Projects IM SO F@#KN SICK TO MY STOMACH just ruined a flathead

God im still in shock over the deal.....just pulled the heads on the flathead I bought to run in the coupe and found a perfect bore no crack engine .......so I switched to the back to take the bellhousing off so I could get it up on the engine stand and BAM!!!!! it fell off the 4x4 I had it on to keep it off the ground and I walked to the front and freaked out......Guess it landed on the water pump and busted the block GOD THIS SUCKS


now the perfect block I was going to run is junk....Anyone have a good bore block they want to sell

 

Ughh....................that really sucks. Not a good way to start the weekend.

 

that sucks! but a good welder may be able to fix it?

 

Got beer? Have a couple. Shit happens.

 

Fixable ! I can think of several ways with weld ing the broken piece back in as the first. That is not a high stress area.

 

I think that can be fixed, like John said, that isn't a stress area and a capable welder should be able to weld the broken piece back in. Do you have any shops near you that fix cracked blocks? Try them and see what they say before you freak out too much.

 

It can still anchor a boat! You can likely get it fixed.

 

A flat plate (14-11 Ga.) made like the gasket + those unused holes next to the timing cover. Remove the broken bolt, clean up the area (use a file to make sure it's flat), use plenty of sealant, bolt on a new waterpump and the plate. The pulley will be out of line by the amount of the new plate but if you use 14 ga. it'll likely never know the difference.

 

Fix it and move on......lotta good welders out your way Im sure.........

 

Looks like it broke, because only one or two bolts were in place.

Why are you guys sayin' it's not a high stress area? Isn't the water-pump also the motor-mount? I'd call that fairly high stress.

saints...I'm sure you're considering the possibility of gettin' it fixed, but don't even think about it, unless you know of a shop that'll do it right. That includes being able to heat the entire block to cherry red before welding. There's a shop near me that's awesome for this kind of work...and that's how they do it. They stack fire-bricks into a box shape for an oven, put the block in, and lay a couple of big torches in there until the block is HOT. Then they weld and machine. Good luck.

 

Huh! Isn't the water pump also the motor mounts? Woops! Rickybop beat me to it!

 

That's really sickening. I'm reading this as my freshly rebuilt flattie is dangling from the cherry picker. I think I'll lower it for the night... (I think it could be fixed as well)

 

That's what I was thinking.

 

I have fixed casting like this before I used silver braze (med or hi temp)or even brass the trick is to get it hot enough if someone in your area uses the burnout cleaning system you can use that as a preheat and a post heat as a prelude to machining the engine.

Kevin

 

OHHH! Man how i wish this could be an April Fools Joke... Goodluck

 

i can have that fixed in less than 45 minutes and no one could tell except for the shiney metal..... du pont paint will fix that!

 

A good DC welder and some NiRod will fix that up in a few hours. Spot and cool, spot and cool.

 

Have a friend that's a pretty good welder. I've seen lots of his work on cast iron. Impressive. I'm sure others can do it also.

 

Good lord don't take this advice Especially the cherry red part. If you heat the whole block that hot then if it wasn't ruined before that it certainly would be then.

Cast iron can be easily repaired by a good welder. I could repair that better than new in a couple of hours using Ni-Rod 55 which is a high nickel stick welding electrode.

A mild preheat and keeping the area hot followed by a slow cool wrapped in insulation would do it.

And yes, I do know a little about welding.

 

what model flathead is that?

 

A small block Chevy is cheaper & makes more power anyway.

Sorry about your engine though. That sucks.

JH

 

my sympathy and sorry no fix ideas of my own. that sux.

 

i know a guy in st louis with a cheap 8ba...

 

Don`t give up so soon,that repair can be made with metal stitching. I have never witnessed a successful weld repair on an flathead. I all depends on how much money you have in it and how hard it was to aquire in the first place.

 

This is no joke. Could you please do a " How To".

 

Look at the timing cover; obviously an 8BA type. Oh, though it is obvious, it goes without saying; don't throw away the broken parts.

 

Most of the responses already said what I am going to but I have personal experiance with dropping flatheads on shop floors.

I dropped mine off a forklift on the back corner of the block. Broke off into two additional pieces. I quit that night just the way you are feeling. Been there, done that.

After I got over kicking myself, I welded it back together with nickel rod. That was back three or so years ago. No problems with the welds.

If you have not had the experience with welding cast, find someone who has. Important to grind a vee in the breaks and leave an air gap where the break is to allow for the contraction as it cools. If done properly, the block will be as strong as before.

Take a look at where the bolt goes that is in the water inlet. Maybe you can tap the hole deeper to get the bolt to grab what did not break away. Get a plan for that before you weld it back up.

Good luck and show us a picture after you get it welded back together.

Neal

 

And I know very little about welding. Maybe the castings are heated short of cherry red...I don't know. But you can't argue with success. This shop is considered by all anywhere near here to be 100% capable, and they have a constant flow of customers. I know guys weld cast iron castings without this method, but I also know it can be problematic. The method used by this shop is guaranteed dependable.

 

Man, that really sucks. sounds like the kind of shit I'd pull......

 

I agree, it can be fixed, two ways to do it, cold as quoted or heat the entire block up and weld with nickle rod. Then paint and your good to go