Frozen block

[Rich Biebel]

If the block is freeze cracked it is usually easy to find. It probably left a rust trail that would lead you to the crack. You can dry powder mag the crack area to confirm it if it was all apart. It is pretty easy to pressure test a block yourself as you described. Put water in it first and then pressurize it with the oil pan off. Drain it out when your done though..... Welding a cast iron block is not a good way to go in my opinion. There is also a process called stitch welding and that is also not a good way to go. Any internal crack is going to leak water into the oil. I have actually seen an epoxy repair work better than a welded repair......but I wouldn't recommend it especially if the crack is internal. You would be better off parking your car and waiting until you had enough money to get a new block rather than risking all your parts on a block that had a crack and was repaired. I have seen to many failures of supposedly properly welded race engine parts.....Being out of racing is not a big deal as it is usually there when your ready to return and it's like you didn't miss a thing.....well almost.....I have had 2 freeze cracked blocks in my many years of messing with cars........It's not fun....good luck

[Ron Finney]

Ask your machinist about filling the block with block filler, depending on where it is cracked. You may be able to stabilize the crack (drilling the ends, etc.), and the filler would seal it from any water. Might be an option..... Also, there is a process for crack repair that the remanufacturers use called lacing. They actually drill and tap a hole in the crack and then put in a special bolt that the head breaks off of. Then they drill another, then another until they overlap, filling all of the crack. Once the repair is done, they shot peen the casting and you can't even find where it was laced. Not sure where you could find anyone who does that procedure, but you could contact an engine remanufacturer that might be close, they might do it for you. Just a couple of options that hopefully might help.

Good Luck, keep us posted.

Ron
33 S/C

[Robert Swartz]

Originally Posted by Ron Finney

Ask your machinist about filling the block with block filler, depending on where it is cracked. You may be able to stabilize the crack (drilling the ends, etc.), and the filler would seal it from any water. Might be an option..... Also, there is a process for crack repair that the remanufacturers use called lacing. They actually drill and tap a hole in the crack and then put in a special bolt that the head breaks off of. Then they drill another, then another until they overlap, filling all of the crack. Once the repair is done, they shot peen the casting and you can't even find where it was laced. Not sure where you could find anyone who does that procedure, but you could contact an engine remanufacturer that might be close, they might do it for you. Just a couple of options that hopefully might help.

Good Luck, keep us posted.

Ron
33 S/C

Ron,

Ironic, you answering this thread. I doubt that you remember me but, I bought a SBC small journal block from you about 20 or so years ago. It was due to this very same problem. For my 2 cents, replace the block, you don't have any idea as to the potential internal damage. When mine cracked, it cracked a couple of the cylinders. An expensive lesson then, doubt it's gotten any cheaper today.

Miss the old days hanging around Scott's speed shop.

Robert Swartz

[Tod Lane]

Originally Posted by Ron Finney

Ask your machinist about filling the block with block filler, depending on where it is cracked. You may be able to stabilize the crack (drilling the ends, etc.), and the filler would seal it from any water. Might be an option..... Also, there is a process for crack repair that the remanufacturers use called lacing. They actually drill and tap a hole in the crack and then put in a special bolt that the head breaks off of. Then they drill another, then another until they overlap, filling all of the crack. Once the repair is done, they shot peen the casting and you can't even find where it was laced. Not sure where you could find anyone who does that procedure, but you could contact an engine remanufacturer that might be close, they might do it for you. Just a couple of options that hopefully might help.

Good Luck, keep us posted.

Ron
33 S/C

Is Indiana cold weld still in business, they used to do that type of repair. My wife used to run around with the owner's daughter many decades ago.
If they are it is a pretty amazing process, Like Ron said, you won't be able to find the crack, and the way they do it sort of "pre stresses" the repair, it is very, very solid.

[Rich Biebel]

Stitch welding is the process referred to in an earlier post. Tapered pipe plugs are installed directly along the crack and they are installed one by one and overlapping one another. Been there, done that and it eventually leaked in a 400 Pontiac race engine. That was an outside crack and quite long and into a freeze plug. If it was an external crack you could vee it out with a grinder and fill it will epoxy and your chances of it not leaking are about as good as any other process. Welding cast iron really requires pre and post heat to get it to work as well as possible. Al Mathon in NY used to offer cast iron weld repairs on heads and maybe blocks as well. He guarenteed the repair would not leak. I had experience with his weld repaired heads.....they did not leak. Seats and guides had to be redone after the weld due to the pre and post heat he used to get the best weld quality. Usually after one of these repaired heads ran for a shor time they needed to have the seats redone. The heating process made them unstable. My buddie blew up a couple engines and had ported Turbos...Each blow up meant another head repair. I finally convinced him to ditch those heads and buy some new ones. I also had a 454 race engine that came in a car a buddie bought. I drove it for a while. The engin was built using a 427 '351 block.......the block that came in a mid 60's Corvette. It had aluminum rods in it and the guy that ground it for clearance gound to far and hit water. He epoxied the water jackets. It leaked the first time we ran the car. We pulled it apart and tried to get the epoxy out by oven baking the block...twice. It just made a big mess.....We tossed the block in the scrap pile. Those '351 blocks bring a lot of money in the collector world and it might have been worth trying to fix it but that was before they were paying silly money for collector cars......I still think welding, stitch welding and epoxy preairs on a race block is not a god idea....

[BIZMANRACING]

well the jury is back.

its been awhile since this nightmare began. i buried my father who died mar 15. rest in peace dad. he always hated my racing. said it was stupid. 2 cars going down the track at crazy speeds just dangerous. he was intitled to his opioin. i could say i wished that he saw me race, but he never did. he said he didn't want to bury me. why don't i go back to playing golf. oh well.

but, anyway the block is cracked in number 8 and number 3. so i have a big heavy paperweight for sale. the new block is ordered and i guess in a month or 2 i should be back out. thanks for all the replys. i'm not welding it and i'm not going to hard block it. i don't think my dad would approve the added danger. i do hope that now he can see all the races and if he wouldn't mine riding with me and stop me before i do something stpid like stomping the brakes at high speed and blowing out the front tires.

good luck to all, hope to see you at some track real soon. its already been a long time it seems since i ran super street. blowing out those tires put a big dent in my racing for awhile.

[jim powers]

good luck with the new block,i,m very sorry to hear of your dads passing,very sorry for your loss

[buzzinhalfdozen]

Carlos, very sorry to hear of your fathers passing, it really brought back some memories. My dad passed a couple years back and though he and I really never got along, watching him die was probably one of the hardest things I've ever done. I just hope you and your dad were on good terms as their deathbed is not the place to reconcile. Joe