what bearings should i use i know i have to find out the gap and check the crank for damage but i never replaced bearings before what brand should i go with its a street car with a 350 with the 305 tpi heads and tpi the injectors are whatever a stock 350 needed cam is stock too need to know where to go from here

 

Youll need to pull the motor apart first to determine what needs to be done before buying bearings.

 

so we pulled the motor and got the oil pan off and so far can not find any problems found one little sliver of metal on one of the crank lobes but every rod didnt move or click around any ideas before we completely tear it down i am so lost as to what the problem is

 

If you have the motor out, you might as well remove all the rod and main caps and have a look to see what your dealing with. The most you should ever see metal-wise in an engine that is in good shape is very small ammounts of extremely fine particulate in the motor oil, that can only be seen with a mag. glass and a flashlight, which results from normal wear. Any sort of slivers or chunks or little pieces of bearing material is bad news. If you still have the oil and the filter from the engine, those will tell you the most about what was going on, aside from an actual inspection. I attached some pics of what the oil normally looks like, and what it looks like when the engine is on its way out.

Since you have it out, though, you might as well dig in and see what it looks like.

 

ok so the main bearing are bad i will post pics on tuesday once i get over there what brand bearings should i go with dont know anything about crank bearings this is the furthest i have ever dug into an engine we are also going to replace the timing chain and gears and oil pump

 

If the bearings are bad, then the crank is almost certainly bad as well. Do you have any precision measuring tools like a mic? If the journals are still within spec and are not scored, you can probably get away with just slapping some new tri-metals in it, verifying the clearances, and moving on. But, Id also expect the crank to at least need to be refinished.

 

Also, how are the cylinder bores? Do they still have any hone marks left? Are they scored? Now is the time to fix that stuff. If your in doubt, dropping it off at a reputable machine shop for a rebuild might be a good idea.

Ive seen high milage motors that can just be refreshed, but thats only when theyve had ideal living conditions like frequent oil changes and no abuse. Typically the bearings will just be somewhat worn, but not scored. In that case, you can just put new bearings in. If the current bearings are all chewed up, then Id plan on a full rebuild. When that happens, all sorts of metal finds its way into the oil, and scores the cylinder walls and other journals when it gets into the clearance space and embeds itself in the bearings. The SBC doesnt have a full-flow oil filter, so there is a pressure relief bypass, so its entirely possible for unfiltered oil to circulate around in the engine under certain conditions.

 

we immediately stopped the engine and began to pull it I haven't made it over to check it out myself but will tomorrow after work as far as I know the cylinder bores are still clean no scores or anything in the I really want to check the crank for damage so far it appears that I got lucky and can just replace bearings and I am going to do the oil pump and timing chain and gears here is what I am looking at getting at this point

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/SLP-8-2555CP10
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/SLP-4663M10/

I'm not sure what timing chain set to go with I read somewhere to go with a double roller style. I don't have a huge budget but I want this car to last and will squeeze out as much as I can to make that happen. I also am not sure what to do for an oil pump this motor came out of an 87 van so I have been buying motor parts like I was getting it for the van because the 86's didn't have 350's

 

would those bearings be ok or should I go with a different brand or type

 

oh and I do have a mic and calipers

 

One of those sets is .010" undersize. If your not machining the crank, you need stock size bearings. If you have the crank turned, then you select the proper bearing for the undersize of the journal.

Right now, you should pull the crank, and measure all the journals and inspect them to see if it can be reused, or if it needs to be turned.

 

If you do have the crank machined, and the journals are all within the proper spec, you might consider using bi-metal aluminum alloy bearings. They require cleaner machining than tri-metal, but they put up with abuse a lot better than the softer tri-metal bearings. Same thing with the cam bearings if those need to be replaced. Ive had trouble with the tri-metals lasting through sustained abuse, so I switched to the harder bi-metal ones. If you dont machine the crank, then you should use the tri-metal ones as they conform better to less than perfect journals.

 

the rod bearings are .010 in the motor already i will see how the crank looks i don't know any machine shops in my area i know they are here just never dealt with any

 

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/SUM-121155/ would that be an ok oil pump

 

You don't need a high-volume pump.

 

if you don,t clean the oil passages and the block correctly before installing new bearings chances are very good fine metallic debris left in the block will quickly embed in and score the new bearings
read the links

http://forum.grumpysperformance.com/...r+cutter#p1582

http://forum.grumpysperformance.com/...hp?f=99&t=4939


http://forum.grumpysperformance.com/...9&p=7625#p7625

 

http://www.summitracing.com/users/wi...7-826ecfcc693b

ok thats the list of parts i am thinking of going with i dont have a whole lot of money right now so i need to keep it low if there are certain things i would be better of with please let me know

 

step1
read the links provided and sub linked info

step2
disassemble the engine , clean it carefully (INCLUDING the oil passages) replace the freeze plugs and cam bearings, have the crank inspected and measured and if its ok you can reassemble the engine after a quick bore hone and clean-up with new rings, bearing and gaskets

 

simply puting in new berrings (well a full set) would cause more issues than it will fix.
If you have one bearing that is a issue (damaged) measure it and see what size bearing you need or just put in a new stock berring(.00 over)
and then use plasti guage to see if it is correct.
best bet is to get a new crank and matching bearings or get your old crank turned and the machine shop will get you the correct bearings. You can use plasti guage and test each bearing if they all fall within same range run that size bearings.
Unless the motor lost oil pressure and the oil presure switch did not turn the fuel pump off or it was by passed or you blew a rod or head I doubt much crank damage has happened my 280k motor bottom end was fine just a new set of rings and im back on the road

the oil pump is for a disel and your pick up is for a v6
the stock equipment is proven good for up to 400hp motors

PS search at advance autoparts with your part numbers and use code P20 for 20% off

 

ok johnnygeek but if you click check application on both of those parts it has the 350 as one of the options

 

I guess I'm missing the story of y you need to replace the bearings?

To me it sounds like you should take your shortblock to a machine shop.. If your mains are bad you most likely need more than just a crank turned. You'll prolly need it aline honed atleast.

 

ok so i am going to order a new crank its gonna cost me 16 more dollars to buy a new one