'64 Water By-Pass Pipe

[tbird430]

I'm going to try a "jumpstart" a thread for a new member (felgoodtx) on here. He is my neighbor, Chris, across the street, & boy is he itching to get his "newly aquired" '64 hardtop to a big cruise this coming weekend. 390cid of course.

He has replaced the waterpump & thermostat with new parts. Coming from a past "GM" shadetree mechanical background, these old Ford's are a new learning curve for him.

He has now learned about that real bear of a water by-pass hose Ford uses between the intake manifold & waterpump. His is corroded so bad & leaking, it needs to be removed & replaced.

Short of buying a new Edelbrock aluminumreplacement intake manifold what are his other "OE" options?? I've never had to replace this "pipe fitting" barb tapped or pressed into one of our stock cast intake manifolds.


Anyone?




Chris, if I left anything out you can comment or select "POST REPLY" at the bottom left of this window....

[jopizz]

The pipe is just pressed in so it's replaceable. New ones are available from any of the T-Bird vendors. The problem is getting the old one out if it's corroded. Most likely it will just break if he tries to remove it and then he'll have to chisel it out. The Edelbrock manifold is nice except for the fact that it doesn't have the oil fill tube so you also have to buy new valve covers. There were aluminum Ford intakes but they're difficult to find and expensive. If he's not a stickler for originality he can use a later model intake from a 390 or 360 but it will most likely be a two barrel. I think I would attempt to replace the pipe first. I remember people also using copper pipe. I think it's 5/8.

John

[simplyconnected]

I bought one from my local auto parts store. They ordered it and the next day it came in. I have plenty of copper pipe but it is too soft for this application. You really need steel. I thought about tapping the hole for a 1/2" pipe thread but that's an overkill. The steel nipple works well and it's cheap.


I believe 'Standard Products' made mine. I paid ~$5.00 for it. They come real long so you may need to cut it down. I cut an inch off this one, and filed the edges round for easier insertion.


This Edelbrock aluminum manifold came with just a 5/8" hole. You can see, the hole is about 1/2" deep.



Measure the new length by holding up your water pump to the intake manifold. Leave at least 1/2" space (or more) between the two pipes to insert rubber hose. In other words, try not to butt both tubes against each other because in future, you may want to slide a hose in there without unbolting anything. You can see, this one sticks out 1-1/4", which is more than plenty for a hose clamp behind the barb.

Your old nipple should 'curl' out if it's old and rusty. Do not try to saw it out or you will create a nasty path for a coolant leak. It's simply a drilled hole, either 1/2" or 5/8". When installing the new nipple, use Loctite to lubricate and seal as you pound it in with a hammer. Yep, simply go at it with a hammer, keeping it straight as it enters the hole. Keep measuring so you don't go in too far.

I hope this helps. - Dave

[tbird430]

Thanks guys. I'd never had to replace one of these yet (knock on wood).

Are you getting this Chris??

[cdhowell]

Everything I work on that is press fit goes in the freezer for a few hours.This shrinks the part slightly for an easier install.