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I get mine at my local fastener store - a mom and pop (actually pop and daughter) place that supply all the local manufacturing places and ranchers. Most tool stores will carry (or at least order for you) as well.
Thanks for the input guys! I was hoping to find some that didn't have to be ordered but it was a no go. Seems the Snap On franchisee here in South IL folded and I couldn't track down the mac guy and all the hardware and auto parts dealers within a 20 mile radius. Ended up ordering a cobalt left handed extractor set through napa and it came in yesterday afternoon. Broke off an easy out in the first stinkin one I tried last night and I was taking it slow and easy.
I tell ya that small of a diameter stud for that big bad ole motor is just plain insane. Sure wasn't one of Ford's better ideas! Hope to chip it out today with a small chisel but I'm not too hopeful it will work. Drilling the ez out out sure isn't an option now. I have four studs to remove that broke off above where I can get a stud extractor on em and hope they don't break off below, but I have 5 that are already broke off below the surface.
It wasn't like I didn't prepare for this either I've been soaking these studs for nearly 2 months with pb prior to tackling this.
If you're doing this because of the exhaust studs, I hunted around for a long time for left-handed drill bits.
And really didn't need them anyway. If you get a good bit, it'll go through stainless like it's butter, so it really won't tighten the stud too much anyway. It's "easy out" after that
Oh yah, it's for the exhaust studs! Major pita! Do you recall what size (dia) bits you used to for the pilot hole? On the first hole I used a 7/32" and wasn't able to get the stud out using an ez out. Drilled it a bit off center but not into the threads - no go yet.
Second stud I used a 5/32" and then ez out, and that one broke off in it. Now I'm gun shy of trying anymore until I get more info. May end up pulling the heads and taking em to MacWeld but... I'm at the semi-local Ford service dept now and tried picking their collective brains about what they use to tackle this, and was told that all they do is pull the heads and send em to macweld
My next stop is macweld to see if I can pick their brains on what diameter and brand of ez's is best for this job before, as a last resort, pulling heads and taking them in. Thought I was well prepared for this but it appears not
I really don't remember what size I used. I tried to get as big as possible without going into the threads, and nicked some anyway because I went off-center.
I used a square easy-out, and they eventually came out.
BIG THING - I drilled THROUGH the stud - and sprayed penetrating oil (not WD40!) in and let it sit and sit and sit. And it eventually came out pretty easy. There's about 1/16" or more of blind hole after the stud...
Thanks for the info. That is big! I was unsure whether there was any room behind or at the bottom of the stud and I never went through. Will now. I've used 2 cans of pb blaster in the past two months and continue to use it.
I checked with my reputable machinist and he charges $9 per stud removal and $30 and up for stud with a ezout in it, BUT I have to take the heads off, will not do with heads in the truck.
Worse comes to worse I'll be pulling the heads, but for now I'm going to give it another shot.
Pulling the heads means new gaskets AND bolts. And a real pain re-doing the timing chains/tensioner.
If you already have the manifolds off, check out how deep the holes are with a depth gauge (the pointy thing that sticks out of a dial caliper when you open it up), add the thickness of the gaskets (not a whole lot) plus the thickness of the manifold flange. Then, check how long a stud is from the nut to the tip. There's some decent amount of room.
Better yet, what I did was, take the width of the manifold flange, subtract that from the length of the stud from the nut to the tip, subtract the width of the gasket (again, not much) and mark the drill bit with the masking tape. That way, you have some idea how deep to go before you drill through the end of the stud.
Maybe too late now, but the best penetrating stuff ever is Kroil. It can be found here KanoLabs.com
Years ago when I farmed I was rebuilding some much negected packers for a drill. I had tried eveything to get the shafts out of some of the wheels. WD40, PB blaster, red hot with a torch, etc. Got some Kroil and hit them with a shot every few days for a while. One day I grabbed one and gave it a whack with a 8 lb sledge. It just flew apart. All the rest of them that had not had the Kroil were still solid.
Pulling the heads means new gaskets AND bolts. And a real pain re-doing the timing chains/tensioner.
If you already have the manifolds off, check out how deep the holes are with a depth gauge (the pointy thing that sticks out of a dial caliper when you open it up), add the thickness of the gaskets (not a whole lot) plus the thickness of the manifold flange. Then, check how long a stud is from the nut to the tip. There's some decent amount of room.
Better yet, what I did was, take the width of the manifold flange, subtract that from the length of the stud from the nut to the tip, subtract the width of the gasket (again, not much) and mark the drill bit with the masking tape. That way, you have some idea how deep to go before you drill through the end of the stud.
I read through all the threads on this forum and over on the Super Duty forum before tackling the job and was prepared, but not good enough it seems. Add to that I have no garage of my own and I'm using one of the bays at my inlaws farm shop. I have access to all his tools as well as my own, but not really familiar with where his are all at which adds to the frustration and added time.
I've come to the conclusion that I have to take the heads off to do this job right and will end up with a rebuilt top end of the motor basically, so it's not all bad. Just spending more money and time I hadn't planned on!