Rounded off drain plug

[goeduck]

Apparently he did. His last post was almost a month ago.(5/21)

It seems the pallet thread waited a lot longer than that for old sparc in hopes that he would return. We are just getting started.

As a famous person once said —— Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.

 

[stuckmotor]

Did anyone ever ask the op which direction he was turning the wrench?

Now, that was funny.

 

[stuckmotor]

It would be much easier to remove the offending cross member and modify it so that it can be bolted on and taken off the next time that this occurs.

Makes sense to me.

 

[goeduck]

This thread should not be confused by logical posts :whistleblower:

 

[bcp]

OK. Can't turn the plug?

Then just hold the plug still and turn the tractor.

Bruce

 

[/pine]

This thread has turned into another "geezer pacifier"...

You do realize the owners of this site have a Swiss bank account that gets regular deposits by the wives of several TBN regulars for payment of day/night care services don't you??

 

[kenlip]

I can't think of any better suggestions than those already offered, however.....

Something I should clarify, the plug isn't seized, it was over-tightened, massively. Malicious family members. Shed has been chained and locked to prevent further issue there. Head of the plug was stripped a bit as a result of the over-tightening and further torn up from me trying to remove it.

has me a little puzzled.

If someone wanted to sabotage the tractor by messing around with drain plugs, why over-tighten a drain plug that hardly ever needs to be removed? Surely, it would make more sense to sabotage the crankcase, or some other, drain-plug?

It might be prudent at this time to point out to those a bit less experienced with drain plugs that, if one removed the plug while the engine was hot, it is imperative that the engine be allowed to cool completely before replacing the drain plug. This applies mainly to tapered plugs.

When removing the plug from the hot engine, both the hole and the plug are larger than they would be when everything is cool. The removed plug cools quite quickly and shrinks in the process. The hole in the hot engine stays enlarged. This allows the cold, smaller plug to be driven deeper into the larger hole in the hot engine. When their temperatures equalise, the connection between the plug and the engine will be so tight that it can make removal of the plug extremely difficult.

I wonder if this might have happened with Kando's tractor.

Ken

 

[stuckmotor]

I can't think of any better suggestions than those already offered, however.....



has me a little puzzled.

If someone wanted to sabotage the tractor by messing around with drain plugs, why over-tighten a drain plug that hardly ever needs to be removed? Surely, it would make more sense to sabotage the crankcase, or some other, drain-plug?

It might be prudent at this time to point out to those a bit less experienced with drain plugs that, if one removed the plug while the engine was hot, it is imperative that the engine be allowed to cool completely before replacing the drain plug. This applies mainly to tapered plugs.

When removing the plug from the hot engine, both the hole and the plug are larger than they would be when everything is cool. The removed plug cools quite quickly and shrinks in the process. The hole in the hot engine stays enlarged. This allows the cold, smaller plug to be driven deeper into the larger hole in the hot engine. When their temperatures equalise, the connection between the plug and the engine will be so tight that it can make removal of the plug extremely difficult.

I wonder if this might have happened with Kando's tractor.

Ken

If the engine must be cooled completely before the plug is replaced, how do lube shops get by changing the oil in a hot car every few minutes?

 

[kenlip]

If the engine must be cooled completely before the plug is replaced, how do lube shops get by changing the oil in a hot car every few minutes?

It all depends on whether the plug is tapered or has parallel sides. To the best of my knowledge, most modern cars have drain plugs with straight threads, not tapered, and rely on a washer/gasket to ensure the seal.

In the days when I used to service my own cars (circa 1970's and '80's), the drain plugs tended to be tapered. They also had 'female' square heads, into which one fitted a 'male' square wrench - a lot like a grub screw and allen key arrangement, but square. Some cars had straight plugs with gaskets for the sump and tapered plugs with square holes for the gearbox and differential.

The plug on Kando's tractor appears to be tapered.

I have never taken my car to a quick-lube place, so I can't comment on how they do things. Might they vacuum the oil out?

Another option, other than letting the engine cool, is to insert the tapered plug just tight enough to allow it to be in contact with the sump to allow heat to transfer from the sump to the plug. Once the plug has reached the same temperature as the sump, torque the plug to specs.

Do most tractor owners tend to drain their oils while the engine is hot or cold?

 

[sixdogs]

It all depends on whether the plug is tapered or has parallel sides. To the best of my knowledge, most modern cars have drain plugs with straight threads, not tapered, and rely on a washer/gasket to ensure the seal.

In the days when I used to service my own cars (circa 1970's and '80's), the drain plugs tended to be tapered. They also had 'female' square heads, into which one fitted a 'male' square wrench - a lot like a grub screw and allen key arrangement, but square. Some cars had straight plugs with gaskets for the sump and tapered plugs with square holes for the gearbox and differential.View attachment 558711View attachment 558714

The plug on Kando's tractor appears to be tapered.

I have never taken my car to a quick-lube place, so I can't comment on how they do things. Might they vacuum the oil out?

Another option, other than letting the engine cool, is to insert the tapered plug just tight enough to allow it to be in contact with the sump to allow heat to transfer from the sump to the plug. Once the plug has reached the same temperature as the sump, torque the plug to specs.

Do most tractor owners tend to drain their oils while the engine is hot or cold?

My guess is that most tractor owners in the US change oil when it's hot and the hotter the better.