How-To: Install LS Engine Crank (bearing & thrust clearances)

[@HTMR]

Main bearings - www.howtomotorcyclerepair.com/mainbearings Plastiguage - www.howtomotorcyclerepair.com/plastigauge Eastwood torque wrenches - www.howtomotorcyclerepair.com/eastwoodtorquewrench Digital angle finder - amzn.to/37BkXfj

[@Dusto5]

Exactly what I was looking for - gonna be doing this very soon. Thanks for taking the time to do this video.

[@cali-korrustclan4048]

Really appreciate the video. Lots of great side info as well.

[@ufcpubg1964]

This video was very informational and goes in dept. Definitely will sub and check out more to learn

[@jameswiz]

DO NOT HAMMER DOWN YOUR MAINS!!!! It can cause the plasti-gauge to become crushed. Just draw the caps down slowly using the bolts, a little on each side at a time. Until its down and torqued.

[@mikepomeroy153]

Thanks for the tip! I'm about to put my rotating assembly in.

[@davidhicks3912]

😂

[@davidhicks3912]

That' is bs

[@hacklaurent9412]

You're not supposed to pull down your main with the bolts

[@jameswiz]

@davidhicks3912 Just don't hammer on plasti-gauge!!! It's not bs, it's FACTS!!! IDIOT!!! lol

[@dernolddodge]

Very helpful video. Thanks for sharing!

[@rbarr1200]

Great series.

[@Abelsgarage_]

Where can I get that dial ??? I’m rebuilding my ls2 pretty soon

[@rrogerson68]

Great videos

[@tyferguson564]

How many times would you say those bolts are good for?? I wanna do this but was told they were 1 time use

[@HTMR]

manual states 3 times IIRC. Tons of people reuse them w/o issues.

[@drumsandcars4339]

I have a question Did you reuse the main and rod bolts ? Does gm recommend replacing them ? I get mixed advice some say it’s fine to reuse them and some say replace them

[@HTMR]

Manual states they can be reused 3x or something like that.

[@papergatorzfedducca7998]

New subscriber!!🔥🔥🔥

[@marcstecker746]

Good video, well done sir!

[@JerryCruz-z2o]

where did you get the dial indicator gauge

[@HTMR]

amzn.to/4egYt23

[@safwanhassan1885]

so detailed 👍

[@MarkConwayTheBurgerKing]

Great build

[@marine98cobra]

Building my first destroyed lq9. Would I use the new bolts to check clearances or would I use the old bolts?

[@HTMR]

Reuse them. Technically the rod bolts can be torqued up to 3 times or something like that.

[@matthewstorm5188]

If you use new bolts for final assembly, reuse the old ones when checking clearances.

[@robertchambliss4098]

are those torque to yield bolts. you cant reuse those right ?

[@HTMR]

Manual states up to 3 times.

[@flatboat67]

oil under the bolt heads . thou and a half for 5 ? you gonna run 0/15 synthetic?

[@114RIDES]

Great Video! How is the engine holding up? I assembled a 6.0 with .0015 on the mains. I’m curious because after some research I’m concerned that .0015 might be a touch too tight.

[@HTMR]

1 year 1500 miles no issues yet.

[@aqualk3722]

Please do video about how to tune up multiple carburetors.mixture screw adjustment like that

[@HTMR]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/en3PlaB4r9aFldU

[@aqualk3722]

Thanks ❤

[@napieraustin]

Did you use stock bearing size?

[@HTMR]

Yes.

[@Sebastianbartledoo]

on the end bottom caps should i keep the upper and lower tangs on the same side or offset? i noticed it could go either way

[@8ball28]

The clearance range is applicable for all LS engines? My ls3 started knocking and this is my very first engine that I am rebuilding. I would like to know if it applies to the ls3 as well. Also what if it were to be under or over the clearance range?

[@Nardulli]

I dunno about re-using bolts like that. They're ty[typically torque to yield - so use the old ones to crush the plasti gauge but then use new ones for final assembly.

[@isawul00k]

Usually around 70lbs when TTY

[@Braapcity]

GM main and rod are TTA they are fine to reuse

[@Vagos-Performance]

Damn theirs a lot of people saying you didn’t use lube. Did no one watch fully? Lmao

[@michaelkraemer8965]

Thank you

[@rafaelarmendariz682]

How much would you charge to do this job

[@turbotony796]

Why didn't you put the cam in while you had the block upside down and the crank out of the way? Its alot easier to install the cam that way then doing it after you install the crank and have to walk it in.

[@matthewstorm5188]

Looks like he did put the cam in first. At 23:04, he put assembly lube on the cam (which was already there).

[@ModernBeastx1]

I know this video is a bit old but i hope you read and reply. I am measuring my oil clearences on ls1 to rebuild, Well i did everything as you show in this video but when i remove the main caps to check the plasti gauge the plasti gauge is on the main cap bearings not on the crank journal is this still accurate to measure idk how it is happening?? Maybe im just being paranoid but out of all the videos ive seen I have never heard or seen this before.

[@HTMR]

Sometimes it sticks to both. Is the crank clean of oil etc..

[@ModernBeastx1]

@@HTMR yes I made sure to wipe everything down with brake clean and a microfiber towel but I am going to try again.

[@danieloconnell1386]

You didn’t use assembly lube before you dropped in the crank ?

[@HTMR]

22:57

[@chriswise9653]

Who did the machine work ?

[@kevinwest3689]

Holy crap! 🫣

[@TheChrisey]

You definitely do not want to spin the crank like that @4:02 without lube

[@toddavies1326]

Yeah made me cringe !

[@marcusmorganti3455]

@@toddavies1326 he didnt spin it dry look again

[@brad1367]

​@@marcusmorganti3455yes he did

[@davewilkirson2320]

great vid

[@nickgenevie6545]

Never drop in a crack dry. Where’s the assembly lube on the bearings?

[@reeceliles9151]

What did you do about crankshaft thrust?

[@HTMR]

Nothing why?

[@reeceliles9151]

@@HTMR Arent you supposed to ensure there is an appropriate amount of crank end play? I am rebuilding a 5.3 right now, and was watching your video for some instruction but did not see anything on end play. I am just trying to find clarification on what to do. Your video is an excellent guide, otherwise!

[@HTMR]

@@reeceliles9151 End play is the same as thrust clearance.

[@hooligans_garage7465]

Why people “try” to be accurate with torque angle and then do the most inaccurate stuff is beyond me. Just torque them in sequence to 65ftlbs and call it a day.

[@KasenRedden]

I could be wrong, but I was always taught to wear gloves when you are messing with new bearings

[@paulaskill3660]

Meticulous attention to detail again Matt. Cracking video. When you've finished do you want to sell it?

[@michaelgreenhalgh7944]

You forgot to mention that the trust bearing has 2 oil groves on one side and 3 on the other..the 3 groves go toward the back of the engine..if installed incorrectly it will throw off thrust clearance..otherwise pretty good video

[@K1LL3R_M1LL3R]

Did not know this. Glad to find your comment. Currently my LQ4 crank is too tight. Because of main scarring, I had the machine shop polish the crank. He recommended I buy .001 oversized bearings, both mains and rods. I bought King Coated .001 oversized. Torqued everything down, measured everything, main were between .001, .0012, up to .0018. Rods were @.0018. I polished the main journals with some 2500 grit and shoestring. Torqued it down, and my thrust is way too tight. And it is tight tight. Hard to turn over. I used the sticky red assembly line. I will check my orientation of thrust before I start sanding for thrust clearance.

[@matthewstorm5188]

Not all thrust bearings have three grooves on one side and two on the other side. Some thrust bearings have three grooves on both sides. And others have two grooves on both sides. You need to follow whatever instructions are provided with your bearings to determine the proper orientation of the thrust bearing.

[@jameswiz]

The install direction isn't reversible. There is a TAB that needs to determine which direction is forward or rear. I've never seen a (Stock) LS bottom machined to "flip" the bearing for the #3. Only #5 main. So everyone else who commented its wrong... You're wrong. Those of you who commented on the 2 vs 3 grooves.. that's ok. Don't worry. They only install in ONE direction. I'd you flip them around, you'll have major issues

[@jamesmoyer3192]

Most new bearings come with a notch in them that lines up and keys into a recessed portion of the block and cap. You can't mess it up unless you put the caps in backwards.

[@popscyclep8084]

Never heard of a chevelle motorcycle. Mighty big engine case. Guess I misunderstood this site was for motorcycle stuff.

[@realdeathpony]

Most snow flakes only know one thing.

[@holdyourhorsepower7029]

You also need to grease up the bearings before putting the crank in!

[@HTMR]

Did you watch the whole video?

[@matthewstorm5188]

You don’t want to grease your crank when taking measurements because the grease will take up clearance. This will throw off your measurements, making them appear smaller. You don’t want to use any assembly lube until final assembly.

[@julian_sp]

$70 is such a good price

[@jasonalper7898]

On a LS motor, Plasti-Guage is not a good way to check bearing clearance, depending on the Side bolt Torque the clearance due to deflection in the main cap can change up to a .001 looser, to achieve accurate bearing clearance on any LS motor you will need to use a dial bore gauge, it is the only correct way on a LS motor,

[@polyapolya9574]

First ❤ Good job

[@jonathansandiford4137]

Nice footwork lol

[@bradyfreedom7009]

Can't believe you're not using lube or oil

[@HTMR]

I did for final install. You don't use lube to check clearances.

[@davidsharp922]

So the journals are all in spec right ? So none of the main bearings that were originally in the block were spun right ? If that is the case why would you waste the time with plastigage? We get cranks back from the machine shop. Whatever they grind it to we use the corresponding size of bearing. Now,I have literally built atleast a thousand motors since 2015 and never plastigaged one single motor and guess what ? Never had one single clearance issue at all. This is a complete waste of time. You can say whatever you want but I highly doubt you have the history with these motors that I have.

[@benolofson9732]

If you don't check main clearance then I promise motors you've put together have failed

[@davidsharp922]

@@benolofson9732 bullcrap. If they did our customers would bring them back to us.

[@benolofson9732]

Put 100 engines together and 5 will have mains that are way out, LS is a lot more forgiving then some other engines so if that's all you work on you'll probably skate by

[@davidsharp922]

@@benolofson9732 skate by ? In the last 7 years or so I have assembled ATLEAST 1,000 LS motors. We have them ground if necessary and if we take a core apart that the rod and main bearings look good then we clean the crank up and reinstall in another block with new bearings. Out of all the motors I have built there has never been a single issue with bearing clearances. So many people on KZbin put so many waste of time videos with useless information it is sick. But,keep doing it your way. I build complete motors in a day. You film a video on installing a timing chain in a day.

[@4real4now]

20+ years building engines, stock and high performance. Not one of them has left the shop without checking bearing clearance. Some of the crankshaft were sent back to the machine shop to get them fix.

[@williamsterling720]

All due respect, I have never understood why someone has the desire to do a "how-to" on something that they are completely unfamiliar with. Just because you saw your dad put a crankshaft in a SBC back in the day doesn't mean you are competent enough to teach someone how to install a crankshaft in an LS engine. There were many mistakes that you made but corrected without commenting on it, many things that you should have done differently and in general would have done differently if you had ever done this. Technically you're using tty fasteners that aren't supposed to be reused, "narrow" means skinny, not wider.., even after screwing up the sequence, you STILL did it backwards, but that's not that big a deal other than this is a how-to video!lol It may live simply because your clearances are close (tight), but it's gonna take a few more before you need to be "teaching" anything about building an engine..

[@rbarr1200]

Will you show us how to ? Why are you watching how to’s ?

[@elipsonj]

You are not supposed to put your fingerprints on the Bearing surface.. Do some more research before you start posting videos.. You didn't even lube the Goddamn thing

[@allauthenticsoles1293]

So how is he supposed to install it? With his feet? Even with gloves, there would be residue

[@SgtDomer]

I know this is old, fingerprints cause rust on, well any metal they get on especially machined surfaces. Definitely should’ve been done with gloves first thing I thought.