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Dread Rear Freeze Plug


padgett

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I wonder how strong JB Weld really is.   Could it be possible to sandpaper the entire interior cup of the freeze plug that's exposed, until its all shiny metal ?   Then, wipe with a toluene, or Gumout-soaked rag to get the residual grit / gunk out of there.    Once the freeze plug surface is shiny clean, then take whip up a big slug of JB Weld, and fill the freeze plug interior space with it almost entirely, placing a grade 8  3/8" bolt in the center of the JB, and let it cure a couple days.   Or use a grade 8, 1/4" bolt, or whatever. If JB binds to the metal strongly, I'd imagine it'd then be easy to get a really beefy pry bar over the head of that bolt.      the bolt might not want to maintain itself perpendicuarly but could be possible to fashion a loop on the end of a coat hanger wire and run it down from above the engine, so as to hold the bolt in proper orientation during the curing of the JB.   The threads on the bolt might be good to grab the JB pretty well.   But maybe also include a nut on the end of the bolt, wherein the nut has been ground to half its original thickness.   That would give more grab on the bulk of the epoxy.    Again, thinking off the top of my head, thought I'd share.   Worst case, the JB wouldn't be strong enough when force is applied to the bolt head with pry bar and the bolt would pull out.

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I think the JB Weld would be strong enough to do what you suggested if you can get the surface clean. However, if I couldn't get the freeze plug out - and I had plans to pull the engine on down the road and replace the freeze plug - I think I would clean the freeze plug and grind clean the raised portion of the block that the plug fits into. Then I would use Devcon Plastic Steel Putty to make a patch that can be ground off later when the engine is removed. The Devcon Putty would easily withstand the coolant pressure and heat. Devcon is routinely used in automotive machine shops to patch engine blocks. JB Weld might work just as good but I like the Devcon Putty because it wouldn't tend to run like the JB Weld would. Just throwing out another option...

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  • 1 month later...

And two months later it is out. Problem when cars each have a stall is that there is no urgency. Finally went to Home Depot and bought a 3/8" 6" long carriage bolt and spent about a 1/2 hour with grinder and file making a hook.

 

Another 15 minutes of pounding and it is out. Now just need to put new one in, replace oil pan and filter, add fluids and fire.

 

Note that even with this long a thingie I could only get about 3/4 of hammer travel.

 

So now I can get the GTP in for intake gaskets.

 

Yay.

itsout.jpg

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  • 2 weeks later...

Good job.  I would have worried about the cut end of the bolt having becomed weakened from cutting on it, the heat... so when I put it in the hole in the freeze plug, the J at the end of the bolt would have just bent off or chunked off under the stress.   glad that didn't happen for you, excellent write-up, and thank you.

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  • 1 year later...

 
I just looked at everything again and seeing that I'm 74 and have to work in an unheated garage with no lift, I may have somebody do the work. The garage want to pull the engine and "do it right" . I know I have an oil leak from the intake gasket. So whilst the engine would be out is there anything that should be addressed?

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  • 3 weeks later...

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