swamlurk

Hey, first post here. Been reading and researching a lot on here but here I am with my first question for you guys.

Anyways, I bought a z6 head off a guy cheap and he told me that two of the cam caps had broken valve cover bolt holes, I don't mean valve cover bolts sheared off in the cam cap but the threaded portion the bolt goes into is literally broken of, one is cracked too.

I was reading the cam caps aren't really something you can just safely swap and assume everything's good to go so I'm wondering what I can do to save these ones. Build it up with JB weld and tap it, or could a welding shop somehow build it up with weld then I could drill it and tap it. I don't feel like buying another head even though this one was cheap. If anyone can help that'd be cool.

Deetz

Not sure why so many people over torque those things, hose cam caps are ruined! The dealer doesn't sell them separate, so you will have to source a used set

swamlurk

I have a y7 head with everything intact but I think it'd be really sketchy to use those even if it bolts up, I don't know where I'd find a set of z6 cam caps and I also read its really not a good idea to be swapping those parts with other ones even from the same model since they're specifically machined for that particular head for the cam clearances and everything, that's the reason Honda doesn't sell them. So I'm really hoping I can somehow get them repaired otherwise I'd rather just find a new head, which would really suck

jbpnoman

You have two options. A) get a couple replacement caps, and get it line honed by a machine shop that you trust implicitly, or B) take the cam caps to a welder that you trust implicitly to basically rebuild the metal, then tap new threads for you.

If it's just the valve cover holes that are fucked, you can get away with a good welding job building them back up and retapping them. For the love of God, don't try to JB Weld it.

swamlurk

I'm wondering if I could get the cracked one plugged up and the completely broken one plugged up too then drill in some holes for a m8x1.25 thread on all the cam caps and use some threaded rod to make some sort of valve cover studs. I feel like that's be a more future proof solution with less chance of getting screwed over again

B_Swapped93

just buy a new head why would you buy one that's clearly effed up ?

jbpnoman

That would work, but it's more fab work than necessary. Just find a welder you trust, have them build up fresh metal where the chunk is missing, and have them tap it out for a stock valve cover bolt. The cracked one should also be filled and retapped, or you'll risk stripping bolts.

Those bolts don't require much torque, and they don't see much pressure, as long as you're properly ventilated. Even if your PCV is clogged, though, I'd imagine you would have noticeable motor problems before you popped a weld or bolt. Find a welder with a good reputation in your area, tell them what you need, and see what they'll do for you.