Installed new manifold gaskets and have two broke bolts on one side and one on the other. Tried drilling them out, only to break off two easy-out bits.

Tried some small clamps, but still have the annoyingly exhaust popping and it's driving me crazy. Anyone know some old school workaround I can do until I'm able to pull the motor? Double up the gaskets? Use the copper RTV silicone? Both? Just live with the noise?

Edit to add: '72 F100 2wd with a 390 and stock manifolds (ie, no headers).

 

Do you have any welding equipment there you can tack weld something on to the broken studs to get a-hold of them?

 

That's the plan for the drivers side. Passenger side has two bolts broke off into the holes

 

On those I would find some "reverse" drill bits and "reverse" easy out. Maybe a local auto parts vendor or harware store has a kit for both. The reverse ones are trying to spin out the broken studs immediately.

 

The reverse easy outs broke off too

Heck I might just cut the mufflers off to drown out the manifold leaks.

 

Bite the bullet and pull the heads to have the broken bolts/studs removed.

Allowing an exhaust leak, especially at the manifold, to go on and on unaddressed will likely result in the surfaces where the leak is occurring to erode to the point where the head or manifold will need to be replaced.

My 70 had an exhaust leak that I tried to fix only to find out that it had gone on so long by the PO that the mating surface of the manifold outlet was "gone" and no amount of donut gaskets or sealers would have ever fixed it... Lucky for me I had the take-offs from my 73 to replace them.

That's my nickel.