Rene,

What do you mean by "drift"? Like a screw driver?

I use 2 flute bottoming taps to dislodge broken screws and taps all the time if a punch won't knock it loose. Just have to be very carefull you don't break that tap.

I assume the broken peice isn't effecting the head bolt as it's been in there all this time? If the head bolt doesn't go that deep, is it worth damaging the threads or breaking something else in there?


drift= punch

Beings it's only 1/4 of a peice, it should pop right out. Only thing holding it in is the rust.

I'm not sure that the lodged piece will effect the torquing of the new head bolts or not. The old piece lodged in their when I removed the old head bolt. Where could I buy a flute bottm taps?

Some times you can get lucky with small pieces like that with just using a blow gun. You just need one that will fit down in the hole. Just be sure to cover all the important stuff real well. Don't want any debris in the wrong place!!! Has helped me in the past!! Good luck!

Where is your boat now? If its close to the shop I can swing by and take a look at it. Let me know.

John S.:D

A good rule of thumb is you need thread engagement equal to or greater than 1 bolt diameter. If the piece is lower than this, I would leave well enough alone. Shorten that one headbolt if necessary.

I usually have plenty of problems without creating any more :eek:

BT :cool:

Great Idea!

Grip,
First thing to do is take one of your new head bolts and put it in a cylinder head to see how far it actually sticks out. That will tell you how far it goes into the block. If the piece you are talking about is below that, then forget about it. A lot of 454 big blocks and 400 small blocks have a section right at the bottom of the bolt threads that actually gets smaller. It is the way the block is cast. That might be what you are actually running into with the tap. There are a few bolt holes where the tap will NOT go all the way through like you think it should. As long as the bolt will thread in as far as it needs to, thats all you have to worry about.

Hope this helps,

Bill Koustenis
Advanced Automotive Machine
Waldorf Md

Are you sure you aren't just seeing the base metal where the threads end?... I can't imagine "half" of a bolt breaking off and leaving a part on only one side. I think it's the bottom of the bolt hole you are looking at and not a broken bolt. How far down from the deck is this "bolt"?