Exhaust Manifold Repair

[SurveyKing]

Can someone give me a recommendation for a person who can repair a small crack in an exhaust manifold port?
This is a 1909 Part T511. Thanks

See pics.

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[Kevin Pharis]

Check out Lock-N-Stich in Turlock, CA. If they can’t fix it, nobody can. They have told me before that exhaust manifolds can be particularly sensitive subjects. Something to do with the carbon from the exhaust gasses changing the base metal over time.

[TeveS-Nor Cal]

I believe they have closed up shop.

[Craig Leach]

Hi Danial,
Old castings are hard to weld & it will be noticeable when done. If you have a lathe or a friend with one you might consider making a
long gland ring that will fit in past the end of the crack( trim it down on the bottom so to not restrict the flow of exhaust) Pack the
circumference of the inside of the manifold with refractory puttie ( sometimes sold as a exhaust repair in a tube ) Remove any excess
& install the manifold. Make sure the gland doesn't fit tight so it will not expand & further crack the manifold. That manifold has made
it 116 years it probably won't crack much more in the next 10-20 years.
Craig.

[Mike Silbert]

The Lock-N-Stitch closed comment got my attention so I had to look it up.
I used a few for one project and know of several other instances where they have been used.
I really liked the design and engineering behind it.
They are plugs that pull the metal together rather than spread it like a normal tapered plug.
The only thing I did not like was price and availability.

Cast iron gets weird with lots of heat cycles and carbon atmosphere like an exhaust manifold.
It takes a lot of experience to deal with it.

My first thought was a sleeve on the outside to squeeze it rather than inside to spread it.

Back to Loc-N-Stitch
Their web site https://www.wartsila.com/marine/service ... ex-repairs
says they fully merged into Wartsila
They have an office in Houston maybe talk to them about who can do it for you.
I am saddened by the possibility that another resource may be drying up.
Mike

Screenshot 2026-02-15 082705.jpg (12.77 KiB) Viewed 1081 times

[Dan Hatch]

So can I still buy Lock n Stitch products? It keeps sending me to that new company and I don’t see how to get the product like I did before. ?????

[Lil Teezy]

Pesky spot for a crack, and that part isnt lying around in piles anymore…
Y’all think a piece that old or a manifold like it can be brazed or is it too “fluffy” a metal? Meaning brittle and porous, partially oxidized and really old…. Maybe silicon bronze or brass or stainless rod? Definitely seen parts made of cast steel and cast iron with worse damage than that restored to function. Personally, I would try the tig torch and silicon bronze rod after soaking the manifold in an oven for a while along with a fixture to minimize any warpage. Vintage machinery shops or old tractor restoration experts near you would be a good place to find a guy with this type of experience. Good luck! -Chris, in Boulder.

[TXGOAT2]

It might be best to run the manifold as-is. Repairing iron castings is fast becoming a lost art, and old exhaust manifolds are among the most challenging of cast iron repair jobs. There is, or used to be, a casting repair shop in Kansas that had furnace welding capability. I don't know the name of it or if it's still operating. The antique gas engine and antique tractor people may know of a resource. I've seen some beautiful repairs that were done long ago to broken cast iron machine tool parts using brass or nickel alloy. But exhaust manifolds are a different proposition due to extreme heat cycling in service and deterioration of the metal itself due to the high heat. T-era gasoline often contained sulfur, which probably contributed to damaging the exhaust valves and exhaust manifolds.

[Dan Hatch]

Lock n Stitch made kits to repair Cummings exhaust seats. Can’t get much hotter than that in an engine.

[John kuehn]

You can use a piece of pipe turned down enough, made into a sleeve and tapered just enough to go in far enough to go past the crack. That should seal it enough and save the manifold for a few more years. This wouldn’t be hard to do for a good machinist. Hope this can help you.

[Mike Silbert]

This an off the wall thought based on no practical experience on my part.
I have no first or second hand experience with this type or process.

What would happen if one of the high tech ceramic or other exhaust coatings were applied to this manifold?
Would it help tie the crack together?
Would blocking the heat stop it from getting worse or leaking?
A tiny hole at the end of the crack can stop it, would this fill the hole in?

It's a thought, but would it actually work?
If it worked that would be a slick repair.
I don't know the answers and hope someone who has real experience will respond.
Mike

[John kuehn]

The part in question has a good chance of being repaired and for a purist this is important for a very early T. The good thing the T manifolds are being reproduced but a little different in appearance than the very early ones and the reproduced exhaust pipe will need to be used with it according to Lang’s. That being said that may not be a good thing for a purist that has a very early T.

The ceramic sealers that are mentioned may be a solution for the repair instead of using heat to repair it.
The old trick of stopping the crack ahead of the crack has been around many years to stop a crack will work.

Years ago my brother-in -law bought a 38 Case Tractor really cheap that had a 3” crack in it leading up one of the exhaust clamp studs. He repaired the crack using a brass rod and flux using Oxy-Acet. It was still holding when he sold it. That’s the old time method of repairing cracked cast iron. But he didn’t have a 09 T either.

[RajoRacer]

I've use Belzona epoxy on T bock exhaust seats with reasonable results - it is an expensive 2 part epoxy that is machinable once cured - something to consider. Early, useable exhaust manifolds are few & far between !

[TXGOAT2]

Search: "Brecko Corporation".
Brecko Corporation, Abilene, Texas


I have no experience with this product or the vendor, but the claims made for it are very interesting. (Magna alloy rods for welding cast iron)

[ModelTWoods]

As has been stated, extreme heat may, or does, things to cast iron manifolds that heat may not do to iron cylinder heads, but I would recommend contacting Midwest Cylinder Head Repair in Nevada, Iowa. They are experts in cast iron cylinder head repair and have been in business since 1947 (one year older than ME). I have had TWO cylinder heads repaired by them; a Simmons and a Ricardo and they did a beautiful and satisfactory repair on both. If they can repair a cast manifold, they will tell you with NO bullshit. If they can't, they'll tell you so. As I understand their process, when they repaired my heads, they heat the cast iron in a mini furnace and weld the item while its still cherry red hot. After repairing, they will pressure test the repair (cylinder head) and machine the item to make sure it fits like new. As T exhaust manifolds can warp from even engine operation, I would remind them of this fact when contacting them. If I were in your shoes, they are the first company that I would contact. Their phone number is 515-382-2791.

[Allan]

I would suggest taking the manifold to a respected specialist welding shop for their opinion. Perhaps they will recommend one of the fixes suggested here, but which one? You have points in your favour. The crack is not under stress and is in the relatively coolest part of the manifold. In my limited experience with a welding service here, I would not be surprised if they suggested bronze welding, following an all-over preheaat, followed by a comtrolled cool down.

Allan from down under.

[Rich P. Bingham]

No one commented whether the manifold is possibly also warped - that adds another layer of difficulty for putting it back in service.

[RajoRacer]

I would have to assume it is NOT, or would have to wonder why go to the expense & trouble to have it repaired.

[Jerry VanOoteghem]

As has been stated, extreme heat may, or does, things to cast iron manifolds that heat may not do to iron cylinder heads, but I would recommend contacting Midwest Cylinder Head Repair in Nevada, Iowa. They are experts in cast iron cylinder head repair and have been in business since 1947 (one year older than ME). I have had TWO cylinder heads repaired by them; a Simmons and a Ricardo and they did a beautiful and satisfactory repair on both. If they can repair a cast manifold, they will tell you with NO bullshit. If they can't, they'll tell you so. As I understand their process, when they repaired my heads, they heat the cast iron in a mini furnace and weld the item while its still cherry red hot. After repairing, they will pressure test the repair (cylinder head) and machine the item to make sure it fits like new. As T exhaust manifolds can warp from even engine operation, I would remind them of this fact when contacting them. If I were in your shoes, they are the first company that I would contact. Their phone number is 515-382-2791.

Best advice, so far^^^

[Allan]

Jerry, they sound just the ticket!
The spare block I have for my 1912 van was a low mileage motor which threw a rod, resulting in a hole in the skirt and a slot up the side of no. 1 cylinder. The specialist welder had me make two patch pieces from steel plate. These
he bronze welded in place
He had an igloo of firebricks built on a firebrick hearth. He would distmantle a few bricks on one side and put the offended item inside, repkace the bricks and use a big gas fired rose to heat the igloo from below. When he was satisfied things were hot enough, out came the few bricks, the welds were done and the bricks replaced. The rose was turned way down and left on overnight for a tapered cool down. Magic stuff. We lost him some years ago.

Allan from down under.

[TXGOAT2]

Cast iron can be spray-welded. The part is cleaned, prepared, heated, then powdered iron is sprayed on it within a flame. This builds up new iron that is fused to the original.

[love2T's]

Check out Lock-N-Stich in Turlock, CA. If they can’t fix it, nobody can. They have told me before that exhaust manifolds can be particularly sensitive subjects. Something to do with the carbon from the exhaust gasses changing the base metal over time.

Cost ya more to fix it than it would to buy a new one! We live in a throwaway world nowadays. Might as well embrace it.

[love2T's]

No one commented whether the manifold is possibly also warped - that adds another layer of difficulty for putting it back in service.

And you KNOW it is warped!!

[love2T's]

I would have to assume it is NOT, or would have to wonder why go to the expense & trouble to have it repaired.

Hear here!! See my other post above. Penny wise and pound foolish. Sorry.

[TXGOAT2]

It might be best to run it as-is. It might not leak. There is a significant chance that attempting to repair it will do more harm than good. I'd be inclined to run it as-is, and look for a replacement in the mean time.

[speedytinc]

Check out Lock-N-Stich in Turlock, CA. If they can’t fix it, nobody can. They have told me before that exhaust manifolds can be particularly sensitive subjects. Something to do with the carbon from the exhaust gasses changing the base metal over time.

Cost ya more to fix it than it would to buy a new one! We live in a throwaway world nowadays. Might as well embrace it.

You cant buy a new one.
This is one of those very rare early parts.
If you could find one, it would be huge dollars from a seller that knew its significance.
Hats off to the purist.

[Jerry VanOoteghem]

No one commented whether the manifold is possibly also warped - that adds another layer of difficulty for putting it back in service.

And you KNOW it is warped!!

Not sure you/we KNOW it's warped, or why you think it's funny.

[Allan]

John is spot on, again. I have great respect for those who do their utmost to save/use original parts, especially if they are from early cars. I have yet to buy a reproduction exhaust manifold for any of my 20"s T's because they are cast differently at the rear when compared to originals.

Allan from down under.

[SurveyKing]

The manifold in question is not warped. Thanks, hoping to find a good repair man for this as they are hard to find.

[love2T's]

No one commented whether the manifold is possibly also warped - that adds another layer of difficulty for putting it back in service.

And you KNOW it is warped!!

Not sure you/we KNOW it's warped, or why you think it's funny.

My apologies on an erroneous approach Jerr...I didn't think IT was funny if IT (the original manifold) was warped but meant rather that its funny how SO ARE warped! Literally every stinking car I've bought had a warped manifold. So there, THAT'S what is funny to me. I am glad his isn't. We need to chill out.

[Jerry VanOoteghem]

Let us know what repair method you choose. I still like Terry Woods' suggestion.

[Mark Anderson]

Since 2022 Midwest Cylinder Head no longer welds cast iron. They are only a machine shop for rebuilding engines.

[Dan Hatch]

Does this take the straight pipe with no flange? If so I may know where one is. Dan

[Henry K. Lee]

I personally would not use either a lock stitch (as it is a wedge shape lock and differences in expansion rate of metals), the other is welding old thin cast iron. A better method is to use #6 or #8 X 32TPI brass machine screws very close over lap like a lock stitch and sand off smooth, You can paint with 2000 degree paint and no one will ever know.. The expansion of soft brass against cast iron is a perfect choice. I have done this many times to old engine valve seats with zero failures.

All Good!

[TXGOAT2]

If it will work on Ford V8 valve seats, it ought to work on anything!