We have the 235 running after a 18 month pause in the build... all looks good except one thing.... my water pump failed on my while running it... which caused me to notice another problem
my back water plug was not in and no water came out of the plug. (see pic hole #2) Water was streaming out of hole #1 so we put in a bolt to plug it... Head has water in it confirmed by pulling temperature sender plug.
My question is why would the back hole not have any water? What are my options to unclog? Block 55 235 and is a fresh rebuild bored and vatted...
Thanks in advance.
tim
53 3100 purchased brand new by my wife's grandfather... full frame up restore in progress.
I had the same problem today. I pulled plug #2 to prepare for cold weather on a newly rebuilt 235 engine but nothing came out. I poked a screwdriver in the hole and pulled out black sludge. Still no water. I put a little compressed air in the hole until I heard it bubble up and it started flowing with a bunch of black crud. I guess the rebuilder did a crappy job cleaning block.
We have the 235 running after a 18 month pause in the build... all looks good except one thing.... my water pump failed on my while running it... which caused me to notice another problem
my back water plug was not in and no water came out of the plug. (see pic hole #2) Water was streaming out of hole #1 so we put in a bolt to plug it... Head has water in it confirmed by pulling temperature sender plug.
My question is why would the back hole not have any water? What are my options to unclog? Block 55 235 and is a fresh rebuild bored and vatted...
Thanks in advance.
tim
This is a fairly common occurrence with trucks which were used for hard work on the farm. I suspect that the majority of the black crud is the accumulation of stop-leak added to the cooling system over the years of its life to keep a damaged radiator in service (they were relatively expensive back then). I base this assumption on the fact that it is black and it solidly glued to the cast iron and nothing seems to dissolve it. The ones I have cleaned had a significant amount of it which could not have gotten in there via impurities in water added to the system. BTW, the "#1 hole" in your block is not a coolant hole. It is a boss which was drilled for a bellcrank for the accelerator rods. It appears to have been drilled too deep and now leaks water. Your fix should take care of that. Carl
1952 5-window - return to "as built" condition | 1950 3100 with a 235 and a T-5 transmission
Try using a metal coat hanger wire in hole #2 , it should break through the crud.
Tim
1951 3100 Chevrolet 1951 Chevrolet Suburban Carryall Image "A house is built with boards and beams. A home is built with love and dreams." "Look deep before you leap !!!" / "Everything is Everything" "If I say a mouse can pull a house, hitch him up"
I like to use a dull 1/4" drill bit,(or one that I've deliberately blunted the cutting edges on a grinding wheel) in a cordless drill to dig into the deposits at the bottom of the block with. Run the drill slowly and nibble away at the deposits until the coolant starts to drain. Just be careful not to drill a hole in a cylinder wall! Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
I too have the same problem - 235 '55 that wont drain. I have tried running the coat hanger but the drain passage seems to go in about 1" and then turn upwards. If this is correct, drilling can't help. I have tried a piece of stranded cable, but it also runs into interference. Is there some other suggestion other than to wait for an engine tear-down? Bob
The 1/4" pipe thread is the same as an air line fitting. Screw a male quick-connect fitting into the block and attach an air hose to it. 100-something PSI of air pressure should clear the clog - - - -just be sure to remove the radiator cap or take a hose off to protect the radiator core. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
I too have had success with a variant of Jerry's advice. If you hard connect an air line and put it on a line with a valve on it from the compressor you can ease into it and get off when the plug clears. Clearly best to do this outside.
Allen Yeah, well, that's just like, you know , your opinion, man - The Dude
1948 Chevy 3600 - goal Original restoration, Current Stage 1 - Disassembly and getting body in primer 1954 GMC 3100 goal Hot Rod, Current Stage 1 - Get body in primer 1931 Ford Model A 5 window Coupe - Old Skool Hot Rod 1945 Ford 2N Tractor - Runs great 1964 Ford 2000 Tractor - Use it every week 1974 Stingray Corvette
I just do it the redneck way- - - -pinch the hose off and ease the pressure into the block a little at a time. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
Keep the air flowing for a while- - - -the clog will free up eventually.
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
Another trick similar to one that Jerry mentioned earlier about using a dull drill bit is to cut about a six to eight inch piece off a wire coat hanger, then heat up the end with a torch and pound the end flat about 3/8" so that the end looks like a paddle. Put it in an electric drill with the paddle end facing out, then run it in and out of the drain hole. It works like a plumber's snake. The coat hanger wire is thick enough to hold the paddle shape on the end, but flexible enough to go up the water jacket.
On tough ones, I have found the combination of the dull drill bit, compressed air and the coat hanger snake to work.
If you are getting air to pass, you are getting close. The snake might help to loosen the last bit of crud that can't be reached by the dull drill bit.
cut about a six to eight inch piece off a wire coat hanger, then heat up the end with a torch and pound the end flat about 3/8" so that the end looks like a paddle. Put it in an electric drill with the paddle end facing out, then run it in and out of the drain hole. It works like a plumber's snake. The coat hanger wire is thick enough to hold the paddle shape on the end, but flexible enough to go up the water jacket. Matt
That is a creative idea. I will make a similar water jacket snake at the next time needed.
Had this problem with the 265 in my '56 sedan, pulled all the freeze plugs I could get to and flushed with water hose and dug with coat hangers. This produced about a one pound coffee can of krap from the water jackets. Best of luck
A piece cut off an old speedometer cable chucked into a cordless drill motor makes for an excellent "snake" for chasing crud in places like water jackets. Just be sure to melt the end of the cable into a solid blob with a torch to keep it from unraveling. I've also used a short piece of very heavy weed eater string as a snake for clearing pasageways like oil galleries in crankshafts, etc. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
I used a piece of 1/8" line with some turned up at the end. I put it in and rotated it. I did it a number of times and just as I was about to give up it started to drain. I have had a number of these sixes that never did drain out there and it made no difference in normal use.
