montermahan
Member
- Joined
- April 10, 2013
- Messages
- 23
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- City, State
- greeley, ks.
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 2008 ford sport trac
Well I tore into it this weekend. Two front studs broke off on passenger side. Went to Ford parts and they said their new manifolds were the same as the original on the motor. The manifold was warped .040. I had a friend mill it flat, hoping it was warped as far as it wanted to go. now to remove 2 stud's. I removed the inner fenders, removed the shock and spring so I would have good access to the shock tower area. I drilled about a 1" hole in the top right corner of the tower and using an abrasive cut off grinder, cut a 2" square hole in the lower right corner of the tower. I jacked the motor up as far as it would go, removed the tail pipe and pulled it back with a ratchet strap under the truk. undone the air compressor pump and pulled it down as far as it would go.
It is imposable to see if the drill bit is lined up with the stud (I used a bore scope and mirror). Someone suggested to make a bushing to fit in the holes in the manifold over the studs that were broken, and I did, but the drill was about 1/3 of the bolt off center, problem being, the holes in the manifold are around 3/8" and the studs about 1/4" and they were not centered in the holes. So I made 2 bushings to fit in the manifold that had a hole the size of the studs and put them in a couple of the manifold holes , then using the bushing on the front cyl was able to get a good dimple in the studs. The top stud, I was able to see enough to get it drilled down the center, and an easy out brought it right out, but the second one, not being able to get good alignment on the bit, it ran off the side and got into the aluminum head. What I did next, was what I should of done first, Make a bushing to fit tightly into the header and stick out about an inch, with this I was able to feel the bit slide in to the bushing (guide) and move it to where it was not binding, now I knew it was straight and centered. having already messed up the head threads, and some of the stud was still in the hole, I made the mainfold guide bushing the size to fit a bit that the hole would tap to 7/16" and drilled it out fine. I then made a stud that was 7/16" on one end and 3/8" on the other, and screwed it into the head.
A person needs drill bits that are about 10" long to do all this, so I would take a 8" piece of 1/2" rod, put it in the lathe and using the bit I need to extend, drill into the rod about 3/4", then drill a small hole about 1/2" down to spot weld the bit in the extension. A "dead stop" is a must on the bit, I used a depth gauge to measure a hole that a stud come out removing the manifold and would cut a length of pipe to fit over the bit leaving the right amount of bit sticking out past the pipe.
I understand someone makes a drilling fixture for this procedure which would ov been great, but the inserts in the manifold worked fine. I was about an hour getting the first stud out, but probably 10 getting the second one done. Not a job for the faint of heart. If I was to do it a second time, having learned to use the bushings on existing studs and the drill guide over the broken stud, it shouldn't be such an awful job, but half way thru it, I think I would have gladly given the dealer 1,000.00 to do it.
Sorry about the long winded post, but if it can help someone out, it will be worth it.
It is imposable to see if the drill bit is lined up with the stud (I used a bore scope and mirror). Someone suggested to make a bushing to fit in the holes in the manifold over the studs that were broken, and I did, but the drill was about 1/3 of the bolt off center, problem being, the holes in the manifold are around 3/8" and the studs about 1/4" and they were not centered in the holes. So I made 2 bushings to fit in the manifold that had a hole the size of the studs and put them in a couple of the manifold holes , then using the bushing on the front cyl was able to get a good dimple in the studs. The top stud, I was able to see enough to get it drilled down the center, and an easy out brought it right out, but the second one, not being able to get good alignment on the bit, it ran off the side and got into the aluminum head. What I did next, was what I should of done first, Make a bushing to fit tightly into the header and stick out about an inch, with this I was able to feel the bit slide in to the bushing (guide) and move it to where it was not binding, now I knew it was straight and centered. having already messed up the head threads, and some of the stud was still in the hole, I made the mainfold guide bushing the size to fit a bit that the hole would tap to 7/16" and drilled it out fine. I then made a stud that was 7/16" on one end and 3/8" on the other, and screwed it into the head.
A person needs drill bits that are about 10" long to do all this, so I would take a 8" piece of 1/2" rod, put it in the lathe and using the bit I need to extend, drill into the rod about 3/4", then drill a small hole about 1/2" down to spot weld the bit in the extension. A "dead stop" is a must on the bit, I used a depth gauge to measure a hole that a stud come out removing the manifold and would cut a length of pipe to fit over the bit leaving the right amount of bit sticking out past the pipe.
I understand someone makes a drilling fixture for this procedure which would ov been great, but the inserts in the manifold worked fine. I was about an hour getting the first stud out, but probably 10 getting the second one done. Not a job for the faint of heart. If I was to do it a second time, having learned to use the bushings on existing studs and the drill guide over the broken stud, it shouldn't be such an awful job, but half way thru it, I think I would have gladly given the dealer 1,000.00 to do it.
Sorry about the long winded post, but if it can help someone out, it will be worth it.
