Head Studs
I have just purchased an 84 f-350 with a 6.9L in it. The truck is showing 82K miles original. having had previous experience with diesels in boats and aircrafts, I know that this engine still has the potential for another 200K miles. However, when I bought it, the injector seals had cracked, creating a leak. the engine would start then stall within a couplpe of seconds. The previous owner did not investigate, and instead used ether to get the engine going until the fuel pump reprimed the engine. I suspect this damaged the head gasket, and I now have a clear leak of the coolant toward the outside back of the driver head.
I'm looking to replace the head gaskets and go to the studs instead of the bolts. I like the option of installing a turbo at some point. Being very tight on money, I will go with the felpro head gasket. my question is where can I find the studs and what can I expect to pay for them? given that there are 34 of them, I want to explore my options.
ARP 220,000 PSI studs is what mine were when they arrived at my house.
Fel-Pro gaskets are fine, that is what I am running, and I am getting a little more than stock boost out of my turbo.
One thing, after everything is clean and the block and heads are getting ready to go back together, wipe both mating surfaces with acetone to remove every trace of oil before you put the gaskets on the block.
ARP also says to run the stud nuts to max torque 5 times and then loosen them before the final round to torque specs.
I was one tired puppy after the night I put the heads on my engine.
34 bolts all installed to max torque in four steps 5 times, and removed in 4 steps 5 times before the final 4 step install.
For some reason my arms were just a little sore the next day.





