Cracked engine block repair metal stitch pinning Caterpillar 1939 D4 4G9986 "Lil Lefty" Episode #72

[@rodneymiddleton9624]

What caused the crack? Just curious. Nice work!!!

[@lifeafterourloss]

The dowel pin on the inspection plate got pushed in crooked and forced in. It's subsequently cracked the block. When we pulled the plate off it was not completely straight and pushed in. 👍

[@rodneymiddleton9624]

I figured that since the coolant jacket wasn't near it. Thanks for clearing that up. Stay warm!!!@@lifeafterourloss

[@patreilly1458]

We did a gas compressor cooling compartment with the help of a Louisianan old boy technician. He used brass all thread instead of that kit. The thread was straight and he drilled the first hole at the end of the crack , threaded it and installed the first piece of all thread with the green lock tite. We broke the all thread off flushed it out and drilled the next hole almost half way through the first drill hole so the holes overlapped. Thread the next one and repeat. We did not have to peen the all thread because it was held in by the last piece of all thread. The brass all thread expands at a higher rate than the cast iron so it sealed up even in a glycol cooled casting.

[@lifeafterourloss]

That is very interesting. I never considered brass but it is something that might come in handy in the future. 😊👍

[@tonydentonarms4112]

I like your repair good job

[@michaelwalsh98]

I saw those bolts before, in the late 60's ,but they were tapered, and the head snapped off, when you got them tight enough, then you would pean them over. Great channel, just came over from the recommendation by Squatch.

[@TomTeater]

The more I watch you two the more impressed I am. 😮

[@lifeafterourloss]

We really enjoyed doing this one. Somebody mentioned that the process is "therapeutic." I can really see that. There's something very rewarding about fixing a difficult crack in a cast iron piece. As always, thanks again Tom! Your helping to make everything possible. 👍

[@dwjr5129]

Nice looking job. I’ve never seen that done before. Very interesting. 👍🏻

[@bigredc222]

I'd never heard of this so I looked it up, I got nervous for you because all the pictures on the first page I looked at, the repair went across the crack not in line with the crack, but then I looked more and found plenty of examples of doing it the way you guys did it. They say stitching steel has been around 100 years, I thought brazing was the only way to properly repair cast iron, and I've always been nervous about trying to braze. I gave away a 12" wood jointer because it was cracked, I wish I would have known about this back then. Great stuff. Thank you.

[@lifeafterourloss]

You're more than welcome and glad you enjoyed the video. There are proprietary methods to doing it that are better but this worked more than adequately. 👍

[@kiwias8956]

Love this channel, so just feeding the algorithm

[@lifeafterourloss]

Very much appreciated! ☺️

[@waylinbuerger2753]

Good job on the repair. It looks great.

[@vernonslone8627]

Lock and Stitch has it all....

[@lifeafterourloss]

I tried, that was my first wish. However lock and Stitch was 12 to 14 weeks out before they could get the product to me.

[@timcope3115]

I am a welder so I haven't ever thought much of the pinning process. After seeing you do that I may have to change my mind. I have seen dozens of terrible attempts at welding blocks by folks that didn't have a clue at what they were doing, and the mere mention of JB Weld on them turns my stomach. Very nice job and I don't anticipate any issues from it. Welding when done by someone that knows what they are doing is a very good process. But many times it is very hard to prep the area or maintain the welded area after it is welded properly during the cooldown cycle. Again good job.

[@lifeafterourloss]

We really felt more comfortable about this type of repair. We did weld the belt pulley back together and it turned out fine. But I was willing to take the chance on a belt pulley housing. That nickel Rod is a whole other animal as I'm sure you know! I didn't want to make any mistakes on the block though. We were very impressed with the results from metal stitching. 👍

[@timcope3115]

@@lifeafterourloss Yeah, there are all kind of options for welding cast depending on the application. Nickel, silicone brass etc the list goes on depending on the process you choose to repair it. The thing about welding it is many times the actual heat generated welding it is as big a factor as the original fissure in the metal you are trying to repair. Especially with poor quality cast. Cat usually is better quality cast and that doesn't come into play though. Good luck in your restoration of your machine and look forward to more vids.

[@conspiracyscholor7866]

I've seen JB hold up for years

[@lifeafterourloss]

@conspiracyscholor7866 I still love JB Weld, but wewanted something more permanent. 👍

[@squatch253]

Catching up on some videos here - that pinning job turned out great! Reminded me of patching the X231 shifter box where they had torched the ragged holes. Like here, I was lucky enough to not be trying to seal up a water passage or something below the oil level. Between the stitching and Glyptal coating, that shouldn't seep any film at all 👍

[@SuperMAZ007]

One of the more interesting and very sophisticated ways of repairing a crack. I'm impressed by the work. When I think back what I have seen in terms of block stitching. A very old school or old schoolers repair is a brass weld or braising the crack. These are a rarity to see but can be still seen on very old engine blocks. Than I have seen bolted patches that maybe reinforced with hard glue to make it seal tight. A few times I have seen special welding rods used to patch up cast iron cracks. All the above mentioned things do work in there own right(if done correct).

[@lifeafterourloss]

After the success on the belt pulley we really considered the nickel rod arc welding repair. Because the crack is in a non-critical area in the oil galley it was a perfect candidate for this type of repair (experiment). 👍

[@cherylf.6959]

I've never seen anything like that before. Interesting. Looks good.

[@VHP7044]

Looks good.

[@lifeafterourloss]

Thanks

[@duginvirginia5737]

Great work! I really like how you blended the finish in after peening. I have seen this process done, but was always fearful of doingint it myself. After seeing you guys do it, I think this is something that would be accomplished with good results by the average person who works on this type of equipment. Thank you for showing the process and especially the finishing / blending. Happy New Year and continued good luck on this project.

[@lifeafterourloss]

I really do recommend the process. We were very apprehensive about it at first. Happy New Year to you as well!

[@craigdombrowski7047]

You did a nice repair job

[@lifeafterourloss]

Thank you! 😊

[@challengerhitchman]

Looks good I have heard of this process. My dad welded a cracked starting engine block for a D315. It cracked above the bolt flange on the right side below the cylinder. To get strength we had to weld it. Nickel rod with lots of grinding cleaning it out getting a clean bond. It needed a little water glass to seal up a couple a weep hole.

[@lifeafterourloss]

Nicole Rod is tough to weld with. It turned out really well on the belt pulley repair. But I was afraid to try and tackle it on this engine block. Appreciate the compliment.

[@waynep343]

Are you going to paint the inside of the lifter plateswith glyptol along witha bunch of area in the timing cover and perhaps the non gear mesh areas of the timing gears to reduce any chance of rust during storage. I wonder about a flash copper plating on the rocker arms and stands.

[@lifeafterourloss]

Probably not. We're a little worried about how well it would adhere to the remnants of the caterpillar coating. For now we're just sticking to surfaces that we could completely clean to the bare metal. We were worried about it flaking off and plugging up the oil system.

[@lynngrabill1275]

Learned something new. Thanks guys. Subscribing now.

[@lifeafterourloss]

Much appreciate the subscription!

[@tmscheum]

How does one become a “Team LAOL” member?

[@lifeafterourloss]

There's a link in the channel description. It should guide you through the process from there. If not, let me know. 👍

[@Blazefork]

Nice work, I'm enjoying your channel! BTW a 1/4" of paint will cover all your sins lol.

[@lifeafterourloss]

🤔, 😂🤣😂

[@keithwarkentin]

Looks really good I am glad I tuned in today I wasn’t aware of this type of repair that is a wise idea where did you purchase that kit and what was the cost? If you don’t mind me asking? 😀🇨🇦

[@lifeafterourloss]

I think it was about $160 on eBay. It's good quality components. I was really happy with it!

[@keithwarkentin]

@@lifeafterourloss Thanks 😀🇨🇦

[@1958johndeere620]

I worry about it acting like a feather and wedge splitting force all being tapered. Are all plug stitch repair screws tapered? never done it before.

[@lifeafterourloss]

That was our concern too. I think that is why you angle them. At pulls in different directions. The plugs are also a reasonably soft material. The taper is subtle, to help prevent leaks. There are strait pins for this method also. Lock and stitch makes them. But they are cost prohibitive and were 12-14 weeks out of stock.

[@LittleNokesvilleFarm]

Can you give me a link to the products you used for this repair?

[@lifeafterourloss]

I get most everything on eBay. Here's a link to the listing, hope this helps: www.ebay.com/itm/254255897225?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=IahST1XyTXC&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=NFG-GTq3RvC&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

[@lifeafterourloss]

Almost forgot the glyptal. Got that from Eastwood: www.eastwood.com/glyptal-red-brush-on-1-qt.html?wickedsource=google&wickedid=Cj0KCQiAr7C6BhDRARIsAOUKifguUcf1GbLuyGVTIx0jvZuWSLEEnQRFstCiaqnluKZ_leNM05n929oaAu2qEALw_wcB&wickedid=649209542080&wcid=19735174318&wv=4&wickedsource=google&wickedid=Cj0KCQiAr7C6BhDRARIsAOUKifguUcf1GbLuyGVTIx0jvZuWSLEEnQRFstCiaqnluKZ_leNM05n929oaAu2qEALw_wcB&wickedid=649209542080&wcid=19735174318&wv=4&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAr7C6BhDRARIsAOUKifguUcf1GbLuyGVTIx0jvZuWSLEEnQRFstCiaqnluKZ_leNM05n929oaAu2qEALw_wcB

[@carlcarlson180]

Odd place to crack, why?

[@lifeafterourloss]

It looked like the dowel pin got forced in crooked. When someone tightened the plates down where the decompression chambers are they forced it in, causing the crack. When we disassembled it the dowel pin was pressed clear inside of the engine block.