 Steve and Farmuse: I didn't have too many problems, but I did break off one bolt and two 3/8 studs that are in the top row, fan side. They didn't even feel tough from the start. I think they were just that weak. If you know the core is going to be scrapped, you can really go at it. I like to use a propane torch to pre-heat the bolts, and still I broke three. Warm the castings all over of course, then concentrate on the one or two you're going to remove first. I cleaned all the castings in my electrolysis bath, and it removed a bunch of flakey rust (I mean it would have filled a large zip-lock bag !). If you can't use electrolysis, try to get the upper and lower tanks cleaned with a grit blaster, a hot tank, at least rap them with a hammer a few times. You'll be surprised how much stuff comes out. I was lucky enough to weld a nut on all three stubs, heated the area with propane, and two came right out. The third one needed more heat, and I had to resort to my acetylene torch on that one. Don't know why it was so stubborn. Then I chased all the holes with a tap. I sat the lower tank on the saw horse, put on a thin coat of Permatex Formagasket (the brushable kind, just a tad thicker than gasker shellac), then the gasket, then another thin coat of permatex. I put a small swipe of nev-r-ceez on the first few threads of all the bolts to protect them from freezing up again. I tried to tighten all the fasteners evenly, and they all felt solid. It was a pretty easy assembly, but I filled it water, so my craftmanship will have to be judged later ! Frank-in-Tallahassee
70D // 855
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