DIY Cylinder Reboring

[TerryB]

In the early days of automotive repair work it seems the need for great accuracy was not as critical as it is today.  For example here is a page from the Hinkley-Myers / Dearborn Equipment garage and service station equipment catalog from 1922 advertising a portable engine boring device that allows cylinder boring to be done in the field or in the garage.  All parts fit in a wooden box for ease of transporting.  Interesting concept!

 

[Guest]

Lots of small shops did manual boring up into the mid to late 50's.  If done properly by someone who knows how and cares how it is just as accurate as done by machine today.  The big difference today is the new knowledge about the pattern to the finish of a cylinder wall.

Don't always think newer is better.

I have seen technicians in dealership shops use a half inch electric drill to ream valve guides and then wonder why the new valves were poorer fitting than the old valves and guides before repairs started.

Not all bearers of official paperwork do good work.  Half of them finished in the bottom of their class.

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

One of those would have negated the need for complete teardown to bore for a sleeve recently.

 

  Ben

[TerryB]

9 minutes ago, Ben Bruce aka First Born said:

One of those would have negated the need for complete teardown to bore for a sleeve recently.

 

  Ben

Yes, that’s why I posted this info.  Old garage mechanics were an innovative group.  The complete catalog shows lots of interesting equipment including a run in machine to, I assume, break in an engine after a rebuild. 

[CarlLaFong]

I worked at several British auto dealers in the mid 80s. We had guys who would come in and bore engines in the car, quite often. Since 90% of our cars had inline engines, it made sense. They were every bit as accurate as they would have been at a machine shop, in fact they used the same Van Norman boring bar that most machinists used

[jrbartlett]

Back in the 1960s an old-time mechanic told me that there were ratchet-type tools available in the 1930s that could be used to resurface crankshaft rod journals with the engine in the car and the crankshaft in the engine.

[Owen_Dyneto]

Crankpin turning tools for use with the crank in the engine and the engine in the block were common, these illustrations from Packard's service tool catalogs of the 30s.  And with poured bearings, you could then have the rod sized to whatever odd dimension the crankpin cleaned up at, and not some multiple of 0.010".

[Restorer32]

I have owned this outfit for 40 + years. Anyone want to give it a try?

[60FlatTop]

Its all in the access,

[TerryB]

I missed this page, there are several versions of the reboring machine

 

[TerryB]

And the running in machine for Ford Model T after rebabbitting the bearings.

 

[trini]

Very interesting subject. In those days when babbit bearings where common place and engines R.P.M about 2800. These mechanics were called engine fitters. They used a die called "blue" to gauge the bearing to find high spots and scrape off excess material, and shims if needed to fit bearings.

[TerryB]

Speaking of rebabbitting

 

[herm111]

11 hours ago, trini said:

Very interesting subject. In those days when babbit bearings where common place and engines R.P.M about 2800. These mechanics were called engine fitters. They used a die called "blue" to gauge the bearing to find high spots and scrape off excess material, and shims if needed to fit bearings.

11 hours ago, trini said:

Very interesting subject. In those days when babbit bearings where common place and engines R.P.M about 2800. These mechanics were called engine fitters. They used a die called "blue" to gauge the bearing to find high spots and scrape off excess material, and shims if needed to fit bearings.

The Blue was an oil paint, called Prussian Blue, still made by Permatex. We don't uses it, as it gives to coarse of a reading. 

 

Herm.

[Dandy Dave]

I use to use the Prussian Blue to get rearend gears set correctly. I still use Dykem Blue from time to time for laying out and scribing on parts in the machine shop. I had one of those hand operated cylinder boring tools for years but never used it. Dandy Dave!