winterizing on 1952 cub radiator

[dblact38]

Hey guys, new at this ,but I just bought this cub realizing that I wont have time to work on it until spring. My problem is wanted to at least drain the radiator and but new antifreeze/coolant in it,but realize there is a very bad striped drain plug that I cant remove. What can I do to make sure if there is water in the radiator it wont freeze? I do see some green color fluid inside. Thanks again any info will help Gary

[tst]

pull the lower hose off

[ScottyD'sdad]

There are anti freeze testers available, at auto parts stores, to test what is in there. Could pull the lower coolant hose, to drain and refill, if needed.
Ed

[offrink]

I have the same problem as you. I removed the lower radiator hose. If you aren't going to run it all winter is there a down side to leaving the engine and radiator empty?

[Eugene]

If you aren't going to run it all winter is there a down side to leaving the engine and radiator empty?

No harm. Since you have the coolant manifold off the right side of the engine, it is a good time to flush the crud from the engine block and lower radiator housing.

[Puffie40]

I have the same problem as you. I removed the lower radiator hose. If you aren't going to run it all winter is there a down side to leaving the engine and radiator empty?

That will not be a problem as long as you remember to fill it back up when you start it. Leave a tag tied around the radiator cap or the starter lever to remind yourself.

[offrink]

It was a question out if curiosity. Mine is all set for -40 temps. Hope we don't see them like last year!

[tmays]

I'd put hose back on. I drained water from nonrunning cub and left rad cap off(unintentional). Got cub ready to start and proceeded to fill with water. Mouse came out rad hole and like to have scared the you know what outta me!

[staninlowerAL]

......realize there is a very bad striped drain plug that I cant remove.

Maybe you will have better luck that I did. When I removed the drain plug and cleaned the threads, I found the 3/8" female pipe threads on the lower radiator housing to be almost completely rusted away. Now I'm looking for a "fix" to redo the 3/8" female pipe threads. I don't have the tools to retap it to 1/2" pipe threads but I thought about using a short bolt with a flat washer and rubber gasket if I can figure out what threads I can use on the lower radiator housing.

[John *.?-!.* cub owner]

......realize there is a very bad striped drain plug that I cant remove.

Maybe you will have better luck that I did. When I removed the drain plug and cleaned the threads, I found the 3/8" female pipe threads on the lower radiator housing to be almost completely rusted away. Now I'm looking for a "fix" to redo the 3/8" female pipe threads. I don't have the tools to retap it to 1/2" pipe threads but I thought about using a short bolt with a flat washer and rubber gasket if I can figure out what threads I can use on the lower radiator housing.

Clean the threads as well as you can, then coat the end of a short 3/8 pipe nipple and screw it into the hole. Then put a cap on the nipple. the bolster I bought for my loader cub had the pipe plug drilled out, but the bit had been off to the sides and taken out the threads on one side to the point a plug would not seal. I used my suggestion on it, and all has been well for over 2 years.

Removing the lower hose does not completely drain the housing. It comes close, but does leave some liquid in the haousing. Probably not enough to cause a problem though.

[ricky racer]

Hey guys, new at this ,but I just bought this cub realizing that I wont have time to work on it until spring. My problem is wanted to at least drain the radiator and but new antifreeze/coolant in it,but realize there is a very bad striped drain plug that I cant remove

Have you tried using a pipe wrench? What about a hammer and chisel?

[Bob McCarty]

If you can't get the drain plug out with any tools, I'd suggest drilling a hole through the center of the plug. You won't have much luck with a torch later on (and it sounds like that might be necessary) if the bolster is still filled with coolant.

Bob

[tinnerjohn]

I'm a little late to the party, but reading this post and thinking about leaving the system drained made me think this could lead to rust and scale loosening up as things dried out, causing problems down the road. I've seen this happen on house drains and domestic water lines that have sat unused (foreclosures). Any thoughts? John

[offrink]

A cleaning in the spring according to the manual would solve this issue.