res0wc18
Full Access Member
Easy or? anyone have pics or a step by step tech manual?
Anything special?
1997 dodge 6bt intercooled
Anything special?
1997 dodge 6bt intercooled
6bt head gasket replacement?
- Thread starter res0wc18
- Start date
res0wc18
Full Access Member
no one?
argve
Resident Fruitcake
when mine was replaced I paid to have it done but came into the shop many many times too check on the progress and from what I seen it was pretty much straight forward. I know that from talking to the mechanic that did the work that there are plugs in the cowling that you remove so that you can access the rear head bolts. He said that they are plastic plugs that snap into and out of place. I looked over the procedure in a haynes manual before taking it it and it did seem pretty straight forward, I just chose not to do the work because I was tired of working on vehicles at the time. after paying the price I wished I would have just done it myself.
res0wc18
Full Access Member
I dont really see it being over complicated, but i would like to see some pictures etc of the process.
argve
Resident Fruitcake
that is one thing I did not take - sorry - normally I take all kinds of pictures of work like that but that time I didn't - probably because I wasn't doing the work.
averagef250
Full Access Member
You probably shouldn't touch one of these engines if you do not have the cummins service manual. They are a good book and full of pictures for those that need them.
wilsondoctor
Doctor
Hello
Take it to Cummins. I had my replaced three months ago. Took 1.5 days - work is guaranteed - no fuss to mess and cost $1200.
Good luck
JL
Take it to Cummins. I had my replaced three months ago. Took 1.5 days - work is guaranteed - no fuss to mess and cost $1200.
Good luck
JL
thirstyram
Registered User
Hey argve, where in the hell did you get that Holstein suit? That's the funniest thing I've ever seen! Hilarious! By the way, what does argve mean? (or is it just the sound that ye pirates makes?
argve
Resident Fruitcake
found the pic on the web - sorry not me...
as for my username well that dates back to when I was first trying to get on the net back in the early 90's - signing on with AOL and I typed in just about every combo of my name and everything was taken.... well I was sitting there and finally slammed the keyboard and those string of letters popped up and I hit enter - it took and then I said "now how do I pronounce it" but the good thing is every where I go it's not taken and if it is I just start running through my passwords until it lets me log in....
as for my username well that dates back to when I was first trying to get on the net back in the early 90's - signing on with AOL and I typed in just about every combo of my name and everything was taken.... well I was sitting there and finally slammed the keyboard and those string of letters popped up and I hit enter - it took and then I said "now how do I pronounce it" but the good thing is every where I go it's not taken and if it is I just start running through my passwords until it lets me log in....
argve
Resident Fruitcake
found the pic on the web - sorry not me...
as for my username well that dates back to when I was first trying to get on the net back in the early 90's - signing on with AOL and I typed in just about every combo of my name and everything was taken.... well I was sitting there and finally slammed the keyboard and those string of letters popped up and I hit enter - it took and then I said "now how do I pronounce it" but the good thing is every where I go it's not taken and if it is I just start running through my passwords until it lets me log in....
as for my username well that dates back to when I was first trying to get on the net back in the early 90's - signing on with AOL and I typed in just about every combo of my name and everything was taken.... well I was sitting there and finally slammed the keyboard and those string of letters popped up and I hit enter - it took and then I said "now how do I pronounce it" but the good thing is every where I go it's not taken and if it is I just start running through my passwords until it lets me log in....
sdbullrider
Registered User
i just replaced the head gasket in my 94, its really that hard, just kind of a ***** if you dont have all the right tools. buy the haynes manual YOU WILL NEED IT.
Just repalced my head gasket a few months back It started to weep at of the area near the thermastat. Was told its a common area. After the shop rates peoepl were giving me i thought id attempt it myself.
Aside from keeping the injection system clean the hardest parts for me were unplugging the temp sender from the back driver side of the head removing the fuel filter housing and removing the turbo.
dont hold me to the step by step since im going off memory. First thing i did was remove the things that were in my way. Airbox pulls out then remove wiper arms and tape the cowling up and out of the way. (makes access to the plugs in the cowl since u will be pulling up 4 pushrods through the cowl in 2 different push out plugs.) Then start disconnecting wires such as grounds and grid heater making a note where to put them. Disconnect hoses remove the metal heater lines they are thin and easily bent. Disconnect and remove air horn. I then removed the turbo then injection lines (this can be done as one piece if you carefully loosen the mounts first then all connections at the pump and injectors) I found doubled up thick aluminum foil worked great at keeping crap out of the injection pump and lines. Then i removed valve covers rockers and pushrods (dont forget to lable the order you removed them in. I used tin foil with tape worked great as a makeshift bag for the rockers and a piece of wood with holes drilled into it for the numbering of pushrods)After i had removed the over flow line (keep the copper seals from the bypass line they are expensive but reusable, tin foil again worked great to keep it clean) Removed the nuts holding the injectors in place (inspect seals of these they are cheap to replace and keep dirt and moisture from making an injector hard to remove) I took a lug nut from my front wheel cleaned it throughly and made sure the threads were good then screwed it onto my injector and used a pry bar to remove the injectors. (the lug is similar thread size and gives a good surface to pry from if an injector is stuck spray some penetrating oil on it let it set then try to rock it out.) Also its worth getting your injectors checked now. I did so and had 2 bad the rest popping 500 psi to early but still good spray pattern. Remove head bolts attack the engien hoist to the eyelets at front passanger and driver side rear of head and apply light pressure and try to pop it from its seal. Its sort of a slow process to remove it i had to tilt the head toward the back of the motor to clear my hood then level it out to clear the front.
I may have missed some details on the removal... When i got busy i forgot to take photos.
Once the head is out and msot of the gasket is clean check for any corrosion an indents on the block that are signs of blowing the gasket between the cylinders or coolant eatting its way to something. Once most of the gasket is clear and the block deck checks out sand block with 220 grit to remove any residue and it also gives the new gasket a surface to have some bite to. Clean with brake cleaner when done though.
With the head off its a great time to replace the rubber lines behind the injection pump if they are looking a bit aged.
Have the head inspected and cleaned at a reputable shop (mine needed .010 removed to remove the black ring left by the headgasket) Replace the valve stem seals if you want(cummins seemed better quality then the other store varieties.
Also why not do a quick port and polish job. Around the ports on mine nearly every cylinder had casting closing up the port by 1/8"
When putting the head back into the engine compartment do so with out the head gasket placed since its nearly impossible to position the head with out dinging up the gasket. Once the head has been lined up probably with only a 1" gap place the new headgasket into place. I then used the long head bolts as guides only threading a few into the areas where the shorter bolts are used.
They recommend new head bolts or u can just get some metric 12.9 grade cap screws from fastenal(grade 8 is SAE, 12.9 is metric) as a slightly stronger and substantially cheaper replacement I went this route and found 7/16" grade 8 washers fit tightly with all the cap screws but you cant use the washers with the rocker pedistal capscrews or the rocker covers will touch.
These are the capscrew sizes i used make sure you get the 12.9 grade and its a socket head cap screw (they are suppossed to be stronger then a regular hex head bolt)
6 12x70
14 12x120
6 12x180 thread pitch is 1.75 allen head capscrew
Not my photos but they are photos of the stock bolt and the alternative stronger bolt.
Read some threads around here and else where. Definently grab a manual tons of good torque sequence info contained in one. Also you will need a few seals and gaskets in this job i spent most of my time running back and and forth to cummins for seals i forgot to order in.
Good luck the shop price in my area vs me doing it myself payed for my new injectors the port and polish kit and pulse exhaust manifold.
Update 4/2/13:
So far things are good I retorqued the bolts to 125 ftlbs lubricated with CMD Extreme Pressure Lube #3(good stuff no chatter when torqued) I thought I really messed the truck up awhile back cause I had kept the pedal nearly to the floor for a whole 15 miles was hitting speeds of 90-100 constantly at 3k rpm chasing a rabbit. Looked back and seen brown puking out the exhaust an clouding out the road. I could see the cloud still hovering over the road from 1 mile away before loosing sight in the hills. What ever it was hasn't happened again and it stopped as soon as I let off the throttle. My guess is high egts and me not using an egt gauge and just getting lucky. Havent modified the pump so didn't think egts would be an issue till that day.
Aside from keeping the injection system clean the hardest parts for me were unplugging the temp sender from the back driver side of the head removing the fuel filter housing and removing the turbo.
dont hold me to the step by step since im going off memory. First thing i did was remove the things that were in my way. Airbox pulls out then remove wiper arms and tape the cowling up and out of the way. (makes access to the plugs in the cowl since u will be pulling up 4 pushrods through the cowl in 2 different push out plugs.) Then start disconnecting wires such as grounds and grid heater making a note where to put them. Disconnect hoses remove the metal heater lines they are thin and easily bent. Disconnect and remove air horn. I then removed the turbo then injection lines (this can be done as one piece if you carefully loosen the mounts first then all connections at the pump and injectors) I found doubled up thick aluminum foil worked great at keeping crap out of the injection pump and lines. Then i removed valve covers rockers and pushrods (dont forget to lable the order you removed them in. I used tin foil with tape worked great as a makeshift bag for the rockers and a piece of wood with holes drilled into it for the numbering of pushrods)After i had removed the over flow line (keep the copper seals from the bypass line they are expensive but reusable, tin foil again worked great to keep it clean) Removed the nuts holding the injectors in place (inspect seals of these they are cheap to replace and keep dirt and moisture from making an injector hard to remove) I took a lug nut from my front wheel cleaned it throughly and made sure the threads were good then screwed it onto my injector and used a pry bar to remove the injectors. (the lug is similar thread size and gives a good surface to pry from if an injector is stuck spray some penetrating oil on it let it set then try to rock it out.) Also its worth getting your injectors checked now. I did so and had 2 bad the rest popping 500 psi to early but still good spray pattern. Remove head bolts attack the engien hoist to the eyelets at front passanger and driver side rear of head and apply light pressure and try to pop it from its seal. Its sort of a slow process to remove it i had to tilt the head toward the back of the motor to clear my hood then level it out to clear the front.
I may have missed some details on the removal... When i got busy i forgot to take photos.
Once the head is out and msot of the gasket is clean check for any corrosion an indents on the block that are signs of blowing the gasket between the cylinders or coolant eatting its way to something. Once most of the gasket is clear and the block deck checks out sand block with 220 grit to remove any residue and it also gives the new gasket a surface to have some bite to. Clean with brake cleaner when done though.
With the head off its a great time to replace the rubber lines behind the injection pump if they are looking a bit aged.
Have the head inspected and cleaned at a reputable shop (mine needed .010 removed to remove the black ring left by the headgasket) Replace the valve stem seals if you want(cummins seemed better quality then the other store varieties.
Also why not do a quick port and polish job. Around the ports on mine nearly every cylinder had casting closing up the port by 1/8"
When putting the head back into the engine compartment do so with out the head gasket placed since its nearly impossible to position the head with out dinging up the gasket. Once the head has been lined up probably with only a 1" gap place the new headgasket into place. I then used the long head bolts as guides only threading a few into the areas where the shorter bolts are used.
They recommend new head bolts or u can just get some metric 12.9 grade cap screws from fastenal(grade 8 is SAE, 12.9 is metric) as a slightly stronger and substantially cheaper replacement I went this route and found 7/16" grade 8 washers fit tightly with all the cap screws but you cant use the washers with the rocker pedistal capscrews or the rocker covers will touch.
These are the capscrew sizes i used make sure you get the 12.9 grade and its a socket head cap screw (they are suppossed to be stronger then a regular hex head bolt)
6 12x70
14 12x120
6 12x180 thread pitch is 1.75 allen head capscrew
Not my photos but they are photos of the stock bolt and the alternative stronger bolt.
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
Read some threads around here and else where. Definently grab a manual tons of good torque sequence info contained in one. Also you will need a few seals and gaskets in this job i spent most of my time running back and and forth to cummins for seals i forgot to order in.
Good luck the shop price in my area vs me doing it myself payed for my new injectors the port and polish kit and pulse exhaust manifold.
Update 4/2/13:
So far things are good I retorqued the bolts to 125 ftlbs lubricated with CMD Extreme Pressure Lube #3(good stuff no chatter when torqued) I thought I really messed the truck up awhile back cause I had kept the pedal nearly to the floor for a whole 15 miles was hitting speeds of 90-100 constantly at 3k rpm chasing a rabbit. Looked back and seen brown puking out the exhaust an clouding out the road. I could see the cloud still hovering over the road from 1 mile away before loosing sight in the hills. What ever it was hasn't happened again and it stopped as soon as I let off the throttle. My guess is high egts and me not using an egt gauge and just getting lucky. Havent modified the pump so didn't think egts would be an issue till that day.
Last edited:
RoyBoy
Diesel Nut
I'm not sure WHY you would want to use anything but OEM head bolts, or a good stud kit. The head bolts are torque +angle and I use them often, never had a problem. Using bolts like you are would be asking for trouble, IMHO. The Cummins bolts are designed to be torqued to a certain point (*ft/lbs plus 90°). What are you going to torque these bolts to? Will they hold or give out shortly after being installed? 
4 months of hard use and counting on them so far. I torqued mine to 110 ftlbs at the final torque with oil. Its considered an upgrade by a few communities that know of this alternative bolts. A company is selling them as a mild upgrade as well. After extensive googling and forum searching in different communities i didnt find a history of failure for either the oem or the socket cap screws other then the oem bolts being stretched. Both had a good track record to survive several miles and several heating and cooling cycles. For me it was the fact they are cheaper and a few peoples tests did show a strength increase although slight. If you look at the cummins bolts they show they are 12.9 grade as well but are a torque to yield design.
I think i payed a total of $30 for all the socket cap scews with washers. If i have the same results as others who tried these bolts i should be good for some time even with some mild mods. I simply posted them as an alternative for somone to look into and weigh as an option since in my area new stock bolts were $120 for the set. I felt my research had pulled enough information to feel comfortable in using socket cap screws.
Use what ever you feel comfy with their is definently nothing wrong with the oems or studs
I think i payed a total of $30 for all the socket cap scews with washers. If i have the same results as others who tried these bolts i should be good for some time even with some mild mods. I simply posted them as an alternative for somone to look into and weigh as an option since in my area new stock bolts were $120 for the set. I felt my research had pulled enough information to feel comfortable in using socket cap screws.
Use what ever you feel comfy with their is definently nothing wrong with the oems or studs
