Mr Dworkin wrote:
>All this discussion of drain plugs reminded me of an oddness I
>encountered on the Wombat ('58 microbus, roughly a '71 engine).
>There's the usual round plate underneath the engine where you'd expect
>to find a drain plug, but it's a smooth plate -- no hole for a drain
>plug.  The plate itself is held on by the usual handful of studs, and
>looks to have been made this way.  Almost like somebody didn't get
>around to drilling and tapping a hole for the plug.
>
>The questions become:
>
>- does this seem weird to anyone else?
>- why would you want to have such a plate?
>- would there be any harm in replacing it with a normal one (this is
>  probably covered by the answer to the previous question)?
>
>Thanks.
>
>	Dworkin
I had the same thing on my 71, no drain plug and a arm covered in oil 
 whenever you undid the plate. It was explained to me by a crotchity 
 old mechanic that they were put on to force the owners to remove and 
 clean the screen underneath instead of just running all the oil out 
 and sticking the plug back in, he then looked at me over the top of a 
 set of greasy reading glasses and said " so if your going to pull it 
 off everytime why would you want one with a drain" and I sulked out the door.
Clay