Kind of scared removing head/ tips?
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* B A N N E D *
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From: Baltimore, MD
Kind of scared removing head/ tips?
I'm trying to remove my head to replace my head gasket, I have a helms but it's telling me to remove the intake manifold but I don't feel like it, everyone is telling me it's easier not to and just remove the bracket, can anyone please give me some tips removing the head? Like I'm scared if I rotate my crank pulley to tdc and remove the tensioner and put a 5mm punch on the top cam hole I'm scared of the cams moving and all this stuff and messing timing and things up. Like please I'm begging for tips, advice and yes I've read all the articles, I just need people who did this before with help.
Joined: Mar 2004
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From: Titusville, FL, US
Re: Kind of scared removing head/ tips? (usmarinedelta)
You should really consider paying someone else to do this for you. You say your worried about your timing changing if the cams move, the cams must be removed to pull the head, so that is the least of your worries. As for the intake manifold, the braket doesn't need to be removed, only the two bolts that are underneath it. You can access them from under the car with long extensions. They are in plain veiw.
The Helm's is the best manual money can buy to work on your car. I do agree that it is much easier to leave the IM attached to the head when you pull it. But swapping a head gasket is not as easy as changing oil, and if it isn't done correctly, you will be worst off than you started.
I was a fairly green mechanic and replaced my head gasket following the Helm's except I kept the intake manifold attached. I had no problem, but if your not mechanically inclined, it can be a disaster. Good luck on whatever you decide.
The Helm's is the best manual money can buy to work on your car. I do agree that it is much easier to leave the IM attached to the head when you pull it. But swapping a head gasket is not as easy as changing oil, and if it isn't done correctly, you will be worst off than you started.
I was a fairly green mechanic and replaced my head gasket following the Helm's except I kept the intake manifold attached. I had no problem, but if your not mechanically inclined, it can be a disaster. Good luck on whatever you decide.
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From: LB, CA, US
Re: (usmarinedelta)
Like everyone said leave the manifold attached, and if your following the Helm's then skip the part about removing the crankshaft pulley and all the belts (unless you plan on changing the timing belt and water pump). All you have to do is mark the timing belt and cam gears and then slip off the timing belt and leave it there. Also it would be a good idea to replace the headbolts if they are stock. I just did mine last month so if I think of anything else I'll IM you.
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From: That's the wrong tone... I'm Skunk2 certified.
-take off the manifold bracket like sam said.
-don't unhook all the vacuum lines, just take off the bracket holding the 2 vacuum sensors on the firewall.
-get a box of ziplocks and a sharpie and label everything. line up all of the bigger parts you take off one after the other, so you know the order in which you took them off.
-only use factory gaskets. before installing your head gasket, spray it down with copper spray. you can find it at any decent parts store.
-you will need a few special tools. angled feeler gauges, a honda crank pulley holder tool, and two 5mm pin punches are nice to have when reinstalling the timing belt.
do you know someone that can help you out?
-don't unhook all the vacuum lines, just take off the bracket holding the 2 vacuum sensors on the firewall.
-get a box of ziplocks and a sharpie and label everything. line up all of the bigger parts you take off one after the other, so you know the order in which you took them off.
-only use factory gaskets. before installing your head gasket, spray it down with copper spray. you can find it at any decent parts store.
-you will need a few special tools. angled feeler gauges, a honda crank pulley holder tool, and two 5mm pin punches are nice to have when reinstalling the timing belt.
do you know someone that can help you out?
Thread Starter
* B A N N E D *
Joined: Sep 2006
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From: Baltimore, MD
I don't know of anyone that can help me unless I bring it to the shop which will charge me and arm and a leg, I'm in the marines, if worst comes to worst knock on wood, I can leave the car at the hobby shop which they have free lifts and inside garage bays. The thing I don't understand is that if I rotate the crank pulley and align the marks on it and the lower timing belt cover will the cams be at tdc? Thanks guy.
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From: That's the wrong tone... I'm Skunk2 certified.
Here's how to do it. I can't believe I typed all of this out, but whatever. I hope this helps. 
Parts you need:
-New head gasket
-Copper spray for head gasket
-New head bolts or studs
-New intake manifold gasket
-Engine assembly lube (for reinstalling cams and rockers)
-PB blaster
-Some Wd-40 to coat your intake gasket so it will come back off easier if you ever need to take it off again.
-carb cleaner to clean off block and head surfaces
-new throttle body gasket if you want to clean the throttle body (you can do this while waiting for head to come back from being resurfaced at machine shop)
-can of valvolene synthetic throttle body cleaner, again, if you want to clean the throttle body. (i would)
<u>Lining everything up:</u>
You line up the crank pulley at TDC according to the timing belt cover AND the cams lobes on cyl. #1 (that's the cylinder closest to the driver's side) are point away from each other. assuming this is a dohc engine, your intake cam lobes will be point towards the driver, and the exhaust cam lobes will be point towards the front end.
taking out the sprak plugs will make moving the crank easier when lining everything up so you're not fighting compression.
<u>Removing Timing Belt:</u>
once everything's lined up, start by taking off valve cover and the timing belt. use an impact gun (the hobby shop will have one i'm sure) to loosen the crank bolt. if you don't have an impact, you can use a honda crank pulley tool to hold the crank in place while using a regular socket wrench and a breaker bar to get it loose. once the crank bolt is loosened, make sure everything's lined up again. if you have 5mm drift punches (not pin punches, whoops), you can use them to make sure the cams are at TDC by sliding them into holes on the driver's side of the head that lock the cams in place.
take off the crank bolt and pulley, then take off the timing belt covers. before you take off the timing belt, take note of how the two metal washers on either side of the belt facing. don't put them back on backwards, because that will shred your belt. you'll see. loosen the timing belt tensioner, and slide the belt off both of the cams at the same time. when you go to reinstall the belt, do it the same way. put the belt on everything else before sliding it onto both cams at the same time.
<u>Removing Cams:</u>
now that you have the timing belt off, take out the cams. work your way from the outside in. turn one bolt a little bit, move to the other side, turn another one a little bit. keep going back and forth until you've worked your way to the middle and all the bolts are loose. make sure you organize all of your bolts and cam cams so everything goes back in the exact same place that it came off of. wiggle the cam caps from left to right in a quick motion to get them to come off. also, take out your valve rockers, and make sure you keep them in order as well. everything needs to go back in the exact same place.
<u>Removing Head bolts:</u>
once you have the cams and rockers out, you can now get to the head bolts. once again, work your way from the outside in. left, right, left, right. little by little. you can't reuse head bolts, because they stretch to ensure a proper seal, so you either need to get new ones from the dealer (about $50-60), or get a set of ARP head studs. either one works fine, but if you're going for less hassle, get stock ones.
<u>Removing Everything Else:</u>
you can do the following before anything else, or you can do it now. either way. whatever.
-go under the car and take out the bracket holding the manifold to the block. use a socket wrench and a lot of extensions. you don't need it. pitch it if you want.
-take off the throttle cable, unhook the fuel rail (put a cloth over the bolt before you break it loose!), unhook all of the wiring, radiator hoses, ground cable, etc. when taking off the injector connectors, you need to take off these little metal springs that wrap around the bottom of the connector that hold them in place. use a small flathead to get them off. also, make sure you take the bracket off the firewall thats holding those sensors with all of the vacuum lines attached to them. unhook the wiring to the sensors, too.
make sure everything is detached from the head, and lift straight up.
<u>Resurfacing Head + Cleaning TB and manifold:</u>
Remove your intake manifold from the head, and take get your head to a local reputable machine shop to get resurfaced. Now would be a good time to get a heatshield intake gasket if you want one. If you don't do this, it may **** up again and you'll need to do the whole thing over again, and buy more new parts. Make sure you tell them to also shave down the dowel pins so you head will seat properly.
Take everything off the intake manifold, and send it to the machine shop with the head, and tell them to clean it. It won't cost that much, and depending on how dirty it is, you'll get more power, and better gas mileage.
While you're waiting for the head to come back from the machine shop, you can clean up your throttle body if you want. Just use some rags and some synthetic throttle body cleaner. This will make it drive better, give you a little more power, and better gas mileage, depending on how dirty it is.
It will probably be about $50 to resurface the head, and about $20 to hot tank and clean the manifold.
<u>Reinstallation:</u>
Once you get the head and manifold back from the machine shop, clean your intake and head gasket surfaces and reinstall the new intake gasket and clean manifold. Spray the intake gasket with wd-40 to make it easier to take it off again if you ever need to. Clean the block and head surfaces that surround the head gasket with carb cleaner.
Install the dowel pins onto the block, spray your head gasket down with copper spray, and install it onto the block. Make sure the gasket is on the side that says UP. Once the head is back on with your new gasket, installation is the reverse of removal.
Man, that took a while to write!
Modified by full Circling at 10:21 PM 12/4/2006
Parts you need:
-New head gasket
-Copper spray for head gasket
-New head bolts or studs
-New intake manifold gasket
-Engine assembly lube (for reinstalling cams and rockers)
-PB blaster
-Some Wd-40 to coat your intake gasket so it will come back off easier if you ever need to take it off again.
-carb cleaner to clean off block and head surfaces
-new throttle body gasket if you want to clean the throttle body (you can do this while waiting for head to come back from being resurfaced at machine shop)
-can of valvolene synthetic throttle body cleaner, again, if you want to clean the throttle body. (i would)
<u>Lining everything up:</u>
You line up the crank pulley at TDC according to the timing belt cover AND the cams lobes on cyl. #1 (that's the cylinder closest to the driver's side) are point away from each other. assuming this is a dohc engine, your intake cam lobes will be point towards the driver, and the exhaust cam lobes will be point towards the front end.
taking out the sprak plugs will make moving the crank easier when lining everything up so you're not fighting compression.
<u>Removing Timing Belt:</u>
once everything's lined up, start by taking off valve cover and the timing belt. use an impact gun (the hobby shop will have one i'm sure) to loosen the crank bolt. if you don't have an impact, you can use a honda crank pulley tool to hold the crank in place while using a regular socket wrench and a breaker bar to get it loose. once the crank bolt is loosened, make sure everything's lined up again. if you have 5mm drift punches (not pin punches, whoops), you can use them to make sure the cams are at TDC by sliding them into holes on the driver's side of the head that lock the cams in place.
take off the crank bolt and pulley, then take off the timing belt covers. before you take off the timing belt, take note of how the two metal washers on either side of the belt facing. don't put them back on backwards, because that will shred your belt. you'll see. loosen the timing belt tensioner, and slide the belt off both of the cams at the same time. when you go to reinstall the belt, do it the same way. put the belt on everything else before sliding it onto both cams at the same time.
<u>Removing Cams:</u>
now that you have the timing belt off, take out the cams. work your way from the outside in. turn one bolt a little bit, move to the other side, turn another one a little bit. keep going back and forth until you've worked your way to the middle and all the bolts are loose. make sure you organize all of your bolts and cam cams so everything goes back in the exact same place that it came off of. wiggle the cam caps from left to right in a quick motion to get them to come off. also, take out your valve rockers, and make sure you keep them in order as well. everything needs to go back in the exact same place.
<u>Removing Head bolts:</u>
once you have the cams and rockers out, you can now get to the head bolts. once again, work your way from the outside in. left, right, left, right. little by little. you can't reuse head bolts, because they stretch to ensure a proper seal, so you either need to get new ones from the dealer (about $50-60), or get a set of ARP head studs. either one works fine, but if you're going for less hassle, get stock ones.
<u>Removing Everything Else:</u>
you can do the following before anything else, or you can do it now. either way. whatever.
-go under the car and take out the bracket holding the manifold to the block. use a socket wrench and a lot of extensions. you don't need it. pitch it if you want.
-take off the throttle cable, unhook the fuel rail (put a cloth over the bolt before you break it loose!), unhook all of the wiring, radiator hoses, ground cable, etc. when taking off the injector connectors, you need to take off these little metal springs that wrap around the bottom of the connector that hold them in place. use a small flathead to get them off. also, make sure you take the bracket off the firewall thats holding those sensors with all of the vacuum lines attached to them. unhook the wiring to the sensors, too.
make sure everything is detached from the head, and lift straight up.
<u>Resurfacing Head + Cleaning TB and manifold:</u>
Remove your intake manifold from the head, and take get your head to a local reputable machine shop to get resurfaced. Now would be a good time to get a heatshield intake gasket if you want one. If you don't do this, it may **** up again and you'll need to do the whole thing over again, and buy more new parts. Make sure you tell them to also shave down the dowel pins so you head will seat properly.
Take everything off the intake manifold, and send it to the machine shop with the head, and tell them to clean it. It won't cost that much, and depending on how dirty it is, you'll get more power, and better gas mileage.
While you're waiting for the head to come back from the machine shop, you can clean up your throttle body if you want. Just use some rags and some synthetic throttle body cleaner. This will make it drive better, give you a little more power, and better gas mileage, depending on how dirty it is.
It will probably be about $50 to resurface the head, and about $20 to hot tank and clean the manifold.
<u>Reinstallation:</u>
Once you get the head and manifold back from the machine shop, clean your intake and head gasket surfaces and reinstall the new intake gasket and clean manifold. Spray the intake gasket with wd-40 to make it easier to take it off again if you ever need to. Clean the block and head surfaces that surround the head gasket with carb cleaner.
Install the dowel pins onto the block, spray your head gasket down with copper spray, and install it onto the block. Make sure the gasket is on the side that says UP. Once the head is back on with your new gasket, installation is the reverse of removal.
Man, that took a while to write!
Modified by full Circling at 10:21 PM 12/4/2006
Junior Member
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 230
Likes: 0
From: LB, CA, US
Re: (usmarinedelta)
Good write up full Circling
Here's a good write up that I also used http://www.jdmlyfestyle.com/ho...t.htm
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">start by taking off the timing belt. use an impact gun (the hobby shop will have one i'm sure) to loosen the crank bolt. if you don't have an impact, you can use a honda crank pulley tool to hold the crank in place while using a regular socket wrench and a breaker bar to get it loose. once the crank bolt is loosened, make sure everything's lined up again.
take off the crank bolt and pulley, then take off the timing belt covers. before you take off the timing belt, take note of how the two metal washers on either side of the belt facing. don't put them back on backwards, because that will shred your belt. you'll see. loosen the timing belt tensioner, and slide the belt off both of the cams at the same time. when you go to reinstall the belt, do it the same way. put the belt on everything else before sliding it onto both cams at the same time.</TD></TR></TABLE>
And seriously I wouldn't remove the timing belt completely if your not planning on replacing the water pump and belt. Doing so requires removing a bunch of parts that don't need to be removed when taking the head off.
This picture shows how this guy removed his head w/o taking the timing belt off. It's up to you though.
Modified by BLKGSR24 at 7:36 PM 12/4/2006
Modified by BLKGSR24 at 7:39 PM 12/4/2006
Here's a good write up that I also used http://www.jdmlyfestyle.com/ho...t.htm
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">start by taking off the timing belt. use an impact gun (the hobby shop will have one i'm sure) to loosen the crank bolt. if you don't have an impact, you can use a honda crank pulley tool to hold the crank in place while using a regular socket wrench and a breaker bar to get it loose. once the crank bolt is loosened, make sure everything's lined up again.
take off the crank bolt and pulley, then take off the timing belt covers. before you take off the timing belt, take note of how the two metal washers on either side of the belt facing. don't put them back on backwards, because that will shred your belt. you'll see. loosen the timing belt tensioner, and slide the belt off both of the cams at the same time. when you go to reinstall the belt, do it the same way. put the belt on everything else before sliding it onto both cams at the same time.</TD></TR></TABLE>
And seriously I wouldn't remove the timing belt completely if your not planning on replacing the water pump and belt. Doing so requires removing a bunch of parts that don't need to be removed when taking the head off.
This picture shows how this guy removed his head w/o taking the timing belt off. It's up to you though.
Modified by BLKGSR24 at 7:36 PM 12/4/2006
Modified by BLKGSR24 at 7:39 PM 12/4/2006
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