Im in thr middle of my header install, and I broke my oil dipstick tube off flush with the block, anybody know an easy way of getting it out. Im sure I could drive it down and then pull the pan and get it but thats a last resort.

 

Should be able to get it out from the top-it's a tight fit with a flange on top-so I wouldn't want to try driving it down.

 

Can you use an EZ out, like you would use for a broken bolt?

 

I would definitely try something like this first before pulling the pan

 

Ill try the ez out, mine didnt have a flange lip on it, all the dipsticks ive seen had the flange to seat against the block excepy this one.

 

Smack it down into the pan and forget about it. No need to remove it. It is too big to get sucked up and too small to matter. Think of it like the little marble in the spray paint can.

 

I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable doing that.

I had to remove the oil pan and drive mine out to remove the remenant.

Clean the block & new tube with brake parts cleaner and use some black RTV on the shaft to seal before inserting it into the block.

 

Life is too short to sweat the small stuff. I would not be comfortable with it either. If I had a choice between spending my sunday playing with an oil pan, or driving the car/riding the hog/spending quality time with family or anything else important, "I" would smack it into the pan and move on. Most mechanics would also do the same. Choice is clearly his.

 

you can get a stainless flex oil dip stick from Summit for $49. Work very work. No problem what so ever. I think that is what I paid for my 93.

 

Just kinda thinking out loud here, but...

I wonder if it might be possible to drive the broken-off tube down half of the depth of its bore in the block...

Followed by cutting the bottom end off of a new dipstick tube, below the flange, a distance equal to the now-available depth in the bore above the old tube -- so that it could be securely situated above the remains of the old tube...

In other words, you'd then have sorta a 2-piece tube, with the two pieces butted end-to-end within the bore in the block...

Of course, whether or not this would work would depend upon:

1. How deep the dipstick tube bore is in a SBC, and I just can't picture it in my mind from memory.

2. Whether doing this would reposition the bottom end of the old tube such that either it, or the dipstick within it, would contact the rotating crank assembly (which could easily enough be checked by cranking the engine and seeing if the dipstick moves).

3. Whether doing this would send the dipstick into the pan on a different angle, thus corrupting its accuracy (of course, the stick could be easily enough re-marked by taking a reading when the crankcase was known to be full, and when it was known to be one quart low).

Hmm...

I dunno if this is a Really Good Idea, or a Really Worthless Idea...

But, if it would work, it would surely beat the hell out of either pulling the pan to remove the remains of the old tube, or worrying about leaving it loose in the crankcase...

And it might allow you to kick this problem down the road until the next time the engine gets torn down for some other reason...

Be well,

SJW

 

I had the same problem. We got a left handed drill bit that was a little bigger than the remaining part of the tube, worked it in enough to get it to grab with some vice grips, shot it with a little PB Blaster and gently worked it out. It took about 45 minutes, but it did come out.