bluesman wrote:Effective treatment requires an accurate diagnosis. A wicking sealant will not "fix" problems like a tiny, early fatigue crack or damaged threads. Further, the material to be sealed has to be spotless for the compound to work - and the deposits that tipped you off to a leak coat the walls you're trying to seal. So using 290 to close a leak of uncertain origin is a leap of faith. Hope and luck are poor interventions.

You have to take a leaking assembly apart, clean it thoroughly, and inspect the pieces carefully to find the problem. If a soldered or brazed joint is leaking, it has to be redone. Even then, a few issues will not be obvious. But this approach has the highest likelihood of success.

Thanks David for the advise.

I ended up trying the Loctite method yesterday morning and before a few more replies came in suggesting to "do it right" and to just have it brazed. I'll give the Loctite a couple of days to cure before I try adding water and bringing it up to pressure.

After reading the old threads on this issue, there seems to be no general agreement. Maybe back then this was a good quick and cheap fix, but perhaps nowadays people don't recommend it?

Either way, I'll report back and let people know if it works.

Thanks for the discussion all!

Edit to add: I have no experience with torches or brazing so I definitely wouldn't do this myself.

YouTube is a friend!

Any videos you recommend?

I always check HB threads and YouTube before I post a question, so it usually means I don't know what I'm looking for...

beer&mathematics wrote:Maybe back then this was a good quick and cheap fix, but perhaps nowadays people don't recommend it?

You're more than welcome! I carry the load of 70+ years of learning the hard way

Sad experience has left those who did it wiser and more wary of quick fixes. A new leak in a previously intact joint, fitting, part, etc is a sign of progressive change - loosening, propagation of a crack, progressive corrosion, electrolytic interaction, etc. Most such problems are not fixed by a schmear of goo, and the leak (or worse) will recur until you fix what's causing it. As the man said back then:

This reminds me my experience looking for a house. The home inspector for the house we were thinking of buying pointed how the seller had fixed the leaking roof. He just caulked the leaks from inside.

Well, after 4 full days of curing...the result is....didn't work!

Again, collective brain trust of HB is correct.

Certainly made the leaks smaller, not it is not as much of a drip but tiny bubble of water form, and lots of hissing.

Time to look up radiator shops and start calling.

Anyone have a place in Los Angles area they've tried or can recommend?

If I were you I would get then to solder any other weak points if it isn't too expensive



Randy

Hey Jorge,
Not sure where you are in LA, but if you want to try soldering yourself, you're welcome to borrow my soldering kit: Torch, solder, flux, reamer, sanding screens. You may want to practice a few joints, but it's pretty straightforward provided you can get the fitting clean.

If you aren't going to do the repair yourself, I would recommend Hi-Tech Espresso: https://hitechespresso.com/.
They're highly regarded and they've serviced my QuickMill QM67 several times over the past few years. People send in machines to them from all over the country, so I feel fortunate to live in LA where I can drop off and pickup from them.

Best,
Philip

While I completely agree with the radiator shop suggestion, this is the perfect scenario to learn this skill. The equipment is cheap, the materials are cheap and no buddy is going to get hurt. (Occasionally, electrical repair issues we see here scare the living daylights out of me on the theme of getting hurt).

I found this kind of soldering to be far easier than electrical circuit soldering. But, the question boils down to whether or not you want the skill? On some stuff I feel like I'm not going to do it enough that its worth the bother. Truing a spoked wheel for example - in high school I bought two new rim for my motocross motorcycle and laced them up. Got it done, it worked and never wanted to do it again. Ever. To this day I take my bike wheels to the mechanic.

But I found pipe/fitting soldering to be so simple/easy I'm glad I took it on. I watched a YouTube or two, practiced on some spare pipe and fittings, and had some excellent joints. I also think my experience with acetylene welding made it easy.

Another service provider that can do this is a plumber.

salvia wrote:Hey Jorge,
Not sure where you are in LA, but if you want to try soldering yourself, you're welcome to borrow my soldering kit: Torch, solder, flux, reamer, sanding screens. You may want to practice a few joints, but it's pretty straightforward provided you can get the fitting clean.

If you aren't going to do the repair yourself, I would recommend Hi-Tech Espresso: https://hitechespresso.com/.
They're highly regarded and they've serviced my QuickMill QM67 several times over the past few years. People send in machines to them from all over the country, so I feel fortunate to live in LA where I can drop off and pickup from them.

Best,
Philip

Hi Philip, wow that's an extremely generous offer. I'll send you a PM and maybe we can work on this sometime soon.

Jack, thanks for the encouragement! I think the advise is on point about whether or not it's a skill I want.

I did watch a few Youtube videos of it and it doesn't seem all that difficult, and hearing from someone that it isn't goes a LONG way too.