Redfish-Joe
Senior Member
If you try this make sure you wear safety glasses and gloves. The tool steel will shatter and be very sharp and moving fast.
Broken Exhaust Bolt
- Thread starter harleyd72
- Start date
If you try this make sure you wear safety glasses and gloves. The tool steel will shatter and be very sharp and moving fast.
harleyd72
Member
Yeah, I did. Already tried it to no avail and I'm not quite willing to disassemble the engine yet. Guess I'll keep drilling until I either break through or my hand gives out.
Midnight Reign
Active Member
OK let me try this again dont know why I cant ever post on the first attempt here.
Anyhow, I have been in your position too many times. The simple amswer is there is no simple answer, that being said.... You need to arm your self with some tools. You want to start with some heat, and a chisle ground small enough to get to the EZout. Your first attempt should be to use the chisle to turn the EZ out the opposite of the way it went in. if that doesnt work you will need to switch to a dremel tool, with the 90* angle attatchment, and a selection of grinding bits. Get several different shapes and sizes as they burn up quick. I find the small ball end bits work good but as I said they burn up quick, and a couple of the straight ones too, in different sizes. Spend a little time trying to get the EZ out out, break it into small pieces if you can. When you get as much of the EZout removed as you can then you want to concentrate on the stud, If possible use the hole the easy out was in in carefully start working from the EZ out or the hole it was in out to the threads in the head. Keep your eyes open and be looking for oppertunities to go back to the heat and chisle and try to turn the stud out. Barring that you want to keep mining away ate the stud until you get right up on the threads in the head, some times once you have created a groove in the offending stud as deep as you can get, it may be possible to drive a pick in between the stud and the threads in the head itself. It wont be much but you can start to just peel back the theads in the stud. Then its back to heat and chisle routine trying to turn the stud. This whole process is like surgery with a machette'. And if you are not a patient person dont even try it. Remember you have to do all this without damageing the threads in the head. If you go about it methodicly and slowly with a steady hand you can get it without having to remove the head. I have done this myself more times than I care to say and have well over a 95% success rate (guessing here but not too far off) All that being said it is sometimes much easier to just pull the head off and take it to a machine shop, but it can be done in the way I have outlined here. Good Luck
Anyhow, I have been in your position too many times. The simple amswer is there is no simple answer, that being said.... You need to arm your self with some tools. You want to start with some heat, and a chisle ground small enough to get to the EZout. Your first attempt should be to use the chisle to turn the EZ out the opposite of the way it went in. if that doesnt work you will need to switch to a dremel tool, with the 90* angle attatchment, and a selection of grinding bits. Get several different shapes and sizes as they burn up quick. I find the small ball end bits work good but as I said they burn up quick, and a couple of the straight ones too, in different sizes. Spend a little time trying to get the EZ out out, break it into small pieces if you can. When you get as much of the EZout removed as you can then you want to concentrate on the stud, If possible use the hole the easy out was in in carefully start working from the EZ out or the hole it was in out to the threads in the head. Keep your eyes open and be looking for oppertunities to go back to the heat and chisle and try to turn the stud out. Barring that you want to keep mining away ate the stud until you get right up on the threads in the head, some times once you have created a groove in the offending stud as deep as you can get, it may be possible to drive a pick in between the stud and the threads in the head itself. It wont be much but you can start to just peel back the theads in the stud. Then its back to heat and chisle routine trying to turn the stud. This whole process is like surgery with a machette'. And if you are not a patient person dont even try it. Remember you have to do all this without damageing the threads in the head. If you go about it methodicly and slowly with a steady hand you can get it without having to remove the head. I have done this myself more times than I care to say and have well over a 95% success rate (guessing here but not too far off) All that being said it is sometimes much easier to just pull the head off and take it to a machine shop, but it can be done in the way I have outlined here. Good Luck
J
Jack Klarich
Guest
First off how much of the easy out is broken off? When they break off in a bolt they tend to put more of a bind on the threads so you need to get the easy out out for sure before you can safely remove the broken bolt. Be careful with punches and chisels you are working on soft Aluminum, heat will be your best friend. The best plan would be to remove the head IMO. Once you get the bolt out use a bottoming tap to cut the new threads, use high grade studs with anti sieze
As an old machine repairman I agree with HDDon, but if you can find an extremely talented welder you might get away with something I have had done many times. Have the welder weld a smaller diameter bolt to the broken easy-out, while it's still hot give it a rap with a hammer and turn it out, remember turn it clock-wise. If it comes out, do the same with the broken bolt only turn it counter clockwise, if not pull the head and visit a reputable machine shop.
harleyd72
Member
There is, apparently, more broken off inside the bolt than I though. I got a good chunk of it out after it broke, has to be less than 1/8" of material in there.
I was thinking the same thing, unfortunately being fairly new to the area, I don't know any local welders and my welding skill is sadly lacking.
Last edited by a moderator:
J
Jack Klarich
Guest
Try the phone book, alot of these guys are mobile, tho if they come to you it may cost more JMO Good Luck
Call some of the local motorcycle shops. You are not the first and you won't be the last with this type of problem. One of the local shops will know a good machine shop that can help. If you have a NAPA dealer in your area they will also know who in the area that can handle the situation.
harleyd72
Member
The stud broke off too far in the head to weld anything too.
Been drilling and grinding at it for 3 days now, could the heat from the exhaust over the last 5 years have hardened the stud? I had to have gone through the easy out out material by now.
Still don't want to but I'm pretty close to pulling the head...