Finishing up a complete rotisserie of a 78 Brat and the last part is replacing the heads.  All machine work is complete.  I have the original head studs but would like to replace them with new.  Anybody out there know of a place that has them?  Will EA81 head studs be the same?  I have always been in the understanding that you never reuse head bolts or studs.  But if I cannot find replacements I may not have a choice.  I am up for any info or ideas. Thanks

7 hours ago, 73mako said:

Finishing up a complete rotisserie of a 78 Brat and the last part is replacing the heads.  All machine work is complete.  I have the original head studs but would like to replace them with new.  Anybody out there know of a place that has them?  Will EA81 head studs be the same?  I have always been in the understanding that you never reuse head bolts or studs.  But if I cannot find replacements I may not have a choice.  I am up for any info or ideas. Thanks

rotisserie LOL!

Generally speaking reuse Subaru head bolts unless they’re rusted or corroded enough to destroy the threads. It is based on the type of bolt used, not opinion or how someone else did it, or how another manufacturer does it or what was common in the 1980s.  It’s based on the materials engineering of the fastener itself and replacing them is 100% pointless except to avoid cleaning them. That’s why nearly all of the best dealer and independent Subaru service facilities reuse them and the Factory Service Manual says to reuse them.

I don’t mess with EA71-81, they’re all rusted away here so i don’t have the option of even seeing one for decades, but after 25 years of working on Subarus i haven’t heard people treating those any different.

clean bolts, clean threads, chase threads if needed, reassemble.

i'm still going strong on my headgaskets after 4 years after reusing headbolts, I had the rare opportunity of having 2 EA-71's to work with and choose the best headbolts out of the bunch.

Rebuilt a high compression EA81. Same engine design, just bored and stroked. Reused the head studs aside from the one the machinist chewed the threads off of. Those studs are 11mm and you won't find replacements unless you have them custom made. They'll probably out last the engine.

Run a nut down them ti check for any stretched threads. If the nut threads all the way with minimal catching or hanging, they're good to go. If any have spots that the nut gets stuck on, consider replacement if you can't smooth them out with the nut, or see if you can place those threads in a spot that they won't be in a position of excess stress.

 

Twitch

I just had my hands on a fist full of head bolts and lifter rods. Next time I’m at storage I’m pretty sure I set them in a spot I can easily see them. 
 

Let me know if you need any. These should be from an early EA71 1600

I will check length etc as I get back to them. I was in a rush and saw them as I was needing to be wrapping up. But they’re there if you need some.