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...on my engine block to fit a road draft tube.
As you may have seen, I've installed the Moss supercharger kit on my TR4A. The kit doesn't have any provision to vent the crankcase into the intake, and by many accounts, the stock setup didn't work all that well anyway. So I decided to install a road draft tube from the earlier engines.
If you know where this plug is located, you know it is hard to get to with the engine installed. Even putting the plug in is difficult with the engine in the car, I know, because my car didn't have the plug (nor the draft tube) when I got it (the engine was from an earlier model). Also, this plug has a much deeper shoulder than typical freeze plugs, so you can't "flip" it in place to remove.
My initial idea was to drill a hole with a right angle drill in the plug, and use a lag bolt as a puller. But that concerned me on a few fronts:
1. I'd have to drop the pan to clean out any swarf. Not a huge deal, but a pain I'd like to avoid if I could.
2. Once I drilled the plug, I'd be committed to getting it out, one way or another.
3. I wasn't completely certain that the lag bolt wouldn't just rip out of the plug.
Thinking about it some more, I discovered that the ID of the plug was just about right for a 1" bolt. So I bought a 1" fine thread bolt (which set me back about $5), and found that it would indeed thread into the plug, but didn't cut enough thread to use as a puller. I also tried a 3/4" pipe thread, but that was too big. I could probably get it to go in if the engine was out of the car, but then I'd have a lot more options!
The next problem was using the 1" bolt as a puller, I didn't have any socket or pipe to easily use, so I decided to cut a section of the thread, drill and tape a hole, and use some threaded rod, allowing me to use a 1/2" drive socket and nut to pull.
Lastly, I decided to use JB Weld to get the puller attached to the plug.
My first attempt used 3/8" rod. Ultimately the puller pulled out of the plug, though it took enough torque that I was concerned that I would strip the threaded rod. So I made a second puller with 1/2" rod. I also used a Dremel to roughen up the inside of the plug, hoping to provide a better grip for the JB Weld.
After letting the epoxy cure for a little over 24 hrs, I tried again, and got the plug out! I don't have any photos of my puller before, but here is an after photo, and a picture of my freshly coated draft tube that I'll be installing.
As you may have seen, I've installed the Moss supercharger kit on my TR4A. The kit doesn't have any provision to vent the crankcase into the intake, and by many accounts, the stock setup didn't work all that well anyway. So I decided to install a road draft tube from the earlier engines.
If you know where this plug is located, you know it is hard to get to with the engine installed. Even putting the plug in is difficult with the engine in the car, I know, because my car didn't have the plug (nor the draft tube) when I got it (the engine was from an earlier model). Also, this plug has a much deeper shoulder than typical freeze plugs, so you can't "flip" it in place to remove.
My initial idea was to drill a hole with a right angle drill in the plug, and use a lag bolt as a puller. But that concerned me on a few fronts:
1. I'd have to drop the pan to clean out any swarf. Not a huge deal, but a pain I'd like to avoid if I could.
2. Once I drilled the plug, I'd be committed to getting it out, one way or another.
3. I wasn't completely certain that the lag bolt wouldn't just rip out of the plug.
Thinking about it some more, I discovered that the ID of the plug was just about right for a 1" bolt. So I bought a 1" fine thread bolt (which set me back about $5), and found that it would indeed thread into the plug, but didn't cut enough thread to use as a puller. I also tried a 3/4" pipe thread, but that was too big. I could probably get it to go in if the engine was out of the car, but then I'd have a lot more options!
The next problem was using the 1" bolt as a puller, I didn't have any socket or pipe to easily use, so I decided to cut a section of the thread, drill and tape a hole, and use some threaded rod, allowing me to use a 1/2" drive socket and nut to pull.
Lastly, I decided to use JB Weld to get the puller attached to the plug.
My first attempt used 3/8" rod. Ultimately the puller pulled out of the plug, though it took enough torque that I was concerned that I would strip the threaded rod. So I made a second puller with 1/2" rod. I also used a Dremel to roughen up the inside of the plug, hoping to provide a better grip for the JB Weld.
After letting the epoxy cure for a little over 24 hrs, I tried again, and got the plug out! I don't have any photos of my puller before, but here is an after photo, and a picture of my freshly coated draft tube that I'll be installing.
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