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ARP engine studs

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G-Body Lover

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Joined
Jul 14, 2016
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40
Does anyone have any ARP head studs for sale? There is a significant shortage and these are on back order. I have a blown head gasket and factory head bolts, and since I have to pull the motor to fix and clean the engine of debris I would like to fix it with studs. Please help! Car is stuck in the garage and not drivable!
 
^^^^^ this!
You can use the ARP bolt kit 123-3603 or 123-3703. Available on Summit, Jegs, etc. & they're in stock(at least at Summit).

FYI I have the bolts torqued to 90 ft. pounds currently running 23 P.S.I. with no gasket issues.......yet HAHA.
 
I am the 5th owner of the vehicle, and I want to thoroughly clean the engine of debris and examine the bottom end, not just change out the head gasket. I will plan to replace all the gaskets at that time. I am running 26 lbs of boost, and I was using the ARP bolts when the gasket blew. Thus, I would like to use studs this time around, but I can't find any. If anyone has a new set for sale, please let me know. I don't want the car to just sit there until the studs are no longer on back order, but i also don't want to just use standard head bolts again.
 
Gaskets blew for a reason.. and if the gaskets were stock there really had to be a reason for it to blow. The factory seal is great and that’s why many don’t break it unless they have to. I have bolts torqued to 85 ft-lb and have hit 32 psi on stock style graphite head gaskets. 93/pump gas. Stock bolts are torque to yield, meaning they are tightened then stretched. ARP bolts don’t stretch, and if you use something like a thread chaser and arp 567 to seal the head bolts(they go into the water jackets) and some assembly lube on the washers, torque in three steps, so 30-60-90 if you wanted to go to 90, they’ll hold plenty good for a lot of power. Some diesel guys did a clamp test with bolts and studs, and until like over 120 ft-lbs the bolts were right there with the studs.. just my .02¢
 
The gaskets were not OEM. I do plan to replace the current gaskets with OEM. As I am the 5th owner, I do not have the stock bolts and I do not know why they were changed to ARP, other than someone has gotten into the motor before. Since tracking down a set of stock bolts is going to be tough , I was considering the stud route. Thanks for your input everyone.
 
Were the head gaskets blown when you bought the car or did you blow them? Again, they blew for a reason.

Not sure you can get the Victor-Reinz OEM gaskets anymore. That's why people have gone to Fel-Pro, cometic, etc.

Stock bolts are one time use so unless you find a NOS set they're not recommended to be re-used.
 
Have you thought about using Cometic MLS head gaskets?
Both the.block & heads need to be machined very smooth 50RA or better.
Clean with lacquer thinner then
Spray Hylomar on each gasket face during assembly.
You should be good to go!
 
The car is running 26 lbs of boost. I suspect the prior owners, given the non-OEM gaskets and ARP head bolts that are on the engine, got into the motor. God only knows if the bolts were even torqued to specification. I have to figure a lot out at this point. It is the lack of clarity as to why the gasket blew that I want to thoroughly inspect the engine during the repair process, and clean out any debris from the motor. I suspect that there may be more going on inside that lead to the blown gasket.

Given my plans to pull the motor and essentially clean and rebuild with OEM gaskets, I figured now was a better time than ever to change out the ARP bolts for some studs, but I can't find them.

Again, if anyone has a set of ARP studs for sale, please let me know.

Thank you everyone for your thoughts.
 
Studs shine when the engine is being repeatedly disassembled for maintenance. Bolts work well when assembling and leaving it alone.
 
I would post in the parts wanted section here or see what GOOGLE has to offer for the studs. If you're set on studs you may just be forced to wait unless you can find some here.

Plenty of threads on here about head gaskets. I'm aware the motor will be out but when it's back in turn the boost down to 15 P.S.I get the correct logging tools Scanmaster, etc. You need to know about the knock(detonation). That's the main reason for blowing head gaskets.

You can look at the plugs to help see if the motor was knocking.
 
Were the head gaskets blown when you bought the car or did you blow them? Again, they blew for a reason.

Not sure you can get the Victor-Reinz OEM gaskets anymore. That's why people have gone to Fel-Pro, cometic, etc.

Stock bolts are one time use so unless you find a NOS set they're not recommended to be re-used.

Last one listed as victor Reinz

I understand you want to "make it right" but with the supply chain issues and the parts industry at large being what it is I wouldn't wait for studs. Bolts are fine. As stated above, the cleanliness of the surfaces makes the most difference ime. I have a stock seal on one side and a stud with vr hg on the other. Ken White has been low tens with well north of 35 psi on a stock long block. Not that yours is stock. I'm a proponent in get it running and driveing. A garage ornament is only so much fun.
Any of those head bolts I linked or the arp from summit or jegs will do way more than you will likely put to it with a good tune and such.

1987 BUICK REGAL 3.8L 231cid V6 Turbocharged Intake Manifold Gasket | RockAuto Get an intake pan while you are at it.
 
I am the 5th owner of the vehicle, and I want to thoroughly clean the engine of debris and examine the bottom end, not just change out the head gasket. I will plan to replace all the gaskets at that time. I am running 26 lbs of boost, and I was using the ARP bolts when the gasket blew. Thus, I would like to use studs this time around, but I can't find any. If anyone has a new set for sale, please let me know. I don't want the car to just sit there until the studs are no longer on back order, but i also don't want to just use standard head bolts again.

So the better question is how much horsepower are you trying to make?

You can do just fine on stock caps and bolts to 450 hp all day and night. For the heads, if you are under 500 you can run head bolts just as well as studs, no worries. As has been said, flat surfaces on the heads and a stock gasket will work just fine.

If you are running 26 psi on the street, which turbo are you using?
 
Flat surface on head and block mean surfaced with a CBN diamond MILL, not a rotary broach! The r/a finish with a CBN mill is extremely better! No comparison!
I own a HP machine shop, but I bought my Turbo Coupe with a "fresh" engine, from what guys in the know would refer to a "low class" shop. The engine had about 20 miles on the new engine, and the build sheet said it had all of the cool machinework done, yeah, right.
But it was supposed to have Wiseco pistons,(did) hellfire rings(didn't), cl-77 bearings(clevite de mexico), Comp 260 ft cam(did), double roller chain set(cheap rivited, non rolling imitation), 250 fuel pump(it did), fel-pro gaskets (stock 6 cyl, non turbo), and the crappiest "machine work" I have seen in YEARS!
The installers couldn't "make it run", and the price was right, the paint, and body work is great, it had nice new wheels and tires, so I bought it. I figured that I would let the "new" wear off, and accumulate what parts I wanted to replace. I replaced the O2 sensor, TPS, and MAP sensor and it ran fine,untiI I adjusted the boost to 11 lbs.
The second time I nailed it, it kicked out both center cylinder headgaskets IMMEDIATLY! AND SERIOUSLY!
It actually didn't hurt anything else, but the main and rod bearing clearances were extremely tight, and it really needed a line hone. So, here I am 2 years later with enough good parts to finish it, rxcept the Comp Cams custom roller thats still on back order since February 2020. It is now July 8th 2022..... i found and paid retail for the mid sized Comp roller in Nebraska! I am in Phx,Az.....
There is a lot of good info in this rambling post, figure it out! Ya got time, its not like there is many parts out there!
Later....
TIMINATOR
 
Before making any decision on studs V.S. bolts, I suggest reading the ARP catalogue. The front section deals with repeatability, clamp loads, stiction (static friction) relating to bolts, grading and metalurgy of fasteners, why use washers, and MUCH MORE. I am totally surprised at how many "engine builders" and machineshop owners that have not read and familiarized themselves with this free info! Before ARPs wonderful catalogue, I read a lot of the fastener/ thread systems section of the MACHINERY HANDBOOK, it too contains a ton of great info, but more oriented towards industrial usage than automotive, but a worthwhile read too.
Back to stiction, it is static friction, in this case mostly applies to torquing bolts.
In short, when torquing a bolt, part of the torque that should be used for clamp load is actually used up in friction between the bolt head and cylinder head. Thats the why you should use lube under the bolt head, and preferably a hardened washer also. When torquing bolts without washers, I have a 1" diameter 6" long round aluminum bar that I use as a punch, I put it on the bolt head, and give it a sharp rap with a hammer to "shock" the bolt shank to relieve the frictional twist the bolt shank has in it. Try it sometime, then retorque. You may be surprised at how much torque is lost. This is only one place where studs are better; hardened washers, ARP lube, on studs, tend to not build up twisting stresses as much as bolts do. Me, being anal, I hit studs too, but the torque loss is much less.
Also, if torque plate honing blocks, and you should, use the exact same fasteners as you will be doing the final assembly with. And never replace main bolts with studs without line honing the block. Studs give approximatly 30% more clamp load than bolts, and that distorts the main caps differently, causing an out of round condition.
Why do studs have more clamp load? and torque to higher levels? When machining an engine at the factory, they machine the main threads deeper than necessary so the bolts don't bottom out.
You install the studs about a quarter turn up from the bottom, giving more thread engagement, plus the top thread is a finer thread than the bolts, because of that, the "ramp angle" of the thread is flatter, resulting in more clamp load per foot lb. Torque.
TIMINATOR
 
Does anyone have any ARP head studs for sale? There is a significant shortage and these are on back order. I have a blown head gasket and factory head bolts, and since I have to pull the motor to fix and clean the engine of debris I would like to fix it with studs. Please help! Car is stuck in the garage and not drivable!
Start a thread in the parts wanted section some guys may have what you need.
Some good info in this thread for sure.
What I will add is dont be stuck on studs especially if you dont need to be.
Bolts will take you very far.
1 car I did a while back had arp bolts and ran 35psi on a built motor on a 64/68bb turbo.
No issues.800+hp.
 
I prefer studs, especially when they intersect coolant, lube, or other passages.

Order a set from Summit/Jegs/ARP now & wait. Doesn't sound like you will be ready for them immediately.
Unfortunately you have to "get on the list" these days.

Meanwhile, keep looking.
 
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