Hot Rods SBC external oil gallery plugs without hex

Well, I'm sure glad I know everything there is to know because I'd be a little gunshy about asking a question if I didn't. And to all you guys that did something that wasn't really essential, shame on you.

 

Maybe I'm not the one who needs to reread things.

54vicky,Since you have never removed or looked behind these plugs, how do you know that there never has been anything lodged behind them that could be a problem later? X-ray vision ? The guy is trying to learn and be meticulous about how he does it. I think thats a good thing.

As for my abilities, I know enough but am always looking to learn more. I would be willing to bet that my engine disassembly and rebuilding tools are most likely as good or better than what most people build an engine with. Then I also spent years as a machinist and a precision part inspector. So I have to wonder how you have any clue what my abilities are.

Wouldn't it be better to use your knowledge to help someone rather than just insult people?

 

Choffman41, if I need something answered I can't figure out I'll call ya. Lippy

 

I guess now the question is, how to replug them? drive the plugs back in and thread the holes for pipe plugs? or thread the block for pipe plugs? I would say thread the block but is it the right size? enough meat to drill larger?

 

try to get his address and you to can sit in a corner and sing kumbaya oblivious to the real world.the debris he claimed he found was in a spot that was closed to the rest of engine so no danger of harming engine.but comprehension of how things work is one thing but to do something that is not needed or ends in making anybody aware of a problem that did not exist is another.settle down I am sure school be open soon so you can further your knowledge you can not learn the unlearned so in the meanwhile break out your crayons go to a corner and amuse yourself.not a rod related subject but passes the 19 time

 

Heading to the kitchen for popcorn

 

make mine buttered and lightly salted

 

Just sitting here I can probably come up with a few dozen things hot rodders have done over the decades that were not needed. I don't have enough years of life left to criticize all those guys so I guess I'll just relax and not worry about it.

 

54vicky.........I think you need to go sit in the corner and go to bed without your supper.........

What you are failing to comprehend is that there are lots of things that are done not only in engine building, but in life that acomplish nothing other than to learn that nothing was accomplished. The search for knowledge often leads to dead ends, but the desire for knowledge should never end. I would much rather know someone who is inquisitive than someone who is closeminded.

 

I have a younger friend that would suggest I'm a little bit anal when it comes to making sure everything is / will be ok. I do lots of things, some very time consuming, that he would never bother to do, as he's told me many times. In the end, most often I'm pretty happy the way things turn out for me. He's not always as happy with his results, for whatever reasons.

Bottom line is, if a person is happy going the extra mile and it makes him more comfortable doing so, who are any of us to suggest it was unnecessary. I say NoxAstrum took a difficult job and without any outside help did it to his satisfaction. Good for him. It's pretty important to do the job to your own standards especially if those standards are higher than others might expect.

 

I came across a picture of these same oil plugs in another block, possibly American made. In the picture, the plugs are threaded and have a square to allow removal. Probably most people don't remove them, but if I'm looking at things correctly, removing these plugs is the only way to get a brush inside to clean the passages......and they are important passages.





Obviously if you want to clean the intersecting passages with a brush and also allow full circulation during any chemical cleaning process, the plugs must be removed. While not removing the plugs cause some residue to be trapped in the dead end of the sealed passage if you don't remove the plugs? The law of averages says "sometimes".......So if you want to be sure, rather than play the odds, the answer is to remove the plugs. If your engine croaks later on, would you even know that it might have been because of some trapped residue? The majority of the time, no problem......but not always. Thats my opinion anyway.

 

Friend of mine has encountered 2 or 3 of those blocks in the last couple years after building SBCs for the last 50 or so years for hot rods, drag cars and oval track cars. Neither of us had seen one before that.
Pulling them involved drilling and tappimg, then screwing a hardened bolt in the hole, using a slide hammer type puller and a lot of patience. IIRC, the hole ID is about .516". That's too large to tap for 1/8 NPT and you would have to drill out a lot of meat to tap to 3/8NPT. We put the blocks out in the hot sun all day, froze the steel slug type plugs I made on my lathe with .517" OD. When the blocks had been in the sun all day we spot warmed some more with a propane torch, and tapped the plugs lightly with hammer to drive in with the .001 interference fit.
The shop he uses for block cleaning and machine work uses a baking and steel shot peen process to clean blocks. Does a beautiful job, but it does require a thorough afterclean with hot soapy water, bore brushes and lots of high pressure water and air.

 

you do realize the blocks are not all built in one foundry.of course you did oh yeah they do use the molds supplied this me me move is nuts

 

you obviously have never had any engine rebuild experience there are plugs that need to be removed and have been since the modern small lock came into the world.if the miracle missed plug were there it would have been discovered many sleeps ago. I hear someone calling you toddle along me me class is about to begin.far from the center more like off center

 

now that you have enlightened yourself by reading those passages on the plugs that need to be removed you can now go back to playing.and I can sleep knowing you are trying to improve your knowledge.just because you can does not mean you should.

 

Wow!!!

 

Covid is beginning to affect peoples minds.....

 

Have a Snickers !

 

'54 Vicky, if I typed here what I would like to type, I'd most likely get banned, I was wrenching on SBCs when you were shitting yellow. WTF is wrong with you BOY?

 

your pablum is getting cold I am ending this as it is hard to deal with a me me crowd millions built and millions more rebuilt and none discovered a fault so if you have the capacity to answer how this solved a thing.P.S I am older than you think

 

As to whether or not , good magazine writers & good shop owners are good salesmen . Good salesmen are good at convincing you that you need a product or service , that they are selling , that you hadn't considered or even knew about .

 

Whether some wish to admit it or not, everyone knows that cleanliness is the first priority when assembling an engine. The amount of detail and effort that someone puts forth and considers acceptable will vary, but NO ONE can ever say they got an engine TOO CLEAN. When an engine does fail because of some residue that a less than meticulous builder missed.......how does that builder identify the source of that residue? If the residue is simply some sand from the original casting process or some sludge with abrasive in it that resided in some unnoticed corner of the oiling system, or even rust that occured from storage........how does the engine builder know where it came from?
He doesn't know. The only way to insure that this doesn't happen is to access ALL hidden cavities and clean them. The OP stated :

Not sure who would think that flaky rust in one of the main passages from the filter should just be dismissed as inconsequential. The simple truth is that nothing may be gained in some engines, but there will be times when someones engine gets saved because they took the extra steps to insure the passages were clean.



Now, I have provided information thats documented and available for everyone to make their own decision. Those who wish to believe there is no benefit to be derived from cleaning these passages should proceed accordingly. Those who can see a possible benefit are able to see why..........

 

I think the people that discount "going the extra mile" on engine pre assembly prep have no doubt never invested more than the minimum amount of money in their engines.
And they obviously never worked the hot tank and pressure wash detail in a machine shop.
This young apprentice machinist learned a valuable lesson in the early seventies in why not to talk back when the shop foreman and engine assembler said to "clean this block again".

 

Here is a video of a machine shop reconditioning and machining a block. Looks like the guy has done it a time or two and knows what he is doing. At the 3.06 and 4.17 marks, you will see that he has removed the two plugs that were in question and is retapping the holes. At the 7.00 minute mark he starts the machining which is pretty neat to watch if you haven't seen it done, or just like watching.
Good Video........enjoy it!

 

Built a SBC or two over the years and have done every step shown in the video except one, removing the dowel pins for the timing cover. I thought those were blind holes. Going out to the shop to see for myself.
BTW:
I witnessed the discovery in a SBC that had the angular hole that feeds the center cam gallery that was not drilled all the way through. The drill must have stopped just short of final depth as the point had broken through but the hole was not full diameter at the intersection. This allowed enough oil to get through to lube everything at low RPM, but served as a restriction at high speed. The result was that the main and rod bearings were getting beat up but not seizing. This was a HIGH dollar short track engine, built by a well known shop. So, it can happen and you can never be too thorough. The fix was simple and we never had another problem after the passage was opened up.