Head bolts
 

So just finished reading the thread on head gaskets and I’m thinking about what I need for my refresh. May start a thread in that later. Question …on the reuse of head bolts after several tear downs. I have ARP bolts but I’m guessing I’ve reused them 5 times . Am I getting to the point of replacement?.

Unless the ARP bolts have been way, way over tightened at some point, they can be re-used over and over. A 1/2" ARP bolt @ 190,000-220,000 tensile strength is not stretching anywhere near the deformation zone and the tiny bit it does stretch is in the elastic zone where it will return to it's normal length once loosened.

Thanks for the response ,. I know the standards of their manufacturing is excellent but it’s something that raises a light concern. Like to add , I always learn from your perspective and knowledge on this site . It’s definitely appreciated by many. .

Literature says ARP con rod bolts can be tightened and loosened up to 10 times. Head bolts are so much thicker I wouldn't worry about them.

With iron heads I would be far more concerned with the surface finish of both decks and how true they are, and how accurate your torque wrench is, and how clean the head bolt holes are.

Back before ARP made head studs for Pontiacs I had no choice but to use near new factory head bolts ( 1st time out of a motor) and 1016 gaskets under my iron heads that had to handle 8 psi of boost our of my 671 blower.

Two or so years later when I swapped out to different iron heads I changed out to the ARP studs, and this was after a ton of street miles and about 100 full throttle blast from what I recall from my log book I kept in the car.