tips for assembling bottom end?

[62 Comet]

I am soon going to start putting the bottom end together of my 65' 200 and was wondering if anyone had any tips or pointers for me when doing so. Its bored 30 over, the head surface he said he straightened it due to a couple high spots but didnt tell me how much he took off. Crank was cleaned up and just got the pistons back. I'm ordering a 264/264 112 lobe center cam. I got the ford-o-matic and a 3.20 rear so the 112 l/c seemed to make sense.

anything you guys can think of from past experience I would really appreciate it.

Thanks

Lee

 

[rbohm]

8) first thing is use lots of assembly lube on every moving surface. check the bearing clearances and ring gaps before you assemble things.

as you assemble the motor, rotate the crank each time you torque sets of bolts. for instance once you have torqued all the main caps down, rotate the crank to make sure it is running smoothly. check any binding that occurs. as you install each rod/piston and torque the rod caps down, again spin the crank to make things move smoothly. remember that with each rod/piston you install the crank will be harder to turn by hand due to increased friction. but again you are looking for any binding that may occur. again use lots of assmbly lube on the bearings, cam lobes, lifters, timing chain, gears, including the distributor gear. before you install the oil pump, you need to prime it. vaseline works nicely for this, just remove the bottom of the pump and pack the vaseline in the cavity, then replace the pump cover. the vaseline will ensure that you dont have to wait for the oil to get pumped up into the system, and while the engine is running during the break in period, the vaseline dissolves into the oil and never congeals again.

one more thing, before you assemble anything, make sure the block is squeaky clean. you want to be able to run a white LINT FREE cloth over the machined surfaces and have it come off clean.

 

[62 Comet]

Really appreciate the tips as this is my first build. I would like to use the brad penn oil for break-in and was wondering if this assembly lube would be alright to use:

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/rpo-01335/overview/

it says it synthetic so i wasnt sure, and is Comp Cams cam & lifter lube good to use on the lobes and lifters? If you guys have stuff you use or recommend I would love to hear it.

Also any tips on figuring out which model oil pump I need to get from classic inlines. Its a 65 200.

What is the gap you want to have when reading ring gaps?

Thanks again,
Lee

 

[rbohm]

8) the royal purple assembly lube is excellent, go ahead and use lots of it. as for the comp cams lube for the cam and lifters, again an excellent lube, you can also slather that stuff on like its free.

 

[62 Comet]

Alright thanks so much for the help

Lee

 

[bubba22349]

Oil pump is a Melling # M65B for a 1965 up 200. For ring gap on Compression rings .015 to .020 for Oil ring .020 to .050. Good luck on your build

 

[62 Comet]

Cool, thanks, how can you tell which oil pump? sorry was just wondering. And thanks a lot too for the gap info 8)

I may put up photos too in the future too, I always enjoy seeing other peoples progress on projects... so I may as well too

Thanks again guys,
Lee

 

[bubba22349]

You first need to look at the blocks casting numbers and date code to ID the year of the block. 1965 up 170 or 200's use a Melling # M 65 B oil pump if you want to use a different brand of pump then you can cross reference the part numbers for the interchange.

 

[62 Comet]

I checked my ring gaps and what i got was 0.018" for the compression rings and 0.030" for the oil rings, i believe from earlier posts that both of these are in the acceptable range? Just was curious what you guys would have to say.

Thanks, Lee

 

[Invectivus]

Looks like both are nicely in range to me. Looking forward to building up my spare 200 shortly myself, and your thread is motivating me

 

[bubba22349]

yep your good to go.

 

[rbohm]

8) i concur the ring gaps sound fine to me.

 

[Gene Fiore]

Make sure the piston pin is well oiled before you put the pistons in. If not you could seize the motor when you try to start it if the pins are dry. Most machine shops do not lube them as they leave that up to the assembler. Once I have the ring gaps set and the rings on the piston, I take an old coffee can or such filled with motor oil and grab the big end of the rod and just dunk the entire piston in the can of oil completely covering it with oil. Pull it out and let the excess oil drain off...then stab it in the block.

 

[chopperman69]

Ditch the rope seal and go with a Felpro BS30135. Don't forget to remove the little pin from the main cap and seal the little hole.

 

[62 Comet]

Thanks a lot guys for the tips, I love the little pointers that are learned from experience


Lee