The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 261 disassembly help PLEASE!?

Hi Guys, I am in the early stages of taking my newly acquired 261 apart. This may seem like a silly question but how do I disconnect the clutch housing from the engine block? Or is that even possible? I can't seem to find all the bolts around the housing that hold it on, or there appear to be some on the inside of the housing that are hard to get to. The crank won't turn too easily so spinning the flywheel to disconnect the clutch plate bolts seems out of the question. Any help is desperately needed and MUCH appreciated.

There are six bolts that hold the bellhousing to the engine block. Most likely there is so much "gunk" in the bellhousing that you can't see all the bolts.

But most importantly, you MUST remove the flywheel BEFORE you can remove the bellhousing. The flywheel is to big to fit through the little hole in the front of the bellhousing. Be prepared for the flywheel bolts to be screwed in rather tightly. If you have a spare gorilla around you might have to use him for this task. I know I had to use a breaker bar to get mine loose.

I just went through this with my '54 261 which is now in the machine shop!

Good luck!! Isn't this fun.....? Yeah!!!

Steve

Steve,

Sure is fun. I feel like I am on the verge of creating a new language at times. Currently, I have 4 of 8+ clutch plate bolts removed. Seems like I need to remove the housing to get to the bolts but then I need to remove the clutch so I can remove the flywheel so I can get to the housing bolts?!? Vicious circle. WOuld it be possible to spin the flywheel somehow to cycle the plate around and expose the other bolts? Thanks for the info and the vote of confidence. Feel a little better knowing that I ain't the only one.

You should be able to use a very large screw driver, place at the bottom of the bell housing and insert into the flywheel teeth and pry, it should turn.
Gary

You should be able to manually turn the flywheel to get access to the bolts that hold the clutch on. Ideally, you should release each bolt a little at a time to prevent the pressure plate assembly from warping. The same goes for when you put the clutch back on. Tighten each bolt a little at a time.

I recommend removing the spark plugs to release some of the compression to make the flywheel easier to turn. Maybe even remove the head too. If you still can't turn the flywheel, something is definetly wrong! Either you are a 95-pound weakling or there is something binding up inside. Drop the oil pan and check it out. Maybe you need to employ that spare gorilla I was talking about! :p

Good Luck my friend, you WILL succeed!

Steve
Stovebolt Gallery page for my truck

Gary, thanks for that tidbit. I will try it.
Steve, I dropped the pan and things look pretty good inside, no shavings, the oil looks a little old and somewhat pasty? I will pop the plugs and try that method, but I don't want to pull the head just yet, since I am still using it to hold the engine to the hoist. Any other advice on how to mount it to a stand? It doesn't look like the front will work and I already tried to do it from the housing, but it could be that my stand isn't strong enough. It is rated to 1000lbs. Maybe I'll just employ the gorilla to hold the engine. Thanks for the help and keep em coming! -Shane

If your engine is still on the hoist, It's going to be difficult to turn the flywheel without the engine moving around on you and maybe breaking free and dropping on your foot. That would ruin your day (and your foot). When I did mine, I GENTLY set the engine on its side. Then I pulled the plugs and grabbed hold of the flywheel and was able to turn it fairly easily to access the bolts for the clutch. Wear gloves, those ring gear teeth bite sometimes!

Your stand is plenty heavy enough for your engine. I read somewhere that the stovebolt six weighs around 750 lbs, but I'm not totally sure about that. Once you get the bellhousing off, just bolt the rear of the block to the stand, and you are set to go for the rest of the disassembly! I bought some freezer bags with labels to keep all the nuts, bolts and other small parts from getting lost or mixed up. The last thing you need at reassembly time is a coffee can full of nuts and bolts, and no idea which go where! :mad: Or, if you have the machine shop build your engine, they will thank you a thousand times over, and charge you less labor!

Steve

Gary, the screwdriver idea worked! Actually, it was my "gorilla" bar that did the trick. I am down to the flywheel now and I have two bolts out of six off. I have discovered that there appears to be a little flange? that is pressed up against the edge of each bolt, is this the lock down that I have been reading about? or is that a different assembly? Anyway, it is coming slowly but surely.
Steve, Thanks for the safety advice, I read that big safety article in the Tech Tips. Lots of good pointers, I don't like relying on the hoist, so I have it holding the engine, but I put the oil pan back on and dropped it on an old spare tire. It still moves a little but I can deal with it and if it breaks loose I keep myself in a position to get away fast and it doesn't have far to fall. Needless to say, I am very anxious to get it on that stand. Thanks for the nuts and bolts organization tip.
Bedtime :o Calling it quits for today. Thanks a lot Guys. -Shane

I have made a box out of wood and put castors on it. It might not look pretty but I can now roll my 261 anywere I want and can rip it apart with no problems. I have now made 2 of this for my other engines.

Engine: 700 pounds.
Flywheel and clutch: 100 pounds.
Force exerted in removing bolts: 100's of pounds.
Foot: priceless.

Got the flywheel off and the engine is on the stand. Next step, cleaning and tear down b/f I send it to a machine shop. How far do I need to tear it down if I am going to take it to a shop to have it magnafluxed, checked for taper, etc.? Any good advice on how to clean. Surprisingly there is NO grease buildup, gaskets appear to have held?!? Possible rebuild, right? Mainly, I just need to get the paint off, it appears to be the remnants of orange-red or Chevy orange. Thanks for all the help again. -Shane

The machine shop will appreciate it if you bring in a totally bare block, including freeze plugs and oil gallery plugs removed. It's much easier to clean that way. Be sure not to mix up main bearing caps and connecting rod caps, as they're fitted to specific locations, and are not interchangeable. If the engine has been apart before, (almost a certainty), the rod and main caps will probably be stamped for location already. If not, a set of number dies will come in handy. Last resort, a series of dots punched into mating parts with a center punch will do, but it looks a little "shade tree" to do it that way.
Jerry

Shane, congratulations on successfully getting your engine on the stand. Now the real fun begins!

Disassemble down to the bare block. Mark the pistons and connecting rods with the cylinder number that they came out of, in case they are reused. The same goes for the lifters, pushrods, rocker arms and valve springs. Mark each one with it's location in case it is re-used. Again, nuts, bolts, and small parts go in freezer bags with LABELS!!

As for cleaning, the machine shop should have a "hot-tank" of cleaning solution that they can dip the whole block, head, and other metal parts in. This dipping cleans out years of crud buildup inside and outside the engine. Sounds like your engine is pretty clean on the outside, but who knows whats lurking on the inside? This solution should also remove any leftover paint.

Once they have the block cleaned, they can magnaflux and check for taper. There is a good chance that your head is cracked, these heads were prone to cracking. It can be repaired if it isn't too bad. The block is pretty tough, it's rare that one is cracked.

The best thing to do is to talk to your machinist first. He (she?) can tell you what they would like you to do before you bring the engine to them. They sometimes disassemble the engine for you if you want (for a small fee!).

Check out this link for a good rundown on disassembling and rebuilding a Chevy Stovebolt.
Chevy Stovebolt Engine Rebuild

Steve

Hotrod and Steve,

Thanks again, silly question though, any preferable place to mark the pistons, etc? I have a stamp set, so #'s won't be a problem. #1 is next to the radiator, correct? The head is an 848, which I understand is the more desireable one. Hopefully it isn't shot. The inside of the engine worries me a little, the water pump was pretty much rusted on and presides on my garage floor in pieces. The exposed cavity revealed rust in the passages, so I hope it hasn't eaten through anything important. How many freeze plugs are there and are they of varying sizes? I have all the accesories off now and I am letting the timing chain cover soak overnight with some liquid wrench. More to come tomorrow! -Shane