Thread: Changing your rod bearings

sorry for the threadjack, but would that be an option on the main side as well? i ask b/c my crank what i would guess to be small wear marks on two of the main journals. the journals still feel smooth though.



they do, you just have to call them and they will help you get the right ones.

Hell yes. 100% agreed.




Sorry, but I'm going to have to strongly disagree with that. Your crank is manufactured with amazingly tight tolerances, and for good reason - the slightest unevenness will make you tear through any bearings you put in her, and you will have to get it re-cut by a machine shop in order to make it usable again.

IMHO it would be better to just leave it with those little wear lines on it - the pattern will simply wear into the new bearings, and it's not a big deal. The big problems come with that crankshaft is out of round.

^ x2 wow i couldnt even imagine taking sand paper ANYTHING to bearing/crankshaft ANYTHING, like you said tolerances are so tight, and a humans ability to be even are correct isnt that of a machine....wow

Well I opened up the bottom end on my original 94 motor. There was enough space for my hands to move the piston up and down. The first motor I opened up was a slim block 78E. Big difference in the amount of space there is to work with between the two motors. Just thought I'd add to thread for other guys that might read this.

I did the rod bearings on my G20's motor when it was upside down on a stand, which made it much easier to work on, but the above-mention technique of pushing the rod up a bit to get access to the upper shell is all that's needed, though small hands do help. Access would be much easier with the girdle off, but if you take that off I believe you'd have to reset the fore-aft crank clearance, which creates a whole lot of extra work. I'm set to do this in-car on my SE-R any day now.

David

My hands aren't super big and I couldn't change them without taking the girdle off. For cleaning you should do this: Get the Drain-o crystal formula( looks like pebbles) and cut up a t shirt in thin strips. Make a mixture of drain-O with water and soak the t shirt strips in it. Then, wrap it around the crank and let it sit for an hour or so. This will help dissolve any aluminum shavings that might be left assuming your crank isn't fubar'd already.

DELETE YOUR POST NOW so no one gets the wrong idea. There is no sandpaper fine enough, no emery cloth, no steel wool, no nothing that will allow you to polish the journal properly by hand. I did this at the suggestion of others, which was a horrible idea. I used 800 grit the first time, and then went to 3,000 grit at the advice of another. NO. NO. NO.