has this ever happened to anyone??

[hondawilly]

Ok i was going down a Trail on my 1992 arctic cat Jag 440 and it spit a spark plug out of the hole and recked the threads. anyone know why this would happen. lose plug?

[OldSchoolin86]

Years of over tightening a plug can weaken the threads. Good thing is it's fixable.

[hondawilly]

i didnt over tighten them i put the plug socket on and tighten it as hard as i can with my hand

[OldSchoolin86]

i didnt over tighten them i put the plug socket on and tighten it as hard as i can with my hand
You've installed the plugs hand tight for years?

[BigGreenMachine]

You've installed the plugs hand tight for years?

LOL That would make me nervous if I was working over a running motor.

[hondawilly]

i have had it for 3 years so they are tight enough were i cant get them off with bare fingers

[OldSchoolin86]

i have had it for 3 years so they are tight enough were i cant get them off with bare fingers
LOL, 3 years of banging around could mess up the treads too.

[thefox]

lol

Yes if the plug was loose that would have caused it. Sometimes they will loosen up over time or the threads are worn out.

[YAMAHA_Jim]

I make them handtight,then snug them down a bit with a ratchet or wrench,(never crank them down tight)

[MTS]

theres ya problem right there, they should be tighter than hand tight, take the plug number and go to the local sled shop and ask for a heli-coil for it

[hondawilly]

whats that a plug socket that comes with the emergany part i have one but i just dont stick a screw driver in there for leverage. i also found that some teeth on the inside of a belt were missing like 3 inches of them. atleast i have a engine with a bad crank to take the heads off of. and should i replace the head gaskets or spray them with silver paint?

[hotroddal]

ha ha,hondawilly i got my sled runin on friday, sorry to hear that you recked your spark plug holes.

[MTS]

a heli-coil is a steel instert for the spark plug hole that has new threds in it, but if you have spare heads just stick them on, yes you MUST put new head gaskets on, the gasket surfaces should be CLEAN like no oil clean enough to eat off of, take your time cleanin it DONT mark up the gasket surfaces, dont use a sharp object to take gasket matrial off eaier, but this should be a steal gasket,,but you never know, anyways once everything is clean, you should get some "copper coat" or "nickel coat" or "anti seez" and spray, wipe a thin filim of it on both sides of the head gasket, toque down the head nuts to proper spec, take it for a rip, let it cool off and then re-torqe the head nuts, take er fir a spin and check the head nuts often make sure they are torqued to spec!

[TimSr]

Nearly all MFG's instruct the user to always use a torque wrench, and nearly all users dont. If you are unsure about how much to tighten it, use a torque wrench, at least until you develop a feel for how tight it should be.

[New2ATC]

that happened to my neighbord 14 horse methanol burnind drag racing minibike motor.. it popped right out, sounded like someone was shooting a gun.. he used a little bondo on the spark plug, and it worked.

[OldSchoolin86]

that happened to my neighbord 14 horse methanol burnind drag racing minibike motor.. it popped right out, sounded like someone was shooting a gun.. he used a little bondo on the spark plug, and it worked.
A motor like that and he used bondo to fix it instead of a heli-coil. :wondering

[MTS]

A motor like that and he used bondo to fix it instead of a heli-coil. :wondering
no kidding...some people haha, do us a favour new2atc get a camra and tape that mini bike blowing up when the plug comes out next time... ;) :beer