might think about this, we all make mistakes , but learn from them!

Grumpy

The Grumpy Grease Monkey mechanical engineer.
Staff member
I can't but help, but remember a poem that I heard when I was younger, when I talk to some guys I know about the issues they have had while assembling an engine!

The Blind Men and the Elephant
John Godfrey Saxe (1816-1887)

It was six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy his mind.
It was six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy his mind.

The First approached the Elephant,
And happening to fall
Against his broad and sturdy side,
At once began to bawl:
"God bless me! but the Elephant
Is very like a WALL!"

The Second, feeling of the tusk,
Cried, "Ho, what have we here,
So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me 'tis mighty clear
This wonder of an Elephant
Is very like a SPEAR!"

The Third approached the animal,
And happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
Thus boldly up and spake:
"I see," quoth he, "the Elephant
Is very like a SNAKE!"

The Fourth reached out an eager hand,
And felt about the knee
"What most this wondrous beast is like
Is mighty plain," quoth he:
"'Tis clear enough the Elephant
Is very like a TREE!"

The Fifth, who chanced to touch the ear,
Said: "E'en the blindest man
Can tell what this resembles most;
Deny the fact who can,
This marvel of an Elephant
Is very like a FAN!"

The Sixth no sooner had begun
About the beast to grope,
Than seizing on the swinging tail
That fell within his scope,
"I see," quoth he, "the Elephant
Is very like a ROPE!"

And so these men of Indostan
Disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
Exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right,
And all were in the wrong!

now maybe I'm the one whos got the wrong concept, here,
but I learned early in the process ,
that making mistakes is both very expensive and wastes time,
Time and cash, you could better spend doing the job correctly AFTER asking someone with a great deal more experience for advice,
and that when your not sure, or might even vaguely suspect your NOT doing something correctly,
or your NOT getting the results you expect,.....

its best to STOP and ASK DETAILED QUESTIONS ,
and follow up those questions with a general question, like
" is there anything I might be over-looking or any bits of related info ,
Can, you can tell me about the tools or parts that might be useful to know about or use or suggest a better way too do this?"

I recently was asked to diagnose a problem that could have easily been avoided.
one of the neighbors kids (about mid 20s ) was assembling a 454 chevy hes installing in a dodge dart as the original engine is trash, during the engine assembly he found that he could not get it to easily rotate once he had installed 4 connecting rods.once his dad saw him using a long breaker bar on the crank to get it to rotate and almost tip over the engine stand he suggested I get a phone call. and yeah! he damaged the bearings but we managed to save the crank,(yes he needed to buy new bearings) because he had managed to install the connecting rods on a couple cylinders with the rods facing the wrong direction and with the pistons not having a dome that faces the outer block wall it was not obvious to him as it was his first engine build. now I can easily sympathize with the younger guy here ,
simply because I remember running into a similar issue when I was about 16 years old , and I foolishly also ruined a set of bearings , but my mentor at the time took the time to help dis-assemble and point out how I'd screwed up!
yeah! you tend to remember your own screw-ups but the key is in not repeating them and learning how to proceed correctly

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...ting-resistance-to-look-for.11312/#post-51472

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...tion-of-crank-durring-short-blk-assembly.852/


http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/can-i-get-it-polished.9214/#post-43456

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...earances-and-journal-surface.9955/#post-38385

http://forum.grumpysperformance.com/viewtopic.php?f=53&t=2726&p=7077&hilit=plastigauge#p7077

http://forum.grumpysperformance.com/viewtopic.php?f=59&t=1390&p=3073&hilit=precision#p3073

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-crane-and-engine-stand-mods-accesories.3724/


http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/main-cap-fit-in-block.5945/#post-34251


it might also be a good place to mention a solid engine stand is a wise investment
weldersta.png

HERES A PICTURE OF AN ENGINE STAND THATS OWNED BY A GUY THAT FEELS A FAR MORE RIGID STAND IS A BIGGER ADVANTAGE THAN HAVING IT FOLD UP SMALLER FOR EASY STORAGE, AND YES HAVING A SHOP WELDER IS A GREAT IDEA< AS IT GIVES YOU OPTIONS


bearingoffset2.jpg

bearingoffset1r.jpg






 
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hey Grumpy, I remember when I was in high school, I was in auto shop for two years. I had a friend that was kinda dingy about engines, so his dad suggested that shop class to help him about cars and such. Well, he had a late 60's Chevy Biscayne that had a straight six in it. It was wore out so we rebuilt it as a semester project. We went through the entire engine and replaced everything. When we were going back together with the bottom end, we had a similar problem. He had not marked the main caps with what journal they went on. Well, you can probably figure out what happened, we put the crank in and were on to sliding the newly ringed pistons back in when we figured out the crank was locked down solid as a rock. I saw then the caps were not looking right on few of the journals and one even looked crooked in the register. So, I asked where the numbers were on each journal cap, he said what number? I said the number for what journal each cap went on and a arrow towards the front of the block. You're supposed to do that was his reply, I said yeah, you have to know how they came out, and what side goes to the front of the block. His next statement was I am a stupid Mother F*****! So, I told him No your not, this is your first engine build! He said How many have you done, I said I have been building engines with my dad at home in our garage since I was about 8 years old. Anyway, we had to go through and plastic gauge each cap on each journal till we found the right combo so the crank would turn freely, which took about 3 days of the shop class (12hrs). Eventually, we had them all at about .002 oil clearance on each bearing and it would turn freely by hand.
 
HERES A PICTURE, main caps are usually cast with a arrow showing the direction they face but seldom number stamped to indicate the correct location in the block and its best to do that during the dis-assembly too insure they go back in the correct location.
cap21.jpg

cap22.jpg


http://www.harborfreight.com/36-piece-14-in-steel-letternumber-stamping-set-60671.html

333.jpg


its usually standard practice to lightly stamp the outward facing rods and rod caps and main journal caps with the cylinder number or location they will be or are located in and a matched stamped number on the oil pan rail of the block, its also useful to stamp the main caps on one edge and a matched stamped number on the oil pan rail of the block, indicating which direction each main cap faces and its location during the original DIS-assembly process or first engine assembly to prevent potential screw-ups during later builds or refresh builds.
just make the stamped number clearly readable but not deeply stamped as you don,t want to induce potential stress risers that might weaken the connecting rods

stampedrods.jpg


When having a machine shop do any work, always ALWAYS get everything in detailed writing before you start,
specifying all machine work, to be done in detail,list parts and labor costs, mandate a delivery due dates and have every single part you supply ID stamped, and photographed, have all the work too be done and parts individually listed and a value assigned, with both YOU and the machine shop having identical signed copys
listing the cost and dates and work details

what particular tools have you gentlemen purchased over the last few years,
that you have found to be either a big help in making the job easier,
or a big time saver?

I frequently go over to other guys garages to help them out with various projects and repairs ans almost always,
I find I'm forced to make a side trip back to my shop to use a tool I own,
or on a few rare occasions I get rather jealous when I see they own a few tools that I wish I owned.
that can be as simple as retrieving a floor jack,
and several jack stands so I feel reasonably safe under some guys car doing a clutch replacement in his shop or using my various welders or a mill, or hydraulic press.
now obviously I can,t afford to buy every tool Id like to own,
and there's always going to be guys that have better tools and more skills and experience than I have in several areas of expertise,
(but thats also incentive to learn new skills and acquire better tools)
and like everyone else I buy tools and some wear out,
or break and need to be replaced.
(so I may have to buy some tools more than once)
(gives me a great excuse to upgrade quality)
but I'm always amazed at how few guys own what I consider just basic repair tools like..
a decent drill press, a work bench, with a vise,
and
diagnostic tools like, a decent 12" caliper, a vacuum/ pressure gauge,
and a multi-meter, and a timing light and,
a factory shop manual for your make year and model car.

not to mention, a basic tool like a decent set of jack stands and a floor jack,
or in some cases just decent quality vise grips and screw drivers

now a a mig or oxy-acetylene welder , and a belt sander, are in my opinion almost mandatory,
but I fully understand that if you don,t regularly do your own repair work,
those tools might not be in your garage



related threads
(DON,T IGNORE THE LINKS AND SUB-LINKS)

http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/bare-minimum-tools.11026/#post-48766

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