The cylinder head replacement story begins…

[1936 ford pickup]

Hello SoCalCoupe,

As Tim Ayers mentioned above about the NAVARRO heads, I had Purchased a set from H&H because they do use the stock studs. My Block is a '46 - '48 with 3 3/16 bore. I used the Bolt Buster 1800 watt tool and removed all the hex nuts successfully. Removed the cast iron heads successfully. I tried to remove some of the studs as well with the Bolt Buster tool. Like you, I felt like the stud was about to twist and snap before coming loose. Engine is still in my truck so I need to be careful about what I do and how I do it. Decided to utilize existing studs but over the last 75 years or so and who knows what was done to this engine, some studs were not studs but all-thread rod. Some studs were shorter than stock. When I installed the NAVARRO heads some of the studs were too short for full thread engagement of the hex nuts. I took a depth gage and measured to calculate how much I need to pilot counterbore the NAVARRO heads to gain full thread engagement of the hex nuts. Good luck with your project. NOTE: photo is of NAVARRO head and new head gasket sitting flush on block and you can see some studs are too short. Photo is before pilot counterboring.

Bruce in Modesto, Ca.