Hey guys!!! Engine is a 1965 401!!! Changed out the large frost plug on the driver side on Sunday AM thinking I had a screwed up frost plug,,,,went for a drive and still had the leak!!! Got the car on the lift while it was still warm,,,yanked off the starter and put pressure to the rad,,,found a crack about 2.5" long that runs horizontal,,parallel to the drain plug!!! So,,,because its the beginning of the cruise season,,,and I don't want to have to pull this engine out again,,,and take it for welding (which I know would likely be best,,or find another block).....has anyone "fixed" a leaker like this with JB weld and something like maybe some Irontite??? The engine only has 1200 miles since it was completly rebuilt,,,bored,,,etc etc,, If the engine needs to be pulled out for welding,,im fine with that,,,but would rather delay it until the fall,,,and actually get some cruising out of this thing this year!!! Thanks for any ideas,,replies etc!!! I think what likely caused the crack,,,a few years ago the furnace in my shop had died during a week long cold snap,,and it was pretty much straight water in it,,,I know it pushed the frost plugs out some!!! Then last summer I was having overheating problems with it,,,to small of a fan,,,and had my timing out of whack!!!
Very common location for these blocks to crack if it freezes. If you want to save the block I would suggest having a professional shop look at it and see if it can be stitched if its only 2-3 inches. Heres some info on the process. http://www.locknstitch.com/ Stitching has been around for a long time and its a very reliable method. The first step is to have the block magnafluxed on both sides to make sure the crack isn't more wide spread than you think. Welding should be a last resort and I wouldn't suggest that. The most effective way to weld cast is to heat the whole block in an oven and weld it hot. Using any other method may or may not hold up over time due to numerous variables. Definitely worth a try to JB weld it. Clean up the crack really good and scuff it.
Yep,,, what Jason says,,,, I have welded 2 blocks,,, one did fine,,, the other cracked again,,, and again,,,, and again,,,,
Locnstitch works well and you may be able to do it in the car.I did a nailhead in 1957 wagon new rebuild and the mach shop missed a crack.It was installed and during tuning and first drive crack was found. Welding is not a well accepted repair read link.Has been done with varying results. http://www.locknstitch.com/CastIronWelding.htm I have used locknstitch with good results. W
Well,,, it is all relative.... My local block and head repair place wants $100 per inch for repairing cracks.... I will not do that....:moonu: it is cheaper to find another part....
Thanks for the replies fellows!!! Flushed everything out real well,,,and "trying" some irontite,,it stopped about 95% of the leak,,,just a slight trace of it still seaping when warmed up!!! Will see how long it takes to get worse again!!! Thanks for the link to locknstitch,,,really interesting stuff they do there,,,when the leak starts acting up again,,,going to give their system a try,,,hopefully it can be delayed until this winter,,i'll pull the engine and get it checked for more cracks,,and see if its worth saving!!!
Thats a great video,,,,was it linked from their website,,didn;t see it on there!!!! Sure is helpfull for guys like me who can read something over and over,,and still not sure im doing it right,,,learn better watching something being done!!!
I read and read, then i went to you tube and searched. I didn't even see the link to the video on their site!!
Boy does this sound familliar. I had a nice crack that ran between the frost-plugs and then down. It was brazed together and stitched, but the crack of course spread. Then to seal it off, someone packed the whole cracked area with "devcon". It still wept, and so did I once I discovered it under the paint and muck. Now here comes the fun part; blocks are almost free in the US and not available in Canada. Of course our beloved and wise government wants their cut, so there are expenses and papers to be filled out at the border. Then there's shipping; for those of you in the East it's not too bad; but when I found out that shipping a stripped down bare block from New England to Alberta would cost over $1000.00 I just about s--t. In the end I got lucky; the machine shop that I had brought the engine to had found an old core that had been forgotten years ago in the back and I was able to get it for the cost of cleaning it up. But that's what you'll probably wind up doing, taking a road trip down to the US and getting another block.
Welding does not always fail. Several years ago I was looking at an antique Pontiac - it may have even been an Oakland - which had a welded crack in the left side of the engine block. The weld had been done in the early 50s. It has been run ever since and doesn't leak a drop. I was so impressed that I took a photo of it which is in my dead old computer. I am going to see if I can find a local place that can recover the hundreds of photos that I cannot access.
I dont know is this will help. I have a friend that has a 66 M code 401 v8 that is completly went through. bored apx .020 over new pistons rods cam, lifters,heads etc. He has 66 Skylark Convert he was going to put it in. Then he had some medical problems and needs the money. He has $3500 invested, he wanted what he put in it, but may consider a reasonable offer. I think it comes ready to go with carb & starter ready to run He lives in Bremerton Wa, PM me for his phone if interested. Also 66 T400 trans that matched the motor. Gary
What kind of repair are you referring too?? The irontite fix or with the lockNstitch thing?? The irontite seems to have stopped "most" of the leaking,,,leaves a little puddle now when its first shut down,,,once it cools down it stops leaking all together!! Going to try and get the summer out of it,,,pull it this winter and decide which way to go,,,see if it can be pinned,,lockNstitched,,,or if I should just start fresh with another block,,and transfer my new parts over to it!!! I do have to say,,,the darn thing will get up and move along pretty well,,,the 200R4 will do 2 gear kick downs,,cruising along at 45mpg and kick it,,it drops down 2 gears and gets right to work,,,if the bugger wasnt leaking,,,I would've had it at the track lastnight!!!!
Your crack sounds almost identical to the one I had. Machine shop used the Lock 'n' Stitch method. The wall thickness in that area is very thin and will probably be below the minimum (> 0.10" if I remember correctly) required by LnS. We UT'd the area and cut back to thicker material and then applied the process. Block was pressure tested afterwards. Kinda pricey but I really wanted to save the motor and keep the car with matching numbers. Others have suggested filling the bottom end with epoxy.....
I was wondering if block filler would be another route to look at,,,any opinions on that from anyone??
Curious about using Hard Block (or other) as well. I have an Olds 455 that developed a freeze crack on the lower outside of the block. Seems like after a good shake & bake at the machine shop, using block filler up to the first freeze plugs might cure this. I'm thinking drilling & plugging each end of the crack first would help prevent the crack from spreading.
