<VV> Rebuild II -- oil cooler

[Paul Rollins]

At 10:23 AM 12/19/2005 -0500, you wrote:
>Date: Mon, 19 Dec 2005 09:23:20 -0600
>From: Stephen Upham <contactsmu at sbcglobal.net>
>Subject: <VV> Rebuild II -- oil cooler
>To: virtualvairs at corvair.org
>
>
>         ...
>
>         I then proceeded to the next step in the service manual and got my
>"new" oil cooler that I bought at our clubs auction last year.  I felt
>that I had best replace the cooler because of the nature of the last
>engine failure.  For some reason, perhaps divine providence, I shook
>the cooler after I picked it up off of the shelf.  I honestly don't
>know why I did it, but it probably saved my rebuild from a third
>rebuild.  It sounded like a salt shaker.  I saw debris coming out of
>the oil ports.  I took a piece of paper and began to collect the
>debris.  I felt them and they felt metallic.  I then ran a magnet under
>the paper, and lo and behold, IRON.
>         I'm just livid that a fellow Corvair enthusiast and club member 
> would
>sell this engine ruining piece of equipment.  I consider myself
>extremely lucky not to have installed it before I discovered the debris.
>         Now, I'll need to spend another $30 dollars or so, and wait another
>ten to twelve days to complete this part of the assembly ... but I
>consider myself blessed.
>
>Stephen Upham
>Dallas, Texas


I am sorry you had this bad experience.

Was this actually represented as "brand new" or NOS? If yes, it was 
certainly dishonest.

If it was not represented as new, but is new relative to you, it is a good 
lesson for everyone. Don't ever use an oil cooler from an unknown source. 
It is usually not possible to determine its history and why it has been 
removed from the prior engine. Maybe the earlier engine had a 
metal-crunching failure that released a lot of debris into the oiling 
system. The previous owner thought he/she had cleaned it out, but that is 
essentially impossible.

Thank you for alerting all of us to carefully check any oil cooler before 
installing it.

Paul