My outer coolant seal wall on my front iron (S4 T2) has rusted through. I reached out to goopy performance, as they were recommended to me for this fix. From what I understand, you can weld the iron and essentially build up a new wall. When I reached out to goopy, they said they would fix it with Epoxy, essentially filling that whole coolant jacket with it. They said they've done this before and haven't had issues. Does this sound right? I know semi-PP guys block off coolant ports all the time, but is there reason for concern with this?



Pic of failure. No, that's not a hole in the bridge. Just some pitting that caught the light

 

if its just in that area, epoxy might work just fine. it only needs to support the seal. the PP engines fill that area of the rotor housing to seal the sleeve, and it works, although its not permanent

 

The epoxy method Goopy recommended MIGHT work, but filling/blocking that part of the cooling passage to make it work (for how long?) isn't generally a good idea. How long would Goopy be willing to warranty such a repair for and what would it cost? If it were me, I'd look real hard into the cost/benefit of doing a repair vs. getting a new plate to avoid the risk of having to open up the motor again to fix the same problem.

 

Problem is, Goopy isn't willing to warranty the work. They're charging 125 for the work.

As I mentioned, I know it's possible to essentially weld a new wall on there, which would be a more permanent fix, in my opinion. Anyone know a shop that does this?

 

Welding cast is a specialty. It's not to say it can't be done, but you need someone familiar with preheating, and slow cooling to avoid cracking. Additionally, once the wall has been built up, in my opinion, the only way to ensure the contour of the seal grove is correct is to CNC machine that path. I don't think using a hand grinder to reshape the seal groove nor facing down the mating surface with hand tools would suffice.

You can fix anything with enough money talent and time. I know the cost for new plates is really high but for a very competent person to repair this the cost might be the same as new.

 

have you checked with Chips? i believe he offers the welding repair.

as said above, the epoxy will probably work in that area, but it will also likely be an issue again in the future.

 

Cast iron repair is also done with aluminum bronze filler. Has a higher strength and temperature tolerance over silicone bronze filler. Because of the lower heat input it isn't as complex to TIG braze as TIG welding cast with a nickel rod and associated cracking issues as noted above. I'm even going to hazard a guess dressing out that small breech into the cooling jacket can be done by hand with the softer alum. bronze filler material.

 

Haven't talked to chips yet, but I may end up calling him. My concern with welds is that they may not bind to the iron very well, and may end up falling out after x number of years. At least with the epoxy, I know it's IN THERE. And with it being on the intake port, it should keep cool anyway...

 

Braze in and face a bridge for the wall. Do not weld or epoxy it.

 

Epoxy *might* work.

Brazing or welding *will* work.

In both cases (brazing and welding) you need to make sure it's flat after.

 

Chips has stopped responding to customers and has scammed multiple people for parts for months and even years at this point. Do not trust him even if he picks up the phone.

 

I once saw pictures where someone used an apex seal spring to hold the seal in at the broken area. Wish I could find pics but that's what I immediately think of every time I see this.

 

that is pretty funny

 

There was a forum member that sold a repair kit for your problem (Cardinell), Rotary Evolution or similar. It was a stainless band that went all the way around the seal to support it where there are breaks in the seal wall.

 

you can try these https://www.atkinsrotary.com/69-11-R...66-23-025.html

it's a metal strip that provides support and protection to the coolant seals. Mazda used to use these but stopped.

 

Hey all,
I was recommended to a shop up in NY (Dredtech performance) who could fix it. I've sent him the iron for repair. Will update with results

 

Update as promised:
Dredtech was able to get it fixed and shipped back to me. Did a great job on it. With it being by the intake port (low stress), I can't imagine I'll have any issues with this

 

thanks for posting the pic of the repair and glad someone is doing these repairs. I'd expect more repair to the corroded wall since that is the next likely failure point.

 

NICE!
I would still add the metal coolant seal protector strips that Atkins sells as an additional failsafe just in case, but I'm very OCD