1973 Buick Centurion 455 Guys, I need to replace the valve cover gaskets on my Centurion, but have had bad luck in the past over torquing bolts. Wasn't able to find a thread or sticky that lists the major components and their respective torque specs. Would anyone happen to know what the torque specs are for the valve cover bolts, or could point me to a thread or area that has them listed?
The spec is "not much", "just snug", and "enough to seal". Take a 1/4 drive ratchet, and grab it by the HEAD not by the handle, and tighten the thing till its snug. Its about the same force you apply on your oil drain plug, maybe even less.
I've had bad luck "snugging" bolts. Does everyone tighten to a certain feel, or are there a few out there like myself that often try to use the torque spec's?
Azeem is right on use a short 1/4 rachet and you wont over do it... most leaks at the rocker arm covers are due to the surfaces not being properly cleaned before reassembly....
