BLENDING CYLINDER SLEEVES In order to blend the bottom of a cylinder repair sleeve to the step, I have found it best to indicate the boring bar on the lower portion of the old cylinder that is left from leaving a bottom step. After installing the sleeve, the ID needs...

KNOCKING OFF THE EDGES Before installing cam bearings, make sure to chamfer any oil holes and clean up back grooves of any sharp edges. This is especially critical with aluminum blocks. I like to give these areas a little buff on the mounted wheel to finish. This will...

TAPE MEASURE In most cases when I top down a sleeve, I put a piece of masking tape next to the sleeve. The tape I have is .005 thick so when my tooling touches the tape I have right around that .005 left to file if I’m not decking. If you have fine feed with an...

LINE HONE QUICK CHANGE On my line honing machine, I machined the threaded hold down rods for 3/8” cap screws. This makes adjusting them much faster, using a cordless drill. Just machine the face flat, and drill and tap on the lathe. Super time saver when switching...

HEAVY DUTY FRONT CAP For some extra strength on the front main bearing on several different engine platforms, you can narrow up a beefier 4-bolt cap to fit the 2-bolt register. If the radial depth is close enough to be able to “hone-in”, you often don’t even need to...

GET IT RIGHT When line boring and trying to figure out bearing clearance on an engine family that's out of your norm, check your clearances before you start. Torque a bearing into a good bore and use the stock fasteners if you plan on aftermarket bolts or studs, so it...