nrp wrote:
Sounds more to me like a raw material problem. I can't imagine simply
dropping a plug would open up a longitudinal crack of that magnitude in
the case - or do I have the wrong image? A picture would help.

From his description, the crack is in the ceramic.

George Patterson
Drink is the curse of the land. It makes you quarrel with your neighbor.
It makes you shoot at your landlord. And it makes you miss him.