Removing block deck dowel pins

Before the block is ready for the caustic bath, you need to remove all of the oil gallery plugs etc etc. Since I got started, I decided to get rid of the dowel pins too. Practically always, they are so tight that they can't be pulled out using normal hand tools. Especially so with the marine block that has stood in storage for years after it's heads have been pulled:

I gave the pins a lot of heat and a lot of rust penetrating oil the day before pulling them out. I also smacked them from all four sides with a screw driver&hammer - all of the above to try and break the bond between them and the block. I don't know if that contributed to the end result but I do think so.

Next, using an angle grinder with a cutting disc, I carefully ground two grooves on the opposite sides of the pins, like so:

This provides a grip for the pulling tool, an improvised sliding hammer. That is a vise grip, steel bar welded to it and a weight. Here's a picture of the tool's gripping end (if you look closely, you can see that I ground the jaw tips a bit so that they would perfectly match the grooves in the pins):

The bar needs to be welded parallel with the jaw's centerline so the tool would pull in the right direction. I took the nearest heavy piece of metal, approx 5Kg square tube, and drilled it with holes to accept the bar. Finished off by welding a stop to end of the bar and greasing the bar:

Finally, here's how easily the dowel pins come off with the correct tool: