ABom, You are a young man and I am 73 YO in a month. I have seen 10, 000 broken studs and broken bolts removed in my life. I am not a machinist. And never will be. But, what I saw you do in this video was the most accurate and professional way to remove a broken stud that I have ever seen in my entire life. Sir, it is a joy to watch you work. I salute you for your astounding knowledge. I think you are genius. I know you would never admit to that, but you are. If I owned a company you could name your own salary to work for me. It is a pleasure to see your videos. I am sure your Dad and Granddad are incredibly proud of you.(I saw them pictured in a previous video. I and think they are Dad and Granddad. If not please forgive me.) Oh, what you called a butterfly are what we once referred to as a heat riser. Of course, they are no longer on automobiles. Anyway, That is not being critical, just you are young and may not have known. Of course, vernacular has changed a bit in the last 70+ years. I cant wait to see more of your videos. You are never too old to learn and I always learn from you. If I had had a son, I would want him to be like you. My sincere thank you for these informative videos.Keep up the good work. John

Refreshing to see a PRO at work using patience and experience to do the job.

This obviously isn't about saving time. It's about doing it correctly by a skilled Craftsman. Nice work.

Adam, you made it look tooooo easy! I've done similar "broken exhaust stud" removals with a cordless drill, countless broken drill bits, Benzomatic Map/Pro torch, never quite finding center - center punching, and enough cussing to make a Cape Cod sailor blush. As a mere mortal, I've always wondered how a Machinist God would remove a broken exhaust stud. Now I know. Backyard mechanic Troglodytes, like myself, can only give thee Worship. Thanks for sharing.

I have several classic cars and the amount of rusted out bolts i've manually drilled out and/or had to re-tap is enough to make you need a beer. Watching this was extremely satisfying. Thanks as always Adam, love to see you work - even on the most simple of projects it's extremely cathartic.

Seeing that thread being pulled out in one is one of the most satisfying thing I've seen in a long time! 😄

A friend showed me the best way in cast iron. Heat with torch until red hot, and tap a couple times with a hammer. Drop a washer over it, that slightly clears, and arc-weld the washer to the stud through the hole. Put a nut on top, and weld it to the washer. Let cool for 5 or so minutes, then screw it out. Best method I've ever seen.

Great job I learn something every time I watch you. I am retired now but you make us older guys smile for doing the job with care and thinking about what you are doing. Hats off to your Dad and Grandfather for teaching you the correct way. Keep going young man thanks.

Всю жизнь проработал токарем в России и в первый раз вижу что бы так аккуратно высверливались старые шпильки и остатки резьбы удалялась как проволока. Это просто СУПЕР !!! All my life I worked as a turner in Russia and for the first time I see old studs drilled so neatly and the remnants of the thread were removed like wire. It is great !!!

As a 20 year mechanic, I can appreciate the precision here Adam. Usually I’m doing this overhead getting hot chips down my neck and penetrating oil dripping in my eyes lol. Then it’s still crooked and I end up pulling some threads😂 nice work as usual my friend.

Real man doing real work. GOD bless you brother from a 22 yr Volvo expert certified technician. I have seen my share of rusted exhaust bolts and what not. We are a dying breed. Hard to find anyone these days under 40 years old that can fix anything other than a computer. Subscribed

Man, I can't believe all the negative comments. This craftsman was illustrating the many different and separate skills it takes to do a very precise job, the the best way he knows how. I would do it his way if I had the equipment. Your customers will be happy with the results. Ps, there should DEFINITELY be a metal (copper sandwich) gasket between the manifold and head. Then re-torque the manifold bolts in a couple of hundred miles. Nice work & well explained.

Boy does that bring back memories. When I had my automotive machine shop that was a daily job. Mechanics would bring all of their broken bolts to me. The bigger problem was when they tried to repair it themselves and broke a tap, drill, or ez out in it. Thanks for sharing.

The beauty of watching your work, Adam, is that you never deviate from aiming for precision at each and every step. This is precisely why your skill set can be so readily deployed across multiple disciplines; everything you approach is approached first with a plan, then with precision setup, followed by a series of possible solutions, starting first with that which is least invasive. Even the setup and order of your shop reflects precisely this same approach. This is why I learn so much from your videos. I am not simply seeing ways and methods for accomplishing a variety of jobs, but rather the mindset, attitude, and thought process that stands behind the methods. DCox

What REALLY surprised me was how the owner of the car got all those manifold bolts out, and ended up having to bring the manifold with head attached! Thumbs up to BOTH of y'all!

I'm a tool maker and what I have done in the past with broken bolts was weld a bead inside of the washer hole smaller then the bold dia. Then weld a nut on top of the washer. After it cools the heat and shrinking will loosen the bolt. Then on screw the broken bolt out. Other times I drill a hole through the center of the broken bolt just under the tread depth and with a center punch collapse the tread wall out. Both work well.

This is a example of a full scale real journeyman machinist. 90% of machine shops wouldn't be able to even do this. They would tell the customer to take it to a welder. The welder would tell them to take it to a machinist first. Well done Adam.

Iv'e been a machinist for 36 years. Great extraction job Abom.To the guys wanting to weld a washer and nut to the old stud or similar, yes it sometimes works. When it fails because the weld breaks and you've tried to drill it and your drill went off center into the threads.........oops.To the guys that suggest blowing out the bolt with a torch, yes it sometimes works. When it fails and the hole is enlarged because the threads get damaged........oops.Due to the nature of our job we have a lot of tooling we use to perform different extraction attacks. Since extractions are so common in the machine shop it's the experience that matters most. To be completely transparent, botched extractions by the customer are the most common thing I see and despite their best intentions they will have turned a simple extraction job into a hopeless disaster.

Same old story, having the right tools for the job and patience. 10/10

If I was down to my last manifold with 2 busted rusted bolts I would be looking for a guy like this to fix it knowing he would do the job properly without risking busting my manifold, what a master craftsman!

Watching those threads peel out in a nice spiral was extremely satisfying

I worked in the exhaust business for many years, and one of our specialties was removing broken studs from exhaust manifold, and the one in your video was one we would see a lot, and sometimes we did not have the luxury of doing it on the bench, we would almost always have to service them on the car, Chevy's where the worse, with there 3/8s stud, ford's where commonly 7/16 of which made it a little more easy as well where Chrysler, I have literally removed Chevy studs that look like an hour glass and was even told you will never get those out they will snap specially when you start putting heat around them, well to me that was a challenge and my boss after they where cooled would put them on display in the waiting room for all to see, and some even had some twist in them, the one in your video I would have used a small brazing tip on my torch heated up the ears of the manifold and since there was some stud left on the other side of the ear, taken plyers and reversed the stud just enough to poke through on the exhaust end to braze or MiG on a bolt enough on the old stud that is now protruding enough to catch some meat on it, heat up the ear and with a ratchet slowly back it out, I very rarely had to drill out.I have literally done 100s of these, not to offend , but in the time it took you to set up the manifold in your drilling jig I would have already had both studs removed with no damage at all to the manifold, and all what would have been left was to chase a tap through the holes and good to go, like I said we did these well still on the car, and as for the heat risers like tat set have seen a lot those froze up and removed a lot of them basically the same way you did,

I've seen guys drill a small hole in a broken stud and like this where a little was sticking out, put a nut around the stud and with a wire feed welder weld the nut to the stud. Let it cool and since the center was drilled the stud can shrink and then come out pretty well that way too. I'm not going to judge how you do it because every chef has their own way to cook !

Cool. Nice end mill. I wish I had something like that. I have done many of these old manifolds for restorations. It takes me about 10 minutes. You need a mig welder, and washers and nuts the correct size. I take an angle grinder or dremel and grind the end that protrudes out until you just start hitting the manifold. On some manifolds that top hole is a blind hold, so you can skip this step. Many times the stud does not break flush with the casting. If the stud is badly rusted so it is just a small stump, I grind it down to the flange. A nut will not be able to grab that small stump. Then if the stud broke flush with the casting, hit it lightly with a dremel where it broke and make it shiny. If it broke below the surface. Hit it with a die grinder type of dremel bit, or a small stone bit, and clean it up and make it shiny. Then build up the broken off stud with mig wire until it is about 1/8-1/4 of an inch above the flange surface. The mig will not make a bond to the casting, but try not to hit it too much. Make sure you get good penetration on the stud itself. The heat from the mig welding helps shock the rust bond loose. I get a washer that is about the same diameter of the stud. I center the washer over the weld protrusion I just created. Mig weld that protrusion onto the washer. Grind it flat, if it got too messy. Weld a nut to the washer around the outside perimeter of the nut, keeping the weld low so you don't make the nut flats too big for the socket to fit over any more. Grind if you got messy or too high on the nut. You only need really about 3/16 of an inch of the top of the nut to grab with the impact gun/socket. Do the same on the other stud, or all three studs if there are 3. When everything is dressed and ready to impact out, preheat the entire flange using that nice rosebud tip like he did until it just turns red. Pick a stud to do first. Get that one flange/stud area red, and set down the torch. Hit it immediately with a 3/8 impact wrench and back it out. You should not need a 1/2 inch impact gun. If it does not budge, heat it again. A 1/2 impact wrench will most likely break the weld off before budging the stud out. While the entire casting is still real hot, hit the remaining flange/stud(s) quickly with the torch to get it red. Hit it with the 3/8 impact wrench. Do the third stud the same way. If the nut and washer breaks off without bringing the stud with it, move on to the next. Start over on any of the welds that broke loose building up that stud again with the mig wire, weld another washer and another nut. Pre heat the whole flange, and focus on the remaining stud/flange(s). If after 2 tries it will not come loose, I drill and tap. I have done this many times with the manifold still on the car, but it is much easier with the manifold(s) off the engine.

You Sir are a master! Anyone who manages to drill out a bolt so accurately that they can peal the threads out is the genuine article!

Hi Abom79 - I haven't tuned in for a few months, and my first reaction when I started this video was "Wow... he's looking so much better - Clearly the diet's been working well"... Just thought you might like to hear that. Cheers!!

A pleasure to watch a craftsman at work. Thanks for making this video available.

When I see people like this I miss my father as he was a machinist/ welder. Excellent video, Keep up the good work, Jim Fulton

Very meticulous. It is nice to see someone that is so careful with their work. I see all the arm chair machinist are in the crowd lol. Thank you for sharing and great job. You made a piece that is very rare and unusable to useable again.

Watching you braze, Adam, brings back fond memories. Back in the day I had the honor to work under an old school Navy Machinist, Mr. Jessie Byrd. I'll never forget him. He could build and fix anything and everything, with extreme precision! Man, it was a really treat to watch him braze and stick weld. Here's to great memories in the shop, and my two favorite Machinists and all around good fellas!🍻😊

Adam, this is not a trivial problem, and thank you for sharing a correct way to do this for those who know-how and have and the correct tools. Not all of us have such a complete shop, nor the experience and skill-memory to do this on the spot, but that's what these videos are for. Well done, another great bit of content. Thanks.

Its refreshing to see a true Tradesmen work his craft, nice shop, great video...

Strange how some ppl have to criticize a repair ! If it's a hard to find part one cant take a chance on a backyard method !I think it was a great safe way to remove studs with no chance of failure ! Thanks for the Vid ... PS: I would do the same thing ...

The "Butterfly" is what I've always known as a "heat riser." It was supposed to be closed, according to temperature, to force heat back up under the carburetor when the engine was cold, so the fuel/air would mix better until the engine was warmed up. They were prone to failure. Stick open, stick shut (causing valve damage), or the thermostatic coil would break in some cases, causing disconcerting noises when at an idle. I think the advent of TBI/DFI systems rendered their need to "obsolete." I had a '61 F-85 at one time. 215 ci aluminum block V-8 that had an amazing amount of 'snap' for the amount of weight it was pulling. It had the hydromatic 3 speed (no torque converter) that would give you whiplash when it shifted out of first unless you took off with your foot in it. That caused me to have more than one discussion with local cops because I overshot, momentarily, the "unposted urban speed limit" of 25 mph.

That was amazing! I can't believe you pulled out a corkscrew sliver of the remaining bolt, way cool & beyond talented. Loved watching. Thanks much!

Six other ways to do this, but the hardest way and the most precise way with almost no risk is this way. Fun to watch someone who has the right tools.

My compliments for a very well made video Adam, thx. As a retired HD mechanic, I too have faced this problem many times. i.e. Broken studs rusted into an exhaust manifold. There is another trick in addition to the machining which may help. When you heat the part as you did in the beginning, squirt it with engine oil - lots, enough to soak it well. Just regular SAE30 works best, or 10W-30 works too. There will be a LOT of smoke so you need an exhaust extractor, or very good ventilation. Repeat up to 3 or 4 times if needed. The oil will actually work its way into the old threads and assist the removal. Frequently not requiring machining. If you can get a small amount of movement in the broken stud, then work it back & forth applying more oil until it comes out. The real trick to this is to NOT USE WD40 or similar penetrating oil once you get to heating the part. I love WD40 and use it extensively, however penetrants don't work well with heat. The engine oil has detergents in it that breakdown the rust much, much better when applied to heated parts. And yup, you may still need to machine the stud out. I too have peeled-out old threads as you show here.

Awesome that you managed to get those out of there and use the original thread! I thought you'd have to enlarge it and retap it oversized. Amazing work! Anyone who's dealt with those kinds of things happening (seized, broken studs) it's so satisfying to see that result. :)

Brilliant... don't shorten the vids. I can pause and come back if needed, but I love watching all the steps and progress. I envy your shop and your skills... working on getting my skill set improved an love seeing a pro at work.

Wow, the peanut gallery here is brutal...the many alternative methods I saw in the comments are almost universally meritorious, but what's with the anger? - Adam machines large industrial parts for a living. If that's what I did and was equipped to do for a living, I'd also mill the studs out. The repair was done and done beautifully. It's certainly not cost-effective (either in capital or labor costs) to do automotive broken stud removal like this on a production basis. But it was a one-off; he doesn't run a muffler shop! - It's nice to have a lower-risk option like this. He mentioned that the manifold, by virtue of its 55-year age, is more-or-less irreplaceable. Working on a mill offers a bigger margin of safety compared to more freehand methods (hand drill) or ones that get closer to cooking the cast iron (welding on nuts; melting out the stud with a cutting torch).

Being a Mechanic, with Dad and one brother being Machinists and another brother being a Welder, I really got a lot of enjoyment from your professional skills and video quality. All of my broken studs were still attached to the vehicles and I got to remove them from down under. Learned a lot in the process. Loved your processes and equipment. Thanks for sharing. : ) Subscribed.

you just took me back forty are fifty years , in my day we repaired money was tight , thank for the showing your good work .

When I saw that manifold, I was reminded of the 64 Jetstar I had and did the same job. I took the torch to cut out the heat riser and knocked out the ceramic bushing and then threaded a pipe plug in to the ends. Your fix worked well, too.

Well I enjoyed the video. I'll be honest I don't think this is how it's done most of time for most people. Having said that, the studs are out and threads are saved. I see a lot negative comments and a lot of "you should have" comments. Here's an idea, if you can do it better then make a video of you doing better and post it.

I know nothing about machining but have always wished I did. It's a treat to watch a real pro apply his decades of skill and experience to repair something like this. You make it look so easy. Also, excellent video gear, high quality all around. As i watched, I felt like I was standing there right next to you, particularly during the brazing operation. Excellent!

I nearly always try the weld a washer and nut to remove broken studs at first. But watching Adam perform the slinky trick was just fabulous. Nice job Adam.

very good youre a man after my own heart.just over a year ago i had retirement forced upon me by big business and i lost everything! my business my lathe and all the rest of it,as a result when i watch you and others like you it makes me frett,and oh how i envy you and all the rest.So now my future is watching these u tube videos .Its obvious you are a fine engineer and this being so would you mind if i could give you some tips on problems that i have dealt with over the past seventy years in the hope i might pass on my life time experience to you and others.Thank you for reading this and keep up your exellent work . Kindest Regards J.T

Great work, people not listening to what you said, you did what the customer wanted you to do - respect Sir

I think that butterfly was called a "Heat Riser". It was supposed to help the engine warm up faster. Suckers always started to rattle after a while...

It's a pleasure to watch a skilled craftsman at work. Thank you ABOM79!

My father and i always enjoy your videos and when you began to check tge flatness of the gasket face just reminded me why i love this channel THAT is customer service right there!

Nice tools, beautiful job and most of all, a very skilled operator. Fab job, pity there ain't more people like you still around, we chuck away far too much stuff that's still reclaimable.

Always nice to see a skilled person at work! Thank You I had a similar job done to an older Ford Ranger, I always wondered how they did that!

What a relaxed confident procedure; right machine, tool, and engineer.

Thanks a lot. The flanges with broken bolts are usually on the car. I found they can be quickly drilled out with a cheap carbide tipped masonry bit. Cut the stump flush with a cutoff wheel, start thin any thin high speed drill to make a dimple in the middle, and use a 3/8" carbide tipped bit to do the rest. Gets through completely in 2-3 minutes (with a high speed bit, 2 hours).

I've watched this video a few times over the past year, one of the best videos on this topic😄

Damn, that is sure a sweet feeling when you peel or "uncoil" the thin shell of the stud out of the hole! I have never used (or even had access to) a milling machine, but I have drill out many dozens of snapped studs over my 30+ years as a master automotive technician (and the shop owner) - using a hand held drill motor in most cases and a only few using a floor mounted drill press. Most of the time it wasn't the rarity of the part as with antiques that determined the course of action to save the part, but rather the lead time to obtain a replacement part for an imported automobile which could take weeks to get.

A pleasure to watch a true professional taking his time and using his skills. Great stuff, mate.

I must say, THAT was awesome!!!! You really know your craft! You make it look easy, but I know it takes years of experience and the tools required to get the job done! A man may have the tools that you have but without the experience he can not produce the level of product that you are able to provide without the knowledge that you have gained over the years of experience that you obviously have obtained! You are to be congratulated!

Yeah, my trade. Had my own business at for many years, milling machines, lathes, slotting machine for keyways, all the usual machine shop gear, did most of my own work hands on. Kind of very nostalgic to watch it being done by you now, as I have sold up for retirement a few years ago. And at 72 years old I can still do the same kind of work.

You do good work Brother. Nice to see people put pride in their work these days.

Great job. Pleasure to watch vintage parts restored.

Pretty much how I thought it would play out. Another tricky deal you solved with attention to detail and careful consideration. Thanks for posting!

Enjoyed watching your thoroughness performing the bolt removal.

I swear, you remind me of a surgeon sometimes with your determined dedication to doing your best on each job...👍

I have never had to drill out a broken stud and I have never used a mill to do the job. Simply weld a 3/8 washer onto the broken stud. Then weld a similar sized bolt onto the washer. Cool the bolt with your water spray avoiding spraying the manifold . Heat the manifold around the stud quickly before the broken stud heats up too much then with a tbar and single hex socket on the bolt you welded on you should be able to work the broken stud out and save the manifold thread. You could do both in the time you did one. Been doing this on car repair for 40 years

There's literally nothing more satisfying than watching a man who knows what he's doing work.

Most people have no knowledge of how easily cast iron cracks. You did a pro job on a piece that you wanted to save from cracking. Great work.

These broken bolt/stud videos are such crowd pleasers. I think puling the thread pieces out with pliers is actually more satisfying to watch than spinning it out. It's like getting rid of something stuck in your teeth. Great job videoing the brazing--you must have used some kind of filter?

Nice machine work. I guess on something rare one can afford to do it like that. In 1970s-80s era engine rebuilding shops we did a lot 361-391 heavy duty Ford truck heads, typically with 3-5 rusted in & twisted off exhaust manifold bolts in each one. A 3/16” hole was drilled through on the drill press, blow the rest out with torch, and run an old tap through with cutting oil to get the slag out of the good threads. In addition to the valve job we tacked on $5 per broken bolt removed, and made more than shop hourly rate. Amazing how steel can be burned out of cast iron threads without damaging them. A few seconds of heat till red, hit the oxygen, wiggle torch around a bit to get the sides, done. On through holes everything blows out the back, blind holes it all comes back at you and torch tip needs frequent cleaning.

Many methods for this issue! This is the most bestest if you have the part out and the tooling! The nut welding method is only reliable on aluminum parts with iron bolts for those concerned about Aboms skill and patience!! Great job Abom!!!

Watching you with all the equipment, skill, and experience was just plain fun!!!!

You are the man. So professional,great job.Brian.

I admire people with skills like this and am envious.

Great video, I have drilled a lot of exhaust manifold studs out of Cat 3406 heads on the engine which are notorious for breaking naturally because of the manifold weight. I would slowly drill stepping up in bit size after each pass while cooling my bit with water every minute or so. When I could just begin to see the thread, I would pop the edge out with a small cape chisel and could usually wind it out like you did, and then chase the hole with a bottoming tap. Lots of delicate work not to destroy a head.

That is some impressive machining! I have never seen a stuck bolt come coiling out. Thanks for sharing.

It is so very satisfying extracting a rusted bolt out of a bit-of-car. Exhaust manifolds are the holy grail of rusted fastener extractions.

Looks like they did the smart thing in bringing it to you instead of breaking off an easy out trying to do it themselves. It shows your attention to detail in checking the manifold surface for flatness. Great video Adam

Very well done. I half expected you to use a torch and try to braze a nut to the ground stud. It was good to see its new, to me, method. Top-notch.

Enjoyed seeing this done, using heat before drilling, a true professional at work!

I use a tig welder , put a couple of dots of weld on the broken off stud the weld a bolt onto it , heat up the flange and turn out the broken stud , retap the hole and off you go , worked for me for 30 years, later

*Good job. I can't get enough of broken studs or bolts removal.*

What a pretty job of removing bolts and closng hole. Thanks

Very well xplaned dude know what's he's doing look forward to learning more from this man I've been a machanic for 30 years this is done aswell as I've ever seen assume work

Awesome work, neat to see you unwind the thread curls outta there

It's a pleasure to watch a master at his craft.

Great video I usually end up doing them with a hand drill since I don’t have a mill but, I love learning different techniques. Thanks for sharing.

Peeling that thread out was great. That was some of the best brazing footage I've seen. Great job!

Great Job Abom!! Those Studs looked like they've been in there since The Battle of Antietam

Great Equipment and great workmanship ! I was sorry when I retired and moving I sold a lot of my stuff but I wouldn't have used the big stuff again at my age and the cost of moving it at my age didn't make sense anyway after moving I found out I have Cancer.

I’m a woodworker but appreciate other tradesman , especially liked the close up of the brazing , never really seen it up close like that , great video 👍

Great job, I’ve seen all kinds and when some one doesn’t know what their doing it goes big time wrong. I like your drill, that helps a lot.

I have done this both ways and welding a nut on the broken stud or bolt seems to be faster and works almost every time I just cut the stud flat on both sides and place a flat washer over the stud then weld a nut to the stud they turn right out after it cools off for a minute. I wish I could put pictures on here but I am 67 and don't have the skills to show you >>

Really nice to watch this and relax. And learn something in the process.

Good careful work, excellent explanations of the details, great video editing, and totally appropriate use of music only as a transition to the end of the video. An A+ effort all the way. Coming from a guy that has done more than his fair share of broken screw extractions, including parts jigged up and leveled on the Mill table. Thanks for sharing the knowledge!

When you have the right person using the right tools with experience it's priceless.

Nice job! I can't help but notice how clean and neat your shop is. You'd be appalled to see mine... 😎

Yeah, toolmaker for over thirty years. I used to do that type of work on a regular basis. It helps to spray in that knock her loose in while it is hot. DONT BREATHE IT ! Works just like the man says.

People who repair and restore old cars are truly thankful for the few who like yourself can be bothered to repair rather than replace. Thank you.

Love your work I have fixed things all my life watching this brings back so many memories of my apprentice ship thank you for sharing take care.