leaking head studs
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 11
Likes: 0
From: San Diego, CA
leaking head studs Well yesterday was great. I am pulled the 94 383 out of my 92 to put it in a different car and I drain the oil out of it and no joke it looked like peanut butter and actually hesitated to come out of the drain plug. At first I thought I had a bad head gasket but then saw that I had coolant seeping up around the threads of the head studs. I think that they might not have sealed where they go into the block. The guy at the machine shop that bored the block said that when installing head studs use pipe joint sealer on the coarse threads that go into the block to seal them and only tighten them to the point that you can't turn the stud any more. Then after putting on the head apply the torque to the nuts. Is this the correct procedure? He said if you torque the stud into the block then torque the nuts you will break either the block or the studs. This engine has less than 100 miles since being rebuilt as a 383 and I hope nothing is damaged due to all the water in the oil. Oil pressure has never gone below 30 PSI. Any recommendations?
Thanks
Pete
Thanks
Pete
If you have had that much water in the oil the motor needs to come apart. What type of thread sealer did you use? If you used regular plumbers pipe dope you did the wrong thing. You need to use a good Teflon thread sealer.
Daren
Daren
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 11
Likes: 0
From: San Diego, CA
Yeah this guy said to use regular pipe joint sealer. What do you recomend. As far as the engine should I tear it apart inspect the cylinders and replace all the bearings? I am a Navy diesel mechanic. I am used to working on engines the size of our cars. Before this discovery it was running strong with no smoke, no overheating and great oil pressure. Never below 30 lbs.
Thanks Pete
Thanks Pete
Thats a common problem. Some engines have no issues and some will. I used BARS heavy duty stop leak in the radiator. The kind with the pellets. Ran the engine for about 3-4 heat cycles and the leaks stopped.
Pete,
I use Loctite brand "Thread Sealant With Teflon". Part number 30561. It is about thirty dollars for 16 ounces. Available at a lot of plumbing or industrial supply houses.
With as much water as you have said you had in your motor I would tear it all the way down. Inspect everything and replace anything that is suspect. Clean everything.
Good Luck,
Daren
I use Loctite brand "Thread Sealant With Teflon". Part number 30561. It is about thirty dollars for 16 ounces. Available at a lot of plumbing or industrial supply houses.
With as much water as you have said you had in your motor I would tear it all the way down. Inspect everything and replace anything that is suspect. Clean everything.
Good Luck,
Daren
Launching!
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 218
Likes: 0
From: Central Wisconsin
I used ARP teflon thread sealant when I assembled mine. There head stud installation sounds correct as per your description. You also mention coolant and water in your post. If water gets into your oil it is not as damaging as coolant. If it was mine being that it is out I would disassemble it and make sure ever thing is clean and ready for the use you plan on getting out of it.
Teching In
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 9
Likes: 0
Quick question. Do you by chance have a four bolt cap conversion? This is a much more likely scenario for a crankcase full of water. On some blocks you can't help but tap into water on the outer bolts but the scary part is that a hole may often apear blind but have a opening into the water jacket. For this reason we always use thread sealer on the outer bolts.
Trending Topics
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 11
Likes: 0
From: San Diego, CA
Thanks for all the replys. Yeah, to be on the safe side I will tear it apart and chech everything, and use the ARP sealant. Captain, no it is not a 4-bolt conversion. Just 2.
Thanks for everything.
Pete
Thanks for everything.
Pete
LS1 Tech Stories
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Pouria Savadkouei
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Pouria Savadkouei
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP
Verdad Gallardo
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes
Verdad Gallardo
Awesome K5 Blazer Restomod Comes With C7 Corvette Power
Verdad Gallardo
10 Camaros You Should Never Buy
10 LS Engine Myths That Refuse to Die
Verdad Gallardo
On The Tree
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 179
Likes: 0
From: Bloomington, MN
I have built alot of sbc's and i can tell you studs will always leak when they screw into the water jacket they are VERY hard to seal. Do yourself and your engine a favor and use a high quality head bolt ,you wont be sorry ,filling your engine with coolant is disasterious! Studs are made to use with blocks with blind head bolt holes i.e. GM bow tie/dart /brodix/wp.......
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 11
Likes: 0
From: San Diego, CA
You know what, I just got off the phone with a local speed shop and the guy I know there said the exact same thing. I think I'm going to go with a bolt kit from the ARP High Performance Series. He also said that they see the gooey coolant/oil on LT/LS1 's all the time. I am going to replace all the bearings as well. It's sitting on a stand. I'd be stupid not to.
Thanks all
Pete
Thanks all
Pete
