Head bolts clean up

[bakirkwold]

Can I remove my head bolts one at a time and clean them up, then put it back on then do the next one? As long as i re torque then does it matter?

[JEEPRUSTY]

I assume you mean the bolts in the valve-train cover.
If so yes.

If they are head bolts that secure the cylinder head to the engine then no.

[bonanzadave]

If they are head bolts that secure the cylinder head to the engine then no.

OMG I F'ed up then.......

There are two head Nuts on the 1100E's that have orings on them. I removed the two nuts to replace the orings. So far it has not blown up...or is the clock still ticking ?

[JEEPRUSTY]

Well you had a valid reason functional reason for removing them.
I wonder know if a re-torque after a service interval involves complete loosening of the nuts.

[bakirkwold]

those are the bolts I am talking about.

[pete]

I did that with mine, but I had no km's on it after the rebuild either so I saw no issue.

I think if you do it stone cold then you should be fine, just make sure to undo them in the correct order as per the manual and torque them up in the correct order again too.

The good thing is the outer four nuts (the ones you're talking about) are the first to loosen and last to tighten, so it should be fine...

[Nessism]

It's not recommended to loosen any of the head nuts like proposed. The cylinder head has a specific tightening sequence to assure the clamp load is evenly applied, and loosening one of the nuts messes that up. I don't think it's a tragic situation if you choose to remove the nuts one at a time, but I wouldn't do it just to polish up the nuts.

If you get some EvapoRust and swap it on the nuts the rust will be removed. Maybe wrap each nut with a cotton cloth and then apply the sauce so they will stay wet for a few hours.

Regardless of which method you use retorquing the cylinder head nuts is a good idea. You should loosen them at least a 1/4 turn before tightening, and don't use your torque wrench to loosen because the nuts will likely stick and shock the wrench (not good).

[hampshirehog]

Similar thoughts to Ed - wrap the nuts overnight with cotton wool that has been dunked in tomato ketchup.