How Difficult Is It To Repair A Cracked Engine?

mikefoxo · 09-09-2013 3:54pm #1

My uncle has a grey fergie lying up and I was thinking of trying to buy it off him. I hear it has a cracked block though. How would you repair it and can you do a proper job or just a rough job?

pakalasa · 09-09-2013 3:58pm

How and where is it cracked? A guy in the business told me he's repaired the outer wall with concrete. Drain water, add the very wet concrete. leave tractor tilted to the side to be repaired, The concrete seeps out the crack and does the job. Said he's seen tractors last years this way.

blue5000 · 09-09-2013 4:06pm

It is possible to weld them with cast iron welding rods, but you need a welder that knows what he is doing. I presume it was cracked by frost?

Figerty · 09-09-2013 6:22pm

You can get a bottle of stuff from the motor factors if the crack is only hairline. Put it in the radiator and hopefully the block will seal.

se conman · 09-09-2013 6:26pm

If it is a hairline crack, make sure to drill a small hole either end of the crack, this will stop the crack from running any further. Plastic metal covering the crack then may be enough if there is no pressure on it.

mikefoxo · 09-09-2013 8:25pm

I don't know where the crack is or how big as I only got a half glimpse of it 6 months ago. It's still in half decent nick so I would like to rescue it before the scrap man gets wind

case956tom · 09-09-2013 11:03pm

you could try welding it as said before,or you could try getting it stiched. http://metalstitching.org/process

10-09-2013 8:11am

mikefoxo wrote: »

My uncle has a grey fergie lying up and I was thinking of trying to buy it off him. I hear it has a cracked block though. How would you repair it and can you do a proper job or just a rough job?

Don't know how successful a repair would be. I have heard of numerous lads welding blocks.
One thing I have against it is resale values. Once lads hear cracked blocks the price halves.
But if it is in good nick and its for personal use , give it a go and be on the look out for a good engine / block

iverjohnston · 10-09-2013 8:54am

If you fancy having a go at welding it your self, and the crack is actually leaking too much to make it useable on a day to day basis, and will not seal with some of those additives then I would suggest you get an old cracked block to practice on first. You would be best to throw the tractor onto her side to make the welding easier. You would need Oxy acetylene or a really good blow lamp to heat up the area of the block to be repaired. Clean out the crack as well as you can, and then when welding is finished, you need to keep the area heated well for probably a half hour, only allowing it to cool very slowly. If you get on well with a scrap block, attack the tractor!

Lots of YouTube videos on the subject.

pakalasa · 10-09-2013 8:59am

I had a cast iron gear wheel welded once. A well experienced welder did the job. He had to heat if first before welding. It didn't last long, to be honest.

Cavanjack · 10-09-2013 10:10am

A friend of mine welded a crack on a 35 engine block. He turned it on its side to weld it. Thats about 15 years ago and its still flying. He would have had a lot of experience welding cast iron as he worked at that kind of repair work in a machine shop. Not a job for someone with little experience IMO.

Figerty · 10-09-2013 10:15pm

pakalasa wrote: »

I had a cast iron gear wheel welded once. A well experienced welder did the job. He had to heat if first before welding. It didn't last long, to be honest.

I got a bevel gear on a welger baler welded for a neighbour once. I filed the weld down to the gear profile for two broken teeth. Fecking think outlasted the rest of the machine. I didn't expect it would last but it did.

How Difficult Is It To Repair A Cracked Engine?

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