[SEL] Fairbanks Morse ZD Cracked Block - Best Way to Repair

[Judge Tommy Turner]

JB works well and I've used it numerous times and can't remember not 
having a good result.  Here's a few tips though to make sure others have 
success also.  One is to make sure that the surface where the JB is to 
be applied is free of dirt, loose paint, etc.  I usually take a die 
grinder and try to "V" the crack.  It doesn't have to be wide or deep, 
maybe 1/8 inch wide and a total of 1/16 to 3/32.  Then, after I vee it 
out, I take some carb cleaner and spray the crack real well.  This will 
help remove oil and grease that may be down in the crack.  Finally, I 
apply a little heat.  Not a great deal, but hot enough that you can't 
hold your finger on it or that its just hot enough that if you spit on 
it, it would sizzle.  I've even repaired some (the 4 HP Columbus I've 
got for one) with original paint and haven't burned it off.  You've got 
to be patient.  The heat will do three things, one it will further 
ensure that grease, oil, etc that may be in the crack will be driven 
out.  Two, the heat will cause the crack to open a bit (maybe only a few 
thousandths or two but that will be enough for the third thing it 
does).  Three, heat will cause the JB to run like water.  When you apply 
it to the heated crack, it will run in the crack to ensure you have a 
good seal.  As I say, I've done this several times and its never failed 
to seal the crack.  I even used this once on a small internal cylinder 
crack that was around the rear of a cylinder.  I ran the engine for 3 
years at shows after the repair and it never leaked.

Tommy Turner
Magnolia, KY




FRM8198 at aol.com wrote:

> 
>In a message dated 9/4/2005 7:32:53 P.M. Pacific Standard Time,  
>billalan at busynet.net writes:
>
>My dad  and I also repaired a crack with JB weld, it was on the hopper of a  P&O badged Nelson.  The previous owner had soldered it closed, and  the first time we put water in the hopper, it all leaked out the crack we  did not even know existed.  We had just pulled out the solder,  cleaned up the crack with some wire brushes and emery cloth, and finished  off cleaning up with some alchohol.  We didn't do any grinding, just  pushed the JB as far into the crack as we could.  This has held for a  couple of years now, with no problems. 
>
>
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