Yes, I was going to start a new thread for this issue to clarify everything but it just sort of took off.
About 3 or 4 weeks prior to the current situation, the truck overheated and boiled out most of the coolant. It was a legitimate rolling boil in the recovery reservoir, not normal expansion and contraction of coolant.
After testing for head gasket leaks turned out negative, I decided to remove the radiator and water pump. Radiator showed signs of ancient leaks and maybe even current ones. Since the pump was off, it made sense to send it out to be rebuilt. Impeller fins on the front side of the pump looked pretty worn but there's differing opinion on that since the pump turns out to be an aftermarket replacement, albeit a very old one.
No undue crud was discovered during the flushing of the block with water. No chunks or sludge ran from the rear petcock or from the two holes for the water pump. At most, the water was slightly tinted brown - probably from surface rust that formed on the cast iron while it sat empty for 3 weeks. Who knows?
When I flushed the system after the initial overheating event, there was a small amout of rusty goop at the thermostat. The inside of the t stat housing was sort of rusty but not flaking off - just normal rusty cast iron.
When everything was re-assembled, I experienced the same symptoms and boil over as had occurred the first time.
Prior to all of this, the dash gauge stayed right at 180 give or take - even on hot days in rush hour traffic.
I will check the harmonic balancer to see if it has slipped on the rubber. Coincidentally this happened on the '66 Mustang last year. It squealed and I thought it was the water pump since I could make the sound when turning the fan by hand. When the belt was removed, the sound went away so I looked at the balancer and found the sheave sliding around the hub.
Another problem that has developed is that a crack on the driver side of the block that had been repaired many years ago by some previous owner has begun seeping pretty noticeably. I wonder if the high heat did something to the epoxy.
OInce I solve the overheating issue, what would be the best method to repair this? Do I have to grind all the old epoxy off? Whoever did it did a sloppy job and really pasted it on thick.
1950 Chevrolet 3100 (Ol' Roy)
1939 Packard Standard Eight Coupe (The Phantom) | 1956 Cadillac Coupe de Ville (The Bismarck) | 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe |1966 Ford Mustang (Little Red) | 1969 Pontiac GTO (The Dishpit) I 1979 Ford F-100 | 1976 Ford F-150 (Big Red) | 1995 Ford F-150 (Newt)
