I have a 228 that I'm working on tearing down. My goal is to tear it down, clean everything up really good and reassemble assuming I don't find anything terribly wrong.
So far, I've ordered a valve spring compressor, dial bore gauge, micrometer set, ring compressor, and a ridge reamer.
My question is, after I remove the oil pan, I'm nervous about removing the rod caps, main caps, crank, rods, pistons, etc because I've never torn an engine down before and while taking things apart is easy, I'm nervous about not knowing what I'm doing when I go to put it back together. I know everything has to stay together and go back in the same holes etc.
Do I need any other special tools when reassembling The bottom end?
Get a set of number stamping dies, so if anything like connecting rods and caps haven't been marked, they can be identified before, or as soon as they're removed. Rod caps are not interchangeable, and if you get a cap assembled backwards even if it's on the right rod, the engine probably won't turn. Normally, inline six rods are numbered toward the camshaft side of the engine. Stovebolt main bearings are 4 different sizes, but it's still a good idea to number them to keep from getting one of the center caps on backwards during reassembly. Measure the cylinder taper from top to bottom. A cylinder that has more than .005" of taper wear probably should be bored out for a bigger piston. At 2000 RPM, rings in a taper worn bore are flexing 32 times a second, trying to maintain a seal on the cylinder walls. Most of that flexing happens in the 1 1/2 inches at the top of the cylinder where most of the wear is. That makes for poor compression sealing and very short ring life.
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
I've got one of these actually so that's good. Is there a standard way to mark these? Numbers 1-4 on the mains maybe? How should I mark the bearings? Sharpie?
I had seen your stovebolt quick tip about the cylinder taper. If I'm thinking about it right I use the dial bore gauge to check it just as quick, right?
If you have a dial bore gauge, set the gauge to zero when it's down into the cylinder 3-4 inches, near the bottom of the ring travel. Then bring it to the top, rocking it back and forth a little to find the maximum diameter. It the top and bottom readings are much over .005" different, you're approaching the point where a re-ring job probably will be a short term fix. I'm not a fan of reassembling an engine with used rings. If you plan on re-using the bearings, a sharpie is the best approach.
I mark the sides of the rods and caps together, both on the camshaft side of the engine. A simple 1-2-3-4 mark on the main caps and the adjacent block area will be sure to keep those parts in the proper orientation on reassembly. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
After measuring each cylinder, it seems that I am below the 0.005" threshold and should be able to rering assuming I didn't do something wrong. These measurements are based on my dial bore gauge zerod at 3.5675 because my block serial started with "A".
Where can I find new rings? Should I also have the machine shop hone the cylinders? It would seem to me that I couldn't just put new rings in but I don't know much.
I'm not aware of rings being produced for the 228. Not many people are re ringing them any more. But there are usually some NOS ones available on eBay. It you are not able to hone the cylinders yourself, you need to have the cylinders honed to break the glaze. Otherwise the new rings will never seat. I have an expensive hone, but an in expensive Lisle 23500 hone will work. They are less than $30. A machine shop will be very expensive and probably try to talk you into a lot of work you really don't need.
For a re-ring job without a rebore and new oversize pistons, I like to break the glaze with a "button" hone, one with individual carbide balls on flexible stems. (Sometimes known as a "dingleberry" hone). Once you have a good crosshatch pattern established to help the rings seat, do a THOROUGH cleanup with HOT soapy water and a stiff bristle scrub brush, followed by a boiling water rinse. Any hone grit left in the cylinders will keep honing- - - - -and the piston rings will be the first thing to go. I totally wore out a set of new rings on a cross country trip from California to Tennessee- - - -about 2500 miles- - - -because I didn't do good cleanup during a ring and rod bearing job before we started the trip. By the time we got to Nashville, I was burning 3 quarts of oil to every tank of gas! Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
