Potentially Stripped oil return line during head install

[flyinghighlm]

Well as the title says...I have head this head off for the 3rd time now and never had a problem putting the oil line that runs from the turbo back into the side of the head...After 3 hours of work and putting everything back together I started the car and started to shoot oil right out where that bolt and 2 copper washers go....I pulled the bolt out and there was a little piece of metal wrapped in the grooves of the bolt...I know this means its starting to strip itself....How can I go about fixing this without going to a machine shop AGAIN, can I t ry and rethread it.....or put something in there to help the bolt bite into the grooves or am I shit out of luck??? When I put the bolt in I used 2 new copper washers as well and only tightned till it was snug. IDEAS WELCOME!!! Fix this and it will drive for the first time in 4 months!!!

 

[RoasT BeeF]

Same thing happened to me.

If metal is comming out with the bolt it is probably past the point of being able to just be re tapped. I put a heli coil in mine and it worked fine.

 

[flyinghighlm]

si can I just drill it out and put a heli coil in....I have done this before but I did not know if I was going to mess with anything inside the head??? Trying not to break the car but fix it instead, thanks.

 

[amg_dragon]

I know this is a 2 and a half year old thread but I came across it when I had a similar problem (no metal came out with bolt though). The fix came from brakequip! They make all manner of brake fittings, banjo heads and most importantly, banjo BOLTS! I had just had the head rebuilt and installed all new timing equipment, cometic HG and ARP L19 head studs so I didn't want to pull everything off again just to retap or helicoil it. The solution was to order brakequip part #BQ8087, a 15/16" long banjo bolt that gave me about 3-4 threads worth of grip past where it was stripped. I'm not saying this is the BEST solution, but it did work in my case and may work in yours if you're having the same problem. The only difference I noticed from my 'original' banjo bolt was this bolt (other than being longer) only has one hole instead of two but if it bothers you, it's just a simple drill bit away from being there. Cost shipped Fed-ex ground from South-co Industries was right around $10 ($7 of it shipping) and it arrived the next day! Don's a great guy and he'll help you out.

Fittings and Adapters : Southco, Industrial Sales