Gordo's 3.2L Engine Rebuild - Ready to Reassemble

[Iciclehead]

Love the colour commentary and pictures....my 3.4 build is still a ways away, but definitely this is the kind of encouragement that helps us do it yourselfers.

And Henry, thanks for the sage advice....always great to hear wise and thoughtful experience brought in a very helpful way....

Dennis

[Gordo2]

Originally Posted by philippeF

Hi gordo
how did you apply the Threebond sealant ?
Philippe

Phillipe,

The Threebond sealants come with attachments that screw onto the tube. You can cut the attachments at various lengths to allow you to squeeze out a certain sized bead of sealant (like caulk):



The bottom attachment is the one that I cut to apply the Threebond 1184 to the case perimeter. The upper attachment is from the Threebond 1211 that I applied to the number 8 bearing o-ring seal (small cut off / small bead for a small part - worked well).

I would have been better off cutting off the 1184 attachment one notch longer (just below where the upper attachment is cut).

For the application - I took my time and ran a nice even bead (sized by the attachment cut) around the perimeter of the case. As I got to the end of the other side of the case I realized I went a little heavy. Looking back where I started I noticed that the Threebond 1184 flowed pretty easily/quickly - it already covered the entire case mating surface with thick puddle of sealant.

I realized I put down a bit too much sealant - so I removed some with the toothbrush (wiping the excess off the brush with a Kimwipe).

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ARP Headstud Installation

On to bigger and better things, my headstuds are installed. Observations and lessons learned in the linked post:

ARP Head Stud Installation - Instructions vs. Reality




Gordo

[911dreamin]

gordo i like the rebuild along with the step by step, very cool and thanks wish you luck hope everything turns out fantastic.

[Lapkritis]

Looks great Gordo - the photos to go with your stories are very useful for all to see.

A note on the DC55 grease you're using on the O-rings: it does reduce the tensile strength of the Viton rubber by about half. There are alternative greases available that maintain the strength of the ring which is most important where it contacts the bolt threads on the nut end.

Keep up the great work - looking forward to the final product and outcome!

Originally Posted by Gordo2

I lubed up the case through bolt Viton o-rings with Dow 55 o-ring lube (o-rings and lube come in the Supertec sealant kit). I scrubbed a bit of the lube on the o-rings and in the areas where the washers and case are beveled - for good measure, there's plenty of lube to go around.

[Lapkritis]

They're normally taped to the inside of the box lid. Any love there or had you taken them off already?

[Gordo2]

A bit late/out of order with this post...

Used my micrometers to take these measurements before I installed the crankshaft.
Finally got around to transferring my scribbled notes to a file.

Journal measurement came out nice - well within spec.



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Note on Being Organized

I've been pretty good about keeping my engine disassembly neat and orderly - I must have bought $80 in various sized tupperware bins, ziplock bags and such to help keep things organized and clean (I kept my cleaned case halves and other large parts in huge bins...).

Meanwhile I wasn't as organized with the parts I ordered as they arrived - I seem to have lost my JE Piston pin circlips. Not a big expense, but meanwhile it stopped me in my tracks last weekend and killed ~ 3hrs or greater as I tore apart everything and everywhere they could possibly be (loosing stuff sends me on an obsessive tangent).

Stay thirsty and organized my friends.


Gordo

[Gordo2]

Originally Posted by Lapkritis

They're normally taped to the inside of the box lid. Any love there or had you taken them off already?

Sorry Lapkritis,

Deleted my post that was previously before your question - which makes you look like a mind reader

Taped inside - that's what the JE rep (via Pelican) told me. Don't remember seeing them though.

Kind of fuzzy - I bought the Stomski circlip insertion tool and watched a video on how to use it, so I have this clear picture in my head of the tool with a circlip in it (was it live or Memorex)?

I also provided the whole kit to my machinist (to pin fit & check weights). Called him - no joy.

Little parts like that could be anywhere... Will be ordering a new set and probably find them months later

Gordo

[Gordo2]

Links to more of the rebuild steps added to this thread for continuity...

Today I measured the cylinder head, combustion chamber volume Measuring Head Volume / CC's / Compression Ratio




And installed my pistons in the cylinders using the Wiseco tapered piston ring compressor sleeve:



Wiseco Tapered Piston Ring Compressor Review

Fun stuff...

Gordo

[Henry Schmidt]

Originally Posted by Lapkritis

A note on the DC55 grease you're using on the O-rings: it does reduce the tensile strength of the Viton rubber by about half. There are alternative greases available that maintain the strength of the ring which is most important where it contacts the bolt threads on the nut end.

Dow 55 o-ring lubricant is specifically designed to lubricate o-ring during assembly, then after heating, chemically transform the o-ring. This chemical transformation causes an expansion of the o-ring (seal swell) increasing the pressure to create a more efficient seal. The other transformation is an increase in compression set/crush resistance extending the life of the o-ring.
This expansion and set/crush resistance is especially effective in case through bolt, cam end plates, oil return tubes and rocker shaft o-rings because they are static by nature.
The third positive effect of Dow 55 0-ring lubricate is the resistance to "oil wicking".
Oil wicking is the process where lubricants create a path around the o-ring by there very nature of combining with oils.




It's also important to remember that Dow 55 was originally designed and tested for use in military applications. Only after decades of testing was it released for civilian markets.

[Lapkritis]

Tear resistance goes hand in hand with tensile strength. The o-ring tensions around the bolt threads even before you press down upon it with the nut and washer.

Nobody can explain why the loss of strength here is desired. Please explain why losing strength and tear resistance is a good idea over a sharp thread. I'm all ears.

[Gordo2]

Although I hate to open this can of worms in this thread, I feel I must comment on the Henry and Lapkritis sideshow:

Gent's, I highly value both of your expertise and opinions - but this dead horse has already been beaten...

Your opinion wanted. Green bolt through viton o-rings with rtv

For the purpose of this thread and my engine build - I researched and sided with Henry. As such:

Henry Schmidt Wins This Round


If you wish to beat this horse further - by all means, step back in the ring on the o-ring thread and have at it

Thanks guys,

Gordo

[Gordo2]

Back to the build...

Today, I measured my deck height, piston to head / combustion chamber clearance and came up with the final measurements needed to calculate my compression ratio.

Deck height measurement information can be found here: My 3.2L Deck Height, Piston to Head Clearance Measurements and Compression Ratio

In a nutshell:

Deck height came in at 1.03mm

Piston to head clearance came in at 2.04mm

The deck height, calculated with my other measurements and specs produces a compression ratio of 9.16:1.

The linked threads on measuring head volume and deck height provide the details on the measurement processes, calculations and considerations.

- Gordo

[Gordo2]

Today I installed my pistons & cylinders, heads and cam towers.

Pretty much by the book process (step by step as per Wayne's Engine Rebuild book), so nothing out of the ordinary to comment on.

First, a point out to the goodness of using the Stomski circlip injector: Stomski Circlip Injector Tool Review

A few notes on my progress and one gotcha.

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I followed Henry's (Supertec) recommendation to use Curil-T between the base of the cylinder and the case.

Meanwhile, I wondered if the sealant is used simply to hold the base gasket in place as you install the cylinder or if it's recommended to help seal the surfaces.

I'm good with either rationale.

I assumed it was used to help seal the cylinder to case mating, therefor I applied a small bead to both sides of the base gasket before I installed it on the cylinder:

Curil-T bead on the cylinder base gasket:


A small amount of Curil-T squished out as I tightened down the Stomski cylinder holding nuts:


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Here's the gotcha:

As I installed one of the cam towers, one of the washers dropped behind one of the valve springs. I had to remove the tower to get the washer back out. Kind of a PITA...

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Finally, here's where things stand:



Good to see my shelves getting less cluttered.

Gordo

[porterdog]

Enjoying your posts; thanks for the detail.

[Oheggem]

Wathing with popcorn

Where did you you get the chain and rod holder tools though?

Oheggem

[cabmandone]

Originally Posted by porterdog

Enjoying your posts; thanks for the detail.

He's the organized one of the brothers. The rest of us are a mess.
The nice thing about him doing this is he'll have no excuse not to help me do my rebuild if and when the time comes.

BTW, someone comment on his "keezer" setup that he's intentionally putting in the background or he'll just keep putting pictures of it in there until someone does.

[Gordo2]

Response to Oheggem's question regarding my chain and rod holders:

Originally Posted by Gordo2

Everything's still cool at this point - now its time to mate the cases.

As I attempted to place the case on top of the other, I came to a sudden realization - the 1 1/2 wide aluminum stock material that I used to make the connecting rod and timing chain holders didn't fit through the case half

OK - now my hair's on fire. I grabbed my son (who should have been helping and learning in the first place - but he isn't interested - wait till he asks for the keys someday..). He came out and helped me manually feed the timing chain and connecting rods through the case. Again, not the preferred method - but it worked, crisis resolved.

Lengthy post with lots of words and cool pictures kind of hide the fact that my chain and rod holders looked good - but lacked an essential feature - functionality...

The keezer - now there's a functional tool

Gordo

[Mitch1]

That is funny. How did I miss that? I did the same thing first time around. Went out and bought 1" aluminum strip and made chain and 1 rod holder out of it. Worked great 2nd time. If only I'd put down the 1184 slightly thicker...

[johnman001]

Originally Posted by Gordo2

Links to more of the rebuild steps added to this thread for continuity...

Today I measured the cylinder head, combustion chamber volume Measuring Head Volume / CC's / Compression Ratio




And installed my pistons in the cylinders using the Wiseco tapered piston ring compressor sleeve:



Wiseco Tapered Piston Ring Compressor Review

Fun stuff...

Gordo

Really nice build! I love the clean. Here is my question: You actually have an accurate burette in your shop? Are you a chemist or into Chemistry? I have thought about one for a long time, but couldn't justify it in my tiny brain. Perhaps I should re-think that.

[Gordo2]

Originally Posted by johnman001

...You actually have an accurate burette in your shop?

I have a burette - but unfortunately I can't vouch for the accuracy (just yet).

My combustion chamber measurements came in at 92.4 ml/cc - appears most heads come in around 90 ml/cc or lower.

I figure one of 3 things is contributing to the difference:

(1) My burette is piss poor.

(2) The 90mm/cc standard is based upon the 3.0L heads and the 3.2L heads have a slightly larger combustion chamber

(3) My 3.2L heads are bigger than everyone else's - therefore better

Would love to figure this out.

Gordo