Start by buying some threaded rod or if you're lucky some 30mm studs in the same size as the rocker cover bolts. If you've got threaded rod cut to 30mm or if you can be bothered measuring more you may be able to get it down to less. I ended up cutting 5mm or so off mine so maybe start at 25?
Once you've done this, bend over or crush the threads about 8mm up from the bottom, preferably the whole way round the thread. Try not to ruin any of the threads either side of the bit you're bending.
Next start screwing them in by hand. When it gets difficult to turn them double up some nuts on the stud like so:
This way you'll actually be able to tighten it. You should be able to feel when it gets to the point where it won't ever come out. Eventually you'll get to this stage:
And along the way you might discover that using standard valve springs, no matter how new they are, on a high lift cam is a bad idea.
When you've got all the studs in, your rocker cover and gasket should slip over them easily and with no issues like being unable to find the holes, or the bolts cross threading or generally being an asshole to do. All you need to do is fit nuts and the rocker cover tabs or if they don't fit your rocker cover (like mine) some washers. Try and get the smallest nut you can with the most internal threads. The first lot I got were too big then the second ones were only a meter thick so they can definitely be improved upon.
Hopefully someone finds it useful and hopefully I'm not the only one with the impossible-to-fit-rocker-cover problem.
Edited by bon_scott, 08 February 2009 - 03:00 AM.
View Garage
