Head Job for TS

[MD]

If you are a bush mechanic like me, every now and then your TS, 105 or 116 donk may need a head job. Suppose your head gaskets has gone west or your valves need a grind or you just want to decoke the chamber from too much city driving, well here's a little tool you may find usefull.

It's made from 1/2" plate steel. Holes are made to line up with the spark plugs and in the case of the TS, holes that go over the camshaft hold down clamp studs. Some 8.8 hardness threaded rod is welded onto some spark plug thread bases and theses are used to anchor the head. Once everything is placed into position gently wind on the nuts on the rods and the peripheral nuts on the small studs in turn. Using a tension wrench is best so there is even distribution of pulling pressure across the plate. Use something like WD40 to work its way down the stud threads. Take your time if there is little movement up to 30ft/lbs. You dont want to pull the threads out of the  spark plug hole !

I don't propose to write a friggin manual about head removal but I thought this might just give you a leg up to start with. It still took me the best part of the day to eventually get the head off. (see what I mean about taking your time to avoid causing damage). Once there is head to block separation, don't be tempted to force a tyre lever in there somewhere and damage the mating facings !!

[Beatle]

And even when you lift the head flush with the top of the studs, some heads STILL won't come off!!!!!

[hammer]

Is this the beginnings of the race engine??

[MD]

Yeah dead right Paul. Stage 2 of the plate requires 8 nuts welded above the stud locations. Longer bolts are required to anchor the plug holes as well. Once all assembled, each of the 8 bolts over the head studs are driven down exerting a pulling force on the plug well thereby using the stud heads themselves to lever the head off the assembly.

I haven't made stage 2 of the plate as this head came off without the added work needed to be done.

Hammer, spot on mate. Gonna be a longish road especially this time of the year to get stuff made but what the hell ? A start is better than no start. Besides, I gotta square up to the job if Heeramans gonna have any opposition soon. hahhaa. 

[Evan Bottcher]

Someone had to bite. I looked at the topic title and thought 'yeah not a bad deal'...

[GTVeloce]

It took me 3 full days to get my twin spark head off! Thankfully I was on holidays and had the time. I also created a device similar to MD's but I could get it all the way off. I eventually used a port-a-power between the head and the block (with wood to protect the surfaces) and off she came!

[AikenDrum105]

Know what you mean....     Here's how I eventually got mine off.      This is after the rope in the cylinders and soaking the studs with penetrating oil over a couple of days.      Pressure from the jacks and walking around with a block of wood and a hammer working the head up eventually did it.   Never had a std nord head stuck on like that before -   I wondered if the alloy changed at all for the later engines (like the TS)  that caused them to corrode faster...   

....  'yeah not a bad deal'...

nyuk nyuk nyuk

[GTVeloce]

I had just finished installing the TS (first time) into the GTV when I bent the inlet valves 

When I told an Alfa mechanic friend, he shook his head in sympathy and suggested I buy another engine. After trying to pull the head off I can see why he suggested that and not to rebuild!

[Domenic]

If you pull the head off, make sure you inspect the head bolts/studs.
The Nord series engine are known to corrode the bolts/studs, as they're exposed to the engine coolant. So more than likely they'll need replacing. Don't want to put the engine together, then go to torque the head down and "SNAP" engine apart again.

The TS bolts/studs are longer than the Alfetta ones, I found out the hard way, buying a set from overseas as i was told they're the same and realizing they're too short when i went to fit them.