Topic: APE cylinder studs too short?

[brazwell]

So if there is a thread clearly addressing this problem I haven't found it, so I apologize in advance if I'm beating a dead horse. Im doing the top end in my 73 cb750. Ive torqued my APE studs to 8lbs. Now with my heads on, I have approximately three threads left between the top of the stud and top of the nut after torquing with washers.  I have emailed APE and verified they are the correct studs by measuring them. They have suggested "drop a 3/16 or 1/4"  steel ball in the hole and screw the stud down onto it and tighten." Any thoughts?

[johno]

Re the ape studs, I had the same issue on my main bearing studs, the studs are the correct length but there is a variation in the depth of holes, I got lucky and just had to have very thin washers on 2 of them and big fat washers on the rest.
My head studs were all spot on.

Hard to imagine such a big variation as 4 to 6mm    are you sure your head or barrel is sitting on the two dowels 100% or your chain tensioner has jumped out of the groove or something simple like that
johno

[Jerry Rxman Griffin aka MuthaF'er]

Just make sure you install the correct end with thread locker and have the correct height! The 8lbs is basically just a guide so you don't do something wrong. THIS is not like torqueing down a nut. You'll do that with the top nut at no more than 22lbs which will obviously pull the bottoms tight. You are really over-thinking and worrying for no real reason as long as the correct ends are installed and you haven't done something incorrectly.

+1 on the dowels. Remember, there are 2 lengths with the same diameter.

[Big Jay]

Starting a run on main studs today. Will increase the length 2mm

Jay

[Bill/BentON Racing]

Way to  go  Jay, K, Bill

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Starting a run on main studs today. Will increase the length 2mm

Jay

Hoping you are running some 550 studs, too.  Nobody has them in stock.

[Big Jay]

Yes making 500/550s too.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Yes making 500/550s too.

Excellent!

[PeWe]

Now I understand why some guys use red Loctite threadlocker, tighten all studs to correct upper level not bottom them out. This need a test with head and cylinder + old gasket before final assembly to verfify how deep they should be set. Or just know how long they should be over the case.

I could tighten until the studs bottomed out in my CB750 crank case, but there are others with deeper holes.

[BAmann]

Warning, Cautionary Tale !!!!!  I am replying to this topic/post because I ran into the same challenge of the HD studs being too short. (See attached photo stock vs HD stud) I liked the suggestion in the post about using a small bearing to provide the proper spacing.  So I tried using a 1/4" chrome bearing and the initial measurements looked great. (So far so good.) However, once I started to torque to 8 lbs, things went horribly wrong. As the torque was coming up to 8 lbs the bottom of the stud hole casing broke off into the engine and the bearing joined the case fragments in the bottom of the engine.  The problem was that even thought the torque was small (less than 8 lbs) using the bearing focused all the force to a small point at the bottom of the hole and broke the case.  The result is that the the cases had to be split and the case fragments and bearing removed and the stud hole welded up.  My recommendation for those of you that come across this issue and this post, "DO NOT USE THE Bearing method to raise the stud height.  If the studs are not factory length or longer return them to the vendor or throw them away and purchase a different brand that are the proper length.

[MRieck]

Set the studs up by height. They do not need to bottom out....... Set them with red Loctite. Special care has to be used when installing the cylinder studs that are oil feeds to the top end.

[Bill/BentON Racing]

+1 especially on oil feed studs, ask me how I know, lol.

[RP]

Had the same issue on APE CBX1000 HD studs.... the ball bearing trick worked at 12 pounds with no issues.  Red Loctite would have been easier.