how long can a partially built engine sit

[dweymer]

I want to begin building my 3.2 ss with the case, but it will need to sit as a built case, no cylinders etc, for a few months. Is that ok, or no?

D

[304065]

Mine will have sat for a year or so, filled with Anticorrosion oil, cam lobes and other moving parts coated in assembly lube, cosmoline sprayed on various other items. When the cam timing is done I'm going to seal it up in plastic by lowering it onto a wooden platform covered in thick plastic sheeting, lay a sheet over the top and use a heat sealer to make a sealed bag, then suck all the air out with a vacuum pump. A bag of cheap dessicant goes inside, that should do the job.

[HawgRyder]

We cracked an engine can to get a Merlin out one time....it had been prepared for long term storage right after the original build.
According to the card on the can, it had been sitting for over 40 years!
Ran like it should have...was in the air within 3 days....stayed in service for another 6 years.
I guess that means if you do it right, time is not a big factor.
Bob

[billybek]

Originally Posted by john_cramer

Mine will have sat for a year or so, filled with Anticorrosion oil, cam lobes and other moving parts coated in assembly lube, cosmoline sprayed on various other items. When the cam timing is done I'm going to seal it up in plastic by lowering it onto a wooden platform covered in thick plastic sheeting, lay a sheet over the top and use a heat sealer to make a sealed bag, then suck all the air out with a vacuum pump. A bag of cheap dessicant goes inside, that should do the job.

Wouldn't it be easier to bag your case as described, throw in the bag of desiccant and fill the bag with nitrogen?>
My thought on this is that some of the dry nitrogen will eventually leak out, but it would be better than moist air leaking in.... Nature abhors a vacuum...
These guys are right, though. No problems laying up a project as long as you take proper precautions.

[Dennis Kalma]

My Kremer 3.2 sat in my dry garage for 4 years, untouched. The nice people at Kremer did seal it off but that was it.

I spun it with the plugs out until it had oil pressure, put the plugs back in....now I have 30k km's on it, no issues so far after 15 years...

I think engine storage stuff is highly overrated...clean, dry, sealed to keep the critters out and then careful startup.

Dennis

[JFairman]

Thats one of the reasons to use thick creamy assembly lube with molybdenum disulfide in it instead of engine oil when an engine will be stored a while before run.
Gravity won't displace the assembly lube while motor oil will drip and run off.

[Determined]

Unfortunately mine has been sitting for 1-year waiting to be installed. I used assembly lube and I squirted some oil into the spark plugs (very little) and I turn it over monthly. I covered the entire engine with plastic wrap and blankets over it. Everything is fine, I just need time and help to reinstall it.

Alex