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Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes
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Powerflite
Posted 2022-03-13 1:53 AM (#620204)
Subject: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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I purchased a set of Dodge hemi heads and the tubes are stuck in them. It looks like he just pried the valve covers off with the tubes still in there, which was really dumb, but now I know why. I don't know how to remove these things. They are really stuck in there. Any suggestions? I tried heat, but I couldn't really heat it effectively down where it counts.



(Stuck Tubes in Heads.jpg)



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56D500boy
Posted 2022-03-13 3:08 AM (#620205 - in reply to #620204)
Subject: RE: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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At the bottom of the tube, the tube is basically just a washer between the spark plug and the head. Amazingly, there apparently wasn't any oil leakage in those areas. I think that if you spray the bottom of the tubes from the outside and the inside with Moovit or PB Blaster for a day or so you will be able to budge them. At this point they are just corroded to the head.



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Mopar1
Posted 2022-03-15 11:02 PM (#620267 - in reply to #620205)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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Remove the plugs.... :-)
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56D500boy
Posted 2022-03-15 11:04 PM (#620268 - in reply to #620267)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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Mopar1 - 2022-03-15 8:02 PM
Remove the plugs.... :-)


I doubt that Nathan (Powerflite) would fail to do that.

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Powerflite
Posted 2022-03-15 11:09 PM (#620269 - in reply to #620204)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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Thanks for the confidence in my mental capacity Dave.
Apparently this is a common problem for the early Dodge/DeSoto hemi as here is another example of frozen tubes in this ad.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/334137147923


Edited by Powerflite 2022-03-15 11:49 PM




(HemiPoly Parts.jpg)



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56D500boy
Posted 2022-03-15 11:35 PM (#620271 - in reply to #620269)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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Powerflite - 2022-03-15 8:09 PM
Thanks for the confidence in my mental capacity Dave.


I had no doubt about you. As for others, maybe not so much.

I still contend that they are stuck because the engine has sat out in the elements with no valve cover but rain, snow, etc and no oil. ATF and acetone. PB Blaster. Moovit. Mopar Combustion chamber cleaner and/or a bit of heat should, in my mind, solve the problem.

Mine were fine but then again the engine was running and the upper head bathed in oil.

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Shep
Posted 2022-03-16 9:02 AM (#620273 - in reply to #620271)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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A little heat around the the area may help.
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ronbo97
Posted 2022-03-16 9:48 AM (#620274 - in reply to #620273)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes


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Soak the heck out of them with PB Blaster. When you turn the heads upside down, can you see the tip of the tube ? If so, spray a ton of PB in that area. Also a good idea to wiggle or tap the tube a little to get the PB to permeate the rust a bit more. After a couple of days of repeated soaking and tapping, you should be able to rock them back and forth until they break free.

Ron

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Powerflite
Posted 2022-03-16 3:39 PM (#620284 - in reply to #620204)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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I've tried everything on these with no luck so far. Heat doesn't help because you can't get enough of it to heat up the whole head. Heating the tubes just soaks into the head and doesn't do much where it matters. Soaking hasn't made any progress yet either. I can't punch them out from below as there is no surface I can get to from the spark plug hole.

I am probably going to punt and chisel them out, and purchase new ones for it. I suspect this is why they started making them in aluminum instead of steel.
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springsweptwing
Posted 2022-03-16 5:12 PM (#620287 - in reply to #620284)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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Nathan,

The last ones I managed to get out in one piece, I used a wood dowel that fitted inside tube, then a oil filter strap on the outside and managed to get them to turn in the heads and come out.
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Powerflite
Posted 2022-03-17 3:45 PM (#620308 - in reply to #620204)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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That's an interesting idea, so I gave it a try. It was really tight and seemed like it might start to move, but no such luck. I gave up when I split my dowel from the rotation.
I am considering building a wood fire and setting the head into the hot coals. Pull the tubes with gloves on once the head heats up. What do you think of that?
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springsweptwing
Posted 2022-03-17 5:50 PM (#620309 - in reply to #620308)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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I just used the dowel to stop the tubes from crushing, put the filter strap on the outside of the tube.

If you make the dowel a tight fit in tube but not all the way into the cylinder head, if you get the tubes out you can knock the dowel out through the spark plugs hole after.

Edited by springsweptwing 2022-03-17 5:53 PM
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local2Ed
Posted 2022-03-17 9:37 PM (#620314 - in reply to #620309)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes


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Try heating then apply wax.


https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/frozen-bolts-candle-wax-an...
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57burb
Posted 2022-03-17 9:42 PM (#620315 - in reply to #620314)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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I have never experienced tubes that were stuck in any way. They usually are rocking around as soon as I unseat the spark plug. Maybe someone got the tube material mashed into the spark plug threads slightly, locking them in? You might try to spin them out. If they're locked in place due to grime, spray them with a good degreaser (I like Simple Green) and let them soak. Might take one or two sessions. This is an interesting problem as they don't have any way to attach themselves to the head
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Powerflite
Posted 2022-03-17 10:46 PM (#620318 - in reply to #620204)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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The nice thing about the dowel approach is the tubes become very round again. But Ed, the problem here is I can't get enough heat on the head to make a difference. That's why I am contemplating using the bonfire approach to heat them up. Danny, this is a phenomenon of the older steel tubes. They must have had tighter tolerances on them because I notice it's even a little difficult to insert them into the holes on my other heads. It takes some good force to get them to go in. The aluminum tubes have no such issues and seem to be a little smaller. If I were to continue to use the steel tubes, I would use a sandpaper roll on the heads to widen out the hole a little on them and give them better clearance. It's clear to me that no amount of soaking is going to work on these. I have to get the heads hot enough to expand a lot or just bend them out of there and throw them away.
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Bevis
Posted 2022-04-12 3:58 PM (#620858 - in reply to #620204)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes


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I have had good luck using a rubber expansion plug and the use of a slide hammer. Most will come out that way. I have also resorted to making a nice fitting steel plug for the inside and a cushioned muffler clamp on the outside. The slide hammer really works with this set up
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wayfarer
Posted 2022-04-12 5:01 PM (#620859 - in reply to #620204)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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The early Dodge is a particular problem with the steel tubes. Seems that MaMopar made the hole a bit tight; much larger in later heads.
Like you, I have had a pair of heads on the rack for a couple decades with frozen tubes...haven't found a good removal process short of
the milling machine.
If you have to cut them out make the hole about 060 bigger. I do have steel tubes if you need...
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58coupe
Posted 2022-04-13 11:15 AM (#620869 - in reply to #620204)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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Nathan have you tried using vinegar? pour it around the tubes and let it sit for a few days, it is a mild acid and might dissolve the corrosion. We used to use this on engines that were stuck.
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60 dart
Posted 2022-04-13 5:07 PM (#620872 - in reply to #620273)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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Shep - 2022-03-16 9:02 AM

A little heat around the the area may help.




soak em if you wish but a fine tip hot torching works wonders . i've watched machinists use a
torch on stuck or even broken parts , then used the same technique . it works truly amazingly
and you don't have to wait a month on soaking ----------------------------- later
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60 dart
Posted 2022-04-13 5:14 PM (#620873 - in reply to #620204)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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Heat doesn't help because you can't get enough of it to heat up the whole head.

you don't heat the whole head or the whole area around any part to be removed . go out from the part @ a 1/2" or so on two
sides , heat it up red hot and do your work . you don't just warm an area , you get it "hot" ------------------------------later
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Powerflite
Posted 2022-04-16 1:07 AM (#620904 - in reply to #620873)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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I tried barbecuing the head tonight after cooking our dinner. Still no dice. Those things are really tight in there. Next I'll try to setup something with my slide hammer. If that doesn't work, I'll punt and bend them out piece by piece.



(Cookin 270 Hemi Head.jpg)



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Powerflite
Posted 2022-05-18 10:37 AM (#621553 - in reply to #620204)
Subject: Re: Removing Stuck Spark Plug Tubes



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I finally got them out. One head was easier than the other, but by chance, I started with the worst one. I shoved a wooden dowel into it that fit tight and then clamped to the outside of it. Then I used my slide hammer to pull up on the clamp. It didn't budge and eventually, after many poundings, my clamp slid off of it. So I resorted to beating on it in a sideways motion. That was the only thing that loosened it enough to get it to move. After doing that, I was able to clamp to it again and get it out with the slide hammer. But it dimpled the sides of the tube. Also, afterward, I couldn't get the wooden dowel back out. When I pounded on it from the backside, my tool somewhat embedded itself into the wood, making it tighter inside the tube. I have to burn that dowel out of there now, or drill it out.

On the next ones, I used the same technique to hammer on the sides of them and then use the clamp & slide hammer, but I inserted a steel cylinder that fit more loosely instead. This worked well to get them all out. The tubes from the easier head have almost no damage to the tubes, but the harder ones will need some work to hammer back into shape. This picture is the worst one, other than the one with the dowel still in it. I'll have to insert a similar steel cylinder and pound against it to remove that dimple in the tubes.

Edited by Powerflite 2022-05-18 10:41 AM




(Beat Spark Plug Tube.jpg)



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