Rocker Arm bolt rounded
Rocker Arm bolt rounded So the bolt that holds the rockers on one cyl wont let either the intake or exhaust loosen. They are tight as can be and the valves are closed. Now they are rounded any ideas on how to get these out.
There are some sockets you can buy at Sears for removing bolts that the heads have rounded on. Others have reported they work well although I have never tried them myself.
You may be able to deadblow a crappy 7mm on there if it is rounded that bad. I filed on the sides of one to change the size and it finally bit enough to break loose after I mushroomed 2 craftsman 8mm sockets on it. The customer was going to sell the heads completely bare. No clue why, but it was one of those "I worked on my car then screwed it up now I brought it to the shop to have you guys fix my mistakes" kind of deal. He installed it with an impact wrench....
So I am sure it was like 45+ftlbs. Did you originally install/reinstall these rocker bolts? They may have been over tq'd to begin with, but probably not from the factory. When I got my SS there had to have been something replaced in the valvetrain at one point from somewhere. An SAE 5/16 fit the bolts that were replaced 100x better than the 8mm did for some reason. No clue where the bolts came from. They had a green stripe on the head. I left them on there until I sold the car.
So I am sure it was like 45+ftlbs. Did you originally install/reinstall these rocker bolts? They may have been over tq'd to begin with, but probably not from the factory. When I got my SS there had to have been something replaced in the valvetrain at one point from somewhere. An SAE 5/16 fit the bolts that were replaced 100x better than the 8mm did for some reason. No clue where the bolts came from. They had a green stripe on the head. I left them on there until I sold the car. Yep, I have the Craftsman bolt extractor set from them and it worked great on a rounded rocker arm bolt I had. Just tap the socket on with a hammer and the teeth dig into the bolt head when you apply pressure to the ratchet. While you are there, pick up an 8mm impact socket...I also broke 2 regular sockets on those bolts.
Yep, I have the Craftsman bolt extractor set from them and it worked great on a rounded rocker arm bolt I had. Just tap the socket on with a hammer and the teeth dig into the bolt head when you apply pressure to the ratchet. While you are there, pick up an 8mm impact socket...I also broke 2 regular sockets on those bolts.
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Yep, I have the Craftsman bolt extractor set from them and it worked great on a rounded rocker arm bolt I had. Just tap the socket on with a hammer and the teeth dig into the bolt head when you apply pressure to the ratchet. While you are there, pick up an 8mm impact socket...I also broke 2 regular sockets on those bolts.
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I ended up having to grind the head off of one of my factory installed rocker arm bolts - sadly, it was the far back, passenger side one. I eventually got it off, but I was pissed. Nothing I did worked.
I had to grind off one as well, and the issue was the bottom of the head of the bolt had gotten locktite on it and was sticking to the rocker arm. I cut off the bolt and rocker arm and replaced both.
Your probably aware of this by now, but GM doesn't put locktite on the bolt threads on these engines. They instead make a bolt that has a flat washer incorporated into the head of the bolt. They put the locktite on the undeside of the washer/bolt head. This locktite holds the rocker bolts very tightly. Much more force is required to break the locktite than is needed to tighten the bolt(22ft/lb). I use a 3/8 breaker bar with short extension and an 8mm 6 point impact socket. You hold the bar and extension square and straight over the bolt and give it a firm quick snap to break the locktite. Once the locktite is broken you can unscrew the bolts by hand. This should work unless the OEM bolts have already been removed and someone put locktite on the threads or over torqued them.
