Engine build advice - general

[hawke]

And while we are on liners, if you want to get maximum engine life, and the engine uses dry liners, such as those used on Detroit 53 and 71 series engines, you need to fit the liner to the block. Liners have 3 or 4 minor variances in OD. Sometimes you need to hone the block to fit the liner.

[smoo]

Originally Posted by roKWiz

Just while we are on the subject of liners, here's a couple of pictures of just one piston and sleeve for the VT903 Cummins which went into my 14ltr engine after discovering a leaky liner a few years ago.
The pistons measures in at over 5 inches diameter to give you scale. The inframe kit liners, rings, pistons, full bearing kit, full gasket kit and seals comes in at $3,300 still cheap compared to Caterpillar stuff.

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$3,300 for a rebuild kit, is that an aftermarket one, or 1990s prices
That is about half the rrp for a genuine ISX/E5 rebuild kit.

I've made up a liner puller with flat bar and threaded rod for the 5 inch 3406/C15/ISX liners. Not the best but it works and cheaper than a proper liner puller.
Failing that if the short block is on the floor and the crank is out, a sledge hammer and block of wood does it.

Have a tidy work area, complete jobs in stages and double check the vital parts. Otherwise this can happen.

This was one of the trucks at the last mob I worked at following a bearing roll from a qualified tech & apprentice.
Made it 300km before locking up and filling the sump with coolant.

Pulled it apart and found a shattered piston and liner. Unsure what caused it maybe a bent or crushed cooler nozzle, or the nozzle was loose. None of those possibilities should have come about from a bearing roll unless they were touching things they shouldn't have been.
Also found mismatched big end caps across the cylinders (fractured type).
Big end shells to suit machined cap/rod were fitted to the fractured. The tangs for both types are in different locations one slightly off set of centre. The shells were put in anyway, sitting around 4-5mm off centre, covering the oil gallery to the gudgeon pin and running hard up on the crank web. Lack of oil to the gudgeon may have caused the piston to shatter. This would have also placed unequal forces on the piston and rod I imagine.
x3 main cap bolts (M18) were loose.

Either way the engine was doomed. The most negligent array of **** ups I've seen in one go. The job is not hard, especially if following w/s manual. Which also reminds me if not specified don't use thread locker or flange sealant. Nothing worse than struggling to pull something apart and having to spend excess time to clean it because whoever was in there before has no confidence in their work.

[Pis-ton broke]

Originally Posted by smoo

$3,300 for a rebuild kit, ..........

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what a total cluster on the damaged engine, steve wonder could have done better.

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by smoo

$3,300 for a rebuild kit, is that an aftermarket one, or 1990s prices
That is about half the rrp for a genuine ISX/E5 rebuild kit.

Pistons, rings and liners were Federal Mongul, bearings, gasket set was genuine Cummins. from Torquepower in Qld. 2014 prices. (bought 2 sets)
You have to remember VT903 kits were being phased out here (hence discounted) where as ISX stuff is relatively new by comparison.

[smoo]

Originally Posted by roKWiz

Pistons, rings and liners were Federal Mongul, bearings, gasket set was genuine Cummins. from Torquepower in Qld. 2014 prices. (bought 2 sets)
You have to remember VT903 kits were being phased out here (hence discounted) where as ISX stuff is relatively new by comparison.

Cummins are probably still in the red after the liner fretting of the ISX EGR cm870/871 blocks made in China from the warranty costs on them. Where I worked when these were new had around 24 of these in Mack Titan and Western Stars. All of the liner seats cut some twice under warranty.
Cummins couldn’t keep up, we were sending trucks out with 60 litres of water as they were pushing that much out in one day.
Edit - that was also when variable geometry turbos & EGR coolers were lasting 150,000km at best as well. Cummins were busy back then.