While one of my
guiding principles is frugality, I have to confess
that the main motivation in this particular job was
the coolness factor. Having read about some of the old
timers doing this, I had to try it. That said, using
coins for freeze plugs did save me a little. I paid
50¢ each for Model T era nickels. That’s a little over
half the price of new brass plugs, and slightly more
than steel. But the cost of getting new steel plugs
shipped probably made the nickels the cheapest option.
They’re also better than steel because they won’t rust
out. Because of a design defect, a raised date that
wears off, there are a lot of these nickels with
little or no date and therefore little or no collector
value.
By the way, I'm calling these freeze plugs because that's the common term for them. But their purpose isn't to prevent freeze damage, but to fill holes left by the casting process. |
