Cracked Engine Block Repair

Hey guys, Well, this is a new one! In all of my years of welding, I have not fixed a broken engine block this way before. This is my first attempt at this and I am pleasantly surprised at the outcome. Stick around and watch me figure this out. Heck, If I can do this, so can anyone else. It was definitely a good learning experience for me and hopefully for you too!
Kick back and enjoy and here are some of the links to the stuff I use.

[sccolbert]

I have never seen nor heard of that sort of repair. Learn something new every day.

[AndrewMann-uc]

You would be the only welder I would trust to weld my engine block if I needed that done!!I enjoy all your videos no matter what your welding on. Thank you for your humor and humility.

[miketubbs]

I learned this back in the60’s. I worked at a machine shop that did nothing but” cold weld” engine blocks and heads. We could do cracks in the valve seats even. Very simple technique if you have the right materials and tools. Loved that job. Went to school half a day and worked the rest and also Saturdays. I worked there 4 years. Good times to be alive in the 60’s and the muscle car era.

[BruceBoschek]

Great to see this method being used. The largest engines in the world, 2-stroke cycle crosshead marine diesels are repaired by metal stitching. It is a tried and true method for fixing cracks in cast iron.

[bobpowers]

I first saw Lock N Stitch on Jay Leno's repair blog, but he never showed the process, only the finished result. It's cool you demonstrated how this actually works, which is amazing. Another tool for your expertise.

[mjm]

Way to go Isaac, excellent choice. Their product produces awesome repairs. I know Karen and Kurtis will be checking this out closely!

[TechOne]

That was a nice job Isaac. A guy told me about that process years ago but I didn’t really understand what he was talking about, now I know what it is thanks to your video. All the best Isaac.

[ypaulbrown]

Thank You wishes from Florida, Paulie

[mathewfranco]

I call it a good day when I learn something new. It’s twice a good day! Thank you sir. 😊

[RambozoClown]

There is another version of that called Irontite plugs. They are actually made of cast iron so there is no thermal expansion differences, and have a tapered thread like pipe plugs. I have put in hundreds of them when I worked at a machine shop. They even work inside combustion chambers on cracked heads. I never had any fail over the years. They come in a bunch of sizes, but I typically used ones about the same size that you were using.

[carlbrooks]

What a great Teacher and Skillset. You and a Handful of others are what I call Skilled Tradesmen. I sure love you making Items go from trash To Gold. Thank you for always sharing your wins and sometimes Lessons to the Whole world. You Rock....

[galesams]

I welded a cracked block on a 5.9 dodge ram right bank, V'ed deep and used NI-CAST 1/8 at 90 amps, worked good.

[rogarmadz]

You never fail to amaze me with your skills! I didn't know that product even existed, I've been brazing all my repair jobs! THANK YOU, for showing us how it's done.😁✌️

[speedpedals]

Excellent choice. No heat input that can cause even more cracks at stress points. You saved the owner a ton of money. I used to work in an automotive machine shop in the mid too60's to early 70's and we used this method to repair cast iron.

[lloydprunier]

Never seen this before and after reading the comments it seems to be a well known process. I bought one of those wire clamping tools the last time you showed it and it is great for making hose repairs that don't have a big lump. I've used stainless wire a lot over the years, but this tool makes it very easy.

[ferdinandcuevas]

That is an excellent method for repairing any rare engine blocks or a numbers matching to keep the vehicles originality . Labor and time intensive but should cost less than a new block !

[donmunro]

I used them on my boat engine several years ago and haven't had an issue. I love their product.

[joepiker]

That was a really interesting video! Thanks! Master welder decides NOT to weld. I didn't know about that type of crack repair...It looks slow. but not risky!

[pacoal]

That's awesome. I always wondered how that system worked. Thank you so much. Looks like a darn good repair method.

[richardgreen]

As a District Manager for GM during the 70's and 80's, it was determined that casting issues had developed at the engine foundries that manifested into cracks in the block of the 350 cubic inch engines. Since customers had found out what used to "divisional motors" (Chevy, Pontiac, Buick, Oldsmobile, Cadillac) were (via Roger Smith's cost cutting) amalgamated into one engine, the 350 for all divisions and GM wanted to validate that the global engine could be trusted for longevity. Until the foundry issue could be sorted out, that wasn't the case and the dealers were plagued with the crack problem. The customers never realized what was being done to their brand new car. The Fix: Was exactly what you're doing in the video except each geographic area (Zone Office) had an "expert" trained at block stitching. The primary difference is that we carried a portable Magna-Flux machine to detect the extent of the crack or cracks. After stitching the block, we used a two-part heat proof epoxy and OEM matching engine paint. Done correctly, not even a skilled technician would notice the repair. For all the blocks that were stitched I never heard of a future failure so obviously the foundation for the technique had merit.