Ok, I am trying to decide whether or not to use the Stage 8 Locking bolts or get the ARP Header Bolts. I am installing my AS&M Headers here shortly and I'm needing some advice on what others have used? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.



Tuff.

 

ive heard that the stage 8 are the best. the way they "lock" they are NEVER coming loose on ya!! after seeing what people on here recommended, i decided to go with the stage 8 also. actually in the process of installing right now!!

 

I used stage 8 when I did my AS&Ms....worked great. If you're going to use the little allen wrenches/key rather then a ratchet I suggest tieing them with string and wrapping them around your finger. I dropped it so many fuggin tmies and having it tied to my finger saved me hours......

 

I have the stainless ARP.... they worked great for me... tightened them up twice after install... and they haven't backed out....

 

I used ARP, 1" 12 pts. No guarantee that they won't loosen up, esp. in the beginning, but not bad idea to check header bolts once in awhile anyway.

With the Locking bolts, I'd be concerned about the damn locks getting dropped or the PITA to remove and replace if I needed to retorque.JMHO

 

Thanks for the reply, which ones did you endup getting? the 3/4 inch or the 1 inch. I heard that they were a pain to put in. Again, please let me know which one's you ended up using.

Thanks Again,
Tuff.

 

its the 1"

 

I have 1 inch Stage 8s and yes they work good, but be prepared for a PITA install. And some of those needle nose pliers with the bend in them to get em off. I also had to modify the keepers to fit my Hooker LTs.

 

My suggestion is get the 1" Stage 8 bolts. If you decide the locking stuff is too hard to install then don't. Nothing wrong with the stage 8 bolts and the locking devices can be considered optional. I installed the locking parts several days after my JetHot LT install. This gave me the chance to see how bad the bolts would try to back out and allowed the frustration of the header install to subside a little prior to attempting to install the locks. As far as installing the locks, I didn't think it was that hard. Modifying the tabs as needed made the process fairly easy. The time spent putting them on is worth the piece of mind.

JeffA

 

Thanks everyone for your reply's. I am ordering the Stage 8 today!

Tuff.

 

oh come on guys, the locks and retainers are easy to get on. everyone except for the 4th one back on the pass side is easy, and that one is only ahrd b/c the damn dipstick.

 

You must be a contortionist.
Or a masochist.
The one behind the alternator I still have not gotten on.

 

I used ARP stainless bolts and haven't had a problem yet. I am fairly religious about checking them, but they haven't loosened up since about 2 weeks after the header install.

I had stage 8's on my old small block, and it was a PITA. If you ever blow a gasket or need to do more work, your guaranteed to lose a few of those stupid little clips. Given the amount of space I have to work with on this car I don't even want to think about installing those

 

I have ARP 12pt bolts. Tighten them a couple days after heat cycling and they havent backed out since. Thats been almost 2 years ago. I would buy the ARP's again if i had to do it all over. Oh yea, all the bolts are cake to get to with a small wrench and a little grinding on the closed end of the wrench so it fits between the primary tubes and the bolts. 5mins of grinding the wrench if that.

 

LOL, you are supposed to take the alternator off to get to that one. dont even say taking the alternator off is hard.

I've taken off all the locks in teh car before twice and only lost one of the locks. No problem, call stage 8 and get another one.