Water Pump Castings

[hoser]

Hey guys save your old water pump castings dont turn them in for the core charge just yet, I am doing a engine swap in my 72 GMC taking out the gas loven 400 and dropping in a 350 from my old 86 Suburban, as luck would have it soon as I try to fill the radiator after the swap the pump is leaking out the hole, no big deal this pump is at least 12 years old or so I thought, I went to local Farm & Fleet for a rebuild, I have always had good luck with their stuff years ago all they stocked was DELCO rebuilt parts now its some name I never heard of, any ways it was a old GM casting and everything looked good but the bolt pattern for the fan blade mount, off to napa they have one its a new "look a like" casting hard telling where it was made, they "look" the same but when you set them side by side and take a straight edge and go from one pump to another you find out where the fan pulley bolts on the flange is out 1/4" more, on another casting where the a/c pump mounting bracket bolts on the front of the pump the machined bosses are a different height so you would put a twist on the a/c pump making the belts not run straight one pump we looked at the bosses for the a/c bracket one was 1/4" taller and the other 1/8" shorter putting a twist on the a/c bracket, then to auto zone, (all their stuff is junk) same deal the castings looked the same as the ones NAPA is now using, nothing close to being right just looks like a water pump for my application....

I wish I had my camera so I could take pics and show you guys, I have one more auto shop I will try Monday I suspect it will be the same crapola I will take the camera just in case.

I guess its time to start looking for someone that sells DELCO reman water pumps or find a rebuid kit and do it myself grrrrr..

Anybody here know how to rebuild one or where to get the kits , NAPA no longer sells kits..

Do I buy a 17.99 rebuild and machine it myself to fit or take it apart for the seals?

Old guy at NAPA kept shaking his head saying over and over "glad I am about to retire NAPA's quality is in the toilet"

[Fred T]

I've quit buying Delco rebuilds due to quality issues. My local parts store sells Professionals Choice brand, they have a far lower return rate than Delco. The old guy is right, but the quality issue is industry wide.

[chevymad]

Napa has 2 or 3 different lines of water pumps. There basic Rayloc line are rebuilt castings. The Durabuilt line are new, probably chinese, castings. Then there's another new line above that. The shop I work in is connected to a Napa store, all owned by the same owner. We use the Rayloc rebuilds in the shop no problems ever. I had a customer ask for the new Durabuilt to be put on this last week. I definatly didnt like the look of the casting. Very rough and lots of shift, even had real rough grinding of the casting lines. I would have been happier with the rebuilt rayloc unit.

[kelsfine69]

I even ran into the same from GM, so I decided to go with Edelbrock aluminum water pump. they are quite nice.

[FRENCHBLUE72]

Yep I have ran into that problem a fdew times on different trucks and just started running aftermarket pumps my choice is weiand..

[fastwillie 696969]

i used the jeg's alum pump

[short wide 4x4]

This is great info. I couldn't figure out why in the hell my a/c bracket was at a slant, couldn't get it to line up right no matter what. Thanks!

[hoser]

Thanks for the help guys, where would I find the best price and service on a after market pump?

It really saddens me to hear the DELCO quality is slipping guess it was good while it lasted.

short wide 4x4, no problem that is why I post the problem here in hopes to help others.

I will try to get some pictures to better aid my fiondings.

[Sweet72]

I just bought a new high flow cast iron pump from Stewart (67 bucks + shipping) as was recommended by a board member, (can't remember who) and was a little disappointed in the quality of the casting, as in core shift, crudely ground mold parting lines, however the fan hub and other machined surfaces are excellent.

[hoser]

Ok I tried another local auto parts store today and got one that is 100% better than all the rest, its not a GM casting but the casting looks used like its been rebuilt more than once and has USA cast into it, the box it came in is Federated, will see how long it last.

On a side note the power steering pump does not line up right, my kid installed it (15 years old) so I will have to look it over good to see if he did something wrong, anybody had any problems with the PS pump? Its so tight in that area you cant really see anything heh, guess its a good excuse to have my son remove the inner fender well so we can get in there...

Thanks again guys.