Was about to torque down my AFR210s on my 396 today, and there's no room for the nut at 3 of the stud locations, let alone a socket around it. I'm using 1.530" springs.

AFR mentions this in their install sheet; apparently they sell smaller-shouldered 12-point nuts for stud kits (and similar bolts for guys using bolts).

I suppose my other option would be to remove the springs, torque down the heads, and reinstall the springs, but that makes a retorque problematic, and you'd have to remove the springs again to ever pull the heads.

Anyone else been here before? What did you wind up doing?

Thanks,
DAve

 

I believe that this problem is unavoidable when the use of larger diameter springs is necessary. I have 1.55" springs and I'm facing the need to go to 1.625". Currently, I'm using head bolts with six-point heads to allow a 1/2", 3/8" drive socket to fit over the boltheads. If you've already installed a head stud kit such as ARP, it is possible to buy just the smaller OD nuts to replace the ones with a tight fit or all of them if you choose. Competition Products, Oshkosh, WI (800) 233-0199, lists 12-point, 7/16 x 20 nuts under part number 300-8303 for $1.25 each. That's a little cheaper than buying an entire kit.

(I used bolts instead of studs because, when I built the car, I wasn't sure that I had enough clearance to get the head off the motor underneath the cowl with the studs in place. Periodically, the sanctioning body requires that one head be pulled off at the track and I didn't want to gamble that the head would clear the studs under the windshield.)

Good luck.

 

I had to remove all the exhaust srpings to install the heads. Not really hard, just a pain in the ***...had a few valve spring keepers shoot across the garage after bouncing off the ceiling. Call me all thumbs!