Head bolts
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Posting Guru
Joined: Dec 2008
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From: Mt.Angel
Head bolts
So i was wondering how many of you have replaced your head studs with the ARP head studs? At what point do you have to replace them, besides the failure of your headgaskets. if i just get bigger injectores and put ina chip down the road will my truck with 329,000 miles be ok? or do you need a lot of heavy mods to have a reason to replace them? thanks blake
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Joined: Jan 2010
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When you torque down a head bolt , the bolt stretches and creates a unique bonding inside the metal at a maximun torqued specification.
When you remove the head bolt and destress the bolt some of that bondind fails when a bolt WAS torqued to its maximum spec. So reinstall will be weaker even though torqued to spec because of the "destressed" bolt.
Have I seen head bolts fail ... yes but I am a garage mechanic and built or helped build 100 or so engines and a head bolt failure happened only a few out of a hundred.
Now if you are asking at what point do you upgrade the head bolts because of increased HP you need to do the math to see the new head pressure and decide if the bolt will hold. I don't remember the equation.
When you remove the head bolt and destress the bolt some of that bondind fails when a bolt WAS torqued to its maximum spec. So reinstall will be weaker even though torqued to spec because of the "destressed" bolt.
Have I seen head bolts fail ... yes but I am a garage mechanic and built or helped build 100 or so engines and a head bolt failure happened only a few out of a hundred.
Now if you are asking at what point do you upgrade the head bolts because of increased HP you need to do the math to see the new head pressure and decide if the bolt will hold. I don't remember the equation.
Fleet Owner
Joined: Aug 2004
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From: AZ
Blake, I remember reading on here about a guy who replaced one head bolt at a time with the stronger ones. He got away with it and didn't have to pull the heads. Other guys said that it wouldn't work. I don't know if that's what your thinking or not.
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From: Mt.Angel
don yea i know how head bolts work i rebuilt the engine on my old pontiac 2.3L grand am and did the head bolts, but thats kids stuff compared to the psd engine. and you saying that only a few out of 100 failes makes me feel a little better. Glenn that process sounds kinda risky i think i would do it the old fashion way. im just thinking for down the road cause this summer, it will be my first summer with the truck and working 80-90hrs a week on the farm all that money is going to have to go somewhere so obiously injectors, a chip, exuast, and maaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyybbeeeeee a new turbo. so that got me thinking on security and head bolts were the first thing that came to mind to hold it all together. thanks blake
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Joined: Jan 2010
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don yea i know how head bolts work i rebuilt the engine on my old pontiac 2.3L grand am and did the head bolts, but thats kids stuff compared to the psd engine. and you saying that only a few out of 100 failes makes me feel a little better. Glenn that process sounds kinda risky i think i would do it the old fashion way. im just thinking for down the road cause this summer, it will be my first summer with the truck and working 80-90hrs a week on the farm all that money is going to have to go somewhere so obiously injectors, a chip, exuast, and maaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyybbeeeeee a new turbo. so that got me thinking on security and head bolts were the first thing that came to mind to hold it all together. thanks blake
I have not priced a new set of bolts but have you looked at how much it would be to cryo an existing set to make them a bit stronger?
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2004
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From: Silver Lake Dunes, MI
Doing head studs one at a time is perfectly fine as long as you don't already have issues like a blown head gasket.
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Post Fiend
Joined: Mar 2007
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From: Johnson City, TN.
I was thinking about this. Would it be best to do it with a very cold motor or a luke warm one?
Or would it even matter the temp when you change the studs one at a time.
Or would it even matter the temp when you change the studs one at a time.
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Hotshot
Joined: Jun 2007
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From: Austin, TX
dead cold so the metal of the head doesn't cool at all during the process. we did the studs in my buddys SD(the one that is now blown up) one at a time. worked well for a long time. i personally wouldn't waste my time buying ARP studs though. why not drop the little bit of extra $$$$ for the H11??? the H11s are just stronger and can be retorqued as many times as you feel like where as ARP studs are about dead after about 4-5 retorques.
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Joined: Jun 2007
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From: Austin, TX
some ppl see different results. some don't work for chit after 2 retorques, but others are getting 4 retorques before they start to stretch pretty good. my H11s have 2 retorques on them and i'm absolutely possitive i won't have any problems with them. wonder if cryoing H11 would even do anything or just make them weaker since the steel is already crazy strong??? might have to ask when i send my heads, connecting rods, and pistons in for cryoing. haha.
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2004
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From: Silver Lake Dunes, MI
Install on a cold motor for sure. ARP versus H11. it depends. Competition truck or really hot street truck goes to h11's. For a daily driver mods like Neal. I would just get the ARP's. Something with stage 2's and H2E should live a good long life and not need to have the heads off.
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Dec 2007
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From: Hutchinson, KS
Install on a cold motor for sure. ARP versus H11. it depends. Competition truck or really hot street truck goes to h11's. For a daily driver mods like Neal. I would just get the ARP's. Something with stage 2's and H2E should live a good long life and not need to have the heads off.
I had ARP's in my SD with a setup similar to Neal's. I was told by most everyone that I "DIDN'T NEED" headstuds even with a larger turbo like Neal's, but since I had the motor out of the truck and could get to all them easily, then "why not".
I'm installing ARP's in my 95 that will be setup nearly identical to Neal's with some minor tweaks. It's gonna be my daily driver, tow rig, play toy. Still don't need the headstuds but since I'll have the motor out, WHY NOT!!
Anything used for competition and running alot of fuel and hp, I'd go with the H11's.
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To the OP:
With that amount of mileage and as long as the internals are still solid and you're not burning/using oil, get ARP's if you need to replace them or headgaskets. Cheap insurance for future mods.
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From: Mt.Angel
so a cold motor and H11 studs, which i have never heard of but if travis says they are better i'll take a leap of faith haha and believe him. and yea i would like some stage 2's eventually and an H2E turbo but thats a ways down the road.
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