stripped spark pulg hole

[WILL23]

I've removed my spark plugs to preform a compression check only to find my #1 spark plug hole is stripped. What to do?

 

[Hasbeen]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

What engine? If an older engine I would think that a used head would be easy to come by and at a resonable price! If you want to (but might cost about the same) You can tap it out and insert a helicoil! Talk to the local old VW service people, as that happens to the old VWs all the time and they are very used to doing this procedure! If a reasonably new engine I think I would just order a new head! If you are trying to save money, the helicoils are a good fix if installed correctly!<br /><br />Hasbeen

 

[bubbakat]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

give me an engine size and year and i'll talk you thru it

 

[WILL23]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

It is a 1987 force 125. I just had the head plained and wanted to avoid relplacing the head gasket.

 

[bubbakat]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

Will23 take one of your plugs with you and go to a napa parts store and get you a repair kit made by helicoil it will come with tap and insert.<br /><br />roll the cyl. in question up to just a little past dead center. put you some grease in there against the piston and grease the whole good.<br /> line your tap up straight and proceed at cutting new threads. Do it a little at a time take the tap and clean it often so you get the alum. bit off of it. when finished clean out plug hole and the grease should have caught all the metal bits that came out.<br /> I took compressed air and blew the whole out when I got all the grease out. If I left anything out please feel free to ask. will monitor this thread for your results.

 

[Fixit]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

For what it is worth --a new head gasket is a whole lot cheeper than -say a piston or a power head or what ever. But the helicoil is the way to go and not a difficult proceedure

 

[Paul Moir]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

I like to lightly coat the outside of the heli-coil with high tempurature "never ever let go" loctite red, then torque a sparkplug in right after the insert is inserted and leave it in till the loctite dries. Careful not to get any on your spark plug though!

 

[bubbakat]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

good post paul sorry i left that out

 

[Terry H]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

I'm gonna reiterate what fixit said...make it easy, pull the head...just my 2c worth

 

[bubbakat]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

why pull head when its not necessary i have fix several without doing that with no repercussions<br />fixed two this weekend and they were running fine today

 

[bhalsdorf]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

Bubba,<br />I agree. I have fixed many stripped plug holes the way you suggested with no problems.

 

[WILL23]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

Bubba - Bill I,ve never done a heli-coil insert before. I don't want to mess up my motor.<br /><br />I really don't understand how you blow out the grease with compressed air, wouldn't the grease stick to cylinder walls?

 

[bubbakat]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

you don't have to put much grease in there<br />when you go to tap it just put some grease on the end of your tap in the way it works it will move the grease in a backwards motion and therefore it will move the bits of metal out with it.<br /> just don't try to go all the way thru at one time. do it about one turn at a time and wash the end of the tool off in paint thinner or some solvent then reaply grease to the end of the tool again.<br /> i'll put a picture of the tap on here so you will know what it looks like. You can do this its not that hard to do

 

[bubbakat]

Re: stripped spark pulg hole

BTW you don't have to drill with this kind of tap the first part is the same size as the spark plug hole and it will pull its self thru I use a wrench to turn it because it is easy to turn and when you start out with it it will have a little bit of Resistance at first but this is normal