6v53 reassemble

Skipjack, did not realise when you said trailer cleaner you were talking about Alloy cleaner.
Think you can still get it from Autopro or the likes, maybe called Brightener.
Agreed on following the instructions and keeping it off yourself, it's still acid and requires respect.
Cheers Steve

Good onya wedgetail for having a go, I might learn something here too about those 2 strokes.
Not everyone has a bottomless pit of money to fuel their hobbies.
+ 1 with Skipjack on the great parts pictures and detail

Thanks for the support guys, even though I know some of you wouldn't bother with this particular unit! Progress is slow, haven't actually had a go at another P&L yet. Have been looking over the block though and thinking about an engine stand. What sort of stand would be ideal for a rebuild - is it good to have it rotateable so you can go from bottom to top easily, or is that too complex/weak? Tried googling some pictures and didn't see anything great... Also micrometer sets - any good second hand ones about? Also to measure bores, what's the most accurate method? I've seen internal micrometers, and internal pieces that you adjust then measure with the regular mic. Then the detroit book says for some things you can't use a regular mic set - what's the best general purpose rebuilding measuring set up?

Wedgie, everything looks good to go there. My only concern is that there may have been some sort of plating on the piston head that has been removed by the corrosion. If this is the case, the piston head may pick up in the cylinder. But then again, it might be fine.

This has been a concern I admit, will be interested to see what the others are. Am thinking if they're all identical and neat around the piston head they may have come like that. The book says the plating is tin - can anyone remember if other pistons have it all the way up? So there's a danger the piston could transfer to the liner a bit? The piston seems very very hard, am thinking that would take a bit. Also surely the four rings would keep it pretty central the whole time?

Wedgie, you shouldn't need micrometers and the like mate.
I wouldn't waste money on them. If you need something measured you can always take it to someone who has the tools.
If the motor has had a gutfull of Fire Extinguisher powder and you are trying to reuse most stuff it'll be right.
There isn't a lip on the top of the liner, it'll only need a hone.
Put the heads up on their side with the exhaust ports facing up, fill the exhaust ports with diesel or kero leave it overnight and if they are full in the morning the valve seats will be right. I'd probably give the valve tops a gentle tap just to make sure they aren't seized seeing has it's had the powder through it.
The blower and turbo will probably be full of it too, and the blower has some fine tolerences.
As for engine stands, a lot of people just use a low steel bench.
I have seen rotating engine stands, but only in very big workshops.

www.septone.com.au/detail.asp?item_number=394

Yep hydrofloric and sulfuric, but it works when no others do. I've just cleaned an alloy motorbike wheel that I thought was powder coated black. It looks like new now, but heed the precautions on the bottle.
I got mine from QDS($13), cheaper than supercrap ($15).

Only the head of the piston (the iron parts) should be plated. In a plain bearing (piston and liner, crank journals, etc) the materials need to be dissimilar so they won't weld themselves together and generally one will be hard and the other soft. The aluminium pistons and iron liners work well but if an iron piston is used, it will be coated in a soft metal, usually tin, to provide the bearing surface. The best example I can think of is a Briggs and Stratton mower engine. The reason an alloy piston can run in the alloy bore is because it is plated. However, engines fitted with a cast iron bore can run an un-plated alloy piston, but if you put an iron bore piston into an alloy bore engine, it will pickup and seize.

In your case, it might work if the piston head and liner are dissimilar enough (I think they are) and the fact that you now have an excess of lubrication due to the corrosion pitting. The rings won't do anything to centre the piston. If your really concerned, you could get a tin plating kit online and replate the piston heads.

As for an engine stand, get a front wheel drive hub from the tractor wreckers. Build a solid stand, bolt the inboard side of the hub to the stand, attach an engine mounting bracket to the outboard side and weld a handle to one side of the uni yoke and you have yourself a rotating engine stand. You can use a busted hub, like one with broken teeth, because its only going to do half a turn once in a blue moon, and you'll only pay scrap prices.

Well got another piston out - came very easily without heat and piston looks (compared to the other one) very good. Was pretty excited and tackled another one - not so good > Firstly a bit of pitting at the bottom of the liner, then put a fair bit of force in with the press, only succeeded in splitting my wooden drift. Need to make a new drift then involve heat before and during pressure I think. But worried with what I'll find - and the rod wasn't moving freely like the other two... Although isn't seized.

Wedgie, you shouldn't need micrometers and the like mate.
I wouldn't waste money on them. If you need something measured you can always take it to someone who has the tools.
If the motor has had a gutfull of Fire Extinguisher powder and you are trying to reuse most stuff it'll be right.
There isn't a lip on the top of the liner, it'll only need a hone.
Put the heads up on their side with the exhaust ports facing up, fill the exhaust ports with diesel or kero leave it overnight and if they are full in the morning the valve seats will be right. I'd probably give the valve tops a gentle tap just to make sure they aren't seized seeing has it's had the powder through it.
The blower and turbo will probably be full of it too, and the blower has some fine tolerences.
As for engine stands, a lot of people just use a low steel bench.
I have seen rotating engine stands, but only in very big workshops.

Yeah maybe I'm going a bit over the top. I guess all I wanted to do was verify it really was rebuilt 300hrs ago, maybe I should just get one set of something measured then call it good. Two of the valves are stuck - am thinking I'll try and remove the springs and tap them all the way out, clean up and re-install. Maybe I'll do the leak test to all of them before grinding or would the powder have messed them up? Maybe should pull them all and check... Do you have a good method for checking turbos? To the naked eye before strip down they look ok. The blower rotors too - no corrosion or pitting at the first casual glance.

Only the head of the piston (the iron parts) should be plated. In a plain bearing (piston and liner, crank journals, etc) the materials need to be dissimilar so they won't weld themselves together and generally one will be hard and the other soft. The aluminium pistons and iron liners work well but if an iron piston is used, it will be coated in a soft metal, usually tin, to provide the bearing surface. The best example I can think of is a Briggs and Stratton mower engine. The reason an alloy piston can run in the alloy bore is because it is plated. However, engines fitted with a cast iron bore can run an un-plated alloy piston, but if you put an iron bore piston into an alloy bore engine, it will pickup and seize.

In your case, it might work if the piston head and liner are dissimilar enough (I think they are) and the fact that you now have an excess of lubrication due to the corrosion pitting. The rings won't do anything to centre the piston. If your really concerned, you could get a tin plating kit online and replate the piston heads.

As for an engine stand, get a front wheel drive hub from the tractor wreckers. Build a solid stand, bolt the inboard side of the hub to the stand, attach an engine mounting bracket to the outboard side and weld a handle to one side of the uni yoke and you have yourself a rotating engine stand. You can use a busted hub, like one with broken teeth, because its only going to do half a turn once in a blue moon, and you'll only pay scrap prices.

OK I see what you mean. I'd say they're the hard bit and liners the soft going on how they feel. If the heads were plated it's funny the way there's no sign now but the skirt plating is very in tact, and looking at photos of new ones there's definitely a different finish between them. Tin plating looks an option if they were meant to be plated - can you remember what a new one should be?

Like the engine stand idea, might trawl some of the neighbours scrap areas for a suitable donor. Where do you bolt the block to - the flywheel housing mount holes?

ok well made a little more progress - got all the pistons out. Some good points and bad. The running of the tin plating was caused by heating them up too much - I removed one without heat and came out easily, piston is flawless. The others I did have to heat, but used less. The pistons look much better. The liners will all hone out to be really good I reckon

Made a ring removing plough out of punch (like a mini plugging chisel) and works great - didn't have to use any heat (where I think the worst runs on the first one came from) and only had to sharpen a couple of times to get them all out. Gave it an emery and came up ok, lands certainly fine and minimal scoring type. Only imprints of the ports which don't feel too bad.

Only downer was the pin in this one was quite bad - rod was stiff and when pulled out is badly stained and quite pitted, rough to the feel. The bushes look like new, and you can't replace them supposedly on turbo motors so I'd be crazy to not get new pins I think, whether I get 6 or only the worst I'll decide when they're all out. At least one more is bad (stiff rod), and I'm pretty certain this happened when they were sitting crown down in a bucket of ATF/diesel which wasn't high enough in one and some water sat in the piston...

Have scrounged a few bits for a stand - part of a D7 canopy for the floor frame and some heavy walled pipe for the rest. Still looking for some form of hub.

I wonder if you could show us how that pin comes up with a bit of 1200? It may not be that bad. Most of the rust will be on top of the surface, I reckon.

Jarrod.

just put her together mate make sure the oil pump is half good and hold her flat sheel just sing like a new one.
P.S. chech the blower drive is ok they need to be at 3500 rpm and have some fun dont worry about v8 nut hes rich LOL