Minneapolis Moline GBD

[Gil Stuart]

I recently sent my 3 Minnie GBD heads to Henry's MM Engines in Bakersfield to have the valves ground. They pressure tested them and they were all OK, however they did find two of the heads had cracks near the valve seats. They said they had and engine in their back lot that might have two good heads on it, but as it turned out they were cracked also. As a last resort they mention I might have the cracked heads "lock stitch" welded but weren't sure if it would work on diesel heads. Has anyone had experience with lock stitch head repairs ? On another forum two individuals said they were running their Molines with cracked heads that pressure tested OK with no problems. I'm not sure which way to go.

 

[flusher]

Check out this website.

LOCK-N-STITCH Inc. homepage: Cast iron crack repair, cast iron welding, thread repair inserts

Haven't tried this out yet, but it's a pretty standard fix for cracked cast iron. Success generally depends on where the crack is located since you need sufficient access to drill a bunch of holes along the crack.

Also check YouTube videos on repairing cast iron engine blocks and heads--there's plenty of info there.
I'd check with local weld shops to see if they will take a whack at it. Most shops won't because cast iron welding is difficult and shops are reluctant to guarantee that kind of work.

My 1951 MM BF has a hairline crack in the side of the engine block (potential water leak). I'll probably just use JB Weld on it if the leak is a problem.

Right now I'm setting up to weld a broken flange onto the block of my 1948 Farmall Cub. That block is scrap unless I can do a decent cast iron weld there. Only cost is for the welding rod which is a lot less than a replacement block.

Good luck.

 

[Gil Stuart]

Thanks for the info. After checking with Clint Stamm in Washington, Kansas who deals extensively with used Moline diesel tractors and parts for them , he said its very common for Minnies to develop cracks in their heads. In fact he clamed that every used diesel head he has for sale is cracked but pass the pressure test. So I'm having the valves ground on those heads, and since the tractor will only see light duty hopefully the cracks won't be a problem.

 

[flusher]

That's what I would do. If it doesn't work out, then replacing the head is easy.
My old tractors are retired and only used for parades. No heavy duty workout for that old iron.