OIL inlet hole stripped!

[nismostate]

What should I do about it? The stripped hole is in the block. I was thinking about using a heilcoil kit but I have never used it before. I've been told it's pretty difficult to use. Either that or I can retap it to a bigger hole, modify the inlet tube, and get a bigger bolt and drill the necessary hole in the bolt. I've noticed there should be a pinhole in the bolt too. I have access to a mill so I know the holes in the bolt will be precise. What should I do??:help

[xyster]

if you can use a drill, tap, and screwdriver, then a helicoil is easy to use. however, if you've never used a helicoil kit before, I don't recommend you do the engine block yourself.

[BaliLover]

Holy ****e, I just did the EXACT same thing last night. EXACT, same hole and everything. Did it after the parts stores were closed so I screwed myself. I'm going to try a helicoil tonight, but its in a bad area, tight spot, and I'm scared to dump shavings and filings into the block.

[nismostate]

Damn for real?! Tell me what's up man. I wont be able to fix it until after this weekend. Im lucky that my engine is sitting on a engine stand. Im worried about the metal shaving thing too! Might have to get a vaccuum while drilling or something. DAMN hard lines! ahhhhhhh.

[BaliLover]

Well, so far I don't have squat. I got the heli-coil kit but it requires a 31/64" drill bit. I have the bit, but its in 1/2 drive, and theres no way my 1/2" drill will fit inside the bay with the bit. So far I haven't been able to find a solution. I tried forcing the bit into a socket, and trying to use the air ratchet to turn it but the bit just slips in the socket. I bought an airdrill that was pretty compact, and a bit set that appeared to have a 31/64" bit with a 3/8 shank, but once I got it home and opened the pack, I discovered that particualr bit in the set had a 1/2 shank. So thats 2 nights in a row, with no luck. I don't know what to try now, I work all day and by the time I get off, all the hardware stores and parts depots are closed so i dont' even have time to go look for anything else.

[nismostate]

Where did you get the helicoil kit from? I was looking over the internet but im not sure which one to get. The inlet bolt size is 17mm but I can't figure out the correct kit to get. I believe we need something that's less than 1inch deep. Did you ever look at the time sert kits? They seem to be a better kit but im still not sure what I am going with. You are doing this for the turbo oil inlet hole on the block right? I just want to make sure we're on the same track.... I hope we can get this fixed soon! sigh....

[xyster]

When I had to helicoil some 1/2" holes on a blower at work, I got the kit from Fastenal. McMaster-Carr and Grainger should carry them too.

[BaliLover]

I got mine at big A autoparts. Yes I'm talking about the hole in the block where the hard metal line goes. Its the oil inlet for the turbo. With a helicoil, you buy the one thats the size for your bolt, in this case it is a M12-1.25 and is a PITA to find. You buy the kit (mine was $50) and it comes with 6 coils, a tap to thread the hole with, and the install tool. It also tells you that you need a 31/64 drill bit to drill the hole with first, and it has instructions that tell you how to install it. It does not look like its going to be easy for me, but if the engine was on a stand, I'd be done in about 20 minutes.

[BaliLover]

Okay, bad news for me at least. Attempted to drill the hole out to the correct size and tap it, failed miserably. I drilled the hole out, but the tap kept cross threading and removing all the threads I was able to cut. I have threads somewhere deeper in the hole, but I can't get the tap in enough to make them work. Now I just have a larger hole in the side of my block. In an attempt to get a heli-coil partially in, I ended up destroying the insertion tool so there went $50. I've exhausted my abilities to do things the correct way. Tomorrow I'm going to hit the hole with some good degreaser and get a fitting from the parts store, jam a ton of JB weld putty around it and stick it in the hole and pack more around it. While its still soft I'll run some wire through it to make sure the end isn't plugged. From there I'll clamp a hose on and connect it to the hardline. At this point, I don't care if it still has a slight leak, I'm going to worry about rebuilding my other block and to hell with this one.

[nismostate]

Damn, now Im really worried. Was it because you didn't have enough space to work on it or it just didn't work? When you tap it, did you tap a little and bring it back up or did you just tried to tap the whole thing at one time? This is really making me rethink about trying to do this myself. My buddies tapped a hole before but im worried that for some reason it might not work.... maybe I should spend the extra money and let a machine shop do it. Im not sure how much that'll cost but I dont have a extra block to work on.

[xyster]

tapping a hole is pretty easy. Just make sure you drill the hole as straight as possible, which should be pretty easy, since there's already a hole there. make sure you thread the tap in as straight as possible, use plenty of cutting oil (wd-40, whatever), and turn the tap backwards one complete turn for every 1/4 turn you cut in (that's after you have at least one complete turn cut, of course). If you're unsure, and it's on a stand, take it to a machine shop. You're gamb|ing with a lot of money.

[nismostate]

thanks xyster... I believe I might have to gamble because trying to get my motor to a machine shop will be a pain especially since I don't have a pick up and it'll be a 30+ min drive to the nearest one.... My buddy has tapped a lot of holes so im counting on him to save my sr. He's made his own sterling engine with scrap before so im sure he's pretty experienced. He also told me that doing it to a bigger hole would make it easier especially when my motor is on a stand. the wd40 is an awesome advice. I'll be sure to use that. I will be back with the SR sunday so I'll post what the results are on sunday night... Im going to need all the luck I can get!! ahhhhh

[nismostate]

WOW... was that scary! Anyways, I fixed the hole!! actually, my roommate fixed it. Pretty much we stuck a cotton ball inside the hole to keep shavings from falling into the block. he drilled a little and then changed cotton balls. did that about 3 times. That really kept the area free from shavings. We got a tap holder and hand tapped it. we did what xyster said pretty much. He did it really slow to make sure it didn't mess up. we also used something called tap magic; some tap and drilling oil. If anyone has to do the some kind of thread repair, remember to mark how deep you need to go. if the tap stops, and you keep tapping, you WILL crossthread so your pretty much screwed. Overall the repair went really well!;) im sorry yours didn't go well Balilover. Onward with my install.....:pface