Thread:

Pressure testing innercoolers

Originally Posted by terrible_buddhist

Is this something you do yourself, or bring to a shop?

I do it myself. What type do you have?

I make a plate with a valve stem it in and bolt it on, air it up, put it in the spa! Lee intercoolers give the best show, tiny bubbles to a full on showerhead!

Why can't you simply plug one side, install a shrader valve in the other and pressurize it with a hand pump?
Home Depot sells a gas line tester with a gauge and everything, with 3/4 pipe thread ready to go for a few bucks/

Cut an inner tube in half and do what?

I heard cavemen do this type of thing all the time with no outside assistance.

The Harrison from the Banks, PFM, RaceArrow are only open on one end and need a plate bolted on. The Lees get a plug on one end and a plate on the other. These are Turbo type cores. A blower core would be much easier like you said!

Originally Posted by steveo143

The Harrison from the Banks, PFM, RaceArrow are only open on one end and need a plate bolted on. The Lees get a plug on one end and a plate on the other. These are Turbo type cores. A blower core would be much easier like you said!

It still has a hose connection in and one out. Unless you needed to SEE the leak, and need it apart, can't see why testing it would be any differently. Test it the way it sits on the engine. If it leaks, I don't much care where, its scrape to me.

40 lbs.

Originally Posted by gn7

It still has a hose connection in and one out. Unless you needed to SEE the leak, and need it apart, can't see why testing it would be any differently. Test it the way it sits on the engine. If it leaks, I don't much care where, its scrape to me.

The Harrisons can quite often be fixed. The Lee's are trash. I always test them out of the case, I want to SEE the leaks. I just leak tested my brand new anodised Lee replacement cores made by someone else! I trust no one!

I've got the same rig I pressure test everything from the engine block, intercoolers, oil cooler, and wastegates with.

An air line fitting, ball valve, pressure regulator with a gauge, and a line to one side of what you want to test.
Plug the other end of what your testing and put the pressure to it.
Close the ball valve and watch the gauge.
Piece of cake.

T B, what type cores are you wanting to test?

I took my Harrison cores to Carson before I dyno'd my motor and he charged me $40. He has a plate that he bolts up to them, and it's plumbed with a gate valve and a psi gauge.