Leaking B radiator

[grandpa Love]

Curse and swear time, filled the B up with hot water, let it run with cardboard over the radiator until it got good and warm, poured in a tube of powder Aluma- seal, drove it up and down the road for 30+ minutes, then let it idle in the yard for 45 more minutes. Zero leaks, radiator full. Put it in the barn and the next morning it was drip, drip, dripping. Lost nearly a gallon. Dang it, dang it, dang it.... Next??

 

[used red MN]

Well the old saying is ..if you want to play you got to pay..! Looks like the ones available from YT are $400 -450 shipping adds to that. However, the YT mother ship ASAP had the same prices and probably parts but in addition they offer a reconditioned one for $305 and they offer free shipping over $250. I see some on eBay for $300 and again shipping adds to that.
ASAP Farmall B radiators

 

[crsutton81]

I see 2 options sounds like. If want to be conservative, drain out the water that's now in it. Dump 2 more tubes of Alumaseal in it, then refill with a 50/50 mix of water and antifreeze. The antifreeze seems to make it stick in place where leaking. It has always taken a minimum of 2 tubes per initial episode for me to have any luck. The other option is a new radiator sounds like based on the local radiator repair shop will not touch it.

 

[wore out]

Don't any of you guys know how to solder?

 

[Papaw8]

You can use stop again alumna seal or bars leaks original with the pellets. Or you can find which tube is leaking and snip it off at the top and bottom tanks and solder the slots in the tanks. Trying to solder the tube itself has not worked for me. Jb weld might work on the actual hole in the tube. I use 50/50 solid solder and separate flux either ruby fluid or the paste type. You have to clean the surface good.

 

[47fivewindow]

Clean the area of the leak with sandpaper till shiny. Use
Ruby fluid and 50-50 solder. It's like learning how to
weld. Keep fixing it till it holds. Reread Wore Outs
previous post. I have used an ordinary propane plumbing
torch. I am 100% on brass, 0% on plastic and aluminium.

 

[redforlife]

Might give it some time. Sometimes it'll be seapy for awhile until the stop leak will do its wonders.
One afternoon of operation might not do the trick. If it were me, I'd add some fluid and perhaps a little more stop leak to accommodate what was lost in the leakage, and give it some time. It might go ahead and seal up eventually. But it might not. Be patient. You got to allow the stop leak to do its thing, before you give up on it. If it don't ever take hold and seal things up, then the holes are probably to big.

Might be as boring as watching paint dry. But if you want to give it a chance at working, you can't pull the pin to soon. Expecting immediate results.

 

[gmcdeadhead]

if your gonna keep the tractor for any good amount of time , bite the bullet and yank it out and get it recored and then it will be good for another 20 years

 

[roy prins]

Hey Grandpa a few years back i used a product called liquid glass -- sealed a hole made buy a 22 cal. rifle . made by a stray bullet . I missed the groundhog hit the radiator after hitting a piece of concrete.

 

[1946 BN IHC]

Dear Red have similar happening when we set our BN to run. What we did was the following. Used a large pot on the stove: boiled water till rolling well: put in leak stop [bars leak I think] let the water heat for a bit longer [ 3 or so minutes] then pored it in to the rad / still off the tractor/ with the lower & upper ports blocked off/ put a pressure adapter on filler hole at top and applied up to 15 lb., pressure & left for several hors.
The outcome the rad has never leaked since; that was closing on 5 years ago. even use the tractor in the winter.
Wm.

 

[John M]

UNless your B ha a waterpump, its not going to circulate enough to seal it up anyways. Ive never had luck with those type of sealers.

 

[kshansen]

(quoted from post at 09:42:55 02/12/23) Dear Red have similar happening when we set our BN to run. What we did was the following. Used a large pot on the stove: boiled water till rolling well: put in leak stop [bars leak I think] let the water heat for a bit longer [ 3 or so minutes] then pored it in to the rad / still off the tractor/ with the lower & upper ports blocked off/ put a pressure adapter on filler hole at top and applied up to 15 lb., pressure & left for several hors.
The outcome the rad has never leaked since; that was closing on 5 years ago. even use the tractor in the winter.
Wm.

Not a bad idea!

I was wondering if there was an easy way to hook up a water pump of some kind and circulate the coolant to the radiator with the stop leak in it.

Just thinking out loud how about finding the pump and motor off an old washing machine, they are made to pump hot water so might be able to fab something up like that.

Might help to have a little restriction in the return from the radiator just to put a little pressure on the leak so you could tell when or if it had stopped.

 

[tn terry t]

dike radiator stop leak is some bad stuff

flush out the antifreeze first
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