Stories/advice of radiator repair

[andrew311]

So as per my previous thread I need to get my radiator fixed. It's seems small/pinhole in size. Interested to hear off people who've been in the same boat and what you did and whether it was succesful or not? And what sort of costs were involved. Having just shelled out £400 on it I'm keen to keep costs down although I could get a 2nd hander for aroung £60-£100.

Cheers

[fiveus]

In the past i have put a self tapping screw into small holes in radiators.and with a high succes rate

[Condi]

Shouldnt be a big job, we do tractor ones every now and again and they dont cost too much, a bike one should be cheap.

[Fleegle]

Crack an egg into the radiator.

It used to work in old Cortinas

[andrew311]

Fleegle said:

Crack an egg into the radiator.

It used to work in old Cortinas

I've heard this a few times. I'll take it up the garage for them to have a look after work, tempted just to get the £60 one off ebay just to have as there aren't many about so must not come up too often. Managed to avoid getting the bus int his morning, but a blast in on the bike puts me in a good mood for the day, car just pis@es me off!

[John Laverick]

My mate got a hole in his radiator up in Scotland, we put some Rad weld in it which sealed it for a 20 minute bimble to the nearest bike mechanic. He gave us some two-part putty which we mixed together and pressed onto the rad fins over the hole. This set rock hard with the heat from the radiator and sealed the hole for the rest of the holiday and another 1000 miles of hard riding.

As a temporary fix this works fine although I wouldn’t rely on it as a permanent solution as I wouldn’t fancy hot coolant all over my front tyre mid-bend!

[TallPaul]

Take the rad off, then take it to a radiator specialist. They'll either braze the hole & then pressure test the unit for around £50, or they'll supply & fit a new core for around £100. Either way you will be able to rely on the repair. The last thing you want to do is fit a self-tapper into the hole, or try and use an egg to seal it, then have it loose all its water 100 miles from home & cook the engine. We are in the 21st century after all!

Edited by TallPaul on Monday 5th July 14:01