Hey guys. I've owned my '01 for a few months now and my 20th birthday is coming up in a few days, so I thought I'd buy myself an early birthday present: Diesel Auto Power 125hp 7x.0095 injectors! The installation went great. I didn't miss any of the copper washers, no burrs on the ends of the crossover tubes, and everything seemed to go back together really well.

UNTIL I got to my Banks High-Ram intake manifold... I thought it was a funky design, being that the four main studs are threaded on both ends? Regardless, I managed the strip out the tops of two studs and bust one of them past the plenum and into the head...

Being that I can't seem to find replacement studs anywhere, I've ordered a stock intake horn to replace my Banks High-Ram for a while... I also ordered a new plenum gasket and two new grid heater gaskets...

So, here are my questions: The two pieces of the head that I snapped off (parts of the thread for the rear passenger intake horn stud)... can they be JB Welded back into place with no adverse effects? Should I have it professionally welded? Does anyone know where I could get a set of four long through-bolts for my Banks intake? I really don't want to mess with those funky studs anymore...

 

UPDATE: I completed the teardown process. Removed injector lines, intake plenum, cleaned the gasket area, and rid the head of all debris. The two pieces that I cracked off of the head have been JB Welded together (JB High Heat - 500*F and 900psi resistance). Tomorrow, after it warms up, I'll be JB Weld-ing the piece back into place in the head.

I've got a new plenum gasket and two new heater gaskets on the way, along with a stock intake horn until I can find four good bolts to replace the poor stud design for my Banks intake horn.

If this works out, JB Weld will have my rock-solid customer testimony. I'll be a firm believer in the "world's strongest bond". If not, looks like a replacement head is in order. I've got no other option. This truck is my daily driver. She's got to be able to run.

Also, never heard anything back from Banks. I don't really want replacement studs at this point, but the lack of customer service annoys me. I know I can't be the only one who has had this problem???

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UPDATE: The two pieces that were JB weld-ed together last night are, once again, one piece. To test the strength of the now bandaged piece, I pounded it with a hammer... and nothing happened! The epoxy held! It's approximately 45* outside right now, so I'll be waiting until it warms up a little, but here's hoping I have the same luck when I go to re-install the piece into the head!

 

Awesome ! Me and dad jb welded a intake on a boat once. Still holding

 

That's good to know! I hope this works. I'll be more careful next time. Torque wrenches are a man's best friend... double-threaded studs are not...

 

If I understand correctly you are using jb weld to hold a bung inside the manifold under the plenum together?
If thats the case seems like your betting an expensive motor on jb weld. If it does fall back off (which I feel is more probable than it working) it seems that the pieces would likely find their way into a cylinder or on the top of a valve. A specialized machine shop most likely would be capable of making the repair but I'd say the head would need to be off.

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Your opinion is greatly appreciated. I feel as if you're right. The JB Weld is holding well, but I'm not sure I want to risk it. I called a friend of mine who welded my mom's aluminum wheel when the tire shop put a 2" tear in the lip of the rim. He said it wouldn't be a problem to do it with the head on as long as I have everything uninstalled and out of the way, which I do. Now my problem is getting the truck 15 miles up the road to his house.

 

Make sure you use a straight edge along the surface. I know the plenum is aluminum and will flex a little but you dont want it raised to the point the gasket will not have adequate support or worse crack something.

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I'll make sure he knows. He does good, quality work. My mom's wheel hasn't leaked, not even a pound. Not quite sure that he's the Charlie Daniels of a welding torch, but he definitely knows what he's doing.

 

So you broke the studs? Call Banks get new studs or head to Napa and get the correct thread pitch and length and go from there

 

I didn't "break" the studs, per say, but I did strip them... so, yes, they are unusable. Banks won't return emails or calls and I don't believe they sell the studs anyways. I'll most likely go to a local auto parts store and get the bolts with the correct thread size and call it a day, like you suggested.

But the main problem is that the head is cracked at one of the mounting points for the intake/grid heater setup. I'm waiting on a call back from a friend of mine who happens to be a welder. I've got to shoot him a pic of the damage and work space just to be 100% sure that he can weld it without having to remove the head.