manifold down, taking notes that the rearmost ones are either shorter or have a spacer sleeve on them.
I find it helpful to use a razor knife to slice through the front and rear seals before trying to pry the manifold loose. An assortment of large pry bars, a very large chisel, and a plastic-covered dead blow hammer may be needed to get the intake to break free if it’s been on for a long time. Be strategic and use common sense here. You do not want to damage the sealing surfaces or break the casting. Once you get one side or corner to come free, you can work it up and down to get the other side loose.
It’s tempting to pry up the lifter valley tray and pull out the lifters at this point. But you stand a good chance of bending the sheet-metal tray up if you do. Better to wait until the heads and their respective gaskets are removed. Our engine was missing the valley tray. It is not easy to use with roller lifters, but a recommended item with flat tappet systems.
Remove the Cylinder Heads
With that intake finally out of the way, you can remove the cylinder heads. They are held down by 10 1/2-inch-diameter head bolts; 5 long ones under the valve cover area and 5 shorter ones alongside the exhaust ports. While I prefer hand tools, this is a place where a properly handled impact wrench with a six-point socket is okay for removal.
You will probably need to pry and wiggle the heads up a good bit to break them free from the old gaskets. To keep them from popping loose and dropping to the floor, I will often keep a long head bolt loosely installed in the center “short bolt” location as a precaution.
Be very careful with where you insert any pry device needed. We have seen heads where the gasket sealing surface has been nearly destroyed by heavy-handed removal damage.
A few light taps with a dead blow hammer can help coax the liberation of heads from block.
With the cylinder heads removed you can now pull off the head gaskets and easily pull the valley tray off. Lifters should theoretically just slip out with your fingers, but often take some effort on older engines. I have found that a spray and soak with carburetor cleaner or solvent helps loosen grime and varnish built up around the lifter’s bottoms. A strong magnet, a small screwdriver for gentle prying, and a pair of pliers to grab the top might come in handy on lifters that don’t want to slip out easily.
While most builds will be using new lifters, a very gentle touch will be needed if you plan on saving them for reuse (not advised), and keep them in exact position order.
Remove Water Pump and Front Damper Assembly
Next remove the water pump. The water pump is mounted to the block with four 3/8-16 fasteners. Pay attention to where you remove them from, since some may be unique for attaching accessory brackets.
The back of the water pump has a removable flat cover plate. If you are re-using the pump, change that gasket out.
Next is to remove the damper from the front of the crankshaft. You will probably need an impact wrench to loosen the bolt. It has a 15/16-inch hex head, and it is going to be very tight. Alternately, you can use a large breaker bar and figure out a way to keep the crankshaft from rotating (a large friend holding the flywheel or a fabricated contraption to stop a piston in its bore).
With the bolt out of the way, use a dedicated puller to remove the damper. These tools are inexpensive and available from numerous tool suppliers, or they can be rented at many local parts stores.
It takes three bolts to grab the damper and a single long bolt in the center with a free spinning center that bears against the crankshaft. As you tighten up the center bolt it will pull the press fit damper off. I have seen folks use an impact wrench on the puller, but it is probably best to do it by hand to avoid damaging the tool.
