MTFCA Forum

Are aluminum heads strong enough to screw two bolts into the spark plug holes and use them to lift the engine from the Model T chassis?

This aluminum head is the older R. G. Reeder High Head.

Has anyone tried this arrangement with success?

Jim they will hold the lifting eye no problem.
Kevin Prus

It use to scare me to do that till a friend Mike Parker said if it will not hold it should not not a plug then! So I have been lifting them ever since!

And folks wonder why head gaskets blow?

I' m a bit cautious. I have a 3 legged chain fall. One goes to the water outlet on the front of the head the others go either side of the hogshead about half way along the back rail.
Henry would approve of the three point mounting.

Allan from down under.

I just use a nylon hoist sling and make a basket loop with it- its adjustable and works just fine. Around the bottom of the pan and pass one end thru the loop and ready to lift. Of course it saves me a trip to my tool box to grab my spark plug with the hoist loop in it. Either way works for me- aluminum or cast iron head.

Thanks Joe and Kevin!

That will make the transmission repair much easier!

I typically lift my engine with two lifting eyes (Aluminum Z head.) It also allows me to adjust the angle as it is going in or out. I asked the engine rebuilder about the safety of using a lifting eye with a aluminum head and his comment was that it was strong enough to lift the whole car.

This is one of those "preference things" but here's how my engines go in and out! Bolted into the block witj the handy balancing thing

Twice, I used an "engine cradle" like what Tim Wrenn shows above. Once engine out, later engine in. It worked very well when working by myself.

Pulling on the spark plug holes looked fundamentally wrong until i did a stress analysis. Stress is no problem. Be sure to screw the puller in finger tight.

The hole is strong enough to lift a whole car, but I don't recommend it.

Art Mirtes

Does anyone else use a clamping system like this? Not sure where it originates from as it was borrowed from a since deceased friend, but seems to work well enough and balanced ok when clamped around number 3 cylinder, but have only used it with firewall removed so could do a straight lift/lower.

The lifting prongs were used on the assembly line in the Ford factory, several old films show them in use and there are lots of old photos of old workshops where you can see them.
The prongs are even in the Ford model T Bible i believe.
They are a very quick way to hoist the engine, but the eyebolts in the plughole are a very safe way to do the job.

KR Wilson was one such producer of engine lifting tongs - best for flat firewall T's with firewall removed but one can reposition to get an angle on them to remove from others.

The easiest way is to just choke a nylon sling under the oil pan and cinch it between #3 and #4. If you need more tilt, move it closer to #3.

And, lifting stuff is what I do every day…

A 14 mm sparkplug tightened to 15 ft-lb torque generates a clamping force of about 3000 lb. This presents no problem with an aluminum head. A 1/2 in pipe thread is even stronger. According to Joe Bell, a complete engine and transmission assembly weights about or less than 500 lb.

Pull on the spark plug threads without fever

Incidently, the combustion force on a spark plug in a high compression model t engine is about 550 lb. at maximum engine output.

Art Mirtes