Engine: Oversize main bearings 1936 President

[Kevin CS]

Does anyone have a lead on getting .010" oversize main bearings for the old 250 straight 8? I can get a set of standard bearings but it turns out the crank was turned 0.010". Don't want to have to resort to shims if there's any way to get the right bearings. Thus far haven't been able to find any oversize for this engine. I guess that's one of the problems with getting the old "luxury cruiser" instead of one of the 6 cylinders!

[TWChamp]

I would refer to it as an undersize bearing, but if you don't find what you are looking for, you can try Herm. He can rebbitt your old shells and turn them to the desired dimension. I don't know if he would need your block and crank, but you can call him and let him know your needs.

Kohnke Babbitting
Location: 515-546-4551, 60615,330th Ave.,Clare, Iowa, 50524

[oilnsteel]

Northwestern Auto Parts in Grand Rapids, Michigan has the biggest stock of old car hard parts I know about. They have a website.

JT

[garyash]

I've asked many people about undersize bearings for the 250 straight 8 and always got the same answer: No undersize bearings available anywhere. Having the shells re-babbitted, as mentioned above, seems to be the acceptable route, but I think that the shells then need to go into the block with the bearing caps and then the whole assembly is line bored to get the i.d.'s to the correct size, perfectly round, and lined up front to back. Most good engine shops should be able to do this, once you have the re-babbitted bearings in hand.

Here's a link to a post on the AACA site about babbitting with many good photos and descriptions from Herm at Kohnke Rebabbitting:

http://forums.aaca.org/f169/showing-difference-between-good-babbitt-job-318762.html

[Hallabutt]

Kevin,

Exactly as Gary explained, the process requires line boring. We have one of the best babbitting shops anwhere-Dave's Engine Shop, Box 178, Wilkeson Wa. 98396; ph. 509 901 2929. Dave has been at this for 35 years and he is the real deal! You might wonder if you saw his place, but his work is the best.-Bill

[Hallabutt]

Gary,

Almost forgot, Dave operated out of a shop in Roslyn for a number of years before he moved back the this side of the mountains, small world!-Bill

[garyash]

Bill, I guess it wouldn't be a bad drive for Kevin to get his engine from Sequim, on the Olympic Peninsula, down to Wilkeson. Or, does Dave's Engine Shop just do the babbitting? Wilkeson is down near the Sumner, Orting, and Bonney Lake areas where a bunch of my mother's relatives lived and still do. Roslyn was the home to my father's family from 1888, as Bill knows, and where the TV series "Northern Exposure" got filmed for many years. But, Kevin better hit the brakes in Wilkeson because the next thing south is Mt. Rainier.

[Kevin CS]

Thanks for all the help. I've got a request into Northwestern Auto Parts in MI and also to a vintage parts house (Hagen's) in Puyallup. If those strike out I'll check more seriously in to rebabbitting.
Kevin

[Dan Timberlake]

Was that engine originally equipped with insert type bearings? Sometimes pretty close inserts can be found, requiring only slightly line boring the block or grinding the crank to a slightly different size. Back in the days of paper catalogs there were often "progressive size" sections in the back. That info seems a bit a harder to find on-line.

[Alan]

Or weld the journals and re grind it to STD specs. Then you can use the bearings you already have.

[Hallabutt]

Sorry just got back to looking at the thread. Dave does the line boring in his shop. Kevin check your crank shaft before you commit to any machining. It seems that about half of the 1936-37 cranks have cracks in them. Good luck, a sizeable number of those of us who own cars with the straight eight have gone through what you are going through.

[Kevin CS]

I've looked the crank over and can't see a crack. Is it something only Magnaflux will show up or do they tend to be visible?

[Lamar]

Have it magnafluxed very few will be visible otherwise. Lamar