@#@%# Oil Galley pipe plug!!!!

[Petri317]

For those of you who installed your own turbos, how did you get the pipe plug out of the oil galley? I've tried crescent wrenches, vice-grips, pliers, etc. and all they do is slip and screw up the plug. And before I used all of those tools, I looked at every hardware store and automotive/truck tool store for the proper "square socket" as recomended by the ATS instructions with NO luck at all. Any other suggestions? I also hit it with a propan torch, hoping it would do something, but no luck!!

 

[pafixitman]

This is what you need, or try to find an 8 point socket. I got a set of male and female pipe plug sockets off the bay.

 

[The Warden]

I doused mine liberally with WD-40 and PB Blaster on a regular basis for a couple of days before I tried to remove it. When it came time to pull it off, I used a pair of needle-nose vise grips that I got on the plug as tightly as possible. I put the vise grips on tip-first, and used a second pair of vise grips latched around the first set to actually turn the plug. The plug came right out...it was downright anticlimatic.

Maybe I got lucky? The plug head didn't get deformed at all; I could put it back in if I ever wanted to (not that I'm going to, but you know what I mean...)

 

[argve]

Snap On sells a 4 point socket - grips much better than a "Double Square" or 8 point socket - but you might have rounded it too much at this point to even get a 4 point on there... Let's hope not. Now you might try drilling a small hole through the center of the pipe plug to relieve some pressure off it and it might back out if not then you are one step closer to shoving an "easy out" (like they come out easy ) in there to retrieve the plug. In my experience us the square type easy outs the ones that have the spirals don't seem to stand up very well (they twist off so easy) then you're really screwed... Sounds like this one maybe a fun one to remove...

 

[SIKPUP]

After I buggered up mine pretty bad ! I tried to mig weld a nut on what was left of the plug, thinking I could get a socket on it, I guess the direct heat loosened it up, It was almost hand tight and came right out !

This was my worst concern on the turbo install, after all the reading !

Mike

 

[The Warden]

This was my worst concern on the turbo install, after all the reading !

Mine as well! That's why I went straight to the big guns when it came time to do mine (especially after removing the block drain plugs required an extractor, a 2 foot cheater bar, and every ounce of strength I could put into them )...

 

[icanfixall]

Welding something to the plug will shrink it. Thats about the best way to get it out now. The shop that machined my block screwed mine in so far I needed to grink off the lip on the block. Then I hammered on a metric socket that just barely fit. I turned it a small amount, hammered the socket again just to keep it on the square buggered plug and it finally started to turn out but way slowly and very tight. There was no reason to install it that tight. Be careful if you grind down the lip on the block. You don't want to hit the plug any and everything is falling down into your face too.

 

[sle2115]

In the machine shop it was always heat. Hit it with a torch (oxy/acetylene or oxy/propane) as a straight propane tank won't get it hot enough. Of course there was no oil in the engines we tore down either, but it doesn't have to be cherry red, just heat it enough to turn it grey and let it cool. It will probably come out by hand then. The worst ones we did were coolant plugs. The generally had so much crap on the end of them they just came out hard. I good heat and cool job and even they would come out pretty easy in most cases.

The intent is to heat the plug and not the block. The heat will actually expand the plug, then when it cools, it shrinks back to it's normal size. The "movement" (expanding and contracting) breaks the seized contact points and it comes out much easier.

 

[LUCKY_LARUE60]

What plug are you guys talking about? As I am getting ready to put my turbo on soon I need to know what plug it is as I don't have any instructions cause I bought a used setup.

Jim

 

[Agnem]

There are two of these plugs, and both can be a real ****** to get out. I used the needle nose vice grips sucessfully on the Moose Truck, but not the Moosestang. Don't waste your money on 8 point sockets. I've got a $70 snap on set of 8 points that make a good door stop. Sure wish I could have found a 4 point when I needed it. Unless you start out with one, by the time you usually get your hands on one, you've already ruined the plug. Grr....

 

[Agnem]

Jim the plug he is talking about is right in front of the bell housing on the crankshaft centerline.

 

[LUCKY_LARUE60]

Jim the plug he is talking about is right in front of the bell housing on the crankshaft centerline.

Mel, I just looked that the 6.9 and I don't see any plug? Now inside of the bell housing there are two small plugs but they are on both sides of the crank up near the top.

Jim

 

[argve]

Jim,

Here is a picture of it...

 

[icanfixall]

The pic above shows the coolant drain plug also. Thats where you install the Baja block drains. My oil plug was reallt turned in deeper than the pic shows so I ground down the block flange so the metric socket would fit deeper on the plug.

 

[pafixitman]

The pic above shows the coolant drain plug also. Thats where you install the Baja block drains.

Is that the hex looking plug at 7:00 directly below the exhaust manifold flange bolt?