#41  
Old 10-01-2022, 09:16 AM
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Take advantage of doing it the hard way and give a close inspection of the cam plug and cup plug to access the oil gallery to make sure there driven in far enough and maybe more importantly straight.

Check that the oil gallery pipe plug on the drivers side is good & tight also.

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  #42  
Old 10-01-2022, 12:07 PM
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Well good news and bad news. Good news is I figured out why the freeze plug leaked bad news is when I went to pull it out of the block with pliers after spinning it loose it fell inside and I cant reach it. Now what? I cant leave it in there can I ? Its brass to so magnet wont grab it.
It leaked beacause there was a burr on the outside edge of the block and when he drove the plug In it scored it badly enough that the sealer he used didnt work. Now im screwed I think.

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  #43  
Old 10-01-2022, 12:34 PM
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Oh boy does that ever suck! !!


Well if when it fell in, if the cup side of the plug is still facing you then bend up a coat hanger to loop down in there , get under the plugs lip and hopefully you can then lift it up and then grab onto it with a long nose plyer.

I would say you can’t leave it in there as there’s too great a chance it will get pushed by the water pressure up to the deck surface and block a cooling hole.
Worst comes to worst I guess you yank the motor so you can sit the block on its ass end to fish it out.

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  #44  
Old 10-01-2022, 12:37 PM
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Bending up a 1 ft long section of a 1/4” course threaded rod might work better then my first suggestion of a coat hanger.

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  #45  
Old 10-01-2022, 12:42 PM
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I will try that. My God what a fiasco. Someone staked the block where the plugs are at some point. Maybe the factory? Thats where the scores came from that caused this. Not sure bars leak would have fixed that either.

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  #46  
Old 10-01-2022, 01:17 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ts3189 View Post
Who did the machine work? They should be stepping up. I would pull tranny and fix it now, or else wonder every time you use it if the sealer will fail.
The sealer won't fail once it seals, it is considered a permanent repair. If you don't have real world experience with this sealer (I do), and know the principal on how it seals (I do) then saying it will/may fail is hearsay.

I do agree that whoever installed the plugs initially has a responsibility to replace the leaking plug/s. The way that usually works out is that they will fix the leak, but you must pull the engine, and deliver it to their facility, so they can do the work. Normally machine shops only work on an engine in their facility, out of the car, and it's you responsibility to deliver it back to their facility. The question is do you want to incur the expense, and labor of an engine R&R to take advantage of the implied warranty from the machine shop?

Then there is the fact that there may be a sand hole, (porosity) or a minor crack in the block, now you have opened another whole can of worms.

Bars Leaks will seal a minor crack, and also porosity, permanently, no fuss no muss.

I have 55 years making a living doing this work, I don't give questionable advice on this forum. I try to give advice on what I know works, and may save someone time, money, and labor.

Pulling the transmission isn't a huge deal if you're not lying on your back doing it. I can R&R one in under an hour with a lift, and a transmission jack on most RWD GM cars, of course headers sometimes affect that speed. Putting a soft plug in is flat rated a 0.6 hr. So with a garage style setup in just over an hour and a half, a competent mechanic could have the job done. Of course all these times are not applicable if the OP is lying on his back under a car, performing the work.

I can also pour a can of Bars Leaks in in under a minute, and be secure that the leak will stop, and seal as long as the engine is functional.

If he changes coolant at a later date, the leak won't start leaking again, the Bar's Leaks seal won't be affected if the coolant is changed somewhere down the line.

The OP needs to weigh the facts, and make his decision.

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  #47  
Old 10-01-2022, 01:19 PM
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Omg I should but a lottery ticket! Used s small pice of steel rod with a hook bent into it and managed to hood it between the plug and a bit of sealant that formed a hoop and got it out.

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  #48  
Old 10-01-2022, 01:22 PM
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Here are the scores from the stake marks. Im pulling the other to be safe then I will file the stake marks. I have permatex gasket maker for the new plugs.
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  #49  
Old 10-01-2022, 01:23 PM
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If you can't get the plug back out, just leave it in there, I've seen a lot of crap inside of water jackets that has no effect on engine cooling.

This is exactly why I made the recommendation I did, and yes, Bars leaks would have sealed the imperfection.

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  #50  
Old 10-01-2022, 01:34 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sirrotica View Post
If you can't get the plug back out, just leave it in there, I've seen a lot of crap inside of water jackets that has no effect on engine cooling.

This is exactly why I made the recommendation I did, and yes, Bars leaks would have sealed the imperfection.
Got it out!
Wow really? Im impressed then! both plugs were bad, 3 scores about 1/16 inch deep on each plug. If You think it would have fixed it I may try it next time

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  #51  
Old 10-01-2022, 02:50 PM
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Good thing you got it out!
Great job!!
Now you have another bone to pick with the machine shop who did the block work.
Those burr’s where clear to be seen so they never should have used Brass plugs which can get scored just way yours did on the way in.

If you supplied the brass plugs then a close look over of the block by the shop and seeing those burr’s should have made them call you and say hey where gonna go with steel ones at least on these two rear ones.

Oh, and just for the record, the factory never stakes freeze plugs.

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  #52  
Old 10-01-2022, 03:46 PM
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I filed the stake marks that caused the scores in about 15 minutes that includes the time it took to flap wheel the bock to. I'm kinda bummed he didnt do the same before driving the plugs in, thats all he had to do to avoid this. Honestly makes me worried about the rest of the engine although he did write down all the clearances for me to reference.

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  #53  
Old 10-01-2022, 04:19 PM
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This has been a roller coaster to read! Congrats on fishing out the plug!

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  #54  
Old 10-01-2022, 04:19 PM
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I have seen a LOT of BAD installations of Core Plugs in blocks over the years.
Block needs to be prepped before the the new core plugs installed, NOT AFTER THE OLD PLUGS
WERE DRIVEN OUT BY HITTING THE SIDE OF THE CORE PLUG AND THEN GRABBING THE LIP OF THE CORE PLUG.
Guaranteed to screw of the mating surface between the core plug and the block.

Tom V.

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  #55  
Old 10-02-2022, 02:46 AM
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Lost count of the blocks that had one or more of old expansion plugs left inside. The winning block had two sets not counting the ones I knocked in. Ended up with a big pile of old steel plugs. They just settled to the bottom and didn't hurt anything. Engine cooled just fine when it came in for a performance upgrade.

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  #56  
Old 10-02-2022, 03:31 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by n20ta2 View Post
Here are the scores from the stake marks. Im pulling the other to be safe then I will file the stake marks. I have permatex gasket maker for the new plugs.
WHICH "Permatex gasket maker"? They've got a dozen varieties.

If you're talking about damned RTV Silicone, think again.

GM uses 242 Blue threadlocker.

Quote:
Originally Posted by lust4speed View Post
Lost count of the blocks that had one or more of old expansion plugs left inside. The winning block had two sets not counting the ones I knocked in. Ended up with a big pile of old steel plugs. They just settled to the bottom and didn't hurt anything. Engine cooled just fine when it came in for a performance upgrade.
I've seen blocks with a couple of plugs, but not a couple of sets of plugs. Lotsa guys pound in a core plug and don't bother to dig it back out when installing a block heater. I never liked that, but I acknowledged that a few of my co-workers did it that way.

  #57  
Old 10-02-2022, 07:05 AM
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Not the rtv I used the anarobic sealer for flanged surfaces.

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  #58  
Old 10-02-2022, 12:55 PM
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Glad you got it fixed tough to find a good machine shop around here. Took three trips to machine shop to fix a rear main leak on new rebuild.

  #59  
Old 10-02-2022, 02:06 PM
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Glad you got it fixed tough to find a good machine shop around here. Took three trips to machine shop to fix a rear main leak on new rebuild.
I hear that! There is one that specializes in pontiacs somewhere in NH I think, He was super expensive though. Probably twice what the going rate is. I think my crank went there to get turned and my rotating assembly balanced

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  #60  
Old 10-02-2022, 04:11 PM
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Mine was at well known shop in Whitman, told him it was rear main, kept insisting it was oil pan . Kept telling me it was oil pan. When junior finally looked at it bop 2 piece rear main was installed backwards.

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