How To Balance an Engines Rotating Assembly

[@midgoog2]

In a former life a long time ago it was my job to balance V8 crank assemblies for the Australian Chrysler engine plant. I was allowed 5 min to perform the task of fitting the Harmonic balancer and either flex plate and torque converter or flywheel depending on the model build scheduled, then balance the assy and deliver to the assy line. I always strived to achieve the magic 0 and 0 reading on the balancer as a matter of pride. I loved that job because the day just disappeared once you got the rhythm going. Cheers Eric

[@Getbent97]

That would have been an excellent job to do, as a fellow Aussie I envy people like yourself who got a chance to work in such an amazing industry, before the Australian industry disappeared that is :(

[@kainhall]

GM took everything holden did.... used it their own cars.... then shut them down...bullshit. just like how the 3.8L v6 with a supercharger that buick made got killed off.....it was beating corvettes due to being lighter, but almost making the same power. GM dontlike competition....

[@darrowfortheprosecution1404]

Yeah but YOUR 0-0 was actually 5-7 grams left or right of the line. After all it WAS a Plymouth. :-) :-) :-)

[@Desertduleler_88]

@ Getbent97 Politicians signed the Lima declaration in December 75' which was the plan to deindustrialise Australia...

[@closertothetruth9209]

Darrow for the Prosecution no not our motors they were Australian built and designed no USA parts

[@fooey88]

Man, this guy is a wealth of knowledge in terms of engines.

[@drtracernum20]

this guy is a damned good professional. wish there was a machinist like him in my area.

[@artemiasalina1860]

He also seems like a good guy to work for.

[@bigwillypacino711]

DodgeRam HEMI FIXES and your point is?

[@bigwillypacino711]

DodgeRam HEMI FIXES wow I didn't know that working in a machine shop makes you a mechanic ? Oh that's right he's a millwright ‼️you don't know SHIT SON but here's a ⭐️ for your efforts

[@dodgeram8793]

waste more of ur no life reading my comments sweatheart xo love you!!xo

[@gtoger]

It's really relaxing watching a machinist do his work. Nice to see a pro at work. Thanks for the field trip, +EricTheCarGuy

[@wysetech2000]

Very well done. I have had engines balanced and have seen balancing procedures but I have never seen it so well explained.

[@BigDog50001]

Not too often you get to see inside a machine shop, nice one Eric.

[@deeremeyer1749]

Apparently you're not a "mechanic" or even a "DIYer" if machine shop visits are "not too often" in your world.

[@sigmaprojects]

@@deeremeyer1749 Pretty sure he's talking about builds online. Usually they just come back with the finished product.

[@user-zg4gx9zq9b]

I see the inside of the machine shop every time I send my engine parts out to be machined lmao. I even shoot the shit with my machinist.

[@enterBJ40]

I truly admire that machinist. Not only has the knowledge but also the right attitude and sense of humor. c'mon...who wouldn't want to be friend of a guy like that?

[@dopefishlives]

That guy is awesome; he has such a great attitude toward his work and is clearly exceptionally skilled without any sort of pretense. I love machinists and dearly wish I could have spent my youth around one, learning the magic of metal.

[@deankay4434]

Eric, this is BEST video, explanation and exposing the mystery of crankshaft balancing on KZbin ever. I still can’t exactly gasp my mine on the procedure of positioning the weight at the correct location of angle of the weight clamp blocks. I get the weight of two loaded rods on one journal, but the position has to be a relationship of the two at the top when the stop, as the bottom is still rotating. 98% of my visual skill-set has captured and saved to long-term memory of the entire process. I can only save enough in an early medical retirement from long days of hard work to get into a machine shop to get a clear idea of the counter-weights position to be clear, but Eric, you and you machine shop buddy has taken me miles on the reciprocating assembly & machining process in the back room. I was lucky at 13, to work for a two man shop (Owner and me) who told me he learned more about engines in 7 years in a speed shop machining back room, than he learned in 28 years in a Chrysler dealer. I was the apprentice sponge and his gentle even manner taught me well. WoW! When I grow up, I want a 20” wide belt sander with a 3 foot bed. Thank very much, so enlightening Eric! Long time subscriber. ASE Master Tech since 1978 - Retired PS. June 17th 2020 is my last lumbar fusion at the L3-L2 level at my shoulder blades. The rest is fused and makes it hard for a 6’3” guy to pickup anything dropped. It’s just one of 3 more metal parts I need, at 62! Pain sucks and working from 7AM to 9PM for decades, isn’t the whole reason, but most of it, except for my lumbar caused by one boss man. Hope we never meet.

[@YOUPSYCHO]

Man the way this guy is full of knowledge and the way he explains it makes me feel comfortable, to the point that I am thinking about rebuilding my engine and not get taken for a ride when I go to the machine shop.

[@mannys4539]

as a steel fabricator and auto technician... I love this video!!! I'd like to visit my uncles shop but he's a few states away...thanks for allowing me to peer into the world of engine machining!!!

[@vetterfellow]

A special note to Kevin Frische, Thanks for being A good teacher to our friend Erick, We know he's a pain in the butt with all his questions. and his side kick Brian following you all around. Your a good Dude to put up with our Friends from ETCG. TTFN.

[@sanghyub95]

damn people who actually take there time to rebuild the engine with accurate measurement and actually checking cam lobe, piston clearance, deck warpage and checking crankshaft journal, etc has alot of patience... i admire them

[@johnsmith-sw7ii]

Kevin seems like a really pleasant knowledgeable guy. Interesting video.

[@Dakota-je9os]

I love when you make longer videos.

[@steelcity3474]

What a lot of people don't know or understand is, guys like this are a dying breed, For every 10 that retire maybe one comes into this business with the knowledge, skill, and the will to do this everyday all day long. Kinda like that old George jones song, who's gonna fill their shoes?

[@harindugamlath]

This is just great Eric! Thank you very much for sharing this with us. And also hats off for Kalvinator engines for being kind enough to show it all!

[@burwood69]

Very patient machinist, thanks for showing us the process!

[@stevesolo16]

I've done this quite a few times. This is where the magic starts to happen. Without a balanced bottom end and the time taken to do this correctly, you can spend all the money in the world and will never get the performance you are paying for. That said, you do get what you pay for as the more expensive cranks i.e. Bryant Co. etc are spect to a much tighter tolerance then lesser expensive cranks. There are no shortcuts. You've got to take the time. A pleasant, informative video seldom seen on KZbin. Well done guys!!

[@swigga4O]

these machining, precision, and calculation videos are always relaxing haha

[@TempGuest7]

Didn't know this amount of work was involved in engine building. Insane! Cheers Kevin and Eric!

[@5533851]

This is going to be a killer, killer build! I don't even want to know how much time and money you have in this engine alone, but it's awesome you are making your dream a reality. Love these engine building vids. Thanks Eric

[@MrTiti]

but ... imagine it comes all like this from the factory

[@christopherhylton8462]

Very informative video. I worked in a machine shop when I was younger, never got to this guy's level of mastery, but machining can be a very humbling experience. You can take metal out, but it is hard to put back in.

[@geluix69]

When I had my first real race engine built for rally , I was relatively new to engine internals and there functions. But after observing some of the process and carefully attention to details , It’s precision and tolérances taken to another level . Learned so much from the engine builder. Even what temperature the room is at can Changes tolerances , that’s something I would of never though of. Great video and example of what is a master a work.

[@calvinhart6793]

Man, this guy knows, ALOT. And boy are you getting on his nerves. Please stop interrupting him. Great video

[@adamreily7079]

Yeah, was gonna say the same thing.seens like he was starting to get bothered by answering all the questions

[@pinfarmer]

Takes a special type of person to build a custom motor from scratch. Respect

[@benjaminbaker2778]

kevin is the man, his attitude to the work is what great engineering is based on, thanks for the vidja Eric.

[@TakeDeadAim]

Nice to see a machine shop which LOOKS like a machine shop. I see so many high tech, CNC shops which look more like medical research labs. I retired, but got roped into working part time for a friend at his shop and it's also more "old school". As a matter of fact, still have all dial calipers and mic's...Very nice older machines. A couple are digital but no real "computerized" machining at all.

[@ruudxd1]

So awesome to see a guy with such knowledge at work! I am 19 and starting a study to be a mechanic so, goals here :-)

[@C.J_the_Goat]

This is so fascinating. I am late to the party here but wow, the amount of high precision that goes into my trips to the liquor store is amazing! Machinists are a valuable profession.

[@bmw540i]

"Between me and the machine, I take it personally!" Love it, proper craftsman! If your gona do a job, do it properly!!

[@zx8401ztv]

It looks so crude drilling large holes, but thats just quickly removing most of the error weight, then the fun starts for real. Slowly creaping up to the limits without overshoot must have taken bloody hours!!. I like him, he wants it right, and he will get it. Well worth the cost for perfection eric :-D.

[@ericthecarguy]

Yea, he worked on this for more than 3 hours. Fun fact: the lighter your pistons and rods, the harder it is to balance the assembly.

[@Blazer02LS]

True, and you are not using the lightest stuff out there. That's when you get to start doing knife edging and radius grinding the trailing edge, shaving the weights on the grinder and more. I was building for a couple teams who refused to have holes in the weights and ran some of the lightest parts they could get. Don't miss those at all...

[@andyca15]

I've considered the option of a fully rebuilt engine like this and the parts to rebuild it yourself. Now I understand why the second option is so much more expensive and worth every penny! This was a great video, thanks Eric for making it, and thanks Kevin for sharing what you do. Awesome!

[@wobblysauce]

++

[@Blazer02LS]

Andy C This is FAR beyond a typical rebuild, this is a full custom engine. Good machine work costs $$ For a "normal" rebuild you can figure about $700-1,000 if you DIY most of the items and limit the machine work to a cylinder and line hone. Or you can go all out and easily drop 30-40K into the engine. The all out race engines I built ran crankshafts that were over $3,000.00 each! And they still needed to be worked some. As the saying says $peed Cost$ Money How Fast do You Want to Go ...

[@micke2943]

Have not seen this before! Always been curious how the machine looks like and how its done! Good one!

[@vicky-nc3to]

This guy really really knows this engine stuff...... never met a guy like him.. Eric thanks for sharing a video like this, really appreciate it....

[@IHcubcadet]

Wow I never realized how much work goes into balancing an engine. Great job guys!

[@ryanwojcik1087]

I plan on designing and building my own engine from scratch. I must have spent 3 hours on Google, and asking my friends dads about balancing crank shafts weeks agi. This is prolly the most amount I have learned all summer honoestly thank you.

[@nadroj3968]

wow so much involved in building a performance motor Watching video's like this helps me appreciate more the Great blokes that built my Motor for me

[@docstruthers]

I could almost open a motor machine shop with all the info this guy shares! Great video gents!

[@JoshSfaks]

This is cool. I took and engines class 2 semesters ago at Cypress College and we built about 15 350 small block chevy engines for SEMA for the engine building competition there and this just reminds me so much of what we did. Bore out all of the cylinders, Hone the cylinders so you get a nice cross hatch finish. Do all the lifters, pistons, rings, camshaft, crankshaft, all the bearings. I learned a lot.

[@gristlevonraben]

i learned so much in this video about the mechanical properties of my car, very very cool. I appreciate you both very much.

[@MrS22222]

I love seeing people doing what they enjoy.

[@LynxStarAuto]

Kwik-way head surfacer, one of the greatest resurfacing machines out there👌🏽. Low maintenance, easy to use, and most importantly fast, fast, fast. Love the Kwik-way.

[@kyletesene1414]

Great video! Kevin is a genius in his field. Awesome to see a guy explain something so complicated into layman's terms.

[@octymocty132]

fantastic to see some one else who spent time sharpening bits . i had to way back on my appernatship is dose pay and an old school shop another rarity i could spend long hours making t a listening an learing from that dude as well as eric

[@orygunchainsawmassacre6761]

I think Kevin should start up a KZbin channel.

[@trefod]

Mesmerizing. What you do to avoid this is buy a crate engine, but it must be so much more satisfying to have had a hand in every component of the engine, fiddled with and nursed it into shape. If only I didn't have work, family and friends to attend to, I'd be happy to spend my life constructing things with care and precision.

[@Nope-un5lq]

Kevin is a MASTER at his craft! I would LOVE to pick his brain just to learn a fraction of what he knows about engine design and theory. GREAT video, Eric! :-)

[@Nope-un5lq]

Oh, and the often un-sung hero, Brian! Another great video production!

[@ethanwelch6345]

He does very good work and I hope his honesty doesn't go unrewarded

[@fomoco1454]

Kevin clearly knows what he's doing. Awesome video Eric!

[@spencer8988]

I can't believe I watched this whole thing, That was really cool.

[@brandonknight7240]

This is the video i needed, im building a 331 stroker and this balancing issue has worried me sick knowing something needed to be done but not have a clue on what to do so this helped

[@MicahSmith]

I rarely sign in to comment but I found this video fascinating. Kalvin seems knowledgeable, confident and cool as a cucumber. It's a pleasure to watch him work and explain the process. Great video Eric!

[@mikwid7805]

Every day is a school day. This is so interesting and presented in a real down-to-earth way without being patronising. Excellent. And Kevin could do voiceovers for John Goodman!

[@thefallenone7988]

I finally found a video that shows how it's done ! Finally. Great video , thanks much.

[@willott4429]

Wealth of knowledge. We need more guys like this.

[@jimzivny1554]

Very good video, great explanation of the process. Steel sfi bellhousing is mandatory, in the 70's a high school buddy lost part of his leg street racing when the flywheel and clutch broke and made an exit through the floor, took his calf muscle, dash and windshield with it. I've never built a car without since, he still has serious leg issues and it made a big impression on everyone watching that night.

[@TurboV8boi]

I like the part where you mock up the weight on the cranks, didn't know that's how it was done. Looks pretty straightforward!

[@JOSHUAK71]

Ive been in a machine shop before. But this video really put it all in to perspective. Im a math guy and love the figures and equations to get the balance and weight of material

[@randylamountain5916]

Your sleeper is getting out of control, I LOVE IT!

[@hydranmenace]

Hahaha. I know people can complain about sponsored videos but I think it would have been kind of fun if this were sponsored by Sharpie! :P

[@rhkips]

Balancing is such a fun process! I was taught from the get-go to shave the crank when possible, but it can be a lot more work, and time is money! I once managed to balance an entire rotating assembly to within 0.25 grams--the margin of error of the equipment I was using. Getting to that fine of a tolerance really has no place on a street car, but it was fun just to see if I could do it. Took me the better part of two days, though.

[@MrJobforacowboy00]

Very cool Of your builder to spread his knowledge. Teach you kids to work with their hands! Honest work and a real trade!

[@beams098]

this series has been so beautiful I love this so much

[@ellieprice3396]

What a great learning experience to watch an expert do this difficult job. I wish Eric had used a drill gage to grind that big drill perfectly on center with correct angles on both cutting edges.

[@marklowe7431]

Awesome video, lots of good info. Great the way the engineer considers the customers options later too. The kind of guy you want doing your machine work.

[@fearingforamerica921]

very informative. great job. i had an old man tell me one time to tighten the chuck at all three points and the bit won't slip as easy. i think he was right. i do it now since i wore out the jaws on his chuck. again great job and thank you for the video.

[@MagaRickn]

Excellent eye opening video!! Fixing to have an engine balanced, my first, hope I get a guy like this to do my work!

[@derekcrymble9085]

500 rpm or 700 rpm is just fine . The force of unbalance does not change . I balance 25.000 rpm turbine rotors for marine diesel applications . A 700 Lb rotor is turned at 700 rpm , for dynamic balancing . Great vid.

[@daveogarf]

Absolutely Fascinating, Eric! Always wondered how they balanced the bottom end of an engine. There's a LOT of stuff that goes into the process. Again, thanks to you and Brian for a look into the building of a performance engine.

[@cahyowinarko6652]

nice explanations dude...!! not just a video of someone doing something that not everybody understand the processes

[@dogfood2525]

Wow! I really enjoyed this one Eric. Great job!

[@jim52970]

At our machine shop, at any given day you could walk around and collect well over 50+ sharpie markers! Nice to see a video where the crank is balanced correctly and no cheating by just adjust the flywheel weight. ^5

[@approachableactive]

I do like these in location videos or "Expert" videos Eric. seeing the specialist processes helps dispel so much misinformation.

[@ericthecarguy]

I do too. Thanks for the comment.

[@daver681]

Eric, Very interesting video, I have always wondered the details of how a engine was balanced, I have built a few engines but nothing fancy, Love it

[@hookahspot8973]

Awesome video, learned a lot in it, Mr. Frische explained a lot of what he did a man with a lot of knowledge, I highly appreciate what you doin Eric you've helped me a lot in college and still helping me, with that being said thank you sir.

[@lbanks1soldier]

Just had my entire bottom end built for my car so watching this video is really awesome to understand it more. These guys are modern day wizards imo. Just sucks most good ones take 2-5 months to get parts and get it done correctly. Usually you just get your bill and see prices of balancing and cutting and honing but this changed my entire thought process on the 4k bill i payed lol. Sucks also most of the best guys with shops with all this knowledge have noone to teach and learn 40 years of experience. If anyone needs a 2jz i highly suggest brian roche in maryland. Hes the best on the east coast for sure

[@Harry-kr4jq]

My brother had an LS6 454 balanced and blueprinted years ago. The builder told him not to be afraid of redline anymore. This builder and his brother raced top fuel years ago. They even took a race from Big Daddy in the day.

[@ycmdill]

The old guy that taught me used a paint scale at the NAPA store. He assembled all the rods pistons rings etc and ground the skirts to match the lightest one. He was running a 283 bored to 301 and 265 heads ported to 327/375 fuel valves. Sounded like a bumble bee.

[@AutOdometer]

That's awesome. There are some things the back yard DIYer can't do unless they got $1000+ in tools. Great video Eric. Hopefully 1M subs by years end.

[@jasonsimpson4805]

So cool to see this kind of work done properly!

[@jetjazz05]

29:00 - If the crankshaft is rockin' don't bother knockin'.... holy Moses.

[@JordyValentine]

My first job was in a place like this. Making me feel all nostalgic

[@moomin110]

It's terrifying when he starts to use the big drill bit 😨

[@ellieprice3396]

It would have worked much smoother if Kevin had used a piloted counterbore for the holes instead of the big drill.

[@Halo2prime]

I worked at a machine shop for a little while, and I found I was shocked at how often a manufacturer claimed their assemblies were balanced, but we're off by quite a few grams. Scat cranks were the biggest culprit.

[@markjackson8302]

your best video yet. OUTSTANDING!

[@marchespants8643]

Awesome video! Always wondered how they're balanced properly :)

[@johncunningham4820]

That was fascinating . I knew what balancing was all about . The WHY . But never seen it done before .

[@cypeman8037]

I like how Kevin is allowed to tell us what he's doing, and why he's doing it only for Eric to repeat all the same information. It's one of your traits Eric.We only understand you. 👍😂

[@Sillyazzmofo1]

Great video Eric and Kevin, I learned a ton!

[@jasonmiller2726]

Do you see how off centered his holes are

[@anguskangus8222]

Hey Eric just wanted to say I use sharpies to check bolt hole patterns in my milling machines just to double check my math. Been doing that over 20years now.

[@TrueBlueEG8]

What a great video, thanks for this Eric

[@ronmiller682]

Great video. I worked in the machine shop years ago. I miss it alot

[@prmayner]

Great vid Eric, I like most mechanics never really got into the machine end of it, that much anyway.

[@bchant19]

well worth the wait on this video some awesome insight into a motor machine shop.

[@TheSkitd]

I worked at an automotive machine shop in the late 70s, it was done the same way back then. We charged $80 to $85 dollars to balance a v8 unless a lot of metal had to be added to the crank.

[@highlypolishedturd7947]

You know you're a "greasy fingers" sort when the sound of drilling and machining lulls you to sleep!

[@moo.johnference869]

This is why smart phone are such a smart purchase, knowledge, knowledge, knowledge.

[@charlesmiller5078]

I used to help in a machine shop in the late 60s, balancing and blue printing engines straight off the dealership lot, mostly 396s, I found it amazing how out of balance they were , Guess they just cant spend the time to do this at the factory. The difference in the engine was amazing, but not cheap, especially if they pull the engine.

[@jonathancharlespike]

Good timing for this video, studying this kind of stuff for a bachelor of mechanical engineering. seriously interesting stuff

[@gregbenwell6173]

Yes BUT watching a video and ACTUALLY DOING IT are two totally different things!! Just because I can watch a video to see how a house is built doesn't mean I can actually BUILD a house NOR means I automatically know how to use a nail gun!! And it isn't until you have actually BUILT a house or used a nail gun (which I have done both) do you really understand it!!! And I am only a high school graduate to give you any idea of my "education" level!!

[@cornishsean1]

People thumbing down because they "THINK" they could do it better.......

[@SidewaysInTraffic]

Ya I was wondering the same lol.

[@colinshippyshipp5747]

I don't think it

[@half-assedgarage6668]

Colin Shipp ok then where is your proof big shot.

[@mikecurry5410]

🤣Machinists all deal in similar situations on a daily bases. Your part spinning, your tool spinning. Understanding metal, and physics, is just that! It's not complicated, unless you make it be. Stupid can't be fixed

[@jasonmiller2726]

I can center my holes better just by eyeballing. For god sake, he center punched and still missed!

[@Ki777UMiNATii]

Guys a wizard. Crack balancer probably costs a fortune. Couldve easily thrown it in and called it rebuilt but went the extra mile to balance her down to less than a gram for and aft, nice work man.