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I got these ARP bolts to put my Hooker headers on. It’s a 12 point head. The socket I got worked for the front 3 and the very back one. But the two middle back ones are impossible to put on with the socket. The socket doesn’t clear the pipes making it impossible to tighten the bolts. How else can I tighten them?
Finger tighten the header as it draws near the block. Then you would have enough space to use a box end wrench. But tighten the problem ones little bit at a time first. Then do the ones without issue. If needed you may have to bring the wrench down to make it fit.
Dimple the header tube to provide more clearance. You may also find slightly increasing the hole diameter or elongating it will give you a little more wiggle room to work the bolt in along with the suggested method of starting the problem bolts first with a gap between the cylinder head and the header.
12 points are neat looking but a royal pain since getting a 12 point box end wrench is sometimes impossible compared to a 6 point bolt where an open end wrench makes life a whole lot easier. Don't forget the necessary retorque after the first 2 to 3 heat cycles until the bolts hold torque.
I've got a set of 12pt deep sockets and they have a thinner wall than my standard set. (I needed them for my spreader bar setup)
Another option is to buy a cheap 12pt socket the right size (harbor freight type thing) and grind the outside down.
Some boxed end wrenches have fairly thin walls as well
M
Take a grinder to an old 12 point wrench and make a custom tool that fits.
ooooh. Like an open end 12 point wrench, or at least shaved down to thin metal on one side - similar concept to a thin wall socket. That's not a bad idea, but not sure how significantly it would weaken the wrench. Just don't do that to a Mac or Craftsman, OP - maybe a HF special, if you decide to go that route.... However, It is important that all bolts be properly torqued to specification to help ensure no leaking.
Aside from that, dimpling would be the preferred method as interference from the header itself against the bolt head may prevent a 'straight shot' for the bolt and you risk cross threading, which you don't want, for obvious reasons. If you're not comfortable beating on your nice headers, a machine shop would probably do it for a nominal fee. Ideally, you want to get a proper wrench on those bolt heads so you can torque them down to specifications using a torque wrench.
For everyone's benefit, OP. what model hookers, and what heads are you running in your '76?
Last edited by Corvette-ZL1; Mar 15, 2023 at 10:04 AM.
I got these ARP bolts to put my Hooker headers on. It’s a 12 point head. The socket I got worked for the front 3 and the very back one. But the two middle back ones are impossible to put on with the socket. The socket doesn’t clear the pipes making it impossible to tighten the bolts. How else can I tighten them?
Looking at bolt that's focused on, in this picture, I would say that you're NOT going to get the last two bolts in, as is. Looking closely, you can see that the washer is butting up against the primary pipe, therefore it's preventing the bolt from PROPERLY engaging the threads in the cylinder head (going in straight), let alone allowing the use of a wrench. Hopefully, "dimpling" the head pipes could give you the clearance you need.
However, I'd also be inclined to double check the hole spacing in the header flange, to make sure that they PROPERLY line up with the threaded holes in the head. You don't want to force anything, and damage the threads in the head.
I guess I’ll go get some box end wrenches today. I don’t have any, just normal ones. I don’t think that even with them all the way in I will be able to put a socket on them to torque them down. I found that putting a dab of red grease made them go in quite a bit better. Hopefully that wasn’t the wrong thing to do. Thanks for the help.
Edit: Looked it up and discovered it is indeed a bad idea. Gonna take them out and brake clean them.
Last edited by CarterDawson; Mar 15, 2023 at 01:49 PM.
Ah, that explains the issue. Not nearly as easy to fit those Hooker headers onto the vortecs as the OEM heads, by any means. But a superior head, for sure. Much better than the crap restrictive OEM heads, unless it's a L82. L82 uses decent heads and essentially the same cam grind as the L46 from early C3 years. If it's a base motor, I'm assuming you have at least a mild cam to keep up - Vortecs breath well.
Last edited by Corvette-ZL1; Mar 15, 2023 at 08:00 PM.
Use round Allen head bolts, no 6 point socket required just a Allen wrench.
Ordered! All my stores were out of box end wrenches in the 3/8ths size! And the kits. Unbelievable. So this is my only option. I was hoping to have the car running today. Thanks guys!
How Can I Bolt Hooker Headers On?
However, It is important that all bolts be properly torqued to specification to help ensure no leaking.
