The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Tool Chest building an engine stand

I'm going to build an engine stand and wanted opinions. First, has anyone built one in the vertical position, meaning bolt the bellhousing end to the stand with the crank in the vertical position. Are there any drawbacks to this arrangement, I have an overhead crane so lifting after work is not an issue. I think this would be a very stable set up. Aircraft engines are all built this way as far as I know. Dave

seems like installing bearings, pistons, head, manifolds would all be easier in the flat position, but try it and let us know. i guess you couold wait to prime it till you install it. would you be able to rotate it easily before the balancer is installed? who know you might like it better.

It will be a lot harder to set the heads on and torque them. Even with the dowel pins, they sometimes try to come off on a regular engine stand. Holding the intake in place will be harder too. I think with a traditional stand, gravity is your friend. If I was going to improve on one, I'd find a way to put bearings in it to make it easier to turn over. It would also need a brake so it wouldn't turn too easy.

Good point, not vertical. I got a large shaft with 2 pillow block bearings on it that I could use to make the turner, I'm open to all suggestions at this point, I'll start construction in maybe a week. Dave

If you're gonna use bearings to spin it, a means to give better positioning & locking it in place would be a crank driven worm gear. Other option would be a gear with a good deep tooth and a spring loaded latch to keep it from rotating. Always seemes like the locking pin on statndard engines stands were in juuuust the wrong places so you couldn't get the angle I wanted.

We built an engine stand and used an axle from an old truck with air brakes and spoke hubs for the pivot and bolted a plate to the lug bolt studs and then drilled appropriate holes in the plate for the engines we work on. We left the spring brakes installed. When we want to turn the engine, we apply air to the spring brakes. It is strong enough to hold a fully dressed 14 liter Cummins.

Does anyone have any special design they favor for a stand. Dave

If I was to fab up another one I would make the base a rectangle out of 2 inch square tubing so I could fab up a nice LARGE catch tray for the fluids and then use 4 casters 2 sraight & 2 pivoting with locks on all 4 to keep it from moving around when tourquing head bolts and such.
The one I built is the 3 legged version and it is heavy duty but would be much better with 4 points on the floor instead of 3.
Just my 2 pennies.
Tim