Head Bolts / Re-Use or New ????

[rn2fine]

Built up a 350 recently. Have coolant leak and need to replace head gaskets. The ARP head bolts are less than a few months old. Can I re-use them or should I purchase new headbolts when changing head gaskets?

[flyin99]

They should be fine..........I have done that many times............especially with ARP's..............Brad

[Tx Firefighter]

reuse, with a little sealant on them of course.

The only ones you trash are torque-to-yield bolts, which your small block doesn't use.

[LUV2XCLR8]

IF LESS THAN 6 MOS. OLD OR UP TO 5,000 MILES IS WHAT MY
BUDDY HAS ALWAYS TOLD ME ABOUT REUSING ARP BOLTS. I
AM NOT SAYING HE IS A EXPERT THOUGH. WERE THEY TORK'D
OR JUST USED IN A MOK UP TYPE SITUATION ???

[rn2fine]

They were torqued to 65lbs. Approximately 3000 miles on them.

[rn2fine]

Also, any recommendations on sealant ?

[Kid]

won't have a problem reusing them, but you should check your heads & deck for flatness, something (seating surface not flat, or faultly gasket) created your coolant leak

[Kenneth Brown]

Indian head shellac for the bolts. It stops coolant from coming up through the bolt holes and into the valve covers.

[Dean23]

for sealant get loctite liquid teflon sealant nothing works better

[1972C10]

We never put sealent on any of our headbolts. Never had a leak yet.

[Tx Firefighter]

FWIW...I don't do it all the time either, but they taught me in GM school to always use sealant on any bolt that screws into water, including head bolts.

[smokekiki]

Using the sealent is good preventive medicene.Probably wouldn't leak without it,but why take the chance.

[smokekiki]

Of course,I have also been told not to use sealent on head bolts because of it adding resistance and changing the torque rating.

[junkyardjohn]

IT DOESN'T HURT A THING TO REUSE THEM , NO MATTER HOW MANY MILES ARE ON THE AS LONG AS THEY ARE CLEANED (ALL THE OLD SEALANT REMOVED) & NOT DAMAGED. (I USUALLY SOAK THEM OVERNIGHT IN A CAN OF CARB PARTS CLEANER , THEN HIT THEM WITH A SMALL WIRE BRUSH) NEVER HAD A FAILURE. JOHN

(& I ALWAYS PUT SEALANT ON THEM)

[67Fleetsidedream]

I have reused them many times. It is recommended that the threads going in to the block and the threads on the bolts be very clean prior to putting sealant of some type on them. Run a tap through the holes to get the old sealant out.

[mocwon]

You should be okay reusing the head bolts given the short amount of time they have been on assuming they were new to start with. When building up an engine I never reuse head bolts, rod bolts or main bolts. Bolts fatigue over time and not knowing how many times a bolt has been re-used or the punishment an engine has been through can be risky. New fasteners are cheap insurance. ARP provides a torque chart with many of their fasteners so you can keep track of how many times they have been torqued, what they were torqued to and if you really want to go all out how much stretch each fastener sees.

[kwmech]

Originally posted by Dean23
for sealant get loctite liquid teflon sealant nothing works better

Absolutely--and clean and flat--- been reusing bolts for 30 years and never had a problem