I just got my 383 back in my 62 wagon with fenderwell headers installed and we went to start it . It back fired and then when restarting the starter would not engage. We took the starter off and the hole for the outer starter bolt is cracked. Can this be repaired by welding? Its not cracked all the way through.Starter seems to be bad also and I will send it out I am more concerned about the block. Maybe heli arc can be done. Has this repair been done by anyone?
sbc block
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Sounded like a starter issue. Me?? If it was my car, no, I wouldnt weld it. If its still solid, not separated I would leave it. The bolting up of the starter will help to keep in sound, I dont see it breaking. It prolly got cracked from a hit, I dont see the starter cracking it.
To do it right you need to remove the engine. Grind a nice lil channel on both sides of the crack (if its a flange, not a blind hole) and weld it with either a stick and some expensive nyrod (works great) or TIG it with some high nickel filler. Either way you need to do some heat pre and post treatment. And re-drill the whole after the weld material gets in there. That may be a difficult process. A hand drill may not do it. The bit may want to cut into the softer side of the hole instead of cutting out the hard filler. So many things to think about when welding cast iron. You could end up making it worse than it is now. JR
To do it right you need to remove the engine. Grind a nice lil channel on both sides of the crack (if its a flange, not a blind hole) and weld it with either a stick and some expensive nyrod (works great) or TIG it with some high nickel filler. Either way you need to do some heat pre and post treatment. And re-drill the whole after the weld material gets in there. That may be a difficult process. A hand drill may not do it. The bit may want to cut into the softer side of the hole instead of cutting out the hard filler. So many things to think about when welding cast iron. You could end up making it worse than it is now. JR
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1,016 Posts
I had my 400 repaired by a welding shop. I took the engine out, but they said they can do it in the car. I had always had trouble with starters, before and after the repair. I finally purchased a hi torque mine starter which worked a few times until it broke the welding repair again. My solution was to get rid of the block.
With a 383, do you have three starter holes? If so can you just buy a mini starter that has the straight bolt pattern instead of the offset?
With a 383, do you have three starter holes? If so can you just buy a mini starter that has the straight bolt pattern instead of the offset?
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6,068 Posts
Mine was cracked on the outside hole to a little bit below the threads (it's a pretty wide crack, about 1/4" or so. It's been like that for years and never caused a problem.
Kev
Kev
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10,827 Posts
Pretty common for them to break there. I know a place in L.A. that can weld them up and you would never even notice the repair--It takes a few days to bring the temp up, weld it, and a few days to bring the temp back down. It's only worth the effort on something rare and exotic.
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10,827 Posts
I think you all know what a cheap SOB I am, and I recently threw out a 4 bolt main 350 block partially because it needed that repair!
Well I had a local weld shop that has done this repair before come out and take a look at the damage. He has fixed this spot on a few small blocks. Heli arc and filled the hole and redrilled. I will install the starter this weekend and give it a try again. New plugs again and will keep my fingers crossed. Thanks for all the replies and information
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