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Water neck

3K views 27 replies 12 participants last post by  carsavvycook 
#1 ·
two piece alum. water neck made for summit with a O-ring any good
 
#4 ·
Badazz93 said:
has any one had any experience with on of these.

http://beta.summitracing.com/parts/SUM-371100/
just gave one away the other day.sometimes they wont seal properly it has happened to me and i have seen it happen to others.i like the stock unless there is some reason why i cant use it.but if you do try it and if it does leak take the o ring out throw it away take sand paper and rough up the surface of the water neck get a stock gasket to replace the o ring and install your thermostat.and you should be ready to go. sometimes pretty aint so pretty.Cole
 
#6 ·
MorrisonLC said:
I think if the manifold surface is dead flat with no pitting the O ring will work fine. First one I used i didn't trust it and used gasket and sealant, it leaked anyway. Second one i just said WTH and slapped on the o ring, not a drop. Difference was the sealng surface.
i have tried them on all new intakes and still leaked.the one i gave away the other day he put it on and it leaked he roughed up the surface on the housing put on the gasket and it was fine.i have seen them work and seen them not work.but i see what you are saying. cole
 
#7 ·
In my opinion they suck. The flange is very soft and tightening it down bends it. I know its like 3/4" thick, but its soft. I put mine on and it leaked, so I took it off and sanded it flat using emory cloth on a piece of glass. Still leaked. Checked it on a straightedge and it was bent again. Tried sanding it flat again, still leaked and its bent again.

Junk if you ask me. I threw it away and bought an old-school cast iron neck and did it the old fashioned way.
 
#8 ·
pretty good thread, cause I just went on a mental adventure thinking about the difference of the two types of sealing of this part... My conclusion on the matter and will find out if true or not this weekend is the following..

I have decided that the best way to get over the sealing or not sealing of the O ring type of neck IS TO TORQUE the bolts ............. why ? to make the clamping pressure of the part even, and therefor providing a good seal of the O ring.. All the goo in the world will distort the area to be sealed and therefor not produce a good seal .........

As said above I will see very shortly if I am on point, and I have a clue I am there just need to prove it ..
 
#9 ·
I didn't torque mine, just firm tight with allen wrench. It would be pretty easy to overtighten and bend. Make sure you draw down both sides together. I didn't get it for the looks and would prefer a stock one but I really needed the adjustable feature of it. Works great for that.
 
#13 ·
pepi said:
I have decided that the best way to get over the sealing or not sealing of the O ring type of neck IS TO TORQUE the bolts ..
Re-read my post directly above yours. If you torque it, the flange will bend. The rubber O-ring is stronger than the aluminum flange. Instead of evenly clamping, its like torquing it down with a toothpick in the way. It just bends.
 
#14 · (Edited)
True enough if you do not know how to use the tool and consider the amount of pressure you are putting down.. Big hammers do the same thing distort objects ..................... but a hammer with the right touch will work wonders..

On my other hotrod I use the bypass to the rear cylinders which has an aluminum block sandwiched in between the water neck and intake, got no problems with leaking, but did use the torque wrench when I redid the intake. Driving it 10 years now, so back off on the mussel and let the tools do the work, there is such a thing as too tight ................. believe it or not..
 
#15 ·
In my opinion, a flashy, Chinese (or other off shore), volumn made part. I learned a long time ago that factory engineers, who design OEM parts, actually do know what they're doing, and that's hard to improve on; it is possible to copy and/or try to overengineer a part such as a thermostat housing, only to have it cheaply copied and sold in mass quanities. For a GOOD design, go to the street rod oriented parts vendors, costly for sure, but, you get what you pay for. Take your pick, a cheaply made, pot metal casting, or a true billet, brushed metal, polished, stainless steel part.
 
#16 ·
pepi said:
True enough if you do not know how to use the tool and consider the amount of pressure you are putting down.. Big hammers do the same thing distort objects ..................... but a hammer with the right touch will work wonders.. there is such a thing as too tight ................. believe it or not..
You're still not getting what I'm saying. The flange on those Summit necks is very soft. If you are using a torque wrench to properly torque those necks, you have gone WAY past where they bend. I even tried tightening them while it was running. I put it on, started the car and it leaked. I started drawing down the neck very slowly and evenly with an allen key. The leak continuously slowed, never stoped, then began leaking more. I took the neck off and confirmed it... the flange had already bent.

Forget the torque wrench. I'm not talking about properly torquing the fasteners, I'm saying that the flange will BEND.
 
#17 ·
. . .The flange on those Summit necks is very soft. If you are using a torque wrench to properly torque those necks, you have gone WAY past where they bend. I even tried tightening them while it was running. I put it on, started the car and it leaked. I started drawing down the neck very slowly and evenly with an allen key. The leak continuously slowed, never stoped, then began leaking more. I took the neck off and confirmed it... the flange had already bent.

Forget the torque wrench. I'm not talking about properly torquing the fasteners, I'm saying that the flange will BEND.
I wonder if they ship them sometimes with poor quality hard rubber O-rings? Mine weren't purchased from Summit but they look completely identical except they had good soft o rings with them. I guess if I got another one i'd replace the o ring before I tightened it after hearing your experience
 
#18 ·
MorrisonLC said:
I wonder if they ship them sometimes with poor quality hard rubber O-rings? Mine weren't purchased from Summit but they look completely identical except they had good soft o rings with them. I guess if I got another one i'd replace the o ring before I tightened it after hearing your experience
The problem is just cheap aluminum and poor design. There is no way that a rubber O-ring (regardless of how hard) should bend a 3/4" thick piece of aluminum before it seals.

I tried blaming the intake, but it was brand new.
 
#23 ·
curtis73 said:
In my opinion they suck. The flange is very soft and tightening it down bends it. I know its like 3/4" thick, but its soft. I put mine on and it leaked, so I took it off and sanded it flat using emory cloth on a piece of glass. Still leaked. Checked it on a straightedge and it was bent again. Tried sanding it flat again, still leaked and its bent again.

Junk if you ask me. I threw it away and bought an old-school cast iron neck and did it the old fashioned way.
Sittin' here laughing at your response Curtis, 'cause it's the very same as my experience with that junk. OEM stuff works every time for me.
 
#24 ·
techinspector1 said:
Sittin' here laughing at your response Curtis, 'cause it's the very same as my experience with that junk. OEM stuff works every time for me.

True enough butt the OEM does not always allow one to use their product, so other avenues are needed, and just sometimes individual engineering is required .. cuz bolts right on is an inside industry joke ..

Do not put words in my mouth I am not complaining/whining because I enjoy making parts work in concert .. Modifying requires modifying.

not picking on old techinspector just using him to express a point, see beyond the forest ..
 
#25 ·
If you want to use a non-OEM 'neck, do yourself a favor and use a gasket- no o-ring. Sealant (I use hylomar) may help.

When this still leaks, throw it away and get a proper (not chromed) neck and be on your way.

Most Chevy OEM water necks have provisions for temp. sensors (that can be plugged), I think this is why they're not used more often.

When I see chrome oil pans and water necks, etc, I'm reminded of the old saying that goes, "If it don't go- CHROME IT!"
 
#26 ·
Well well got an update on this thread

The method I mentioned in an earlier post, stating that the key here was to torque the bolts to assure even clamping pressure ..... remember?

That worked just great and just like I thought it would , NO sealant was used, let me say that again, NO sealant was used, and NO leaks

I am not even going to say I told you so ..

Guess ya just have to practice what you preach and not just preach,

want to know the torque value I used PM me.
 
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