Jfaulkner

When I did mine (with the head on) I did one stud without bottom tapping then did I tapped the hole right next to it to compare. I gained atleast 1/4 inch. In fact I can screw the stud down far enough that it is below the top of the nut if I wanted to.

I can't stress enough why you should bottom tap. It really doesn't take that long and cost next to nothing! Compared to the time and expence of thread repair to the block if you tear the threads out or have to replace the head gasket just so you could save some time.

I never understood why the exhaust stud is longer, it doesn't need to be, all the extra length sticks above the nut anyway.

NoSeeUm

Thank you. Me either on the longer studs, I had just thought the studs were kind of generic to fit newer and older engines. I never really looked into it much.

Well looking at the Haisley's and your 1/4 inch it all makes more sense to me now. It makes me wonder what the threaded length is of the Haisley's as compared to the ARP's.

Irregardless, with one thread showing or three threads showing the stud is in as far as it can go realistically. The extra 1/4 inch does no good unless the stud is longer, accept that it would help prevent the stud from grounding.

I wonder why the short ARP studs just don't come .200 longer to begin with?

But like I said, the difference in thread landing force is what I would think about and if you bottom tap from the looks of it you get about one more thread. I can't really remember what the threaded depth was, I wish I had measured it. But as I recall it was about an inch.

I actually worry more about blowing my head gasket.

Jim