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MG MGB Technical - MAGNETIC SUMP PLUG

Hello

Can anyone tell me where i can get a magnetic sump plug for my 1968 mgb from please?

Tried MGOC, MOSS Europe and LEACY MG but with no luck.

Thanks
Mal

I couldn't find one, either.

Instead, I place a super-indymium (spelling?)
high-powered magnet just next to the plug,
as well as on top of the oil filter.

I these magnets are very powerful (I think they
use them in computer hard drive motors).

I remove the magnets during oil changes and
allow the movement of draining oil to flush out
any small dirt.
Daniel Wong

Remember magnets only trap Ferrous material and their effectiveness improves with increasing particulate size. The real killers are the small solid particles introduced during the oil change, and through faulty air intakes, which produces ferrous wear debris. The root cause is to filter the oil as clean as possible to minimise wear debris generation, and to ensure proper maintenance of the fueling etc to minimise any other cause of wear that results in ferrous debris.
FWIW
Martin ZT

Mal,
Quite often they are for sale on ebay just do a search.
TJ
T J Nicolson

Yep on UK ebay go to automotive classic car parts MG.

Colin
C J Bryan

They're actually of more use on the gearbox
Ron
R. Algie

By the time anything ferrous is wearing in the engine you are mere miles from a detonation. I agree that the gearbox (and rear end) are the only places where magnets are useful.

Mike!
mike!

Thanks guys

can anyone tell me where i can get a gearbox magnetic sump plug or are these already magnetic?


tried ebay for magnetic sump plug but nothin there yet!
Mal

Anglo Parts does have magnetic sump plugs for the MGB and the MGC as well.
Joern-M.

huh...got one from Moss in Goleta, CA, USA a couple months. Odd that.
J.T. Bamford

J.T

I was wondering whether MOSS America sells them because Steve (Virginia) mentions them in his engine article but Moss Europe definately don't sell them!

Joern - Where are Anglo parts based? do you have a website or telephone number please?
Mal

I made a couple by drilling a 1/4" blind hole in the plugs, and glueing (using 2 part epoxy) a small bar magnet from a magnetic stud finder. ( stud finder from a building hardware place, used to locate nails under wallpaper or paint on a plasterboard wall, and thus the stud)

Helpful in gearboxes and diffs, won't do much in an engine except small flakes, probably from underside of cam followers as they die.

They won't catch anything that the filter won't, but at least any steel flakes caught won't go through the pump.

Cheers
Ian F

Ian Fraser

http://www.mossmotors.com/Shop/ViewProducts.aspx?PlateIndexID=29602
Ted

Thanks Ted. That is entirely too simple.

Sump plugs are a standard sized plug as are those for the gearbox and rear end. If you take these plugs (when you are draining the sump, etc) with you to a NAPA auto parts or other deeper content auto parts store, I would suspect that you can get a magnetic one locally. Sorry, I don't happen to know the sizes off hand, but if someone here does, please pass that info on.

Putting a strong magnet on the oil filter body as Danny suggests seems a pretty good idea for trapping fine ferrous particles and keeping them there. Having done as he mentions with both a filter magnet and a drain plug magnet, it is interesting to me that very little magnetic material appears around the sump magnet if I do both. FWIW
Bob Muenchausen

Thanks for all your responces they are much appreciated.

As for the magnet on the filter itself - i have a 68 gt with a teclamet? filter which means i have the thick metal cannister and removable inner filter. Would have to be a very powerful magnet to go through the cannister and still hold onto the metal particles through the oil flow? has anyone done this with a filter like this?

Mal

These two articles say that British pipe threads do not interchange with US National pipe threads. FWIW, Clifton
http://www.hoseventure.com/tech.htm
http://www.enginehistory.org/british_fasteners.htm
Clifton Gordon

Thanks, Clifton,
I stand corrected about the availability of plugs. I guess that we must make our own, and if so, then try these guys for some Super Magnets: http://www.kjmagnetics.com/
Bob Muenchausen

Mal - the maufacturers used to recommend cleaning out the sump from time to time - it's surprising how much contaminated oil can remain after it has been drained and the amount of white metal paste will tell you quite a lot about the state of your engine.

Roger
RMW

So are we saying that the magnetic sump plugs from moss america will not fit the UK cars because the threads are different?

These articles are just saying the threads on british cars are different to those on american cars but american manufacturers of repro british parts will surely use the correct threads so the sump plugs etc should be ok?

Mal UK

Mal,

Clive Wheatley sells a magnetic Unipart Fliter for V8
http://mgv8.homestead.com/

There are various Magnetic devices for filters, I will see if I can find a link.

Paul
Paul

http://www.filtermag.com/
http://www.off-road.com/ford/reviews/filtermag/
http://www.turbo-mag.ca/
http://www.thebeartrap.com/
http://www.emergingent.com/magnefine/force_field.htm
P

MAL:
I think Clifton's point was about the tranny and differential plugs, not the sump plug ~ it remains pretty standard to both sides of the pond.

PS:
Interesting lot of ready-mades. Not sure that any of them does anything more than Danny's Super magnets on the outside of the filter can. JC Whitless has sold a similar device for many years in the form of a rubber strap with a series of magnets along its length which wraps around the outside of the filter can. I think it is interesting to note the commentary in the reviews.
Bob Muenchausen

Mal,

I actually bought magnetic plugs from MotorDream (www.motordream.com, french parts shop which sells MOSS parts and others) - my invoice indicates following p/n : 155660 (Triumph part ?), which appears to be listed in the MOSS price list I have.

Another option is to buy from MOSS USA (p/n 328-282, much cheaper @ US$ 4.95)
HTH !

Gerard
G. B. P.

Ooooops !
The part number I indicated (155660) is indeed for a Triumph magnetic drain plug, not an MG one.
The beauty of Triumphs is that AFAIK they used one unique drain plug type on all cars from TR2 through to TR7 and it fits the engine sump, gearbox and diff as well (+ can act as a plug should the heater valve give up the ghost !).

The MOSS part number was correct though, and the MotorDream lead obviously remains a valid one.

Sorry about that,

Gerard
G. B. P.

This thread was discussed between 09/08/2004 and 17/08/2004

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