Vent: Older mechanic told me I was overtorquing head bolts and I blew a gasket

I was doing a rebuild on a 5.9 Cummins last month and a retired guy came by the shop and told me I was cranking those bolts way too tight with a cheater bar, said I was gonna warp the deck. He was right, that engine developed a coolant leak after 50 miles and I had to pull the head back off and replace the gasket. Has anyone else had to eat crow on a torque spec they thought they knew?

2 comments

2 Comments

avery_walker308d ago

Hate to say it but sometimes torque specs are more of a suggestion than gospel, especially on older blocks that have already been heat cycled a bunch. Glad you got it sorted before that 5.9 gave you the full blown head gasket treatment lol.

mason.anna8d ago

That idea of torque specs being "more of a suggestion than gospel" is something I see pop up a lot, not just with engines but with all kinds of instructions people think they know better than. Idk, it's like that confidence sometimes blinds you to the fact that the spec exists for a reason, especially when you've done something a hundred times before and gotten away with it. Maybe it's just me, but it feels like every time I think I've got something figured out, life finds a way to humble me right back down.