spun a rod bearing in my cutlass.

[056kid]

I plan on putting a new bearing in and slapping her back together. Hopefully she will get me to work for a few weeks while I hunt down a v8.

So has anyone had good luck with a cheap fix like this? or is it going to spin again in a few miles? i had to drive about 30 miles to get home, the bearings where stacked on the bottom of the journal which dosent exactly look pretty. there is plenty of metal in the oil along with some flakes in the pan. i havent measured the journal yet but its not like its gonna help me any, im not about to rebuild a 3.8 right now....


Yea I know its not logging but i figure its the best place to get an answer...

 

[olyman]

measure the crank pin--so you get the right size new bearings---stock,001,002,010,etc. polish the crank and rod pins with FINE crocus cloth if any rough spots. done it more than once--ever check the oil press on it??? new bearings wont last if the oil pres aint up--have done this to bunches of engines, and the oil pressure came right back up--tighter clearances--

 

[056kid]

I found another spun rod bearing, the journal isent as bad but the rod is worse. that particular cylinder has mostly no compression...

both journals are way over there tolerances. (2.2489 to 2.2495) mine= 2.1583 & 2.1639.......

 

[ShoerFast]

I plan on putting a new bearing in and slapping her back together. Hopefully she will get me to work for a few weeks while I hunt down a v8.

So has anyone had good luck with a cheap fix like this? or is it going to spin again in a few miles? i had to drive about 30 miles to get home, the bearings where stacked on the bottom of the journal which dosent exactly look pretty. there is plenty of metal in the oil along with some flakes in the pan. i havent measured the journal yet but its not like its gonna help me any, im not about to rebuild a 3.8 right now....


Yea I know its not logging but i figure its the best place to get an answer...

Sorry for your loss, but you might be way ahead by scrapping it.

The loss of size is not round, temporary fix might not go as far as you might think.

Usually extremely positive when it comes to getting something to work, but it's not a peach to get at, a huge hassle, when a real fix is not that much more when you think about it.

I would way rather pull the engine then jack around the oil-pan.

Any leads on a good-used for it?

My $0.02 cents, fix it.

 

[hermit]

My Dad always said "If its worth doing its worth doing right" Your likely to be walking home leaving a cutlass with a locked up engine beside the road. I have 35 yrs as a mechanic.

 

[hammerlogging]

sounds like you know a hell of a lot more than I do already, the only fix I know is a 85 or later 4x4 toyota, fixes everything! good luck.

We're going to have a hot week this one, eh?

 

[GASoline71]

There will be too much trash in the oil that has gone through the entire oil gallery system to not rebuild. I can guarantee that there will be metal imbedded in the other bearings of the rods, crank, and cam journals. Plus spun bearings are hell on the crankshaft. So that is prolly gonna be junk too.

No easy fix to a "spun" bearing. Pull it and rebuild it... no other way around it. Maybe you can find a decent long block at a wreckin' yard.

Is it possible to hillbilly fix it and just do the one journal? Yep... but the engine won't last long. Plus you'll find that once you get in there. It'll be obvious that the engine will need to be rebuilt.

Gary

 

[056kid]

O YEA. the metal is everywhere!!! The oil had about 6 hours on it, when i drained it it is like sparkling syrup... I have a few v8s im lookin at, some olds rocket 350s and some wayy cheaper 307s. I am going to eventually tear this 231 down and have it cleaned & magnifluxed. Then find a regal and make a bad ace turbo regal (GN)
but for now, a lopey small block that can skate the tires at 45 will be fine. i allready know where to get a really strong tr350 for cheap, I just cant afford "cheap" right now:censored:

 

[ShoerFast]

O YEA. the metal is everywhere!!! The oil had about 6 hours on it, when i drained it it is like sparkling syrup... I have a few v8s im lookin at, some olds rocket 350s and some wayy cheaper 307s. I am going to eventually tear this 231 down and have it cleaned & magnifluxed. Then find a regal and make a bad ace turbo regal (GN)
but for now, a lopey small block that can skate the tires at 45 will be fine. i allready know where to get a really strong tr350 for cheap, I just cant afford "cheap" right now:censored:

Bet of luck to you 056Kid!

Your making your own point,

I you can't afford to do it right this time, you sure wont be able to next time.

Looking for a 'good-used' from someone with a good reputation/someone you can trust. Pull the spark-plugs, look for a good burn on all the plugs, no discoloration on any of them.

A steep further, pull the oil-pan Look for a good cross-hatch pattern below the piston skirts.

Reseal what you you like, and run it!

I bought a used engine from a salvage yard that I did business with, they were $150 bucks more then every other call I could make.

A 409 for an old Jeep pick-um-up of mine, that tossed a rod on a real cold winter morning.

Paid the extra as they said I would be happy with it for longevity.

Turned out to be just a few hundred miles on a Gopher Rebuilt out of a roll-over, had the engine delivered, but drove the truck to their yard with a case of beer for them.

They said they we're hoping that the engine would go to someone that was going to keep/use it for a long time.

I had that truck for years, that engine stayed rock-solid.

 

[GASoline71]

All that metal will be in the block and up in the valvetrain. Plus the oil pan baffle will hold a lot of metal under it.

The block would need to be cleaned, cleaned again, cleaned again... and just to be safe... cleaned again. Low pressure water and dish soap with all the oil gallery plugs pulled.

The BOP 307's are decent engines... but the Rocket 350 would be cool.

Gary

 

[komatsuvarna]

No doubt, It want be cheep either way. Id say you could have your crank turned and get a set of oversized bearing, new rings, new oil pump, new lifters, and some cleaning and itll last a good while.

As everone said,clean clean clean. That metal will be in the oil galleys, lifters, pushrods, and everthing else.

Get you a case of PBR and have fun cleaning. Good luck!!

 

[WidowMaker]

O YEA. the metal is everywhere!!! The oil had about 6 hours on it, when i drained it it is like sparkling syrup... I have a few v8s im lookin at, some olds rocket 350s and some wayy cheaper 307s. I am going to eventually tear this 231 down and have it cleaned & magnifluxed. Then find a regal and make a bad ace turbo regal (GN)
but for now, a lopey small block that can skate the tires at 45 will be fine. i allready know where to get a really strong tr350 for cheap, I just cant afford "cheap" right now:censored:

==

Get yourself a good set of hiking boots cause you plan will have you walking...