replacing rod bearings in car

ok so i have a '73 /6 duster with a spun bearing. now can someone tell me or show me some pics of how to replace rod bearings with the engine in the car? what i was thinking is to jack up the car and put it on stands, then take an engine hoist and have it just barely holding the engine up, then drop the k frame and set the engine on a pair of jack stands where the engine mounts are and then id be able to access the lower end. is what i think i'm gonna have to do right?

!st off if the engine has a spun bearing chance are the crank would have to be turned.. it has to do how long the engine was run after it happen.. if the crank is scorned very bad putting another bearing in would ruin it.. besides what made it spin in the first place is the rod bolts stretched or lack of oil?

after it spun the bearing i got it towed home and its been sitting ever since and it spun the bearing from lack of oil circulation from jiffy lube putting in a bad oil filter. ive been through all this with other members already and they said that it's a spun bearing and to replace the bearings.

Also if it spun a rod bearing you need to replace the rod too! or at least have it reconditioned

i think youre probably best to just pull the engine and just take the whole thing apart

i dont have money for that right now, that's why i'm just replacing the bearings. i have an engine thats being built for it right now in my garage. right now i just need it as a driver or else my neighbors going to call the cops on me for not having it running and driving and get it impounded. so am i correct with how i am planning on doing to replace the bearings in the car?

Wow your neighbors sounds like real winners!

Well if you gotta do it, I would just leave the engine hoist in place AND put in the jackstands. Double supports mean more safety. You might get enough clearance to pull the pan by hoisting the engine up as far as you can, drop the steering drag link (you need a small pickle fork), and see if you can get the pan off that way. I personally would try that first, because dropping the k-member is in no way a minor job and especially so outdoors and with basic tools; [ Really dumb statement deleted! LOL]

If the rod bearing really did spin, it means that it physically spun within the big end bore of the connecting rod. The new beraring will not hold in place if this is the case, and the rod and piston has to be removed and undergo a process called reconditioning so that the new bearing will hold. You have to pull the head to get the piston and rod out.

Occasionally a rod bearing can be damaged and not actually spin in the rod's big end (or not spin much); you will only know if you pull the bottom end off. You will know if it actualy spun because when you pull the rod cap off, then the nice, fine cross hatch pattern in the inside of the rod cap will look all scored and it will likley look burned. You can post pix here of the rod cap and the bearing shells and we can likely tell.

If the rod big end is not damaged, then the condition of the rod journals on the crank is next. Same thing, should be shiney and smooth but will likely be scored or scored badly. You need to borrow a caliper and push the rod and piston up out of the way and measure the crank diameter v. spec. If more than a few thousandths down in size then you can't fix it with a new bearing. If only .001-.003" down then you may be able to polish enough of the scoring out in-car. I won't describe that until you need it.

You can occasionally find .001" undersize bearings for these engines on ebay so that can take up a small amount of wear.

BTW, the rod caps HAVE to go back on the same rods, and in the same orientation, no exceptions! It will lock the crank up tight if you mix them or install them backwards.

If you remove all the rod caps and they look good, then you have a damaged main bearing. Same thing there: you have to pull the main caps one at a time to find it. Keep them in order. Any good bearing put back in right away; you don't want the crank dropping on your head! If a cap is scored, showing that the bearing physically spun then the whole block has to come out; it can't be fixed in-car. If just the crank, then you drop the crank out and have it turned down. Requires that the trannie be pulled out to drop the crank..... more heavy work.

Since you have to move the car, then feel free go at it but be ready to put it all back in and have it towed in case you find more than you can repair in the car. If you could pull the engine out, you would be much better off with this situation.

I don't know the law in your state but in FL if it has a current plate, insured, and in your driveway it's legal. When and if you move it is your business.

ive tried getting the pan off with the k frame on it already and it covers most of the oil pan bolts and only has like 1in of clearance between the bottom of the pan and the top of the k frame

I believe if you unbolt the passenger motor mount and put floor jack with a block of wood under the pan. You should be able to jack the engine up and block up the motor mount to hold it up. You should be able to unbolt the pan and slip it out. I doubt you will have much success just replacing bearings though. But at least you can inspect it with the pan off.

And BTW, I do not know what became disconnected in my brain but forget what I said about the k-frame and suspension...... my brain must've shifted off to RWD Mitsubihsi's or Opels when I wrote that part....LOL. Sorry, no intent to mess with you! A lot simpler to get the K-frame off than some other cars.....1/2" drive breaker bar and sockets will help. (As well as with the main bearing caps if you have to go that far.)

I pulled the oil pan off on my 64 slant a few months ago. Remove the 2 motor mount bolts underneath. Jack the engine up ~2". You can jack from the oil pan (wide 2"x8" or plywood w/ newspapers to spread the force) or use a cherry picker like you plan. Slide wood blocks between the bottom of the motor mounts and K-frame to hold it up, then remove the jack. It should be easy to get at all the bolts then. It helps to remove the engine-tranny brace, but not essential. Of course, I de-rust and paint any parts I take off, which takes the most time. You might find the rods fine. Don't mix up the rod caps and their orientation (recall they are marked) and use a torque wrench when re-assembling. A good time to change the rear crank seal (can push it around) and clean the oil pickup.

I sure wouldn't fool w/ removing the K-frame. Actually, I must do that right now since I swapped in a spare since mine had a cupped-in strut rod mount, then I found the spare K-frame is missing the idler arm bracket, a big WTF when I went to install the idler arm. Now I have the LCA's in and steering box, so a little tougher to swap back to the now-fixed original.

lol yea i got confused when you started talking about removing the k frame XP

and bill i didnt realize that you could do it that way where ar some good points to put the cherry picker on the engine and would i have enough clearence underneath for a torque wrench?

Yes, in combat situation it can be done. I believe it was said that you can get undersize bearings. Keep in mind it may work for a day, it may work for a year, or it may not work at all. If you can get the pan off you can unbolt the bearing cap, push the rod up a little and sneak the bearing in. Just check the scoring on the journal and rod caps. Good luck. the advice to pull and properly rebuild the engine is valid, but sometimes in a pinch you do what you have to do.

I mis-spoke. Remove the motor mount NUTS.

There are 2 tapped holes on the top of the head. The fwd one is for lifting the engine alone, the aft one for engine w/ tranny. Those are the ideal balance points. Most people today, use an adjustable lift or a 2nd chain to manage the angle. Anyway, for just lifting up a bit, use the front one (or both).

As I recall, I used my fold-up cherry picker to lift, propped the engine up on blocks between mounts and K-frame, moved the picker out for room underneath. Then reversed. Without a picker, it is as easy to just jack it up from the oil pan. Use newspapers so you don't mar your newly painted oil pan when going the other way.

beebeeri000 said:

after it spun the bearing i got it towed home and its been sitting ever since and it spun the bearing from lack of oil circulation from jiffy lube putting in a bad oil filter. ive been through all this with other members already and they said that it's a spun bearing and to replace the bearings.

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what is, was, a bad oil filter?

BillGrissom said:

I mis-spoke. Remove the motor mount NUTS.

There are 2 tapped holes on the top of the head. The fwd one is for lifting the engine alone, the aft one for engine w/ tranny. Those are the ideal balance points. Most people today, use an adjustable lift or a 2nd chain to manage the angle. Anyway, for just lifting up a bit, use the front one (or both).

As I recall, I used my fold-up cherry picker to lift, propped the engine up on blocks between mounts and K-frame, moved the picker out for room underneath. Then reversed. Without a picker, it is as easy to just jack it up from the oil pan. Use newspapers so you don't mar your newly painted oil pan when going the other way.

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wre they the holes that like hold the vacuum can? i was looking for ones on the front and back like whats on a v8

jdsduster said:

what is, was, a bad oil filter?

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id say its an oil filter that has no flow.

The 2 holes on the top of the head are 3/8" bolt holes and are in small angled bosses cast into the top of the head on the carb side of the valve cover and about beside the carb. The vacuum amplifier can is forward of these 2 holes.

if it just needs to be self motive and the motor or its parts are not going to be used later, i would pull the offending piston and rod, along with the matching lifters and pushrods, and plug wire,close it up and leave it. 5 cylinders should be enough to shift the car around, but other issues might arise if its run very long.

i saw a 4 cylinder flathead that this was done to many years before i saw it opened, it had run a tractor like that for some time and was still running when it was removed. for reasons unknown the bore had been plugged with a block of wood

In frames have been done for DECADES in large trucks. However, I would not do it in a million years in the confines of a passenger car. Ain't no way. Too much to go wrong. Not enough room. Honestly, too easy to yank the engine and do it right on the stand so you can get to and SEE everything good. You might miss something laying under the car you would otherwise SEE with the engine out and on the stand. Just too much work taking a short cut to chance doing it twice, when doing it RIGHT is not much more work at ALL. JMO.

Seems like so many members have good running /6 engines they can't give away!! Maybe you can find one close that runs good and just swap.

beebeeri000 said:

i dont have money for that right now, that's why i'm just replacing the bearings. i have an engine thats being built for it right now in my garage. right now i just need it as a driver or else my neighbors going to call the cops on me for not having it running and driving and get it impounded. so am i correct with how i am planning on doing to replace the bearings in the car?

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I'd finish up the new engine and just swap them:blob:

nevjr said:

if it just needs to be self motive and the motor or its parts are not going to be used later, i would pull the offending piston and rod, along with the matching lifters and pushrods, and plug wire,close it up and leave it. 5 cylinders should be enough to shift the car around, but other issues might arise if its run very long.

i saw a 4 cylinder flathead that this was done to many years before i saw it opened, it had run a tractor like that for some time and was still running when it was removed. for reasons unknown the bore had been plugged with a block of wood

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That is a pretty good story! Maybe the wood blocking was to keep the crankcase reasonably well closed. The balance will be waaaaay off so more than an idle would result in some pretty bad shaking; driving on the street would probably be impossible but may be one could move it around and say "yeah it runs".