DOING THE LS CRANK STAND Since the new LS motors all have reluctor rings, my son and I figured out a relatively easy way to stabilize our cranks when we are installing the reluctor ring to the crank. We honed out a junk harmonic balancer to use as a stand for reluctor...
ADDRESSING CONNECTING ROD SMALL END ISSUES When dealing with piston pin ends of connecting rods, we have found a countersink to be a very useful tool. Attempting to guide a piston pin into a bushing with only .0001-.0005” clearance can be a frustrating task,...
TAPERED ROD PIN BUSHINGS Pin Bushings require about the same amount of interference fit as a piston pin. The same rod heater you use to fit pins can be useful with certain pin bushings. Tapered rods can be very difficult to remove and install bushings in and usually...
ANOTHER DOWEL PULLER We were trying to remove the alignment dowels from some “H” beam rods and our usual method of using a head dowel puller wasn’t working on the stubborn ones. I was trying to figure out a more precision collet set to use when I decided that my mill...
RESIZE CRACKED RODS? YES YOU CAN There is a way to recondition the so-called “cracked” rods, or powdered metal connecting rods. I use a media made of coal slag that can be found at most home improvement stores. You have to blast the 4 mating surfaces on the rod and...
EASY PARTING LINE DEBURRING When I torque & check connecting rods for size, the surface with the bolt is hard to deburr first. I had some files drilled with carbide bits to .010” over 3/8”, 7/16” & 1/2”. Now it’s an easy task to deburr and looks great. Randy Torvinen...