Interesting comments.... But if it were mine, I would want to get it out.... Now is the time, and peace of mind is always #1..... JMHO, Cheers..........
Turn it over and lot's of compressed air? How would a 3/8" washer make a thermostat stick? And if it did lodge in? Wouldn't it have to be while the engine was hot and then wouldn't the thermo be open?
When back flushing, plug all other coolant ports with rags (except for the one with the rogue washer and the port intended for the water pressure, then put a rag over the hose that goes in the other port. Turn on the hose and make sure that only the port with the rogue washer has water gushing out. My guess is that it is stuck in the middle of the head somewhere, as the coolant circulates throughout the head. HEAD GASKET REPLACEMENT TIME IF ALL ELSE FAILS! REMEMBER FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION!!!!
Turn the motor over and tap vigorously with a hammer against a block of wood, not metal to hammer. it may dislodge and fall out or get loose.
And a year later: finally an UPDATE! Spent a bunch of time applying almost every solution offered last year in this thread, to complete failure, and finally ditched all efforts. Placed a strip of masking tape over the port, tagged it "washer down this port!", and moved on to the rest of the build. Even thought about just leaving it down there. But I'm obsessive about this kind of ****, and just couldn't see myself rolling down the highway and NOT thinking about that little washer every mile. Fast forward to yesterday, Fourth of July, with the thermostat tipping nearly the triple digits. Perfect day to declare war on my old 3/8" nemesis, and kick some ***. Pulled the head. Tipped it around a few times. Independence Day for Marx! Here's a photo of the little SOB. Cheers to my HAMB friends and all your advice and encouragement!
Hang that little ****er on the wall and label it, as long as it's there Murphy's law will leave you alone.
I'd put it on my keychain. Its amazing how falling stuff always seems to land in the absolute worst possible place. I'll bet if you stood there with a bucket full of those and threw them one by one at the hole you would never get one in.
Some years ago, I was working on a SBC. We had the covers off and the heads were ****. So, we decided to spray some PB Blaster, to prep them for removal. I had a small diameter straw attached to the spray ****on and was spraying away. The force of the PB spraying out, shot the little straw off and down a water port it went. It was so crazy, I couldn't even get mad. It's amazing some of the **** that can happen when working on a car. If something is remotely possible, it'll happen. I used a flexible grabber to get the straw out of the p***age. Funny stuff.
The Jalopy Journal
