i am a plank!
Turbo Mini Forums

having given away a really good 98 mini head to one of alexb mates the weekend who needed an engine quick

ive gone and snapped all the thermostat bolts flush with the head on the black 30 :( and i dont have tha facilitys to get whats left out

anyone got a reasonable 998 head kicking around?

sorry bud! i bet Charlie has a spare head you could have now.. give him a bell

be easier to get the bolts out. wouldnt have to take the head off all being well.

either weld something to them, or just drill them out. wouldnt be that hard.

who's local to you? i'd do them if i was local.

Yep, some sharp drill bits will soon see them off, all you need then is a tap to tidy up the threads.

what is the tap thats needed?

As the guys say... Also remember, it's only thermostat bolts - so not overly critical aswell. Centre-pop then as central as can be, and run a small (1.5mm say) drill down the pop around 1/8" - keep checking that it's being drilled central. Then drill down with a 6.5mm drill. This will follow the lead of the smaller drill and stay central. You can then tickle a 5/16" UNC tap down there and you should regain the thread.

If you have an offer from someone who knows what they're doing, and you can see how it's done - then that's a good option!

also if there is some of it still sticking out file it nice and flat so its easier to find the centre.
spend some time finding the centre. after the first gentle hit if its not bang in the centre, angle the centre punch in the direction it needs to go and gentley hit it again. once happy do a dead vertical hard punch.

probably telling you stuff you all ready know but if not hope it helps

All sound advice from the lads, the only thing I would add is a dremel can be used to level up the sheared off exposed bit to help find the centre.

Also, get someone else to "spot" you square with the drill, e.g. to make sure you are drilling true to the stud, it is hard to tell when it is you holding the drill. Go steady with the drilling, and grip the drill machine firmly, as you don't want to break a drill off in the hole.

PS if you are stuck for imperial drills and taps, M8 metric is easier to get hold of and will do the job just as well. Tapping drill size 6.8mm, but 6.5mm will give a touch more thread to bite at.