Had a chat with a old-timer at the parts counter that made me think twice about how I approach cylinder head work

Ran into a retired fleet mechanic named Hank at the Cummins dealer last Tuesday, and he told me he never pulls a head without first shooting torque numbers on every single bolt cold. Said he caught three cracked blocks that way over a 40 year career... just by looking for uneven readings before he even touched a wrench. Made me wonder how many times I've yanked a head off without checking the baseline first, has anyone else ever tried this approach?

2 comments

2 Comments

sarah_hart23d ago

I bet Hank also checks his grocery bags for cracks before leaving the store.

alice26923d ago

Caught my friend Tom doing exactly that last Tuesday at the Piggly Wiggly.