[6pack] Heater water return pipe question

[John VanNorman]

I have a question for the group that comes from my father.  He started
to replace the heater water return pipe on his TR6.  Where the end of
the pipe connects to the waterpump there are two nuts (a smaller
diameter nut that appears to screw into a larger diameter nut).  He
started to remove the old heater water return pipe by loosening up the
larger nut and then went to loosen up the smaller nut.  When turning
the smaller nut, it caused the entire heater water return pipe to
rotate.

Now understand that my father and I are on completely opposite ends of
the spectrum.  I'm the one who jumps in and starts turning wrenches,
then takes two weeks to figure out how to fix what he did wrong.  My
dad, on the other hand, is the one who likes to take two weeks
contemplating the best way to handle the situation, then takes another
two weeks of reflection just to make sure he is thinking about the
problem correctly, and then, after determining he has reached the
right answer, take a final two weeks to figure out how to best
implement his answer.

So with that in mind, my dad is hesitant to keep turning the smaller
nut out of fear that he might damage something in the waterpump.  My
thought is that those two nuts probably squeeze the end of the pipe
and create some sort of compressed fitting and either there is just a
natural tight connection between the smaller nut and the pipe which
causes the pipe to turn with the nut or there is enough rust built up
between the two there there is a bond.  Thoughts?

John V.
1974 1/2 TR6

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