- Thread starter Lanse
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Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
and have someone show you how to use them.
You probly need to file the ends of the bearing halves. When you torque the rod cap down and the bearing needs filed it will pinch the ends in toward the journal and act like a brake. Like trying to put a quart in a pint can. Make sure when filing that you do not leave a burr on the inside. When I file the bearings I like to put them in a rod cap and and only file the end without the tab. You can take a shim that you know the thickness of and have the end of the bearing above the cap even with the shim. Remove the shim and file level with the rod cap making sure the bearing does not move in the cap.
I think you said you have .003 shim and would only remove that much and recheck.
You will run into each rod being a little different on a used crankshafts and rods that have not been reconditions on engines that old.
I think you said you have .003 shim and would only remove that much and recheck.
You will run into each rod being a little different on a used crankshafts and rods that have not been reconditions on engines that old.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
Dial calipers are much easier to use.
Janicholson
Well-known Member
Lanse, clearance at the deep end of the cap may not equal clearance other places. If the rod cap was switched, or egg shaped to begin with, the sides will lock it up, while still showing .002. Look at the cap to assure it is on with the # stamp on the same side, and facing the cam. If not it will cause that problem. Measuring the rod journal when torqued down, but not installed will show egg shape. Jim
If the bearing inserts are flush with the rod and cap. get as close to 1/4 turn of the crankshaft as you can and still get the cap off and and get a plastigage reading.
The other thing that will lock it up is if on number two that the narrow side of the rod cap is not toward the center main. The wide sides on one and two go toward each other.
The other thing that will lock it up is if on number two that the narrow side of the rod cap is not toward the center main. The wide sides on one and two go toward each other.
If the bearing inserts are flush with the rod and cap. get as close to 1/4 turn of the crankshaft as you can and still get the cap off and and get a plastigage reading.
The other thing that will lock it up is if on number two that the narrow side of the rod cap is not toward the center main. The wide sides on one and two go toward each other.
The other thing that will lock it up is if on number two that the narrow side of the rod cap is not toward the center main. The wide sides on one and two go toward each other.
Brian Jasper co. Ia
Well-known Member
A dial caliper is not appropriate for this application. You need a micrometer. With that said, you need to check the inside bore of the connecting rods. If the bore is not round, your rods will need to be resized. That's not unusual. If the bores are not round, and you leave them as is, you risk low oil pressure, spun bearings, scuffed bearings, noises. Don't take short cuts now. You will regret them later if you do. You can't get an accurate enough reading with a caliper.
But they are not near as accurate! The best way to measure all this, and I realize it is a lot of $$ to get this equipment, are a set of mircometers and a dial bore guage.
It is real easy w/ a bore guage to go up and down and around the housing bore of the rod and see taper and out of roundness.
With this equipment, you dont even need plastiguage. If the crankpin is round and measures what it is supposed to, the housing bore/bearing surface of the rod is round and measures what is supposed to....bolt it together. NOTE: Set the bore guage w/ the same mic as you check the crankpin with.
I am a machinist and work on engine parts everyday. Dial calipers are more accurate than a scale (Steel rule), but if you need to measure a bore in a part and measure it right, dial calipers wont cut it!
It is real easy w/ a bore guage to go up and down and around the housing bore of the rod and see taper and out of roundness.
With this equipment, you dont even need plastiguage. If the crankpin is round and measures what it is supposed to, the housing bore/bearing surface of the rod is round and measures what is supposed to....bolt it together. NOTE: Set the bore guage w/ the same mic as you check the crankpin with.
I am a machinist and work on engine parts everyday. Dial calipers are more accurate than a scale (Steel rule), but if you need to measure a bore in a part and measure it right, dial calipers wont cut it!
I've learned that one the hard way, dick 
lol. Seriously, all i have hooked up right now are the 1 and 4 rods (and obvisly the mains). Jim, i checked again and sure enough there was about a pop can thickness difference with the bearing and the cap, which i filed away.
I torqued one bolt up and went to the second one, when i tried to spin the engine. It spun really easy, and i thought i'd found the rainbow's end here, but when i put the second one in it would'nt spin at all. Should i only shim the second bolt's side of the cap or what????
Dick, i'd like to thank you for all your help and patience here, i know you could do this stuff with your eyes closed, so thanks for helping me along
lol. Seriously, all i have hooked up right now are the 1 and 4 rods (and obvisly the mains). Jim, i checked again and sure enough there was about a pop can thickness difference with the bearing and the cap, which i filed away. I torqued one bolt up and went to the second one, when i tried to spin the engine. It spun really easy, and i thought i'd found the rainbow's end here, but when i put the second one in it would'nt spin at all. Should i only shim the second bolt's side of the cap or what????
Dick, i'd like to thank you for all your help and patience here, i know you could do this stuff with your eyes closed, so thanks for helping me along
teddy52food
Well-known Member
I agree with Drew!
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
Lance, if you have filed the bearing as Dick suggested you can now go buy a new bearing. That bearing needs to stick out just slightly as that is the "crush fit" that will keep the bearing from spinning.
Wayne in MN
Well-known Member
DO NOT FILE ANY BEARINGS!! The ends are made slightly larger than the cap so the bearing will "crush" into the rod & cap thereby preventing the bearing from spinning loosly in the connecting rod as your engine runs!
Just make sure there is no dirt or residue between the bearing and the rod/cap surfaces.
Lube the bearing surface with engine assembly grease before tightening with a torque wrench.
Just make sure there is no dirt or residue between the bearing and the rod/cap surfaces.
Lube the bearing surface with engine assembly grease before tightening with a torque wrench.
Something is wrong but you can try a different shim.I have not heard of filing a bearing shell.Better not file on a bearing.If you torque something you have to torque it evenly.Like I thought you said you torqued one side then the other,unless you torqued it evenly,that could be whats wrong.I have not ever seen the inside of a motor like that.I never heard of shimming rod bearings.If you do shim something,I would say you need to shim both sides.If it already has 2 thousandths are you sure you had both sides drawn up even,or did you have one side tighter than the other?Maybe on the rest of them you need to tighten them up,break them loose,then retighten and torque evenly.Then see what your plastiguage reads.
Walt Davies
Well-known Member
I was trained in the Navy went school and all to be a machinist haven't worked much at it after that because the pay was horrible compared to other work.
If your micrometer is set properly then using one or two or three won't make any difference if you know how to use them. We had a dispute about that in "A" school in the Navy, one of the teachers was telling us that no one can get the same reading on things with a Mic. another Chief and I disagreed with him so they setup a test we both measured things from a hair to paper to different metals and both of us came up with the same reading. Its all in knowing the feel of the mic to get it correct.
I think that Lance may have an out of round journal or something that is causing the false reading. he needs to have an expert look at it for him.
I use an old vernier scale caliper and get to within .0005 with no trouble although I need a glass now to read the vernier Old age ain't what its all cracked up to be.
Walt
If your micrometer is set properly then using one or two or three won't make any difference if you know how to use them. We had a dispute about that in "A" school in the Navy, one of the teachers was telling us that no one can get the same reading on things with a Mic. another Chief and I disagreed with him so they setup a test we both measured things from a hair to paper to different metals and both of us came up with the same reading. Its all in knowing the feel of the mic to get it correct.
I think that Lance may have an out of round journal or something that is causing the false reading. he needs to have an expert look at it for him.
I use an old vernier scale caliper and get to within .0005 with no trouble although I need a glass now to read the vernier Old age ain't what its all cracked up to be.
Walt
Mathias NY
Well-known Member
A micrometer is pretty straight forward to read... but it might be a good idea to have a pencil and paper handy until you get the hang of the math. I could retype the website, but it seems pretty good. Until you get the hang of it, you should check any micrometer reading with a caliper reading. This will give you a good sanity check to see if you misread anything. Feel free to email me if you have any questions. Good luck.
How to read a micrometer
How to read a micrometer
The shims on both sides (must be the same thickness) or you will not only have a pinching condition but it puts the center of the bearing off center.
I bought a 1923 Chevy from a guy that had the engine rebuilt in a restoration shop. When he got the engine back his farther inlaw who was a auto mechanic, wanted to check the work so they pulled the pan and removed the rod caps. (poured babbitt bearings) The fellow put it back together later. When I bought it he said he didn't understand why after he reassembled it the engine was locked up. After I got it home I pulled the pan and dropped the rod caps and found that the shims had been put back in with more on one side than the other. Checking with plastigage I found that each rod had the correct shims and when they were put back with the same thickness on both sides the engine was no longer locked up.
Never torque one bolt all the way before tightening the other. I always bring both to 20 pounds and the take them both to torque in three or four steps.
A good job always takes time. More time than you will expect even after you have done many. Used engines seem never to be the same even though they look the same to the eye.
I bought a 1923 Chevy from a guy that had the engine rebuilt in a restoration shop. When he got the engine back his farther inlaw who was a auto mechanic, wanted to check the work so they pulled the pan and removed the rod caps. (poured babbitt bearings) The fellow put it back together later. When I bought it he said he didn't understand why after he reassembled it the engine was locked up. After I got it home I pulled the pan and dropped the rod caps and found that the shims had been put back in with more on one side than the other. Checking with plastigage I found that each rod had the correct shims and when they were put back with the same thickness on both sides the engine was no longer locked up.
Never torque one bolt all the way before tightening the other. I always bring both to 20 pounds and the take them both to torque in three or four steps.
A good job always takes time. More time than you will expect even after you have done many. Used engines seem never to be the same even though they look the same to the eye.
teddy52food
Well-known Member
Lanse; Take all those rods to a machine shop and have them reconditioned. Leave the shims out. you don't need them. Keep the caps and rods together, don't get them mixed up. Any bearings that you filed down should be replaced because they may spin in the rod later.
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