Cracked Block - Options Revisited

It's not just about the market value of the car or the parts. It's about historical preservation, fellowship with others, the satisfaction of learning something new and passing it on. Not to mention the joy of getting your hands dirty and the pure enjoyment cruising down the road provides.

I'm relatively young and new to the hobby and that's why I'm in it. Note I said hobby. Few can make it a profession and that is only because the rest of us value their specialized abilities more than the actual value it adds to the vehicle.

If you think buying Model A's as a serious investment is a good idea, I have a bridge you might be interested in, and if you are willing to work for a wage that is actually reflected in the value of the car, you are welcome in my garage anytime.

If you don't need to, don't scrap it. New technologies may make them restorable, or at worst, they could become displays that might spark interest in young people to keep these machines going for another 100 years.
 
Stitch is the only real method of reliable repair. There was a guy out this way who was a master with cast iron repair: Frank Casey. He had done several blocks for me and many others. Unfortunately he has passed, great guy and real loss to the automotive community. The way to test is to pressure test the repair with air. It should take and hold pressure without leakage after disconnected from air source. There are pressure test kits available for Model A and Flathead V8. You can get stitching materials from Goodson.
Steve
 
My recommendation would be try using the epoxy fill approach as long as the crack is easily accessble. This will allow leaving the engine in car and be the least expensive.
Using small small cutoff wheels and/or burr grinding bits notch out or create a vee notch along the entire crack. It is super important that the areas to be seal are roughened and clean. I recommend using a slow cure clear epoxy similar to that used for marine repairs. I am assuming the crack is on a vertical surface. You will have to be a little creative and build a dam in front of the area to be sealed to prevent the epoxy from flowing before curing. I would use aluminum tape leaving an opening the top for filling. Using this method will leave a much thicker seal once the epoxy is cured and the tape is removed. Use a heat lamp to help cure the epoxy for at least 24hrs. Once the tape is removed the epoxy can be ground down flush with the block casting. A conservative maximum operating temperature for most epoxy compounds is 350*F.
 
nkaminar said:
" Everyone wants the car they had when the were 18 years old, and anyone who had a Model A at 18 is dead."

I'm not dead and I bought my first Model A at age 16.
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I swapped my 1/4 midget for a 28 Dodge when I was 13 (1963). When I was 18 I was driving a 59 Ford wagon & 54 Corvette. But at 19 I bought my first new car a 70 Road Runner - I'd get one of those again if people didn't think they were made out of gold....
 
Big fan of Belzona 1212 epoxy. This product is the default repair for Cat heavy equipment, so if they endorse it, it's got to be good. I had a rot hole in the outside portion of a water jacket. It's been 5 years now and not a drop.

Beauty of this product is it is designed to be used in less than surgically clean environments.
 
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