Cylinders 1,2,3,4,7,8 were a breeze to remove/replace with these headers. Cylinder 5 wasn't too bad, but cylinder 6 seems too be impossible to pull out without removing the header cuz even after I removed the slip collector primary (cylinder 8) not even a offset wrench will properly fit back there with the design on the headers. I know people with hookers say to pull the starter off and that would give me more than enough room, the only problem is that the header hugs the starter and once I unbolted it, it wouldn't go anywhere cuz there isn't enough room there to pull it off. Is there some other trick to this that i'm not seeing?? cuz pulling the whole header off to replace one plug is a pain in the @ss, especially being that all the other plugs came out and went back without great effort (took about 45 mins, plus another 10 for cylinder 5 cuz I had to lift the car to get too it..

 

A stuby combination wrench. I have hookers and don't have to remove, losen or do anything to get at the plugs.

 

whats a "stuby" combination wrench (do you just mean a standard box end wrench?). If you mean a standard box end wrench (box end one side, open end other side), how do you go about getting that wrench fit into that circular groove in the block around spark plug? I saw one angle where the starter wasn't blocking the spark plug where the standard wrench might fit but the problem was that the other primary was right there at that point and i couldn't push up to loosen the plug cuz the primary was there..

 

I don't know if this will help or translate to the LT-1 in an f-body car, but I have G-hanns on my LT-1 in an Impala SS....
I don't have the cowl to contend with so I go at it from above.
The only way I can get to #6 is with a box end wrench, (normal length).
It needs to be an offset box wrench and the box cannot be too thick or else the bench grinder is needed.
So if you can reach back there attack it from the top with the box end wrench between #8 and #6. The dip stick may need to be bent and of course the temp sender plug unplugged will give more wrenching room.

Just some ideas for you...(the fbody may even have different G-hanns than B-body so forget what I typed if it doesn't translate over).

karl

 

no that makes sense, I can get the offset 5/8" wrench in there and on the plug from underneath but with the offset wrench the straight part of the wrench needs to be out that inch or so to grip the edges of the plug and the primary from cylinder #1 crosses over right there and blocks it... trying it from above sounds like an good idea, the dipstick is right there in the way, what do you mean by bending the dipstick tube? Can I just bend it back towards the wheel and try to move it without f*ckin it up? as of right now the tube just sits there and is loose as hell (it moves back and forth, I think the guy who built the engine must've stripped the threads in the block or somethin), I tried to avoid messing with it too much cuz I was afraid of it starting a oil leak, but can I bend that back without messing it up?

 

i use a socket and ratchet that the bolt can pass the whole way through. works wounders

Shane

 

I don't use a socket wrench on mine. I have no problems getting any of the plugs with a combination of very basic tools. First, a stubby combination wrench. Next, a spark plug socket. Not a normal deep throat socket, a spark plug socket.

Combination wrenches look like this: http://www.northerntool.com/images/p.../558293_lg.jpg

The spark plug socket looks like this: http://franklin-tools.co.uk/acatalog/FT3821.gif

Notice the hex end on the spark plug socket. You can get all plugs either directly with the stubby combination wrench or with the combination wrench on the end of the spark plug socket.

It's not rocket science.

 

not exactly... trust me i've tried both of those plus I tried the offset 5/8" wrench which works much better on most plugs that trying to grip the plug with a stuby combination wrench. I think i'm going to try to cut a spark plug socket in half and then weld it to a 3/4 inch wrench, that should get the plug out, but with cylinder #6 the dipstick is right there in the way also, I can't even get my hand inbetweeen the block and the primaries cuz of that, so I haven't quite figured out how I am going to get that plug back in (obviously you can't start threading the plug into the block with a wrench and spark plug socket)..