<html><head></head><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:times new roman, new york, times, serif;font-size:16px"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1475790926742_8636">Muffler Nuts and Heat Exchangers continued...</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1475790926742_8770"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1475790926742_9204">Problem: Big nuts holding Rear Heat Exchangers to Muffler were seriously frozen.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1475790926742_9205"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1475790926742_8846">So...garage down the street said, ok, cut the muffler off at the heat exchanger pipe and bring 'em in. Did that.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1475790926742_8847" dir="ltr">They then used Real Heat and power tools and the rest and got the nuts off the exchangers...at $15 a pop. They said the job was difficult...but not in those exact words.</div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1475790926742_9243"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1475790926742_8862">Back home (up the street) I managed to get the left exchanger threads started onto the new muffler and tightened down to where I'll tighten the rest of the way when it's in the car.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1475790926742_8902"> The right (smaller) exchanger didn't have such cooperative threads...and was more awkward to play with and hold and get good access...but after hours...and no access to an inside re-threading tool, I got it started...to maybe 2/3 of the way on...not as far as the other one. With some metal damage from the "heat wrench" treatment, it's not visibly clear if the threads, at this point, are exactly lined up where they're supposed to be. It MAY be going on straight, but, with the heat-battered metal, it's hard to tell for sure.<br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1475790926742_9030"> But, what if the threads are off a touch, even with heavy tightening when it's bolted to the engine? Will that provide enough sealing to keep exhaust from leaking? Is that the only concern?<br></div></div></body></html>