Bleedin' radiator! HELP/discuss pls......

[ROD]

Aah! So I am rambling then!
 Having thought about this whole cooling scenario,I reckon that the pipe to the back of the head is critical for keeping the head cool. I know some have removed it and plugged the hole,but surely it must help with it connected.As I suspected all along,if the point at which the coolant 'dumps' as it expands /pressurises,whatever,is LOWER than any of the rest of the engine pipework,then the high areas will suffer either loss of coolant,and/or an air lock which will in turn allow that part of the engine to heat up.(Hence my head bowing slightly,even though I had it skimmed previously.)Cos my highest point is the 'head hose'
 Also ,out of the 5 new headgaskets Ive handled,none of them fit correctly a) the stud holes dont quite align b) the water jacket holes are covering the holes in the head,sometimes by 50% of the hole diam.!
 OK ,so my probs are extreme,but it just goes to show that the engine needs as much free flow of coolant as it was designed for, as possible.
 Maybe I am considered as I'll informed or talking out of my **se,by some of the 'Gurus' ,but I can only say what Ive seen .I definitely dont want others to have all this hassle if they can avoid it by reading all my ramblings!

[fifer]

Originally posted by ROD ;
I reckon that the pipe to the back of the head is critical for keeping the head cool
. I know some have removed it and plugged the hole,but surely it must help with it connected. 

I am in total agreement with you .
90% of cooling problems are caused by previous owners not using antifreeze/summer coolant/anti corrosion  in the engine .
We are lucky up here in Fife as we do not have limy water but any plain water will cause corrosion .
From new some engines had the rear of the block silted up from muck left from the casting process .


 

Originally posted by ROD ;
Also ,out of the 5 new headgaskets Ive handled,none of them fit correctly a) the stud holes dont quite align b) the water jacket holes are covering the holes in the head,sometimes by 50% of the hole diam.!

I always have to gently file / dremel the stud holes in the gaskets out

Originally posted by ROD ;
OK ,so my probs are extreme,but it just goes to show that the engine needs as much free flow of coolant as it was designed for, as possible.

Totally agree

Originally posted by ROD ;
Maybe I am considered as I'll informed or talking out of my **se,by some of the 'Gurus' ,but I can only say what Ive seen .

Your **se makes a lot of good observations

I often spout a monumental amount of verbal diahorrea but sometimes there is nugget of usefull info in there .
The only problem is ; Who wants to dig into it to get the nugget 

Originally posted by ROD ;
I definitely dont want others to have all this hassle if they can avoid it by reading all my ramblings!

What a lovely sentiment  . I wish the world was full of people who thought of others 
.
.

[ROD]

Aw! thanks Pete !

[steve brock]

Aah! So I am rambling then!
 Having thought about this whole cooling scenario,I reckon that the pipe to the back of the head is critical for keeping the head cool. I know some have removed it and plugged the hole,but surely it must help with it connected.As I suspected all along,if the point at which the coolant 'dumps' as it expands /pressurises,whatever,is LOWER than any of the rest of the engine pipework,then the high areas will suffer either loss of coolant,and/or an air lock which will in turn allow that part of the engine to heat up.(Hence my head bowing slightly,even though I had it skimmed previously.)Cos my highest point is the 'head hose'
 Also ,out of the 5 new headgaskets Ive handled,none of them fit correctly a) the stud holes dont quite align b) the water jacket holes are covering the holes in the head,sometimes by 50% of the hole diam.!
 OK ,so my probs are extreme,but it just goes to show that the engine needs as much free flow of coolant as it was designed for, as possible.


 Maybe I am considered as I'll informed or talking out of my **se,by some of the 'Gurus' ,but I can only say what Ive seen .I definitely dont want others to have all this hassle if they can avoid it by reading all my ramblings!

I thought the internal diameter of that fitting to the rear of the block was quite small also it turns a sharp bend inside the block certainly I thought needed looking at

[fifer]

Measure the length of the threaded part of the rear hose take off .

Sometimes , when screwed in , it actually touches the bottom and restricts flow.
I cut a wee notch in the bottom of the threaded part to allow a better flow .
.

[ROD]

TRIED TO PUT THIS IN MY BUILD THREAD, BUT CANT FIND IT...sorry
As you will recall much serious discussion followed the overheating   of this trike, and I do hope some folks have learned something !.....I certainly did! To all those that offered advice, ideas and possible solutions previously, I am indebted!
Boring stuff.......Well after a long absence Im back on this.I need to re do the engine after all my previous probs.Decided to get another s/hand engine , and bite the bullet, so after a discussion with swmbo Ive today ordered new liners/pistons, thrust washers, mains and big ends, gasket set.I will use the orig recently reground crank and rods, t/chain etc.I also visited the engine builder today to discuss a plan for the rebuild so that I end up with a short block built by him cos I really need a boost with this to get the trike on the road.Bits arriving next week! Suddenly Im out of the doldrums and on my way!
One thing I will do is mount the coolant filler neck in the top hose to counteract the rad being slightly lower than should be.

[terry t]

Hope you have better luck this time with it, are you using the same engine builder,
still think I would be cheaper to buy another engine

[ROD]

Thanks.
The idea is to use another block to eliminate the possibility of the first one being cracked.
Same engine builder.After a lot of thought , I reckon the whole prob hinges on the loss of coolant due to the filler not being the highest point.whoever it was that said about putting the filler neck in the top hose (which is the highest point) was right.I cocked up fitting the rad low, therefore  any loss of coolant running to the lowest point not being able to be replaced. Enuf said
This whole episode hascost me a fortune, not only to redo the engine, but also breaking down in France , (which I was genuinely absolutely gutted about). and loads of wonga lost in deposits for the holiday.Most of all I suppose is the other sort of 'cost' which is getting swmbo back' on side ', and back on the trike! I have to say she has been a real sport about the trike and has genuinely given it a go, at 50 odd years of age,having never ridden on a bike in her life, I take my hat off to her!

[Manky Monkey]

Cherish that lady Rod! Such gems are few & far between.
Good luck with the rebuild. It's nice to see you having another crack at it. If it helps, Muffin spent over £1000 having his Reliant engine professionally rebuilt, (black Reliant trike). Now it's done, he & his good lady are enjoying riding it so much, they've taken their Harley off the road & are clocking up the miles on 3 wheels. They were at a local bike meet on it just last night.

[ROD]

Whew! And I thought I was the only one bonkers enough!

[Manky Monkey]

Nah, Simon, ("Muffin"), is definitely bonkerserer. He admits he killed the motor by just riding it too hard, (he's used to sports bikes), warping the cylinder head several times. They're not built for flat out speed or long distance hauls really. I always described the performance as being like an old Mini -surprisingly nippy, but with a top speed of 80/85 ish. They're very basic little engines, with bags of potential for tuning if you want it, but will go on forever if you leave them alone.

[steven brock]

Haven't dared go into forth gear yet .. ! Think I need to grow a pair 85 you say.. Blimey

[ROD]

Hit about 65 for very short bursts a couple of times.2 up it feels quite stable, but Im paranoid about a tyre blow out !

[Olds]

Hit about 65 for very short bursts a couple of times.2 up it feels quite stable, but Im paranoid about a tyre blow out !

Less likely to have a bad off, than on a bike I'd have thought. Must admit I was quite cautious for the first hundred miles or so.

[terry t]

Hit about 65 for very short bursts a couple of times.2 up it feels quite stable, but Im paranoid about a tyre blow out !

You probably wont even notice, some trikes run on 15 20 psi on the rear