TECH: Homemade Head Puller that works!

How about the rope trick. I have used it and it works great. You put equal amounts of rope in the number one and four cylinders to fill it up and then turn over the motor and as the pistons come up they push the rope up and push the head up. cost is about $5.00 or less and no machining needed.

That's works fine on heads that aren't really stuck,but if one WAS stuck there's a good chance you'll bend a rod! And if you've ever straightened rods, they bend pretty easy. That being said, has anyone ever seen this happen?
 
A nice technical post,well illustrated and explained. Thanks,Elrod.

Here in Central PA, gas is $2.71/gallon. A three minute Google search turned up about $15 for a 1/2" titanium drill bit, new Sears 1/2" drill press for $367 and a new 1'x2' 1/2" steel plate for $52 + shipping. Scrap steel is, I believe, about 15 cents a pound but the scrap yard would charge you what=$5 for the piece you need? #2 bolts/nuts in bulk are $1.99/lb at Tractor Supply. Good ice cream cone is $1.75 on the way.

Lowes.Sears and TSC are on my way to work. I am 6 miles from the scrap yard, I have a drill press and a 1/2" drill,too. Hours spent trying to get the old head off at $40/hr would more than pay for the tool-even for a 1x use.

So, maybe $10-15 for the tool? $40 if you buy the drill bit? $400 if you buy the drill press? And who really counts gas money when we're going to a JUNKYARD?! :)

Is your time working on the car realistically priced st $40 an hour? If so you will never recover your investment! Wayne
 
Could you use a short piece of conduit or pipe with an inside diameter just big enuf to fit over the studs and the bolts through the plate? Wouldn't it keep the bolts over the studs so they wouldn't slip off?
 
Let's set the record straight. As noted at the bottom of post #1, "Jason in Texas" credits Joe G. aka "4port" on this site for making this head puller. I loaned the puller to Jason and also explained how to use it. The story began about 15 years ago as I was at a Dallas members shop who was struggling to get a head off with the usual screwdrivers, wood and aluminum wedges. He left for an errand and when he returned the head was off. It took me about an hour to build this out of scrap around his shop. Fortunately, he had a Roll-In bandsaw to cut that 3/4" plate. This puller was "lost" for several years as it traveled around north and east Texas as each user would loan it to another in need. Once it was reported to be in Winnsboro, Texas over 100 miles to the east. Finally it turned up in Arlington Texas, about 20 miles from me, after I had made a request for it at a club meeting. It even had my name and phone number on it.
 

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