bolt/nut extractors at HF--Harbor Freight or Sears.

You can also get drill-in bolt extractors if you snap a stud or bolt. Usually the clearance is terrible.

One of the best ways to get a stripped bolt/nut/ or stud out is to weld a new "grip" if possible.

GL
John

[Rasta Monsta]

If I can add one thing. . .in order to insure the tool is completely seated, it may be helpful to scrape around inside with a dental pick and blast with brakecleaner to clear out any residual sludge.

I would also tap lightly with a BFH instead of trying to hit hard with a smaller hammer.

[SolReaver]

Heat and quench with penetrating fluid is also useful but be careful not to destroy the temper of the bolt. Ill tempered bolts will snap. Then you will be in a bad temper...Gently heat AROUND the bolt, not the bolt itself and quench the bolt directly.

Soak stubborn bolts for a while. overnight or better. Tap, tap, soak, tap tap, and come back later. just crack the bolts for any given assembly, don't remove the assembly until you get them all. "wake" with a punch and clean the bejessus out of it all so that the tool fits nice and snug. Qtips and solvent. YMMV.

you can use a torque wrench on dissembly to insure you are not being too heavy handed. I have a good average, but things happen, even to the best of us.

If you are doing the WP...replace the hardware. little things mean a lot. Consider replacing questionable threads in the block with studs and nuts. 87 924S Water Pump + pics

[Brozoar]

Originally Posted by Rasta Monsta

I would also tap lightly with a BFH instead of trying to hit hard with a smaller hammer.

That's a particularly simple thing that I probably wouldn't have thought of myself. Thanks y'all for the tips and such.

I forgot to mention that while I'm doing the belts I'm also planning to replace the rollers and my cam tower seal, hence why knowing how to properly wake bolts is so important to me. It'll be an interesting (couple of) day(s) for sure.

What solvent would you suggest, is acetone fine?

[Rasta Monsta]

Most use PB Blaster, but I recently saw a pretty convincing comparison article where they found the best penetrant was 50% acetone, 50% ATF. Haven't tried it yet, but I plan on it.

[JRMock]

Use PB Blast (spray can) to soak all bolts. This is a penetrating oil/solvent that is designed to break up rust and corrosion. As mentioned above, soak, soak, tap, tap, and soak some more.

Use Brake Cleaner (spray can) to clean all bolts prior to using allen/cheese head wrenchs.

When possible, use a pair of vice-grips on the outside of the allen head bolt, and allen wrench at the same time. This distributes the force, lessening the chance of stripping the allen/cheese head.

Good luck
JM