buying an engine stand could be one of the most important purchaces youll ever make and your safety depends on knowing a few things
if its a three point stand like this one (I HIGHLY SUGGEST YOU GET A BETTER ONE, THESE FLIP AND GET PEOPLE SERIOUSLY INJURED ALL THE TIME)
do yourself a HUGE FAVOR, get a front cross leg made from 2"x2" box steel with steel caster wheel on the ends so it cant tip that are at least 4 feet long (longer than the picture shows) welded to the front tip of the leg to prevent the engine from flipping on you when tightening the mains and head bolts like the picture below
Ive got 4 like this, I feel they are the BEST deal and safest for the price
northern tool sells them for about $80 plus shipping
http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/...ogId=4006970&PHOTOS=on&TEST=Y&productId=19976
the few extra dollars you spend to get a better quality engine stand could save your life! Ive been seriously limited in what I can due for about a year with a crushed ankle, and Im going to need a second surgery to correct the injury so I know (NO I DID NOT GET INJURED IN THE SHOP, but by a slip on a restaurant floor)
youll usually need (4) 3.5" long 3/8" NC thread ,grade #8 bolts that have several 3/8" fender washers slid on before they get inserted in the engine stand tool head, Id advise buying at least three to six extra 3/8" finder washers for each mount bolt, an if you slip a 2.75" section of 3/8" fuel line over the bolt shank before inserting the bolts in the tool head they tend to stay centered and are less likely to fall out as the engines mounted. try hard to center the engines rotating mass in line with the tool head, having it bolted way off center makes turning the engine around on the stand a huge P.I.T.A. and more dangerous.
BTW
Ive generally found its far less trouble to have the tool head removed temporarily from the engine stand and attach it to the engine while its hanging from the engine crane, because it far less trouble to slide the engine stand tool head back into the stand rotating collar than it is to be screwing around with 4 individual mount bolts.
(DON,T FORGET TO GREASE THE TOOL HEAD COLLAR and STAND ROTATING TOOL HEAD with a good molly GREASE, before re-sliding it together)
most of the rotating heads come with a 18" lever that makes rotating the engine a HUGE pain in the ass, Ive found that a 34" section of steel tube about the same diameter as the original handle with a section of THREAD rod that just slides thru it makes a far more useable handle with much more leverage, I cut the thread rod so its about 1.4" longer than the 34" tube so I can weld a nut and washer on one end and use a washer and nylock nut on the other.
BE AWARE that most engine stands have legs that are too wide to allow the engine crane to easily be positioned to allow easy engine mounting on the engine stand, if you have some welding skill and are willing to fabricate an extra set of engine stand leg mount brackets or use the taller casters that allow the engine stand to slide in easier this is fairly easy to rectify
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=2986&p=7842&hilit=stand+thread+bolts#p7842
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=1018&p=2304&hilit=stand+bolts#p2304
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=3724&p=9669&hilit=stand+bolts#p9669
If you do build a second performance engine rather than modify your single existing original cars engine,theres some advantages, that us older geezers have come to appreciate at times.
as a general rule, its best to take your time and build a separate performance engine that you can swap into the car over a weekend, this has several advantages
(1) you will not be tying up the car, in an un-driveable condition waiting for weeks on parts to arrive or waiting on machine work to be done,
and you can always swap the original engine back into the car,
to have the car as dependable transportation while the performance engines being built or worked on.
(2) you can sell either engine separately from the car itself and still have a drive-able car.
(3)having your performance engine out on an engine stand certainly makes it far easier to work on.
(4) having a second engine available allows you to drive the car while you make repairs on the original engine
(5) if you screw something up, your not effectively stuck with a non-driveable car for long.
(6) with some experience you,ll find an engine swap between two similar engines can be done in a day , or at most a weekend by yourself,
with a skilled and experienced local buddy, some decent tools ,
and a shop with an engine crane and a lift or at least (4) 12 ton jack stands,
and a decent floor jack ..a long afternoon!
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/engine-removal.699/#post-972
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/under-car-safety.26/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-crane-and-engine-stand-mods-accesories.3724/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...paring-two-harbor-freight-engine-cranes.8566/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/you-need-decent-jack-stands.672/
if its a three point stand like this one (I HIGHLY SUGGEST YOU GET A BETTER ONE, THESE FLIP AND GET PEOPLE SERIOUSLY INJURED ALL THE TIME)
Ive got 4 like this, I feel they are the BEST deal and safest for the price
northern tool sells them for about $80 plus shipping
http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/...ogId=4006970&PHOTOS=on&TEST=Y&productId=19976
the few extra dollars you spend to get a better quality engine stand could save your life! Ive been seriously limited in what I can due for about a year with a crushed ankle, and Im going to need a second surgery to correct the injury so I know (NO I DID NOT GET INJURED IN THE SHOP, but by a slip on a restaurant floor)
youll usually need (4) 3.5" long 3/8" NC thread ,grade #8 bolts that have several 3/8" fender washers slid on before they get inserted in the engine stand tool head, Id advise buying at least three to six extra 3/8" finder washers for each mount bolt, an if you slip a 2.75" section of 3/8" fuel line over the bolt shank before inserting the bolts in the tool head they tend to stay centered and are less likely to fall out as the engines mounted. try hard to center the engines rotating mass in line with the tool head, having it bolted way off center makes turning the engine around on the stand a huge P.I.T.A. and more dangerous.
BTW
Ive generally found its far less trouble to have the tool head removed temporarily from the engine stand and attach it to the engine while its hanging from the engine crane, because it far less trouble to slide the engine stand tool head back into the stand rotating collar than it is to be screwing around with 4 individual mount bolts.
(DON,T FORGET TO GREASE THE TOOL HEAD COLLAR and STAND ROTATING TOOL HEAD with a good molly GREASE, before re-sliding it together)
most of the rotating heads come with a 18" lever that makes rotating the engine a HUGE pain in the ass, Ive found that a 34" section of steel tube about the same diameter as the original handle with a section of THREAD rod that just slides thru it makes a far more useable handle with much more leverage, I cut the thread rod so its about 1.4" longer than the 34" tube so I can weld a nut and washer on one end and use a washer and nylock nut on the other.
BE AWARE that most engine stands have legs that are too wide to allow the engine crane to easily be positioned to allow easy engine mounting on the engine stand, if you have some welding skill and are willing to fabricate an extra set of engine stand leg mount brackets or use the taller casters that allow the engine stand to slide in easier this is fairly easy to rectify
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=2986&p=7842&hilit=stand+thread+bolts#p7842
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=1018&p=2304&hilit=stand+bolts#p2304
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=3724&p=9669&hilit=stand+bolts#p9669
If you do build a second performance engine rather than modify your single existing original cars engine,theres some advantages, that us older geezers have come to appreciate at times.
as a general rule, its best to take your time and build a separate performance engine that you can swap into the car over a weekend, this has several advantages
(1) you will not be tying up the car, in an un-driveable condition waiting for weeks on parts to arrive or waiting on machine work to be done,
and you can always swap the original engine back into the car,
to have the car as dependable transportation while the performance engines being built or worked on.
(2) you can sell either engine separately from the car itself and still have a drive-able car.
(3)having your performance engine out on an engine stand certainly makes it far easier to work on.
(4) having a second engine available allows you to drive the car while you make repairs on the original engine
(5) if you screw something up, your not effectively stuck with a non-driveable car for long.
(6) with some experience you,ll find an engine swap between two similar engines can be done in a day , or at most a weekend by yourself,
with a skilled and experienced local buddy, some decent tools ,
and a shop with an engine crane and a lift or at least (4) 12 ton jack stands,
and a decent floor jack ..a long afternoon!
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/engine-removal.699/#post-972
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/under-car-safety.26/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-crane-and-engine-stand-mods-accesories.3724/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...paring-two-harbor-freight-engine-cranes.8566/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/you-need-decent-jack-stands.672/
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