[Shop-talk] Stuck Spark Plug

[Bob Spidell]

I'm a big fan of impact wrenches, but half-inch, IMO, could be overkill 
(the battery DeWalt I have, IIRC, is rated over 200lb-ft). Also, I 
haven't found air or battery triggers to be very 'featherable.'

I have a 3/8" Craftsman impact I got as part of a kit with an airless 
compressor. Normally, I run pneumatic at 90PSI, but with it I would 
start at, say, 50PSI and work up. Or, if all you have is a half-inch 
start at maybe 30PSI. Make sure the socket is on straight so you don't 
break the ceramic.

Bob


On 11/10/2025 3:09 PM, John T Blair wrote:
> Was over at my son's house this afternoon.  He's working on his Ford 
> F150 up with the turbo (can't remember what Ford calls that - economy 
> of a 6 and power of a V8).  He had to replace the valve (rocker box) 
> cover as it was leaking as were the spark plug gaskets as the well the 
> plugs were in were foll of oil.  He managed to get it all done.  
> However, we wanted to change the plugs.  When he tried to break the 
> 1st plug loose, it wouldn't budge.  He was using a 3/8s" ratchet and 
> breaker bar to no avail.  We went looking for a 1/2" to 3/8" adapter 
> so we could get more torque using a larger 1/2" ratchet and or breaker 
> bar, but we couldn't find an adapter.
>
> Now this being said, I remember seeing something about using an impact 
> wrench on an ezout because it turns so little that you don't break the 
> ezout.  I was wondering if this would work for a stuck spark plug?  We 
> did squirt some PB blast doen into the plug wll and let sit for about 
> 5 min and tried again with the 3/8" drive breaker bar.
>
> So my question to the group is:  Do you think that we could use an 
> impact wrench to break the plug loose then once it's broken loose 
> remove it with the ratchet?
>
> JohnT
>
> John T. Blair  WA4OHZ     email: jblair1948 at cox.net
> Va. Beach, Va                  Phone:  (757) 495-8229
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