head bolt problem
 

hey guys thanks in advance for the help here.. well heres my problem. i blew my head gasket about a week ago. so i pull it all apart clean it all up and get ready to put it back together. every were i read and have been told is to run a tap thru the bolt hols to make sure they get the best clamp they can.. no problem. well if your me you us a 12x1.5 tap instead of a 12x1.75. how i pulled this off i dont know.... dont ask because i just plain screwed up. well now u prolly figured it out i cant bolt my head tight now cuz they just wanna pull the threads out. so i was woundering if i could tap it to a 1/2 bolt size and run 1/2 bolts instead of 12mm. would a grade 8 bolt hold up as a head bolt or no? or do i need to drill and tap to a 14mm and just stud it? im kindof on a budget here so the cheaper i can get it fixed right the better.. so lemme know your ideas... thanks a bunch guys

wow sorry man , a few things to consider. if you upsize the bolts are you going to have to drill out head also , will you hit critical passages etc. also torque specs are designed for certain sized bolts. believe it or not too much torque can be just as bad as not enough, eg at the same torque value a grade 8 will stretch less than a gr 5 which means different clamping force. maybe im overthinking it . hope someone with more experience has a solution for you. good luck

Id go 14mm and stud it if it was mine...

well my buddie works at pure diesel power and said he can get me a used set of 14mm studs for like 100 bucks. they were only used for a short time in the shop on a motor. so im thinkin thats gonna be my best option.... do i have to get the head drilled out to fit the 14mm studs? any one have a rough estimate on how much that costs? should i get the head resurfaced while im at it?

You in wisco? If you have a bud there, take the head to them and tell them to have Joe do it and get it oringed while he has it...

Dude this sucks, sounds like something that would happen to me. Best of luck to ya :tu:

yup. i live bout 20 min from there shop. dont really know many people there only been there once or twice. im gonna have my buddie shane bring it there. he can get it dont cheaper if he goesin on his own time for me... whats it cost to get it oringed?