Aerosam - glad you got it sorted - now you just need to save the pennies for a new one
Alga - having a stat in there that is jammed in is fine - remvoing it totally is more of an issue. The stat acts as a restriction in the coolant flowpath and as a result helps to balance the flow to different areas of the block. If you remove the stat then you give the water an 'easy' path through the engine that can result in the engine overheating becuase you don't pick up as much heat.
I had this problem with a engine on the dyno that would constantly overheat no matter how many extra water pumps we added
In the end we realised that the thermostat had been removed and the water was just going around the system picking up very little heat - popped a thermostat back in and it cured all the problems.
