Back in the dark ages when I learned to rebuild engines (mid-1950's) the oldtime mechanics from the 20's and 30's who were my mentors had a procedure for adjusting rod bearing clearances that included shoeshine-polishing the crankshaft journals with super-fine grit emery cloth and scrape-fitting the bearing material using Prussian Blue and a triangular file ground into a razor-sharp fitting tool. The procedure involved spreading a thin layer of blue onto the bearing surfaces, lightly clamping the rod onto the shaft without shims, turning the crank one revolution, and gently scraping away any bright streaks in the blue that indicate high spots. Recoat/repeat until the bluing gets a smooth smear with no shiny spots, then use a 1/8" wide piece of .002" shim stock between the crank and the rod cap and shim the cap until turning the crank gives a slight drag with the rod bolts torqued. Move on to the next rod, and repeat. Then Plastigauge came along and made the clearance-checking phase a little easier.
Does anyone else fit bearings before checking oil clearance? BTW, I'll be doing the same thing on a Model A Ford engine soon with poured rod and main bearings. Fun and games!
Jerry
