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Starter mount holes

A

alreadygone

Contributing Member
"haven't been on this boar

"haven't been on this board in a while, but need advise.

Back in the summer had my 1998 5.7 Merc.(350 Chev) hydrolock. Pulled plugs, flushed with WD40. Solved original problem. Broke several teeth off of ring gear, starter ok. Finished out the season with starter sounding like hammered hell! Now that off season is here got excellent marine mechanic to pull engine and replace ring gear. MAIJOR problem is, he found crack in outside starter bolt mounting area of block! Bolt will still tighten and hold, starter sounds excellent. Technician says to run her till it breaks out (maybe never if it doesn't hydrolock again), but there's no way to repair block. As a lifelong welder I tend to agree, and run till it breaks on out is my personal inclination. Just wondering if anyone here knew of a sure fix?

Bob"
 
"All of that is true!!! It mig

"All of that is true!!! It might be game over. What a bummer. I might be tempted to put some JB Weld on the threads, snug down and lets er run.

You could add a pull start like a lawn mower..."
 
"You might want to routinely c

"You might want to routinely check the bolts tight... once a month or so. You know it's coming, don't let it surprise you."
 
""Just wondering if anyone

""Just wondering if anyone here knew of a sure fix?"

Ayuh,.....
Replacing the Block is the Only Sure Fix......"
 
"And now, a serious answer...

"And now, a serious answer...

A clever mechanic could make a stout strap for the front end of the starter to give it additional bracing.

Jeff"
 
"All replies greatly appreciat

"All replies greatly appreciated! Plan to continue use untill crack breaks on out and piece of block falls off.

Jeff's suggestion does need serious study. Know older small blocks used brace at rear of starter to block. If it was left off, starter nose piece would occasinally break.

Bob"
 
"So would the rear mounting bo

"So would the rear mounting bolts, especially on four cylinder 3.0 liters. Guess how I found that out! Luckily the boat was in my driveway, not out in the middke of the Bay.

Jeff"
 
"What type of block do you hav

"What type of block do you have? Aluminum? Cast Iron??? I have welded for many years and yes sir there is a way to fix an aluminum or cast block. Any crack no matter how bad. Its a product called alumiloy. They are like a welding rod but use a propane torch to do the job. The repairs are just as strong as original equipment and are permanent. Try it out... I have inserted a link for you to look at.

http://www.aluminumrepair.com/"
 
"It's a Cast Iron 350 Chev

"It's a Cast Iron 350 Chevy,.......

Alumiloy,..... Or Anything Else,..
Ain't going to Work......"
 
"Tend to agree with bondo. My

"Tend to agree with bondo. My experience is that only way to weld would be to tear down, send to specialty welding shop where entire block is heated dull red, weld hot, cool over 36 hrs then remachine all surfaces including align bore.

But any suggestions are appreciated

Bob"
 
"Based on what I'm envisio

"Based on what I'm envisioning as the geometry of the bolt hole and the crack, I'd say any repair efforts with any expectation of being permanemnt should be focused on stablizing the existing condition, in other words keeping the crack from getting longer or wider.
You're looking for strength, not a fluid boundary, so epoxy, silly putty, chewing gum and such aren't appropriate, and are likely going to make matters worse, especially if the material packed into the crack expands or contracts at a rate other than that of the cast iron.
I'd consider drilling small stress relief(s) at the end(s) of the crack if feasable. If the crack goes all the way across from the bolt hole away from the block, then that's obviosly 'n/a'.
Then put a few spots of weld bead across the crack in a few locations (tacks) to hold the loose side in place. (Put a sacraficial bolt in the hole with plenty of high temp lubricant on it to hold the shape of the bolt hole. You're not doing whole sale welding, so it shouldn't get all that hot. You may want to run a tap through it once your done to make sure threading the permanant bolt in doesn't cause it to split out again.)"
 
"The Problem with even Trying

"The Problem with even Trying to Weld it is that the Broken Spot is Way out at the End of the blocks Wing so to speak,......

The Outer little piece will be Way Hotter, due to it's lack of Mass, compared to the Block-side of the Break........

I think FastJeff Nailed it earlier,.....
The Front of Starter Support Bracket,.......
Then Run her til she Pukes......."
 
"I cracked the block on my 198

"I cracked the block on my 1986 350 cast iron. I used alumiloy's cast iron repair rods and have had no problems whatsoever. The repair was made 3 years ago. I have a pressurized cooling system as well. No leaks of any kind yet.

I will post a pic as soon as I get a chance.

This product DOES work. I have since used it on many different projects that involved parts fitting together in a stressed environment. Last time I used it to repair a head bolt hole in a 350 4 bolt main. The hole was stripped. I filled the hole using alumiloy and then drilled it out, tapped it and re-threaded the head bolt through with out issue. Its a little work but its worth the work sometimes."
 
"oh and the melt down of the r

"oh and the melt down of the rod does not take as much heat as you would think. I simple small propane or butane torch melts it down before the ear would get so hot that it would expand. And the rods used do not expand they liquefy into a puddle and harden almost instantly. I am quite sure that the threaded hole you would have to fill would hold the repair. you would just have to like I said, drill and tap the alumiloy to a smaller threaded bolt size."
 
"Sounds like great stuff Dave,

"Sounds like great stuff Dave, but we're not plugging holes in an 8psig water system here... we're trying to hold a 25 pound chunck of metal on the end of two 3/8" dia. bolts, with nothing supporting the other end. The stresses just aren't the same. You're wonder putty ain't gonna cut it!
You're head bolt example is interesting, but how many other, grade 5 or better, bolts help hold that cylinder head on?
ICO the starter... that number is reduced to 1, and significantly smaller at that."
 
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