Two separate things accomplished this weekend: Got the Crankshaft ready to bolted in and I fixed that shuddering issue I was having on the Beast!
But first...
Engine Build: Verify Crankshaft/Main Cap clearances.
Before we can proceed, I have to make sure everything friggin fits right. That means there has to be a Goldielocks of a gap between those big iron U-looking caps you see down there and these metal little bearings that sit on top of them.
Educational point:
These are called the main caps and the main cap bearings. These guys hold the crankshaft into place. So this big weighty thing that moves those pistons can spin up 5500 RPM has to have this clearance between the crankshaft journals and the bearing - it can't be too big and it can't be too small. It's picky. If it is too big? The crank can bang up and down in there while spinning. If it is too small, heat/excessive wear. Either way, it's $$$ and probably emotional weight. No one needs that.
So I get everything organized and my buddy is supervising me making sure I don't bolt anything inside out or backwards.
Here are the old main bolts with the main caps behind there. I'll toss these bolts for some fresh new ARP main studs.
Fun fact: While I was doing this, he was busy upgrading his Honda Trail70 bike.
Distraction: Jacob was currently upgrading his Honda Trail70 to a 88 I think? New racing upper end will make that thing pop some wheelies without a doubt.
Anyway, we pop the upper half of main bearings in first. Make sure everything is super clean of my greasy finger prints. Seriously, specs of anything can cause wear and whatever. Like, I'm sure my fart particles are going to take 10 years off this engine's life.
Next, we'll slap those ARP studs in place. Finger tight. Fun fact: Studs make everything easier to install versus bolts as the studs literally act like dowel guides for you to just slide things into place.
Next is the plastigauge part. These are little wax sticks that you place ON the crankshaft, then SQUISH it in place by actually installing the main caps to full torque specifications. This will cause the wax to spread out and let you know just how much of the wax was displaced - giving you a good oil clearance reading for your bearings!
Step 1 - cut the wax into several little wax sticks.
Step 2: place stick onto each journal of the crankshaft. NOT PICTURED: me actually making that straight before moving on.
Step 3: Put on all the main caps and torque it into place. Which you have to look up ARP's torque specs for those main studs. I think was like 125 ft-lbs of torque? Always RTFM!
Step 4: Undo everything and look at how much of the wax was squished out. Use the cool plastigauge ruler to see if you are within clearance.
So good news, all is well and I can proceed with the build! Except that my engine rebuild gasket kit hasn't arrived yet (it showed up about 7pm that day) so that means we wait until next Friday.
Welp, time for a whiskey! Or two. Cheers.
Meanwhile...
Wheel Bearing Replacement
Symptoms I was hearing when driving the Beast:
- Severe grinding sound when turning a quarter of the way to the left while moving forward.
- Vibration/Shuddering at higher speeds
Someone mentioned wheel bearings to me - I figured those bearings haven't been touched in a few 10k miles so I might as well check them out. Well, I've never done this before so...let's dive right in!!
So here is a what I will be looking at:
Mine are discs, not drums - but everything else is the same.
So first thing to do: Take the tire off.
Then,
take the caliper off the rotor. Everyone on the Internet warned me to make sure I don't just let the caliper hang there (That's not what the brake hose is for!!!) So I propped it up on a jack stand and wired it up to a bolt for extra safety.
I take this moment to free spin the rotor without brakes or anything else holding it up. It free spins decently I guess but it makes a weird
tick tick tick noise as it spins. It honestly reminded me how bearings sounded on my skateboard when I was younger so maybe that is what actual wheel bearings sound like too? Hmm, we'll just have to find out.
Next, I
take the grease cap off. It came off really easy when I pried it with a screw driver.
Next, we
pull off the nut lock, pull out the cotter pin and then the 'adjusting nut'.
This is literally the only thing holding your wheel on. Also, mine was less than finger tight. Hmm. That is why you use cotter pins - keep that bolt in place.
With the nut off, we
slide the rotor right off.
So far, there wasn't anything that threw me any obvious clues. Though at the back was burned out gasket from the splash shield. I also removed the splash shield as well.
More of that burned out gasket that made its way into the rotor.
So time to inspect this rotor and
pop out the inner and outer bearings.
Hmm, that inner bearing seems suspect.
"There is your problem". Not only was it completely seized up, but you can clearly identify the damage right above my thumb there.
Yuck.
Huh, well, glad I dived into this then! Now to
take the bearing cups out of the rotor. Now, I don't have cool bearing removal tools to evenly punch it out of there so.....
I use a hammer and a punch (as well as pry bar which I used as a punch as well) and I knocked the shit out of the bearing cups until the pop out of each end of the rotor. This is what my neighbors hear for about 15 minutes: CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG
Now for installation!
First the outer bearing cup. I put some goop on the outside of the cup and placed it evenly over the inner opening. Then, I used a soft blow mallet (or whatever those rainman-sand filled things are called) and hammered the bearing cup into the hole until it was flush with the rim.
Then, I used a narrow punch to hammer it all the way into the rotor until it was seated properly. I could tell it was at the end as the sound and feel changed immediately.
I did the same for the front bearing cup as well.
Fun story, I thought I was being clever by using the OLD bearing cup to evenly hammer the new bearing cup in...until I got that one stuck in the rotor as well. Then I payed my stupid tax in the amount of time by having to hammer the stupid things all the way back out and start over.
The next step was to pack the bearing grease into the bearings. Not pictured: both my hands covered in red grease while I painstakingly pack grease into both bearings.
What the bearings look like.
There is a technique for this though. You put some goop in the palm of your hand. Then grab the bearing so the wide side faces out towards the palm of your hand, and tap repeatedly into the grease until you see the grease come out of the other end. Do this over and over until you got the entire bearing. Then, rotate the bearing - and start over until the bearing is sufficiently packed. That is what I did anyway.
Also, be cleaner than I was. I'm sure I introduced plenty of bad dirt particles and what not while I was doing this because A) I'm not in some clean room where scientists work on ebola and B) I'm a normal person that sometimes uses his sleeve to wipe his nose when in the garage.
Bam - I pop the inner bearing in first then put the grease retainer on. (see the diagram above) I put that thing on by placing it flush over the opening, placing a block of wood on top of it and carefully, hammered the shit out of it, but careful not to make it all disproportional.
Back to the spindle. I cleaned up the shield and really gave the spindle cone a clean down with some brake cleaner.
Then, greased up the bearing cups on the inside, placed a TON of grease inside the rotor between the two cups and finally placed the rotor on the spindle cone.
Then, while holding the rotor in place, placed the outer bearing in. You hold it in place so you don't screw up the grease retainer.
Finally, placed the lock washer in place, and screwed the "adjustment"/
jesus nut in place.
To place this nut back on, I spun the rotor a few times back and forth, then turned the nut to finger-tight. I repeated this several times until I could no longer tighten the nut finger tight. Then followed the manual's instructions for torque specifications - which to me was about 1/4 of a turn after finger tight.
Popped the grease cap back on with the rubber mallet....which I remember thinking, "this isn't on all the way"
Brake calipers, tire, etc etc.
And she is on the road!!! Also, shuddering and grinding noise is frriggin GONE. YES. YES!!!
Except for one thing....
Damn it!!! Grease cap fell off. Oh well, $4 at NAPA next Friday.
Next weekend!
Going to try to get the bottom end completely installed! Also, might do the passenger side wheel bearings as well.
Other car TODOs: (will happen at some point in the near future)
- Electric fuel pump/Control Kit (already purchased)
- Read suspension bushings
- Fix Brake line - has a small leak out of the control circuit outside of the booster.
- !!ORIGINAL STEERING COLUMN/WHEEL BEING SHIPPED TO ME NEXT WEEK!!
