46 dodge exhaust manifold gasket replacement

[Black betty]

Hello

exhaust gasket leaking thought I would try and replace it ?

used a lot of WD 40 for a few days and needed a breaker bar just to get the 4 nuts at the end flanges loose

bad news only 1 of the nuts came loose the other 3 studs came right out of the block ( I guess I will use them and put them back in the same way , if I do should I use some sort of sealer ? )

are there additional bolts to be removed as well I read somewhere

how do I get to those

any suggestions on this 

I think I’m in over my head

help

c

[knuckleharley]

Next time start the engine and get it nice and hot before trying to break the studs/nuts loose. You are lucky you didn't wring one off.

 

If it were me,I would not reuse the old studs and nuts.  Use new ones and coat them with a heat-resistant sealer that will keep them from rusting and seizing in the block after running a tap in the mounting holes and blowing out any rust dust.

 

Studs,nuts,and  washers don't cost that much. Use new ones.

[Andydodge]

 Some of the studs go into the water jacket and should have a sealer to stop water leaking thru the threads apart from the rusting/seizing issue that Knuckle mentions.....andyd

[Merle Coggins]

When I did a manifold swap on my truck this summer there were 3 studs that came out with the nuts locked on. I was able to heat the nuts, to free the bond, and remove them from the studs. Then I put thread sealant on the stud threads and reinserted them into the block before putting the replacement manifolds back on. 

 

If you leave the nut on the stud, and reuse it that way, it won’t torque up properly. 

[rallyace]

Bernstein's sells a full kit of studs, nuts and washers. I think it is about $60, about what you would pay at the hardware store but you get the heavy washers in the kit. You definitely want to use some sort of sealer on the studs where they go into the block.

 

[John Reddie]

I have had success removing nuts on studs like you describe buy putting the stud in a piece of copper tubing with the nut exposed and clamping the stud in my vice. I then heat the stud with a MAAP torch and the nut almost always comes off easily. The soft copper protects the threads on the stud from damage.

John R

[knuckleharley]

4 hours ago, John Reddie said:

I have had success removing nuts on studs like you describe buy putting the stud in a piece of copper tubing with the nut exposed and clamping the stud in my vice. I then heat the stud with a MAAP torch and the nut almost always comes off easily. The soft copper protects the threads on the stud from damage.

John R

Another method to use is to just cut two blocks from soft wood with "legs" on them to fit semi-snugly over your vise,and then cut the top off flush with the tops of your vise jaws. Only takes a second to put them in or remove them,and they come in really handy for holding stuff firmly in your vise without scratching or damaging it.

[Mike36]

Wd 40 is a poor choice as a rust penetrant. Any auto parts store will have more than one product that is better. Ask the counterman. I like JB 80 or PB Blaster.

[9 foot box]

  The manifold has that one nut that many miss at first. It holds in the lower flange of the center port of the intake manifold. You don't get at it from the top. 

[Don Coatney]

There are 13 fasteners holding the manifolds to the engine block.

 

[DonaldSmith]

(Don's photo is of an upside down engiine block ((25-inch DeSoto engine that went tnto his recently departed Pymouth.))  The stud by the two valve lifter covers is the offending stud.)