Engine tear down questions...

i am tearing down a 351w, and im having some trouble.

some of the bolts connecting the exhaust manifolds to the heads look very odd. theyre all rusty as hell. some will loosen just fine, but others look almost as if they were welded in place- there is no seem between the bolt head and the surface of the heads. i do not intend to use the stock heads when i put the engine back together, but i was hoping that i would be able to pass them on to someone else that may want them.

if the heads arent salvagable, i can deal with that, but i have a bigger problem- the same thing has happened with one of the bolts holding one of the heads onto the block. The only possible thing i can think of would be to take the rest of the bolts out, and remove the dowels, then hope that i can spin the entire head itself round and round til ive gotten that bolt out of the block. I know that will be a pain in the ass, as these things arent exactly lightweight, but i cant think of anything else. i am certainly open to suggestions of how to get this thing apart.

lastly, is there a good, cheap way of getting the rust off these things, that i can do at home?

thanks

 

Your plan for the head bolt won't work.

I'd try an impact wrench if you haven't already. Or a torch followed by a penetrating oil quench. Otherwise the answer is to remove the bolt heads and slide the manifold or cylinder head off, then grab the bolt's shank with vise grips or in a worst case, weld a new head on.

Actually that might be your plan B. Weld a lug onto the bolt head if the head is all stripped. All these methods will get you there but some are better suited than others to your available equipment.

good luck

 

thanks.

if i have to remove the bolt head, how could i do this without damaging the cylinder heads? i dont know if i could get that close with a grinder without hitting the cyl heads. i literally cannot find a seam between the bottom edge of the bolt head and the edge of the cylinder head. it really looks like the bolt was welded in place, then the welds were grinded smooth. i cant imagine why someone would ever do this, except for maybe it was torqued too tight and broken off during factory assembly, and instead of taking the time to fix it right, they welded a bolt head on then and there. in which case, the stupidity amazes me.