Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Lock-N-Stitched the 53 crack!! (pics)

[EricBu12]

OK!! Boy I was Jazzed that the kit came on saturday from ordering it on thursday!! now thats fast!!



Heres the kit with all the goodies... Comes in a small toolbox to keep aal the stuff with it.



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It comes with a DVD "Training" video that shows most common fixes... including how to fix a crack between 2 valve seats.



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Heres the "pin" with the negative angle threads. The head snaps off at the tapered cone when the torque is just right. Kit comes with 50 of these



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Here is the Spotface tool with the depth stop. Sorry it is so blurry... . Tip pic it below.



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I found the drill Cliff had which was a angled screwdriver but I could not find the chuck for the hex bit so I tried this and it works but you have to have the but end up and just use your palm on the head of the drill to push...



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Got this grinder from sears... has 2 hard disks that are about 1/4" thick to I used the edge of it to grind the pins



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The rapair on the next post----->

 

[EricBu12]

Here is the first line of holes using the spacing jig in the kit. My crack was only like 2-3" but I extended it as much as I could as I couln't see any hidden crack... The people at L-n-stitch said you can't do too much so I made it long...



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I did the first series of pins and I had 3 pins strip... . Well I retapped it and ground the head and the other overlapping taps will lock it in so that wasn't hard..... The pic is the last (3rd) series of pins that have been installed and ground down.....



When you drill, be VERY carefull to keep the drill straight. . I broke both bits in the kit... but I had a kit with the same size which is #29 (. 1360"). . And the spotface has to be VERY shallow so you get good threads... Once I did this, I did'nt strip any more.



The tap is best done with the drill. There is a cutting oil included to help this. Be sure to keep the tap at the same angle as the hole drilled. A sealant is applied to the threads of the pin and screwed in. A 1/4" socket drives the pin and at the right torque, it snaps off clean. Then you grind down.



The instructions on the DVD is superp and the other repairs they show you make you shake your head in wonder...



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now, for asthetics, and if you show it and is ina visible area, you would grind down the pins to flush to hide it..... I got an idea both from LS and a neighbor to use JB weld. I left the pins just a hair above the casing for the JB to grab onto. I put a layer, let it set up, then put another layer on to smooth it. ... The pins will hold the crack and there is sealant in the treads but the JB will add to the strength and help seal any leaks..... I think this is a very good thing to add to the repair..... i might add another bit to the left side of the repair.



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I got the truck very high in the air to allow me to move around and raise up on an elbow and such.



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I found out that when you drain the coolant, I tried to blow air through the heater core to try to get all the coolant out of the engine..... Well, when i drilled the first hole at the rear of the crack, coolant drained out, had to wait to continue... . be ware of this...



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All in all the repair went well and when I was sure the JB was set up enough, I filled the coolant and started it up. I let it run til it got to op. temp and the cap was on so it built up pressure for at least 20 minutes and I checked for leaks..... ALL DONE!!! No leaks with pressure on the coolant and all warmed up... .

 

[GFrance]

Good Job Eric. Nice presentation on the job. Good reference for those with the 53 block to ease their worries.

 

[OPoole]

Good thing your truck is a 6spd and not auto with a heat exchanger.

 

[klaybus]

Good thing your truck is a 6spd and not auto with a heat exchanger.

My thoughts exactly! Hoping & Praying I don't have to go through this but after reading Erics posts I feel a little bit better about it... How many miles did you have on your truck when the crack appeared? GREAT JOB, Keep us posted.



Clay

 

[ARoss]

Great job!



I bet Stamey would like to have those pics for his 53 block website!

 

[EricBu12]

Thanks for the accolades guys, ... . Boy!1 100 views in 3 hours!



my truck has 71 K on it and I tow heavy during the summer. I truly believe the JB weld added on will be a little good insurance for leaks and strength of the wall in that area.



If you have a angled drill like the cordless screwdrivers, you will have to find a chuck to adapt to the hex drive. The drill I bought you see above, is a very small and light and ballanced very well. I had to use the drill upside-down with the but, up toward the manifold and push with the palm of the hand on the drill head and use the trigger. This was a little awkward but it was last minute and I had to find something.....



The hardest part of this repair is the location of the crack and getting to it from underneath, odd angles, sore neck, tired arms... This took most of the day. . i started at 7:30 am and finished up with the new coolant flush out at about 4 or so

 

[Cliffman]

Nice job Eric. Lock-n-Stitch is a huge money saver and a great product. I've got about 500 miles on my metal stitching and still holding.

 

[EricBu12]

Only 1 week so far and I checked time after time and added coolant to get it topped off and still no leaks... .



I am suggesting to all:



If you don't have a crack yet, scrape off the paint in the curved area where the cracks usually occur so you have bare metal..... now is the time to see if you have a hidden crack where you are not losing coolant but is there none the less. .....



Get 2 carded things of JB Weld . . The "kwick" kind. This sets up in 4 minutes and is almost hard in 30-60 minutes. It needs bare metal to grab onto..... When I did this on my repair with the pins, I did 2 layers. So if you get 2 of the JB Weld, do 2 layers, I believe it will do 2 things.



1st... . I bet it has side to side strength to help prevent any future crack from stress by having the Bond of the JB Weld making the block thicker in the area.



2nd..... If there is a crack already there, you might want to do the Pin repair like I did but if it not big and not leaking, I think the JB Weld will work to hold it where it is now and prevent leaks with being thicker.

 

[SHobbs]

Now what we all need to do after the fix is send the bill to Cummins. They did not recall the block so at the very least they can do is pay for the kit to fix it.

 

[RCenters]

Great thx for posting !!!! I might need that when my 53 starts to weep

 

[AKDrifter]

Eric, which curved area are you refering to ?? Driver's side right ?







... ... Proud 53 block owner

 

[GooseHunter]

I am a little nervous after reading this thread. I have a 98. 5 CTD with 148k. I am wondering if I have the 53 engine, and if so, where exactually on the block should I be watching for a crack?



TIA

 

[EricBu12]

Here is where I had my crack on the side of the block..... Just below the freeze plugs, there is a curved area and this is where most of the cracks occur... You see the exhaust manifold so this is on the pass. side.



The holes are the first stage of the repair.



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When I did the pin repair, I added a big bead of JB Weld to cover, strengthen, and seal the repair. I surmized that if you don't have the crack yet, scrape the paint, and make a big long bead of JB to prevent it from happening...



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[JHSchultz]

All of this "53" block talk got me wondering about what casting I have in my truck... So I grabbed a flashlight and crawled under there a few minutes ago.

Winner ,winner ... . chicken dinner ! I have a 53. :{

Great... now I can add that to my list of concerns along with VP44 failure and paranoia about lift pump failure.

Ignorance is bliss... . I shouldn't have ever looked.

My truck was made in Mexico... wonder why I got the Brazilian made block? Luck ,I suppose.

 

[AKDrifter]

Thanks a ton Eric, the more I see this fix work the less worried I am.



Paul

 

[Cliffman]

Eric, no offence but I would advise against the JB weld mainly because it would be difficult to find, drill, spot-face, and tap a leak that might accrue if one of the pins didn't hold. Also, if on the off chance one of your pins does leak you'll have to grind off all the JB weld to find the leak and in doing so you’ll grind the pins flush with the block which is not advised by Lock-n-Stitch. Let’s just hope it doesn't come to that.

 

[EricBu12]

Of course grinding flush is advised... why do you think they use the needle scaler to hide the repair and texture it?

Look at page 16 of the big repair on the site in this link



http://www.locknstitch.com/Repair pdf files/Custom truck with cracked 5.9 block.pdf





On bare metal, JB Weld is very strong so I feel it is just a little added insurance.



So, on trucks that DON'T have the crack yet, if you lightly scrape the paint off in the area, so you have nice, clean bare metal, then use the JB Weld to run a bead on that curve so it has alot more strength against cracking (shear strength) I know JB Will bond tightly to metal so this will act as a thicker case in that area. If it is thicker, and the stress of the engine has to overcome the shear of the metal AND the JB, then there is less chance there will be a leak.



On the JB , I wedged the stuff in between the pins and edges and let that thin layer set up, then I added another layer and tried to "Bridge" the curve . I think I would like later on to add to the JB in the other areas of the curve... I will have to scrape the paint off then run another bead... .



Your repair has laste 500 miles and I believe this repair is very good so the JB is just added piece of mind

 

[Cliffman]

Of course grinding flush is advised... why do you think they use the needle scaler to hide the repair and texture it?

Actually Eric, that is incorrect. You're referring to the video they supplied which instructs on how to repair a crack in a cast iron block. BUT NOT A 53 BLOCK! The 53 block has cracked due to the thin casting in that area. They recommend leaving the pins slightly higher than the cast iron block. The instruction sheet that is supplied with the kit was made especially for the 53 block repair. The video was not!



For those of you who are watching this thread in lieu of repairing a cracked Cummins 53 block DO NOT grind the pins flush with the block. Leave them slightly proud. This is what adds strength to the thin casting not JB weld!



Also, using JB weld on a cracked 53 block that has not started to leak yet will give one a false since of security when in fact the JB weld WILL NOT stop the crack from “running” (getting longer) which will just add to the metal stitching time and could possibly cause you to perform the repair from the top side which means removing the turbo and manifold. Sooner or later you’ll see a leak from that crack. If you find that you have a cracked block fix it now, even if it’s not leaking yet, and be done with!

 

[ctd8999]

Eric, With the miles I seen on your truck in another post. Cummins will give you the parts to take care of the 53 block problem. New block, rings, bearings and upper and lower gasket sets. You have to do it yourself or pay someone. They will not pay for the labor. When I Lock n Stitched my block the crack was about 10" long. After a few hard runs it cracked again. Cummins gave me the parts and I did the job myself. Like said before the pins are not to be ground flush they're supposed to get some strength with the protrusion. The needle scaler tightens up the metal by peening it. If I were you I would get the parts from Cummins just to be on the safe side. If you need more info on this PM me. Just my . 02. Thanks Steve B