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| | | | Joined: Sep 2005 Posts: 20 Apprentice | | Apprentice Joined: Sep 2005 Posts: 20 | Yesterday I was putting Lucy away for the winter. After running the engine for 5 minutes I noticed a fine Mist coming from one spot on the rad. Should I try a can of stop leak or should I pull the rad out and have it recored now. I bought the rad used 2 years ago. Lucy is a 52 chev 1/2 ton. | | | | | Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,875 Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) | | Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,875 | Since it's going to be out of use for a while, just do a good drain job, including the block petcock, and store it away dry. Get the radiator recored or repaired, and treat the old gal to new belt(s) hoses, and a water pump when you do a wake-up in the spring. Stored dry, there's a better-than-even chance the pump seal will leak when it's put back into service.
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!
| | | | | Joined: May 2006 Posts: 8,351 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: May 2006 Posts: 8,351 | If she's being put up for the winter, now would be the time to take care od this. I would suggest taking the rad out, and having the local rad shop check it out. They'll be able to test and assess the condition and suggest a course of action. It could just be a minor pinhole, easily fixed. If it's savable, fixing it wold be better than spending the $$ on a whole new core that may not really be needed.
Bill Burmeister
| | | | | Joined: Aug 2005 Posts: 6,378 Ex Hall Monitor | | Ex Hall Monitor Joined: Aug 2005 Posts: 6,378 | Ditto the above. Stop leak can sometimes plug a heater core.
Save a life, adopt a senior shelter pet.
The three main causes of blindness: Cataracts, Politics, Religion.
Name your dog Naked so you can walk Naked in the park.
| | | | | Joined: Oct 2006 Posts: 4,983 Master Gabster | | Master Gabster Joined: Oct 2006 Posts: 4,983 | Old timers use to swear that potato soup would fix any leak be it in the rad or the engine block. They would drain the block and rad then cook up the soup and fill the rad and block with the soup. Then run the engine till it was hot and drain out the soup while the engine was running and Let it sit and dry out. They said it would work.
~Jim
| | | | | Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,875 Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) | | Kettle Custodian (pot stirrer) Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 29,875 | I've seen more than one oldtimer dump a box of black pepper into a radiator, and watched the leak dry up. Don't know how long it lasted, but it got the guy home, anyway!
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!
| | | | | Joined: Dec 2007 Posts: 1,403 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Dec 2007 Posts: 1,403 | Hotrod Lincoln, I made a pot of beans awhile ago and poured way too much pepper into the pot. As the beans cooked, I found out that the pepper stuck to the sides and turned into a sticky goo. It doesn't surprise me that it works.  | | | | | Joined: Sep 2005 Posts: 20 Apprentice | | Apprentice Joined: Sep 2005 Posts: 20 | Thanks for the advice folks. Looks like I will take the rad to a repair shop. Happy new year | | | | | Joined: Feb 2007 Posts: 435 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Feb 2007 Posts: 435 | Like Hotrod said, pepper is the answer. When you get your rad to a shop and they find Stop Leak in it, you'll take a good cussin'. The pepper however will stop the leak, and if it needs to be flushed out, comes out easily enough. I always carried a large can of the stuff in my sidebox when I was driving OTR with my Kenworth, and it saved my hide more than once.
Tramp | | |
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