Removing steel pipe plug from aluminum intake

[rwd_pete]

I have an old Edelbrock SP2P intake with steel hex hole pipe plugs blocking water passage ports. I want the plugs out but they won't budge and I don't want to break the aluminum. Does anyone have a suggestion how to free them?
Pete

 

[bygddy]

I have an old Edelbrock SP2P intake with steel hex hole pipe plugs blocking water passage ports. I want the plugs out but they won't budge and I don't want to break the aluminum. Does anyone have a suggestion how to free them?
Pete

I just did this last week with a well used Victor Jr and a seized plug. Propane torch is your friend.....I turned the torch on, opened a beer and proceeded to heat all around the fitting. Beer was finished, I grabbed the wrench and It came right out like butter.

 

[DoubleV]

Are you sure you want to run that Edelbrock SP2P intake anyway? I don't know what application you're using it for but if it's for better than stock performance then it ain't going to help you out there. They actually flow worse than stock. If that's not what you're looking for it would certainly save you the hassle of removing those stubborn plugs.

 

[rwd_pete]

Bygddy
Thanks for the idea. A hot wrench and a cold beer. I was thinking about trying dropping a couple of ice cubes into the hex to chill it after the intake warms up.

Double V
The answer is a little more complex. I had the intake on a 305 in my 80 Malibu for a while. It was lighter than the stock one if nothing else.

Actually I'm working on a display engine top end for a car show. I work at a Powertrain plant in Ontario near Niagara Falls. The plant just retooled for Gen V, but made Gen I, Gen III and Gen IV's. We also build HFV6's and FWD 6 speed auto's. The plant has a car show each summer and this year an open house too. This is the car show website for August 8. http://www.gmpowertrain.ca

In Ontario the Emission Regulations for older vehicles and engine swaps are confusing. If you can prove the swap was pre 1999, you may be exempt from the Reg's. The regulations talk about a minimum 1980 emission standards otherwise. So, I'm building a display engine that would be emission legal. EGR, cats, charcoal cannister, sealed gas cap, etc. Although you don't need to have pre 87 cars tested, they are supposed to still have their equipment in place. I have had friends stopped and it was $300 fine for each infraction. eg. vented breather on a rocker cover not going into the air cleaner. I don't think any of my four hot rods are legal, or that I can prove the swaps pre 1999. So what would it take to get legal? The old SP2P has an EGR valve so I thought it would do the job for an intersting intake. I am on the car show committee and my goal is to create a display of what it takes to be legal. I'm digging through old EGR TVS switches and finally now actually understanding what the emission components were doing. The GM powered car show usually draws over 400 cars of which many are sbc's. My plan is to create the engine package on an engine stand and submit it to a Ministry of the Environment engineer to get clarified what is required.

Pete

 

[bygddy]

Bygddy
Thanks for the idea. A hot wrench and a cold beer. I was thinking about trying dropping a couple of ice cubes into the hex to chill it after the intake warms up.

Double V
The answer is a little more complex. I had the intake on a 305 in my 80 Malibu for a while. It was lighter than the stock one if nothing else.

Actually I'm working on a display engine top end for a car show. I work at a Powertrain plant in Ontario near Niagara Falls. The plant just retooled for Gen V, but made Gen I, Gen III and Gen IV's. We also build HFV6's and FWD 6 speed auto's. The plant has a car show each summer and this year an open house too. This is the car show website for August 8. http://www.gmpowertrain.ca

In Ontario the Emission Regulations for older vehicles and engine swaps are confusing. If you can prove the swap was pre 1999, you may be exempt from the Reg's. The regulations talk about a minimum 1980 emission standards otherwise. So, I'm building a display engine that would be emission legal. EGR, cats, charcoal cannister, sealed gas cap, etc. Although you don't need to have pre 87 cars tested, they are supposed to still have their equipment in place. I have had friends stopped and it was $300 fine for each infraction. eg. vented breather on a rocker cover not going into the air cleaner. I don't think any of my four hot rods are legal, or that I can prove the swaps pre 1999. So what would it take to get legal? The old SP2P has an EGR valve so I thought it would do the job for an intersting intake. I am on the car show committee and my goal is to create a display of what it takes to be legal. I'm digging through old EGR TVS switches and finally now actually understanding what the emission components were doing. The GM powered car show usually draws over 400 cars of which many are sbc's. My plan is to create the engine package on an engine stand and submit it to a Ministry of the Environment engineer to get clarified what is required.

Pete

That is a super neat post Pete. And a cool plan... the emmision stuff is convaluted in Ontario for sure. I have used that loophole in my last couple cars....some legit, one not so "legit" to be honest.
I had read on the drive clean sight about pre 1999 engine swaps. I had an 81 Malibu that had a 350 swapped in in 1995, I even had the receipt from some little shop in Montreal that did it. I emailed Drive clean asking them to confirm that my car did not require any emmisions equipment. They ignored my repeated emails for a couple weeks, I at one point may have mentioned a lawyer contacting them to get some clarification. They then replied, that yes, I indeed did not require any emmisions equipment, but if I was visually polluting they could still request a test and I may not pass without any emmisions equipment. I printed this letter, and kept the receipt for the swap, used it once when I got stopped for being an idiot and doing a 50ft burnout through an intersection.
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hlMlIfal1ds
355, T5, 4.11's lol
I got a warning for the ridiculous burnout (was in a parking lot so think they couldn't do much) but he did threaten to pull me over once back on the road and check for cats etc. He thought my "paperwork" was neat and admitted he didn't know enough about it to call the green police in and let it go. I used the same letter in my 85 Trans Am (not so legit) with a "homemade" receipt for a pre 99 engine swap when I hit a green police roadblock leaving a popular meeting place for cars one Friday night. They read the email letter from drive clean, looked at my receipt and waved me on. My current Monte has had several motors, but have no idea when, but as an occasional driver, I don't feel I'm a "gross" polluter but I know I'm going to get grief about a complete lack of emmisions and likley the 4" pipe sticking through the front fender. I will likely keep my email (if I can find it!) And make another receipt from Billy bobs garage for a motor swap back in 97 lol. I know.....not the most honest..... on the whole I'm a pretty decent guy so I can forgive myself for this little indescretion.