found damage, has it been seen before? is it repairable?

http://i43.servimg.com/u/f43/17/13/16/01/05812.jpg

take a look at this pic. do you think this damage is repairable? 2 cracks on cam side of dist. gear retainer? not sure of the proper name of the damaged piece. one crack is 1/16" all the way threw and other is 3/4 of the way threw but hair line. can any builders tell me what may have caused this damage? engine was built less that 1000 mi. ago. was a family car step grandpa pasted about 2 yrs ago. hasent been driven in about 7 according to the tabs. They lived in CA I shipped it up to MN where I live. I was tearing down over the winter to inspect, enigne did run and ran pretty good. after soaking in oil and rebuilding carb upon arrival.

FYI also after getting it running, put about 30 Mi on ti and the Oil pressure switch started pouring oil out. found another in the center counsel. Could the oil pump be the culprate? I wonder if this happened before. guy who drove the car is know dead. seems like a strange extra part to keep in the counsel, also a C6 modulator in there, that was it.

I don't think I would try to repair, even if you could I don't think you would ever get the dist shaft to line up correctly again to the oil pump or to get the cam and dist gears to mesh properly. Don't know what would have cause it to get cracked like that, what did the dist gear look like when you pulled it out? Also the pad that the dist gear runs against looks to be uneven and chewed up also. Maybe at sometime or another a tooth broke off an old cam or dist and wedged between gears cracking it and pushed it apart???? WHat ever happened I would look for another block or engine and start over.

Go to Paul's website, http://www.highflowdynamics.net/ then in the left column click on "dizzy gear lube mod" look at the 4th, 5th, and the last picture with the mirror and see what the dist pad should look like, it should be flat and smooth, yours looks gouged and worn out.

racnrick wrote:

I don't think I would try to repair, even if you could I don't think you would ever get the dist shaft to line up correctly again to the oil pump or to get the cam and dist gears to mesh properly. Don't know what would have cause it to get cracked like that, what did the dist gear look like when you pulled it out? Also the pad that the dist gear runs against looks to be uneven and chewed up also. Maybe at sometime or another a tooth broke off an old cam or dist and wedged between gears cracking it and pushed it apart???? WHat ever happened I would look for another block or engine and start over.

Go to Paul's website, http://www.highflowdynamics.net/ then in the left column click on "dizzy gear lube mod" look at the 4th, 5th, and the last picture with the mirror and see what the dist pad should look like, it should be flat and smooth, yours looks gouged and worn out.

This can be fixed however, it is not a backyard fix with hand power tools.
Set the block up on a mill and adjust the millhead to the correct angles of the original hole. Get a MOPAR intermediate shaft bushing and mill the hole to the correct size and depth to install the bushing. Once the bushing is installed it must have the I.D. sized.

Thanks for the feedback. does anyone know of a good machine shop in the minneapolis area?

unless this is a special Block Why not just get another block and go with it instead of trying to repair this one?

Smooth out whats chewed up and run a msd dist., they have bearings at both ends of the shaft. I bet it would be rigid enough to never notice the crack, worse case it will chew up another gear. That is rather weird how that got cracked. If you need to tear the motor down because of other reasons I would just find a different block.

OOps should have read your post slower, motors already tore down

i'd look closer at it.if you dont already have it down where you can see it from the front you need to.i've saw these things look like the pics you have and just be piss poor machine work from the factory.i had a 400 with what looked like a damn washer pressed in it.

whent to the machine shop today, they said no way to repair it. this is what they said: 250 for a known good core plus whatever machineing is required. Sound fair? should i keep fishing for a shop that would fix it? it will be a 80 to 90% street engine, may do some weekend bracket racing in the future. or just replace block? Like I said a D0ve-a block haven't removed oil pan to see what is under there. if it is a 4 bolt, should i presue fixing it, any markings to tell if it is a 4 bolt? just curious.

Pull the pan and see. A 2 bolt deal will live long on the street and strip too. Just find another block. $250 for just a block seems kind of high to me...

That can be fixed, not all shops can or want to do that kind of work. As I said in my post in your other thread have to consider cost of having another block checked out and all the machine work. Doubt you will get a block done correctly ready to go for $250.

Think you need to take it down rest of way and see what the condition of everything is. BTW where are you located.

Steve

minneapolis metro area