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**JET** · 02-21-2004

Alright, I am becoming a pro at doing head gaskets :P Yes, you can easily lock the belt to the gears and you won't have to touch the Tbelt at all.

What you do is put 2-3 zipties around the belt and each cam gear. Do this right away when the belt is tight. Then you put the tensioner tool in and relieve the pressure, take off the cam bolts and CAREFULLY remove the cam gears. There is a pin on the end of the cams that break if you pull the gears off crooked. It is like 1/4" so it isn't real fragile. RRE has this in their tech section if you want to hear more about it. Always recheck the timing after you are done, but it should be fine.

Also, I see lots of people installing the head studs incorrectly. The holes for them should be completely cleaned out with carb cleaner and an air compressor. Then the studs should be put in finger tight with loctite on them. When I blew my first head gasket 2 of my ARP's were backed out when I took the valve cover off and 2 others were not to the correct torque. If all of the studs aren't the same height, that means oil is trapped below them.

Also, be sure to retorque them after a few heat cycles and check them again a few weeks after that.

02-21-2004	#4
JET Is funding Exxon. Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Ham Lake Drives: like a bat outta hell! Posts: 7,983	Alright, I am becoming a pro at doing head gaskets :P Yes, you can easily lock the belt to the gears and you won't have to touch the Tbelt at all. What you do is put 2-3 zipties around the belt and each cam gear. Do this right away when the belt is tight. Then you put the tensioner tool in and relieve the pressure, take off the cam bolts and CAREFULLY remove the cam gears. There is a pin on the end of the cams that break if you pull the gears off crooked. It is like 1/4" so it isn't real fragile. RRE has this in their tech section if you want to hear more about it. Always recheck the timing after you are done, but it should be fine. Also, I see lots of people installing the head studs incorrectly. The holes for them should be completely cleaned out with carb cleaner and an air compressor. Then the studs should be put in finger tight with loctite on them. When I blew my first head gasket 2 of my ARP's were backed out when I took the valve cover off and 2 others were not to the correct torque. If all of the studs aren't the same height, that means oil is trapped below them. Also, be sure to retorque them after a few heat cycles and check them again a few weeks after that. __________________ Is burning corn and stayin' warm! My motorcycle is stock and reliable, my Talon is neither!