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HELP!! I'm screwed!!!

6K views 42 replies 17 participants last post by  borrani 
#1 · (Edited)
HELP!! I'm screwed!!! PLEASE!!

Hello everybody...

My worst nightmare came true today. After two days of dissaembling all the stuff, the cylinder head is STUCK! Really STUCK!! Penetrating oil doesn't help, cranking the car doesn't help!

And in the process, I dropped the two spacers (between the chain) of the master link into the oil pan and couldn't find it again! I cannot even put it back together and take it to a shop!

HELP!! Does anybody know where I can find the Alfa head removal tool for sale (or borrow, or rent?)
Should I dissassemble the oil pan to find the missing link? Or may I take it apart later when I change the gasket of the oil pan? Would it get suck into the oil pump and do something really bad to my engine?

I've a fork lift in the warehouse in El Monte (where the pieces of GTV are right now), but I figured out it would bent the head out of shape it I pull it by chaining it to the brace between the two cam spockets.

I wish I had the money to get it done by a shop at the first place :( sigh... :(

Please help... please :(
 
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#4 ·
Have you tried hitting the head with a rubber mallet for a while (careful bangs), then crank and try and pull.

If not, you can try calling a mechanic and tell him you will give him like a big deposit just to borrow the tool for a day.
 
#5 ·
Yes, I did. I can now get the front half of the head off the block, but the rear half doesn't let go.
I cannot crank the car again because the car has Autodelta cams and different valve overlap than stock, it's like 5 degree off the TDC mark.

I will go to AR Ricambi tomorrow and see if they've that tools for sale (I need to buy the master link again anyway)

I don't know any Alfa mechanics in the San Gabriel valley. Would a Fiat shop have it?
Is there a simliar generic tool for all cars? Since my uncle never mentioned such a tool to me, and he's out of town right now.

It looks like there is no way I can make it to Alfa Night on Friday. :eek:

----------------
Anthony, do you guys have an extra one that I can borrow or rent for half a day? Please.

--------
Does anybody know any Alfa parts shop in LA area? Thank you thank you.


Sniady said:
Have you tried hitting the head with a rubber mallet for a while (careful bangs), then crank and try and pull.

If not, you can try calling a mechanic and tell him you will give him like a big deposit just to borrow the tool for a day.
 
#9 ·
Not to panic. The head WILL come off . . . it's just stuck a little. The head removal tool will do the trick. Since you can get one from Anthony, you're in good shape. You can also make one pretty easy from a piece of steel plate drilled with a hole in the center, and a spark plug base (with the porcellin broken off) with a length of threaded bar welded into it. I've even heard of some people dropping some rope down into the appropriate cylinder on the compression stroke, then pushing the car forwards in 4th gear so the piston comes up pushes on the rope which then pushes the head up.

DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES USE ANY KIND OF PRYBAR UNDER THE HEAD.

DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES USE ANY PART OF THE CAMS OR CAM JOURNALS AS LIFTING DEVICE ATTACH POINTS.

Now for the lecture . . . . . Alfa's do not suffer hamfisted mechanics well at all. They will punish you.

If you had read Pat Braden's Alfa Romeo Owner's Bible, you'd have known to stuff some rags down in the chain well, so that WHEN (not "if") you dropped the chain links, you'd be able stop them before then fell into the oil sump.

Make sure you clean the head studs up real good and put some anti-sieze compound on them. Be VERY careful when you clean the mating surfaces on the block and head. Aluminum scratches easily. Make sure the head is perfectly flat via the use of a mechanics level (probably need to take it to a machine shop). Also, be sure to tell them what the minimum thickness of the head is and where it's measured at. You may need to have the machinist mill it.

When you get the head back on, follow the directions for torquing the head down exactly. Also make sure you fill the oil troughs for the cams with fresh oil before you refit the cam cover.
 
#11 ·
I put a shop towels underneath it, and I managed to drop the whole towel into the oil pan. :(
I should have some really bad luck today. :eek:

Roadtrip said:
If you had read Pat Braden's Alfa Romeo Owner's Bible, you'd have known to stuff some rags down in the chain well, so that WHEN (not "if") you dropped the chain links, you'd be able stop them before then fell into the oil sump.

mechanics level (probably need to take it to a machine shop). Also, be sure to tell them what the minimum thickness of the head is and where it's measured at. You may need to have the machinist mill it.
 
#12 ·
i went to the new ar ricambi yesterday to pick up some parts. i am glad they are only 5 miles away, makes it easier on us. anyways....they are in the process of moving from alhambra to van nuys. looks like they should be done in a couple weeks based on what i saw but i am probably wrong. your best bet is to call them up and get the info directly from the source.
 
#13 ·
Ouch. I should call them up so I can drop by them when I go to Santo tomorrow. Thx. :D

Alhambra is only 3 miles away from me. :(

When Van Nuys is... 20 miles :eek:

italcarguy said:
i went to the new ar ricambi yesterday to pick up some parts. i am glad they are only 5 miles away, makes it easier on us. anyways....they are in the process of moving from alhambra to van nuys. looks like they should be done in a couple weeks based on what i saw but i am probably wrong. your best bet is to call them up and get the info directly from the source.
 
#14 ·
Gotta agree with Jim, dont man-handle your Alfa,
she will punish you in a very expensive way!!
Im sure your head is just stuck cause the gasket
is sticking to the head and block. The rubber
mallet method may work, just be gentle.

As far as retrieving the link, go to PepBoys
and buy a magnetic pick up tool. Its basically
a magnet on a flexy shaft. Your block is aluminum,
so the magnet will not stick to it, but should stick to the dropped chain link.

You could also try tying a magnet to a string
and do some fishing in there for the chain link:D

Make ABSOLUTELY certain you know where TDC is before
you start the car after it is re-assembled.
And look at where your rotor is pointing on the
distributor. Its easy to get this wrong and
you could bend valves.
 
#15 · (Edited)
THX!!

Thank you everyone for the help, especially Anthony and Santo. :D Cannot describe in words how helpful they are. THx!

Thank you Jim and Keven for the advice.

It turns out I not only got a very sticky gasket and bolts (rust), the fuel lines brackets are rusted and stick to the fuel lines. The worst are the two underneath the intake and where the "coils" are. Even though I unscrewed all the screws, they still wouldn't come out. I have to put penetrating oil and work it for 2 hours before I get them free.

And then with the help of Santo's tool, I was finally able to get the head out.

Now I have to clean up the surfaces and let Santo help me to do the valve job on the cylinder head before I put them back together. :)

THX!!
 
#16 ·
Fuel lines...

I've seen some clear fuel lines connected to the SPICA instead of the metal lines. Are they better? I am kinda afraid I've cracked my fuel lines. I should keep an eye on it when I put the engine back together.
 
#19 ·
Sounds like you have a pretty neglected Alfa there. Be sure to clean everything you see down there. A wire brush on a grinder motor and some steel wool will help alot. Wire brush those fuel lines so you can see how much damage rust has done. It might only be superficial. The walls of the tubing are pretty thick since they have to hold about 300 psi. Be careful not to kink or bend the tubing. When you put everything back together use a bit of anti-sieze compound so they won't be so hard to get off in the future. From my experience, some people really crank down way too hard on the fuel line fittings and they become virutally frozen to the point you have to use a vice and breaker bar to loosen them. While you're at it, you ought to clean up that SPICA pump real good.
 
#20 ·
Thank you guys.

Wow 300psi!!

I have just checked my fuel lines, they're actually in much better shape than I think they're (way better than the one on eBay), no bending at all. I'm not sure if there are cracks though, I will have my fire extinguisher ready when I start the engine again.

There are rust on the screws and the brackets they're holding it (might have to custom make them again), also the connectors to the injector to cylinder 2.

Any suggestion on how to clean the rust is welcome.

Thank you :)
 
#23 ·
Cleaning the mating surfaces...

Thanks to the help of everyone, I'm now cleaning the surfaces on the cylinder block while waiting for Santo's call to pickup the head.

I've tried my best to clean them with acetone, but it seems like I cannot get it completely out of debris.
And the surface is not as 100% smooth as it should be.

How clean does the surfaces has to be? It looks like if I have to get it any cleaner I have to take out the engine and the block and machine it.

I'm really concerned the are where the o-rings is going go in, it's not as smooth as I want it. Would the O-ring do its job properly?

Any suggestion is welcome. THX. :D
 
#25 ·
Thx. :D

Would that cause a big problem if the residue gets into the engine? Should I change the oil, says 500 miles, right after I put the engine back together?

Thank you. :D


papajam said:
I use 400 wet or dry on a sanding block. Although you may see something on the surface, if you can't feel it, it's probably OK.
 
#26 ·
The wet sand 400 works great!!
Took care of all the carbon deposit and some of the marks too.

Thx Jim!!

All I have to do now is get the head back and put it on.

The filter is finally off after a big battle with cordless drill, 1/2 drill bit, two bent screw drivers and a cut finger. :D

And the car stop leaking oil after I replaced the filter and gasket of the SPICA pump! Yee haaa!
I'm a happy camper.
 
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