Head Studs for 8n

[zack11]

I am rebuilding my engine off of my 8n and was going to put head studs in and was told only 15 are used. What holes do these 15 go to and what type of bolt do I use for the other 3 holes. Also what type/brand of nut should I use for the head studs?

 

[TheOldHokie]

(quoted from post at 15:55:44 04/20/15) I am rebuilding my engine off of my 8n and was going to put head studs in and was told only 15 are used. What holes do these 15 go to and what type of bolt do I use for the other 3 holes. Also what type/brand of nut should I use for the head studs?

From the factory 9N engines had 15 short studs, 2 medium studs, and 1 long stud. The medium and long ones were used with extra nuts to mount the wiring conduit. Head studs are a royal PITA and I much prefer bolts.

TOH

 

[Hobo,NC]

Every old Ford mechanic I ever talked to told me they despised them.... Folks get carried away with this so called heavy-duty hardware... For some reason replacing with higher numbers impress them...

 

[Paul in MN]

I prefer the studs due to less stress on the block threads. The most critical stud thread hole is at the far right rear of the head/block. That stud or bolt hole needs to be checked to see that no oil/water/or antifreeze has settled into the hole. This is one of a few that are not open on the bottom. If there is fluid in this hole, it can create a hydraulic pressure that blows the corner of the block right off. I was warned about this one by a good dealer mechanic who had seen a number of blocks destroyed in this manner. Before that, I had never given it a thought.

The studs I use are 7/16 NF on one end and 7/16 NC on the other end Grade 8. Most good auto parts stores have them in the Dorman collection. I do not remember the lengths, but 3 longer ones are needed if you are using the plug wire tube. I use any brand of Gr 8 NF nuts. One real advantage to using studs is the next time you need to pull the head (maybe 20 years??) you can use heat just on the nuts to loosen badly rusted and stuck ones, and not risk any damage to the block.

Ford used studs/nuts on the early N's, and switched over to the head bolts probably for faster assembly or to save a few cents on each engine. Remember there is a lower torque value used on the NF nuts (maybe 55 ft lb, IIRC). My book is out in the shop, so double check this value.

Paul in MN

 

[zack11]

Do you know what 3 holes in the block require the longer studs by chance, if not how do I go about finding it?

 

[Paul in MN]

One at the right front corner of the head where the generator or alternator bracket attaches, and then 2 down the middle line of the block so they line up with the brackets for the spark plug wire tube. If you aren't using the wire tube, then you don't need those 2 extra length studs.

Paul in MN

 

[greywolf224]

I believe the studs are 1, 7 and 16

 

[JJay48]

Wanted to bring this back up. Just looking over the head studs I pulled out of my 48. Mine only had 2 of the 18 that were longer and they were #5 and #4. The wire tube only has 2 mounting tabs on mine.

2 longer studs are 2 15/16" and the shorter ones are 2 13/16"

My question is if installing a 12v conversion kit will I want 2 more longer studs for #12 and #16?

 

[HFJ]

Wanted to bring this back up. Just looking over the head studs I pulled out of my 48. Mine only had 2 of the 18 that were longer and they were #5 and #4. The wire tube only has 2 mounting tabs on mine.

2 longer studs are 2 15/16" and the shorter ones are 2 13/16"

My question is if installing a 12v conversion kit will I want 2 more longer studs for #12 and #16?

i'd say u don't really need them. i didn't get longer ones when i converted to 12 volts several years ago, and my head hasn't gone flying off yet

 

[JJay48]

i'd say u don't really need them. i didn't get longer ones when i converted to 12 volts several years ago, and my head hasn't gone flying off yet

I ended up ordering all new studs anyway and they are supposedly 3" so should be long enough to catch all the threads.

 

[HFJ]

I ended up ordering all new studs anyway and they are supposedly 3" so should be long enough to catch all the threads.

sounds like a winner

 

[JMOR]

I prefer the studs due to less stress on the block threads. The most critical stud thread hole is at the far right rear of the head/block. That stud or bolt hole needs to be checked to see that no oil/water/or antifreeze has settled into the hole. This is one of a few that are not open on the bottom. If there is fluid in this hole, it can create a hydraulic pressure that blows the corner of the block right off. I was warned about this one by a good dealer mechanic who had seen a number of blocks destroyed in this manner. Before that, I had never given it a thought.

The studs I use are 7/16 NF on one end and 7/16 NC on the other end Grade 8. Most good auto parts stores have them in the Dorman collection. I do not remember the lengths, but 3 longer ones are needed if you are using the plug wire tube. I use any brand of Gr 8 NF nuts. One real advantage to using studs is the next time you need to pull the head (maybe 20 years??) you can use heat just on the nuts to loosen badly rusted and stuck ones, and not risk any damage to the block.

Ford used studs/nuts on the early N's, and switched over to the head bolts probably for faster assembly or to save a few cents on each engine. Remember there is a lower torque value used on the NF nuts (maybe 55 ft lb, IIRC). My book is out in the shop, so double check this value.

Paul in MN

I'm almost certain the all holes go all the way into water jacket,just need to clean out "crap" the builds up on bottom of stud, and makes it look like a blind hole.

 

[JJay48]

I'm almost certain the all holes go all the way into water jacket,just need to clean out "crap" the builds up on bottom of stud, and makes it look like a blind hole.

I can verify tomorrow.

 

[JMOR]

I can verify tomorrow.

please report findings

 

[Hobo,NC]

I can verify tomorrow.

All go thru open holes, on the manifold side the casting for the valve pockets are at the bottom of the hole so keep that in mind are to the best of my memory that's what you will find. I am not a stud pro as I have not ran across many with studs. What I have dealt with and had to go deep into had been changed to bolts. The others for the alt bracket I don't remember having an issue.

 

[JJay48]

I checked today and all the holes definitely go into the water jacket.

 

[JMOR]

I checked today and all the holes definitely go into the water jacket.

Thanks for the verification, now I can skip the "almost certain" words.