Head Honcho

[DutchTriumph]

Catch of the day.

I've found a Head Honcho. It's an original one, from a Saab dealer clearing out his shop.
He had it for the Saab 99, fitted with the 1700cc version of the Triumph slant-four.

When I was restoring my car I couldn't get the head off to check the cylinders. The engine was running fine, so I didn't put to much effort in it and left it as it was. The engine is still fine, but knowing the problems with stuck heads I couldn't resist taking this tool home.

One bolt is missing, so I'll have to find a new one. It's 18.8mm and spanner size 1 1/8 what thread would that be? 3/4 UNF ?

[FI Spyder]

Good catch. Can you say what it cost you? If you take one of the bolts into an industrial fastener place they will have a guage to measure thread size. Gauges come in tasp and die sets as well, one of my most often used tools.

[john 215]

Hi,

What a result ! Watched one being used on a Staaagggg engine that had sat in a field in the open for best part of 10 years, and who knows when the last the heads had been off. Once fitted and set up lifted the heads with reasonable ease. They tried the studs first and they were all stuck fast.








Cheers John

[rosey]

I built my own head honcho to remove the cylinder head on my 1980 drop head, I broke the bolt at the rear and sheared the threads trying to remove the rear of the head from the block. In the end I used a shallow chisel between two copper plates to protect the surfaces and drifted the head far enough from the block to hacksaw the rear stud through and get the head off. When I got the head off I put it on wooden blocks and used a very large hammer and drift to force the stud out of the head, after getting 8 thou skimmed from the head I fitted new valves and re-fitted it and I have done 1000 miles since with no problems.
I have never seen corrosion like that around the rear stud which had effectively welded the stud to the head, and I worked in mining for 20 years where corrosion was everywhere so I doubt any bolt would have freed that stud, it needed percussive force to break the bond that had developed over 35 years.
I suppose that after 50 years you have to doubt the wisdom of using dissimilar metals like aluminium and steel in a hot wet environment but the world wasn't so sophisticated back in the 1960's so I will give them the benefit of the doubt.
Just my experience here folks,

Dave

[Beans]

Good find, that is one of the many things still on my to do list, fabricate such a tool

[john 215]

Hi,

State of the Stttaaag engine once the head had been honchoed off -





Sure you agree a worthy test !


Cheers John

[Hasbeen]

Wow. My spares car had a sprint engine in it. It had been sitting in the open, head & bonnet, [hood] off for 3 years before I got it, & was not as corroded as that.

Thank god for our climate.

Hasbeen

[FI Spyder]

Sometimes a head honcho is the way to go. I have seen a head where the stud was so corroded to the head that when the stud was torqued off it twisted the metal on the head in a swirl pattern (he didn't have a head honcho). Head was toast because of that, not that it mattered much as it was a Sprint conversion. Don't think I took a picture of it, I should have as it was pretty amazing to see.

[DutchTriumph]

I've measured the bolts, (studs with nuts welded on) they are 3/4 UNF as expected.
Not really common over here, but easy to change it to M20 if necessary.

These examples show what a head honcho can do. Good to have such a tool available. I think I've made a good deal.

@Beans you're welcome to measure the honcho. Or we can sort something out if you need it.

[Beans]

... spares car had a sprint engine in it ...

Contrary to the 8 valve engine, were the head bolts and studs sit out in the open, on the Sprint the bolts and studs sit inside the head under the cam cover.
Here they are constantly sprayed with oil, as a result of which removing the head usually is fairly straightforward.
Another advantage with the Sprint head is that some of the oil galleys are running along the studs, giving added protection.
Oil traces clearly visible in this picture ...



Last time I dismantled a Sprint engine one stud could even be removed with a screw driver. The rest came out very easily after I locked two nuts together.

[Beans]

... @Beans you're welcome to measure the honcho. Or we can sort something out if you need it.

Thanks for the offer Peter, much appreciated. But I received the manufacturing drawings for a honcho from a fellow TR7 owner many years ago.
I had to promise not to share or publish them on the internet though. I tend to keep promises I make

Over the years a have been slowly converting the Drawing into an Autocad file, and from that I will produce a file for a laser cutter.
I think I am halfway through, but I am not in a hurry as I am not going to need it for another few years (I hope )

[john 215]

Hi,

I echo what my learned friend Beans says never seen a, taken quite a few off over the years would be fair comment, Sprint head stuck on the studs for the reasons he gave.

Cheers John

[lgray001]

For US folks.

I rented the Head Honcho for the Triumph Wedge Owners Association. While waiting for it to be available, I tried everything but C-4 and got nowhere.

With the Head Honcho, I had the head off in an hour.

It really works.