Leaking radiator-Quick Steel?

[slowxr]

My tank shroud "rubbed" a groove in my radiator and finally sprung a leak today.

I had Quick Steel with me and thought that would fix it. It didn't. Either I did a sloppy job at the repair or maybe I need to try something else?

Any idea's? The leak is not in the coil but in the bottom corner. Can these be welded/soldered?

thanks

[Beyond The Pale]

Just about anything can be fixed. With the right kind of epoxy it should be glueable. Some are a lot better than others at sticking to liquid covered metal. Try something that says it is for gas tank repair. I don't think that the qwik steel is rated for that.

A better repair would be to get it welded. There are many places that can fix it.

[Denn10]

I had to do a quick repair on my 72 cadillac's gas tank and i got some of the puddy for tanks at auto zone and it has held up great for about 4 years now. Its definitely not a permanent fix put for a patch job it works great. Ive tried to weld gas tanks from atcs and there hard if your gonna get welded or brazed prolly take to professional .

[Rockjockey]

A product called Waterweld worked when a friend of mine twisted his radiator on a 2004 CR250 during a long 106 mile enduro in 2005 and it is still holding.

[bajabinder]

Waterweld......by who else?.....JB Weld!

http://jbweld.net/products/water.php

[absynth01]

JB weld baby!!!! This stuff fixed my a$$ a few times. JB quick hardens fast and I keep it in my tool box when traveling DS. JB weld(the normal stuff) is easier to work with.

[rdahl]

This same thing happened to me 1 week ago. For a quick fix you can drain the coolant clean the hole with carb cleaner and use a good 2 part epoxy to patch. It's got to be clean other wise the epoxy wont bond. Eventually you will want to take it to a radiator repair shop and have them weld a beed on it. Also i pulled my grills and ground a notch where they contact the inside bottom corner so this wont happen again. I also put a dab of epoxy on the other radiator where it was showing signs of wear.

[danny v]

Tig weld it the first time right ! If you put any putty,5 min gel,or other filler you will never get it clean enough to weld it properly with out grinding off too much of the tank.

Also TIG is so clean the foreign substance will contamanate the weld and the problem will return.If you get the shop on a good day they might do it for 20.00 or so ? I do a lot of tig on stainless, and yes you can solder but i would TIG it LOL

[GlobalWarmer]

I worked in my Grandfather's radiator shop as a kid. If you have a tube that is leaking this is what you do.

Clear out fins near each end of offending tube.

Clip tube at each end.

Use propane torch to heat solder where tubes enter (whatever it is called) that connects to the tanks.

Pull out tube from what ever it's called.

Heat up whatever it's called and flux then drop in solder. It'll suck up like it belongs.

When both ends are done you have a sealed radiator again.

Every tube you remove reduces the cooling capacity of your radiator.

[butcharin]

Tig weld it the first time right ! If you put any putty,5 min gel,or other filler you will never get it clean enough to weld it properly with out grinding off too much of the tank.

Also TIG is so clean the foreign substance will contamanate the weld and the problem will return.If you get the shop on a good day they might do it for 20.00 or so ? I do a lot of tig on stainless, and yes you can solder but i would TIG it LOL

I agree with Danny. If you are looking for a permanent fix, get it welded before placing any JB weld on it. When welding Aluminum, it is hard enough to get it clean without epoxy bounded to it. Don't get me wrong, I would JB weld it in an instant if in a bind. Just my 2 cents.

[slowxr]

I had it Tig welded. I already used QuikSteel on it but the guy said he could grind/file it off.

It cost $20 and the welder said it won't leak. I'm pleased.

[danny v]

:D

TOLD YOU

Seriously, i am very anal about my welds. I try for aircraft spec.but do not always get there. The problem with the fillers/glue etc. is that when you arc the part, the contamanants wick up the electrode there by sending them back into the weld puddle also destroying the pin point ability of the arc and killing the integrity of the weld !

Lesson is: (do it right the first time !) My mom taught me that (there is never enough time to do it right, but there is always time to do it again !!!)

Good Luck,Go ride