I have the 53 block blues... I lock n stitched the 2 inch crack and it ran right under all the lugs and continued on its mary way. Has anyone actually had luck welding it?
I am thinking welding an oval shaped scab plate ( 3 x 12?) over the entire area. Tig with silica bronze of course. Just seeing if anyone else has come to this last measure yet either.:D

You are gonna have to pull and strip the block to weld it right? How much$ to just get another block at that point.

What about making one more attempt at lock and stitch repair? Or Ive seen some pics where they just cut out a big rectangle and make a new insert plate and lock stitch that in. Im no authority on any of this just bouncing some things off you.

Thanks man, keep em comin! The more i read up on welding that type of cast the worse it sounds.... Its not exactly the same as nickel rodding a truss to your 60 housing. Im just not sure if you can locknstitch below a current locknstitch. I'm gonna call them in the morning.

You can always drill a little divit at the end of the hole to stop the crack and deal with the extrmely slow leak of anti-freeze. I know of quite a few trucks running around just like this. A few are over 400 HP and one is 800+ on nitrous. Only thing wrong with them is a tiny little wet spot on the block.

I have the 53 block blues... I lock n stitched the 2 inch crack and it ran right under all the lugs and continued on its mary way. Has anyone actually had luck welding it?
I am thinking welding an oval shaped scab plate ( 3 x 12?) over the entire area. Tig with silica bronze of course. Just seeing if anyone else has come to this last measure yet either.:D

The block has a high content of graphite in the iron alloy. It is not weldable. You can weld it all you like but it will inevitably lead to new cracks. The heat-affected zone from welding is very pronounced with this alloy. It might hold for a short time but it will fail again....and probably in a more catastrophic manner. Filler alloy or technique does not matter - the base metal is the problem.

I did the lok n stitch deal, too. It worked for 8 months or so but did not hold off the inevitable. The ONLY permanent repair is to replace the block.

CTDnut is right, and i know it. Any suggestions of a good coolant stop leak?

CTDnut is right, and i know it. Any suggestions of a good coolant stop leak?

I think I probably tried them all....none worked for any length of time. The problem is that the crack expands and contracts with temperature changes and engine usage. Since the crack moves, it is difficult for any stop leak to settle in place. By the time that truck had another block put in it, the heater core had to be replaced since it was plugged solid.

What about trying to braze it rather than weld it? Just a thought...

If it were me, I'd just be looking for a replacement block. If you look around you should be able to find one for a reasonable price, especially if you factor in all the time and money spent screwing around with other fixes to the cracked block.

jb weld the bitch

Loctite RTV 5920?

how about stop drilling both ends and hard blocking it??

jb weld the bitch


I thought about this too. Wouldn't hurt to try as a last resort. I am sure there are threads/reports of someone already trying it.

http://static.summitracing.com/global/images/prod/large/hnh-860228_w.jpg

Not sure if i understand the hard blok product..... I went on their website and read up about being used to block coolant passegas next to cylinder walls to create more cylinder wall strength. Are you suggesting i put this in the coolant or on the side of the block? Seems like a legit product just def dont want to clog any coolant passages.

Hard Block Is A Competition thing

I emailed hard blok and they said definitely DO NOT run their product through the cooling system and it will not work on the side of the block either, at all. NEXT!

I just hate the idea of pulling a perfectly good running motor over a coolant leak....

Take a look at Devcon. I have ran this to seal up blocks till overhaul it last a long time like 250000 in one truck.

Which Devcon product did you use?

JB Weld doesn't do a darn thing. When the crack expands and contracts, it simply cracks the JB weld too. Silicone actually works much better because it can expand and contract with the movement of the crack. But, it too fails. The coolant slowly seeps past it.

I just tried helping my friend out with this proplem. It didn't end well . I tried welding it with cast rod his son who owns the truck had sombody else try and weld it before me and plate it. All that was taken off and ground out when I got there. Years ago a friend asked me to weld a mounting ear back on his amcI6 (Bell housing mounting) At the time I was working with some guys who were all top notch welders and they gave me this rod form a company called CRONATRON they just called it super rod It worked great on that I6 I truly belive if I could have found that rod again and been the first one to start welding on that block it would have worked unfortunetly neather one of use could find that rod. My friend happens to be a plumer by trade and tried brazing it the block acts as a big heat sink and you can not get it hot enough to braze and they also tried marine tech its a super epoxey used in the boating industry that lasted the longest 1 day before it started to leak again. save yourself alot of grieff know and just start looking for a block.hope some of this might help.

For now i'm trying the Devcon " Plastic Steel", i'll let you guys know if it works.....
Any body got a line on a 24v block?:confused:

For now i'm trying the Devcon " Plastic Steel", i'll let you guys know if it works.....
Any body got a line on a 24v block?:confused:

Got a spare one sitting in my garage, the shipping might kill the deal though. :D

Please PM me if you have a 24v shortblock or long block available states wide. Any help is greatly appriciated. I have a buddy that does transport across this country year round and can pick things up for me along the way. :beer: