Date: Sun, 26 Aug 2001 19:02:00 -0700
Reply-To: Coby Smolens <cobys5@HOME.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Coby Smolens <cobys5@HOME.COM>
Subject: Re: Separating heads from cylinders
In-Reply-To: <038301c12dce$27b6f860$e490fd3f@dafrog>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Even in the shop with seasoned veterans of this operation it is sometimes
impossible to remove stuck cylinders from heads without pulling the whole
lot out together. If that turns out to be the case, there are some sneaky
tricks I can turn you on to - I was looking for an earlier post of mine that
describes the process, but couldn't find it. Since it's a bit involved, I'll
treat it as "need to know" info - and you don't need it yet.
Getting the heads unstuck is always a matter of prying the tabs on the
cylinders away from the heads (although I can imagine a special hydraulic
tool that would do the job, I haven't seen it yet). It's important to note
that you want to pry BOTH cylinders out at the same time. You need a high
incidence of leverage, but getting under both of the middle tabs of the two
cylinders at once helps keep the tool properly engaged with the work. It's
like having the perfect screwdriver for the screw - much less likely to pop
out of the slot. To do this, the prying device needs to be a near-perfect
fit for the job, and to that end I always wind up making one - since the
last one I made has usually been used as a punch or welded into some other
project by the time I need it again. My raw material of choice for this tool
is concrete form spikes, available from Home depot, but any proper sized
steel bar or rod stock will do. The spike I refer to is about 1/2" in
diameter and a foot and a half long. I grind one end on a bench grinder so
that I wind up with a flat pointed end, like a wood chisel, but I make the
angled face rounded. This face goes against the head and acts like a rocker
(to give leverage across a wider range of movement than a flat face would
do) while you pry against BOTH tabs of the two cylinder heads at the same
time. If you sliced the letter D in half horizontally across the middle and
welded the top half of the D to top of the letter H, you'd get roughly the
profile of the tool I'm struggling to describe.
Good luck, go slow, watch what's happening VERY carefully. You don't want to
slip off one side and/or break one of the tabs off. Then you'll have no
choice but plan B (the secret one). I heartily recommend against using
chisels and other bludgeonry for this job, as broken or rounded-over
cylinder tabs are a common result.
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM]On Behalf
Of Mike Collum
Sent: Saturday, August 25, 2001 6:27 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Separating heads from cylinders
I'm trying to remove the heads from my '84 GL but they are REALLY stuck to
the cylinders. I don't want to remove the jugs unless I
absolutely have to. (Engine in vehicle).
What has worked for you folks?
Any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Mike
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