head studs? Whats the best?

Mike Neal! · 09-24-2009

Whats the best head stud to get for a 6bolt? my arp's arent cutting it

blackrosenova400 · 09-24-2009

I would try to figure out why its happening first, headstuds should not be an answer to remedy blowing headgaskets unless you have ALOT of power.

A. You have alot of power

B. You did not prep the head/block correctly

C. You are knocking alot for whatever reason

D. Headstuds were installed/torqued wrong

E. Headgasket installed wrong

F. Overheating and are not aware of it

Anyone else care to add to the list?

The best thing to do is figure out why its happening, but if you choose to skip this vital step then L19's paired with Fel Pro Permatorque headgasket seems to be the new trend as s working very well for many.

Swifty1638 · 09-24-2009

Best headstuds out there are A1's. Shep, Rau and others use them. But, they are quite expensive-I paid 200 for mine, but usually they cost around 600-660 a set. Also, they don't prevent things from happening..Rau blew out his headgasket on the friday evening, weekend of the MCSO, and I've never seen soo much damage to the studs or nuts till then. All they do is clamp the head down to the block..that's it. So, you gotta look at what happened..perhaps a better hg? keep in mind DSM's will push a little coolant under boost..

turbotalon1g · 09-24-2009

ARPs aren't the problem here. Good post from blacknova, pretty much sums it up.

Mike Neal! · 09-24-2009

dont have a blown headgasket. Under boost it does push coolant tho. Just trying to see whats better out there for studs. I guess they have different strength ratings, and wont strech as much as other.

just wondering whats the best out there or what there is i guess.

Swifty1638 · 09-24-2009

As far as I know, best to lest-best:
A1
ARP L19
ARP standard
Stock

blackrosenova400 · 09-24-2009

Where did you get the information that dsm's will push coolant? Pushing coolant should not be an acceptable thing.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Swifty1638

Best headstuds out there are A1's. Shep, Rau and others use them. But, they are quite expensive-I paid 200 for mine, but usually they cost around 600-660 a set. Also, they don't prevent things from happening..Rau blew out his headgasket on the friday evening, weekend of the MCSO, and I've never seen soo much damage to the studs or nuts till then. All they do is clamp the head down to the block..that's it. So, you gotta look at what happened..perhaps a better hg? keep in mind DSM's will push a little coolant under boost..

blackrosenova400 · 09-24-2009

Why is it pushing coolant if you dont have a blown headgasket?

If you are worried about headstuds then whats going through your mind is our head raised, and if your head raised, your headgaskets is blown and is the culprit of pushing coolant.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Neal!

dont have a blown headgasket. Under boost it does push coolant tho. Just trying to see whats better out there for studs. I guess they have different strength ratings, and wont strech as much as other.

just wondering whats the best out there or what there is i guess.

Swifty1638 · 09-24-2009

Shane told me its rather common on dsm's he's seen on the dyno.

Mike Neal! · 09-24-2009

I have also heard its common from others.. and it says it here too..

http://www.extremepsi.com/store/cust...cat=555&page=1

Quote:

Originally Posted by that web sites ad

Because of the many head lifting issues on 4G63 blocks running in excess of 35+ PSI, a stronger stud needed to be manufactured to meet the demands of today's top engine builders and racers alike.

Mike Neal! · 09-24-2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by blackrosenova400

Why is it pushing coolant if you dont have a blown headgasket?

If you are worried about headstuds then whats going through your mind is our head raised, and if your head raised, your headgaskets is blown and is the culprit of pushing coolant.

Its not pushing coolant under normal driving. It doesnt get hot or anything. Its just under full throttle high boost it does.. if the head gasket were blown id think it would cause a problem during any driving condition?? but gathering from what I hear about heads lifting Im guessing its doing that. But I could be wrong. I didnt build the motor but when I have to take it apart I would like to know whats the best to use to put back in it.

Super Bleeder!! · 09-24-2009

or you could have an imperfect sealing surface on the head/block. Composite gaskets are good at adapting to non-ideal surfaces.

Are you running a composite or steel HG?

Mike Neal! · 09-24-2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by Super Bleeder!!

or you could have an imperfect sealing surface on the head/block. Composite gaskets are good at adapting to non-ideal surfaces.

Are you running a composite or steel HG?

I dont know, it is what was in there when I got it. Its a stock 6bolt. with ARP's. Dont know if its a stock HG or not.

mike55112 · 09-24-2009

I pushed coolant for months before my headgasket actually took a shit. Ya I drive an evo but its still basically the same. My problem was my head surface was not machined well enough for a cometic head gasket. Schiedes was also pushing some coolant for a while without any drivability issues. If you have the money, get some L19's or A1's and a oem mls gasket and call it good, but make sure and have your head checked out for flatness

Mike Neal! · 09-24-2009

Is that oem mls gasket good?

Super Bleeder!! · 09-24-2009

You'll still need some really really flat surfaces to use any MLS and not push coolant. I would just run a new oem composite gasket. Plenty of people have made 500awhp with them.

mike55112 · 09-24-2009

I was running a cometic gasket at around 450whp and I pushed coolant underboost and the minute I switched to the oem mls gasket, I stopped pushing coolant.

**goodhart** · 09-24-2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by Swifty1638

Shane told me its rather common on dsm's he's seen on the dyno.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Neal!

Its not pushing coolant under normal driving. It doesnt get hot or anything. Its just under full throttle high boost it does.. if the head gasket were blown id think it would cause a problem during any driving condition?? but gathering from what I hear about heads lifting Im guessing its doing that. But I could be wrong. I didnt build the motor but when I have to take it apart I would like to know whats the best to use to put back in it.

My car was doing a lot of what is being described here and I used a Cometic MLS on a freshly rebuilt motor, It would drive fine all day long for 200 miles, but as soon as I would get into the boost once or twice, the fucker would push out a bunch of coolant and wast to overheat. I'll be going to a Fel-Pro Permatorque and some L19's, many have used this combo after having the same issue with great success.

**Tachyon** · 09-24-2009

My engine also started pushing coolant like a mofo earlier this year. This was with a freshly shaven head / block, cometic HG, and std. ARP studs torqued to spec using moly. I've recently built a 2.4 with a Felpro permatorque and A1's. we'll see how this one works...

Kevin 1G Drummer · 09-24-2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Neal!

Its not pushing coolant under normal driving. It doesnt get hot or anything. Its just under full throttle high boost it does.. if the head gasket were blown id think it would cause a problem during any driving condition?? but gathering from what I hear about heads lifting Im guessing its doing that. But I could be wrong. I didnt build the motor but when I have to take it apart I would like to know whats the best to use to put back in it.

Pushing coolant IS a blown head gasket. It's just not blown enough to let coolant into the oil passages or into the cylinder. My car pushed coolant after about 15k miles on a Mitsu MLS gasket and regular ARP studs. Switched to an OEM composite gasket with a little copper spray and it's been fine ever since. OEM Composite gaskets can hold a lot more than people give them credit for.