I just found a leak on the rear of the head at the gasket. It leaks coolant but only when its cold. Once its hot it stops. Is there anything I can do to get a little more time out of it? Will it cause any damage to wait if I keep a close watch on it? Also should I have the head gone through when I have it off? Should I get head studs, and does someone have a kit with studs and all the gaskets? Thanks for any advice (192,000 miles)

Since it stops when warm you can try torquing down the head bolts more and monitor Any of the vendors here can help with studs and gasket. Generally should have head checked and decked if required. As well as valves and guides . You can also look at mighty diesel bolts as an intermediate solution to full headstuds.

You may try what John recommended and leaving it plugged in may lessen the leaking time.. But personally I would just fix it.

  AH64ID said:

But personally I would just fix it.

xx2 Upload a pic tho - sometimes it not always the head gasket ......

Get some water glass from a pharmacy put clean water in and a quart of water glass. Run it for a week then put antifreez back in. It could last up to two years.

  Te300 said:

Get some water glass from a pharmacy put clean water in and a quart of water glass. Run it for a week then put antifreez back in. It could last up to two years.

I had to look this up... Not to hijack but this is the information I did find... Te300 your one smart feller... http://standeyo.com/News_Files/Food/storing_eggs.html

The rear freeze plug is the most prone to leaking, it's something else to consider.

  AH64ID said:

The rear freeze plug is the most prone to leaking, it's something else to consider.

Yeah that's what I asked him to upload a PIC. No way Id be putting that glass stuff in my truck. How the heck do you get it out and hows that going to handle compression.

Not sure if you were bieng sarcastic or not mopar man, but that is what its used foe is picklin eggs also its the stuff they seal milk cartons with. It will find the leak and stop it and the rest will cycle around then you drain it and put your usual concoction in. It will hold all the pressure your motor will give it. Ive had to use it several times in my life and i tell you it works fine. No harm.Dont use alumaseal. Thats bad.

If you need a head give me a call I got one with 2k on complete rebuild.

  Te300 said:

Not sure if you were bieng sarcastic or not mopar man

No I was being honest... I think its slick when people find old tyme solutions for common problems. If the worked back then they should work now.

  Te300 said:

It will find the leak and stop it and the rest will cycle around then you drain it and put your usual concoction in. It will hold all the pressure your motor will give it.

So what prevents it from sealing up in the heater core or radiator ?

I cant say as I have ever heard of that stuff before. I did a little reading on it also. Does anyone have any Mopar anti freez to see if it contains this stuff. Sodium silicate that is. One article I read said it did.

Thanks for the input everyone. I want to fix it but time and money are short. I think i'll check the torque and research a little before I try adding anything to the cooling system, but it sounds interesting. I'll try to get a picture this weekend if I can get a camera in there. Is a stock gasket pretty good or are there aftermarket ones that are better. Stock lasted almost 200000

I got to add one more to the list, black pepper:thumb1:

  jlwelding said:

I got to add one more to the list, black pepper:thumb1:

a friend of mine used it on his 1500 and it got him home

Old dude tol me that its activated by friction and when silicate and some of the other ingridients find a crevice to "eddy in" the stuff ripping past that eddy stores glass in there long enough to bond. I put some in a twenty two r in it once n got fifty thou out of it and it was leaking water into oil via head gasket ( and some say it only works on allulinum ya right!) If anythingIt could fill in any tentative leaks or unnesessary "eddys". Throughout your whole system.

Sorry i meant that some people say that it doesnt work on aluminum. But it does.

Its been a while since I have commented here, but I was moveing. I think I'll go with ARP studs and maybe rv275's while I'm at it. I was looking for gaskets and found there are several differant thicknesses. What is stock, and what are the others for? Different compression?

From my 5 years in the auto salvage industry, I have used SS numerous times. Late 90's Saturns were a prime candidate, as the rest of the car was just fine. I used it in my Dodge Raider (3.0) & ran it for 38,000 miles with no issues.That said, if ANY fastener goes into the water jacket, IT WILL SHEAR !!!ONLY use this chemical on an engine you plan on throwing away.You will have to go to an old school pharmacist or druggist to get it. Walgreens techs will look at you funny.IF you do use it, you MUST remove ALL antifreeze & keep flushing it for a while. Pour it in WITH CLEAN WATER, run it up to temperature, let it cool, top it off with water, run it up to temperature again, pull the plugs (injectors for us), let it sit overnight, crank a few times to get any water in cylinders out, seal the engine up, run it for a couple days, COMPLETELY flush out the cooling system (longer than you think) & put regular antifreeze. REPLACE YOUR THERMOSTAT.It will work with iron or aluminum & a combination of both.If you are buying a used vehicle & see a white residue near the radiator cap that will not scratch off, RUN !!! It has been waterglassed.Ed

I've seen the waterglass article before too. Interesting way of trying to hold together a vehicle.