Removing nuts from manifold studs

[48ply1stcar]

Others may have never had this problem or they have their own tried and true method, but this was something I just thought of the other day and it worked for me.

 

I tried soaking and heating and a vice to remove the slotted nuts from the old studs, but nothing seem to work.  

 

Last month I used this 6 inch pipe wrench to remove the studs from the block.  Last week I was trying to clean off a work bench and table so I can get my wife's car back in the garage when I spotted the wrench I failed to put away.  So I put the handle of the pipe wrench in the vice and used a socket to remove the nut.  I made sure that the jaws were set so they would tighten with the presure of the socket.

[Don Coatney]

Looks like that works. You could also chuck the nut up in the vice jaws and use the pipe wrench to spin the stud it out.

[48ply1stcar]

Don

 

Actually I did try that first.  I ended up getting jaw marks on a nice smooth nut (from the two engines I ended up with 4 smooth and 4 pitted nuts).  Also it might have been easier with a breaker bar on the pipe wrench.

[Don Coatney]

That is one of the reasons I have 2 vises, one is a smooth jaw.

 

[oldodge41]

Nice job. Good thinking.

[MarkAubuchon]

Nice job. Good thinking.

If you haven't gotten them loose.  Here is my two cents. Heat the nut till its glowing red (not the stud) should come off. Once they cool off, recut clean up the stud and nuts.

[Tom Skinner]

Fastenall sells Loctite Freeze Release for @$20/Can

Its basically Liquid Nitrogen with Penetrating Lubricant infused.

Spray it on and it frees everything. I used it to remove Bumper Bolts

(Frozen on for 65 years and they loosened right off).

The Wax trick is also good.

[hendo0601]

Clamping the nut itself in a vice actually causes the nut to remain even tighter on the stud because it is now distorted from the clamping force from the vice. Your method of clamping the pipe wrench looks really good, but do the threads on the stud get boogered up? Are these studs and nuts that difficult to source as brand new? Im sure any major faster dealer would have what you need or close to it. In my experience Fastenall or High Strength Bolt have any and every stud/nut combo I have ever needed.

[48ply1stcar]

Hendo0601

 

The studs are only 89 cents and can purchased a part store.  It's the cone shape locking nuts for the exhaust manifold that can't found.

 

 I believe this picture is from Dodgeb4ya

Edited October 26, 2013 by 48ply1stcar

[Jerry Roberts]

 Vintage Power Wagons has been selling the cone shaped locking nuts . They sell the studs too . 

[wayfarer]

I'm with hendo on this.

There are plenty of locking nuts on the market, some are as pictured, some are staked and some have interrupted threads. Unless you are doing a 100 point resto why bother with the old nuts?

[Dodgeb4ya]

If you don't use the four special tapered and slotted cone nuts mated with the countersunk brass washers the exhaust manifold can break at the ends.