TTY head bolts with engine in-vehicle

[strutaeng]

Hello. I'm doing a top end refresh on my 06 Suburban LQ4 (lifters, cam, refreshed heads, gaskets).

I removed the heads yesterday and found the rear most head bolts are pretty tight to the firewall. I happen to have just bought a 24" flex head ratchet, which was perfect for the job (admittedly , I was using a shallow socket and some extensions as that was I could find at the moment). But I'm kinda doubtful I'll be able to install the new head bolts in those 90 degrees sequence for the final requirement. I have a digital 24" torque wrench I'm planning on using for this.

Any tricks to doing that job? My buddy is suggesting ARP hardware. SMH.

 

[wjburken]

For Torque To Yield, once you get them all torqued to 22 ft-lb, you can put the torque wrench away and use a ratchet with a cheater pipe or a breaker bar since you are looking at degrees of turn, not torque.

ARP hardware is also a good option.

 

[strutaeng]

For Torque To Yield, once you get them all torqued to 22 ft-lb, you can put the torque wrench away and use a ratchet with a cheater pipe or a breaker bar since you are looking at degrees of turn, not torque.

ARP hardware is also a good option.

Correct. So I guess what I'm asking is how to keep track of angular rotation, since I don't think I can do a full 90 degree turn (in a single turn?)

Maybe I'm just overthinking it, LoL. I'll worry about it when I get to that bridge.

So I had this intermittent tick I couldn't figure out. Suspected lifter. I have yet to remove the cam, but rollers on lifters look fine. Actually, everything looked good on initial quick visual.

Yesterday I was trying to take the lifters apart but can only manage to remove the clips and the cap. I tried blowing air thru the little body oil hole. One didn't fully retract evenly. I took a better look and found some little particles inside... ummm. Is this my smoking gun?

Also, cleaning the carbon off the pistons. I used PB Blaster and works pretty good. I bought a gallon on this stuff and hadn't used it much since my wife hates the smell. So I feel good putting it to use.

 

[wjburken]

Correct. So I guess what I'm asking is how to keep track of angular rotation, since I don't think I can do a full 90 degree turn (in a single turn?)

Maybe I'm just overthinking it, LoL. I'll worry about it when I get to that bridge.

So I had this intermittent tick I couldn't figure out. Suspected lifter. I have yet to remove the cam, but rollers on lifters look fine. Actually, everything looked good on initial quick visual.

Yesterday I was trying to take the lifters apart but can only manage to remove the clips and the cap. I tried blowing air thru the little body oil hole. One didn't fully retract evenly. I took a better look and found some little particles inside... ummm. Is this my smoking gun?

Also, cleaning the carbon off the pistons. I used PB Blaster and works pretty good. I bought a gallon on this stuff and hadn't used it much since my wife hates the smell. So I feel good putting it to use.

I typically just kind of eyeball 90 degrees. If it takes two 45 degree cranks, so be it. Put a mark on the head of the bolt with a paint marker if you need a better visual. You can also purchase a angle indicator, if you have room.

https://www.amazon.com/OEMTOOLS-25424-Torque-Angle-Gauge/dp/B004FEPEA8?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

I have found the carburetor cleaner or brake cleaner works pretty good at getting the carbon off.

 

[iamdub]

Correct. So I guess what I'm asking is how to keep track of angular rotation, since I don't think I can do a full 90 degree turn (in a single turn?)

Maybe I'm just overthinking it, LoL. I'll worry about it when I get to that bridge.

So I had this intermittent tick I couldn't figure out. Suspected lifter. I have yet to remove the cam, but rollers on lifters look fine. Actually, everything looked good on initial quick visual.

Yesterday I was trying to take the lifters apart but can only manage to remove the clips and the cap. I tried blowing air thru the little body oil hole. One didn't fully retract evenly. I took a better look and found some little particles inside... ummm. Is this my smoking gun?

Also, cleaning the carbon off the pistons. I used PB Blaster and works pretty good. I bought a gallon on this stuff and hadn't used it much since my wife hates the smell. So I feel good putting it to use.

I always remove the heads before pulling the block so I can access the top four bell housing bolts. It's also why I install the heads after putting the block back in the bay.

I have a small cardboard circle with a screw in the middle as a handle. It's a little larger than the flat area where the bolt head seats. I used a protractor and marked the two degree points on it and use it to put the marks on the cylinder head. I do the initial torquing, mark the bolt head at the starting point, then rotate the bolt until it reaches the first degree point (90°) then the final 70°. I use a breaker bar and just reposition the socket on the end to position the bar where I have the clearance to rotate it as needed.

Here's the pics and descriptions in my build thread: https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/growing-up-doesnt-have-to-suck.93510/post-1455929

I do the same for the TTY crank bolt: https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/growing-up-doesnt-have-to-suck.93510/post-1428052

 

[strutaeng]

I always remove the heads before pulling the block so I can access the top four bell housing bolts. It's also why I install the heads after putting the block back in the bay.

I have a small cardboard circle with a screw in the middle as a handle. It's a little larger than the flat area where the bolt head seats. I used a protractor and marked the two degree points on it and use it to put the marks on the cylinder head. I do the initial torquing, mark the bolt head at the starting point, then rotate the bolt until it reaches the first degree point (90°) then the final 70°. I use a breaker bar and just reposition the socket on the end to position the bar where I have the clearance to rotate it as needed.

Here's the pics and descriptions in my build thread: https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/growing-up-doesnt-have-to-suck.93510/post-1455929

I do the same for the TTY crank bolt: https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/growing-up-doesnt-have-to-suck.93510/post-1428052

Thank you. I never thought of removing the heads to gain access to the top bellhousing bolts. Those bolts are kinda of a pain to remove. I will keep that in mind for future work.

In this case, I wasn't planning on removing the block. I'm hoping the cam bearings are okay... fingers crossed. Otherwise at this point I will remove the block to change those out if need be.

 

[strutaeng]

...well, engine is coming out...

The cam looked okay, only very small wear. But cam bearings don't look too good. I guess that's normal wear and tear for 262k.

 

[iamdub]

n this case, I wasn't planning on removing the block. I'm hoping the cam bearings are okay... fingers crossed. Otherwise at this point I will remove the block to change those out if need be.

Right. Removing the block or not, your heads will still be off with the engine in the bay. My projects just always had the engine being pulled. When you're putting it back together, break out the Sharpie and protractor and put your marks around the head bolt holes. Then you won't have to buy an angle gauge or worry about squeezing it under the cowl.

 

[Trey Hardy]

Hello. I'm doing a top end refresh on my 06 Suburban LQ4 (lifters, cam, refreshed heads, gaskets).

I removed the heads yesterday and found the rear most head bolts are pretty tight to the firewall. I happen to have just bought a 24" flex head ratchet, which was perfect for the job (admittedly , I was using a shallow socket and some extensions as that was I could find at the moment). But I'm kinda doubtful I'll be able to install the new head bolts in those 90 degrees sequence for the final requirement. I have a digital 24" torque wrench I'm planning on using for this.

Any tricks to doing that job? My buddy is suggesting ARP hardware. SMH.

ARP hardware is worth it in my opinion and it’s a lot simpler to just tighten the shit out of them vs the stock bolts where you have to tty and go through that bs plus you can reuse arp stock is usually one and done as the bolt stretches out

 

[iamdub]

...well, engine is coming out...

The cam looked okay, only very small wear. But cam bearings don't look too good. I guess that's normal wear and tear for 262k.

IMO, that's actually on the lighter end of expected wear for that mileage. This engine looks to have been treated to regular oil changes with a quality oil and not abused. AFAIK, the bottom end will need to be disassembled to install the cam bearings. Supposedly, they can be installed with the rotating assembly in place but it's a PITA. I've never tried. Anyway, if it needs to be disassembled, you may as well do a full rebuild with a cylinder honing and new rings and bearings at that point. If it ran fine with good oil pressure, didn't smoke, made no noises, etc., and I wasn't gonna beat on it, I'd have no problem cleaning it and reassembling it as-is. I'd be running a little heavier oil than the recommended 5W, though.