really got problems now not really worried about my hard starting issues.my powerstroke sprung a leak.I found a pinhole on the exterior of my block its not a crack its a needle tip size hole above the starter below the freeze plug and beside what looks like a hex head plug.Any way to fix it ? jb weld,drill and tap a plug any ideas please?

 

I'm not much help but that hex plug is a block drain plug. Good luck with this one, I feel for you.

 

Probably had too much water in the antifreeze and it started to crack out near one of the drain holes.

Since your name is "therigwelder" I assume that you are familiar with welding specifics of engine blocks/bell housings? Or would you like some help with finding links for that?

Good luck.

 

as a welder I would prefer to use a cold method.often welding on cast causes more problems.If it was cracked I probably would pin the ends and weld it but a pinhole I may have to try drilling and tapping a 1/4 inch bolt into it

 

I think you are on the right track.

 

thats the solution drill tap, and plug. no welding cast iron if your smart.

 

JB WELD and duct tape. Lol











Joking aside I'd try drilling and taping. What do you have to lose ? If you screw up you'll need a block, if you leaving it alone you'll need a block and as you said welding it going to cause more issues so you'll need a block

 

Well I drilled and tapped this morning.put in a 1/4-20 bolt and tightend down it still leaked so I got a bonded rubber,steel washer like they use on metal roofing and put it behind the bolt.I filled it with water so far no leaks but I haven't put the starter back on and warmed the engine up.I am praying it works.will keep posted

 

Well the truck has been running @ idle for an hour and no amtifreeze leaking.now I can hopefully get back to my hard start/running issues

 

If that washer doesn't hold up to the engine heat, I'd go with a pipe tap and pipe plug. 1/8 npt is just bigger than 1/4" I believe (strange, yes). Then Teflon tape a pipe plug and you'll get a good tight, high temp seal.

The real question here though is WHY is there a hole in your block? How many miles on it? Have you or the PO(s) kept up with SCAs? And isn't it usually the cylinder walls that pinhole not the outside of the block? Maybe just a bad casting from the factory?

Oh and how thick do you estimate the block was in the area you drilled? I'm guessing it want paper-thin or your have had nothing to tap into. Did it feel full thickness if you have a sense for that?

 

Don't think pipe plug would work the casting is so thin (glad as a welder I had enough sense not to strike an arc on it) if the threads on a 1/4 -20 bolt didn't seal without washer I doubt if the coarser pipe threads would seal even with Teflon or dope.the real fear was tightening the bolt hoping I didn't tighten to the point of stripping the fragile threads I tapped into the casting.In the area right beside the block drain plug its super thin and the area wasn't rusted out.i plan to change the washer and bolt out once a year or as needed to compensate for the rubber washer fatigue

 

theres another thing you could do if all else fails, is to drill it out the size of a rubber expansion plug, and put it in.

 

Well a 1/8" pipe thread is 27 threads per inch and uses a tap drill of ~.31 or something like that.

Hopefully your washer holds up though. You'll have to drain the coolant every year or change that screw FAST though!

 

I was faced with a potential problem along these same lines when I had my 01 CTD 2500, dodge had a run of blocks from I believe late 98 to late 01 perhaps that were made in Mexico. They had an issue with the block casting between the cyl walls and the inside of the block where the gap between the two was too little and under heavy loads (programmers, sticks, etc) they'd cavitate and crack the block. Some people sucessfully welded but as you know that requires removing the block and preheating then welding; not so much fun. The other fix was a product called "lock and stitch" tho this was designed for more of a crack not a pin hole.. I was just thinkin what you could use and I remembered these special header bolts I used on my last truck. With a little engineering I think these might give you a better piece of mind. Their called splitlocks. You may have to stack up some washers before your rubber backed washer so the backcut splayed end will open up just inside the crack or lengthen the back cut.. Anyhow, food for thought..,

 

Some have a longer back cut than others but the principal is the same...