Broken bolt dilema

[therigwelder]

I was replacing the head gaskets on the 3.6,got the heads back on and as I was final tightening the head bolts I snapped one off deep in the block.i tried left hand drilling it out to no avail,I then took a easy out and tried to back the bolt out and the easy out snapped off.so now I have an easy out and a broke off bolt to contend with.anyone have any idea how to fix this?Yes,they were new bolts.

[SlowLS1]

Man, i've put some thought into this, and I think you are in a bad place with this.

If you can't get the extractor out, pretty much only option at this point would be to pull it and have a machine shop fix it.

[Infidel67]

Originally Posted by therigwelder

I was replacing the head gaskets on the 3.6,got the heads back on and as I was final tightening the head bolts I snapped one off deep in the block.i tried left hand drilling it out to no avail,I then took a easy out and tried to back the bolt out and the easy out snapped off.so now I have an easy out and a broke off bolt to contend with.anyone have any idea how to fix this?Yes,they were new bolts.

Damn Bro, Shit.
If the screw is bottomed out and tight, that be tough to get out, if it's loose and I'm desperate I would use the broken bolt with a small drop of J-B weld on it.
I dunno, maybe thats a nutty Idea.

[Aqua Blue RS/SS]

Damn that is some shitty luck. I would stop where you are and get a machine shop to fix it. If you eff up here it’s going to cost you the block.

[Infidel67]

Originally Posted by Aqua Blue RS/SS

Damn that is some shitty luck. I would stop where you are and get a machine shop to fix it. If you eff up here it’s going to cost you the block.

Id have to agree with you, but it's always a question of $$

[0stones0]

Have access to a tig welder? I regularly remove broken bolts/studs like this. Weld small drops on top of the mess, until you can clamp it with a vise grip/ needle nose. The heat from welding also aids in helping it back out of the whole.

[1JEWLDSSRS]

Man this guy has been having an aweful time with this car! He's got a tough one now. Looks like its time for a visit to the machine shop as stated above.

[therigwelder]

The extractor will probably shatter when hit with a center punch,hard tool and die metal is usually brittle,great strength but not good for impact.the bolt is bottomed out in a blind hole.may have to drill it completely out and tap new threads or helicoil it.i got in this situation by using a torque adapter on a breaker bar.i was unsure of the torque of the head bolt,only info I could find was 22 ft lb and 150degreeturn.why couldn't Chevy simply give a final torque value,I figured torque to yield bolts could hold 90 ft lbs and I found they can't.yes I have every welding process there is,I weld for a living. However it's over 3/4 inch down the hole,no way to build it up that far down a1/2 blind hole.just had the heads reworked,got a new timing set,head gaskets,oil pump.was starting to build it back.damn the luck

[PaulsSS]

Most likely the culprit was coolant or some other liquid in the threaded hole. It doesn't take much. It causes a hydraulic lock and the bolt snaps off. I do hear you on the whole torque to yield b.s. What is curious is GM doesn't use TTY to build the engine! They use a standard TQ value and use a gang air tool to tighten all the bolts in one operation. How deep is the top of the broken off easy out in the hole? There are a couple different ways to get it out. !st you will need a special hardened bit and a guide that bolts onto the block OR if there is some room at the top of the hole you can make a guide out of a old bolt. Most dealers have the guide kit to drill out the old bolt and install a timesert OR you can buy the kit online<might be your cheapest option. NEVER use a easy out in a situation like this. You simply use the tool bolted onto the head to drill out the old broken off bolt and install a timesert. Any other method will cause headache and lots of money. There are electric induction tools you can buy to go into the hole and heat the broken off easy out until its softer to drill into. Here is the head bolt kit IF you have 11mm bolts https://www.amazon.com/Universal-M11...BoCNdUQAvD_BwE

[PaulsSS]

I can't tell you what torque value to use but what I do is look up the size of the bolt and the strength rating max torque value then depending on where its going choose a reasonable value to torque too. TTY is tossed out there to keep all the DIYer at bay. I've worked on tons of stuff and have never TTY any bolts.

[roh]

Originally Posted by PaulsSS

Most likely the culprit was coolant or some other liquid in the threaded hole. It doesn't take much. It causes a hydraulic lock and the bolt snaps off.

This is a good point. If you're right, the liquid should eventually leak past the threads & leave him a loose bolt that will easily thread out.

[Pkeen]

Time-sert's are the way to go instead of Helicoils. I did all of my head bolt holes on the LS1 in my c5 vette.

[fz4k98]

There are many areas on the camaro where torque plus angle is used. I have ran across it on suspension parts and the angle cannot typically be achieved on a reassambly unless all parts are new including gaskets, bolts etc.

I typically get about 60 or 70 percent of the require angle on a reassambly. I used new caliper bolts in the same caliper that i reused bolts and the new bolts were able to achieve the angle needed.

Torque plus angle is great for achieving reliable assembly at the factory but sucks for repair. The torque number is to draw the joint together, the angle number is to stretch the bolt to the correct amount.

[SlowLS1]

Originally Posted by Pkeen

Time-sert's are the way to go instead of Helicoils. I did all of my head bolt holes on the LS1 in my c5 vette.

Time-Serts are awesome and have used several in my lifetime. For sure, I'd plug one into that hole if the threads get damaged after he gets the bolt/extractor out.