Glow Plug Removal

[Colonel Jim]

I bought the glow plug removal tool from Black Dog Customs and it is a great tool. However, it pulled the case off the wire leaving the glow plug heating element still stuck in the cylinder head. The tool obviously placed a lot of pressure on the plug to cause the case to separate from the wire before the heating element could be pulled through. I assume the heating element is extremely swollen. My question is has anyone else had this problem and what do I do now?

 

[papakb]

Your best option is to remove the injector and fish out the end of the glow plug and pray that it wasn't in cylinder 6 or 8!

 

[87cr250r]

Put the piston at TDC before you do this so nothing can fall into the cylinder.

 

[Colonel Jim]

Put the piston at TDC before you do this so nothing can fall into the cylinder.

Thanks, I was thinking that was about the only choice left. I squirted WD40 in there to see if it might make the bulb easier to pull out. Will see in the morning.

 

[MarkM]

Has happened to me. The tip can snap off and if you pull the injector you should be able to grab it from the inside using needle nose pliers then using a small punch to tap it in from the outside. I came up with an idea to use a cotton ball to put into the pre-cup under the plug tip to catch it if it falls.

I bent up a cheap pair of long needle nose pliers to reach in the injector hole. If you have a inexpensive wifi bore scope it makes this process a lot easier. Below are some pics when I did mine.

The tip will get caught in the pre-cup as it should not fit through the opening to get into the cylinder.

Many mechanics typically do not go fishing for the tip and just replace the plug. The tip without being connected to the rest of the glow plug bolted in the head will get heated way up from the fuel burning and will eventually break apart in tiny pieces and go into the cylinder and out the exhaust valve. I do not like the design but it is what it is. I was determined to remove the tip and was successful with the aid of the cotton ball bedding and lots of patients.

I feel your frustration.

Mark

 

[Colonel Jim]

Thank you, Mark.
I have a borescope I can use in the injector hole for pictures and will try to post a few as this develops. One problem is the length of the wire sticking out of the glow plug hole. It is the full length of the glow plug and will need to be cut off if the tip doesn't come out of the hole. I have a pair of vise grips clamped on it now in a last-ditch effort to extract the tip after it soaked in WD40 overnight.

This is the easiest glow plug to get to, number 2 on the driver side, so I hope this is not the case with the rest of them. At my age, 81, climbing around the engine compartment is not fun!
Respectfully,
Jim

 

[MarkM]

The worst one is number 8. One closest to the driver. No room at all and that is one I had fight with. Dont forget to put some copper never-seize on the plug threads.

I much much prefer the Cummins system as a single unit that heats the air in the intake. Simple,effective and easily worked on. I am not a fan of these v8 detroits for a multitude of reasons. I wish to hell they went with the Cummins 6BT as that wound have changed the truck..

Good luck with the repairs.

Mark

 

[MarkM]

Make that cylinder 7. Drivers side far rear. No room.

Mark

 

[Colonel Jim]

It looks like the overnight soak in WD40 worked enough magic that it was pulled out with the vice grips and a small crowbar. No broken tips. Now I am starting on the back glow plug on the driver side and that unscrewed, but didn't move out of the hole but a few mm. Getting the extractor to accept the glow plug while standing on your head is not easy. I figured it can wait until tomorrow and I soaked it with WD40. It is at times like this I envy the octopus.

 

[Colonel Jim]

The WD40 and the extraction tool worked on the glow plug on the back driver side of the engine. It took some time to get it all the way out and I was sore from trying to balance myself over the top of the engine. Necessity is the mother of invention, or so it is said. I decided to make a platform that attached to the lifting rings so I could lay down on the engine without damaging it or me. Just need to add some padding and it will be fine.

With this rig, I finished replacing all the glow plugs on the driver side. Tomorrow it is the passenger side.

 

[Mainsail]

My 1165 has the turbo, so the right side is a major pain in the butt. The driver side was easy from underneath, I did all four in no time.

 

[Mullaney]

The WD40 and the extraction tool worked on the glow plug on the back driver side of the engine. It took some time to get it all the way out and I was sore from trying to balance myself over the top of the engine. Necessity is the mother of invention, or so it is said. I decided to make a platform that attached to the lifting rings so I could lay down on the engine without damaging it or me. Just need to add some padding and it will be fine.

With this rig, I finished replacing all the glow plugs on the driver side. Tomorrow it is the passenger side.

View attachment 883013

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Nice work platform @Colonel Jim !
Yeah, some padding would be nice.
Some sort of short step ladder to get up there...

It's interesting. I'd bet I could use that same arrangement on my Mk23 too.
I need to check out that idea before I need it.

 

[Colonel Jim]

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Nice work platform @Colonel Jim !
Yeah, some padding would be nice.
Some sort of short step ladder to get up there...

It's interesting. I'd bet I could use that same arrangement on my Mk23 too.
I need to check out that idea before I need it.

I used two low sawhorses with planks for a platform beside the Hmmwv that came up to the top of the tire. That gave me access to the "engine plank" easily.

 

[Colonel Jim]

The glow plugs in my motorhome Cummins 400 hp are much easier to change. Access to the engine is under the bed in the rear. Just for fun, here is a picture of the motorhome towing the Humvee on a trailer.

 

[Colonel Jim]

Finally finished replacing the glow plugs on the passenger side. The back 2 required the glow plug extractor tool and it was a real exercise in working in tight spaces. The heat shield limited access to a small slot. I was able to get the tool on the glow plug but there wasn't enough room to hold it with a wrench while turning the extractor. Ended up screwing the tool sleeve up to the block by finger and then used an air ratchet on the extractor. The impact of the air ratchet started moving the extractor out while pushing the sleeve up tight against the block. The air ratchet really made it much easier than trying to turn it by hand with a wrench.

The new glow plug controller arrived Monday and took about an hour to install. It is from Camoteksystems and replaces the circuit board with a manual push button to activate the glow plugs. Much better system than the original one.