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69 RR engine removal

ksurfer2

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I would like to pull the motor (440) from my roadrunner. Runs great, but I would like to clean up the motor and paint it. Looking for the easiest way to do this in my garage. I will need to rent an engine hoist and look for a stand on craigslist. I see lots of discussion about dropping the engine, K member and front end out of the bottom. Honestly, that seems a little daunting to me. If possible, I would like to do this without even removing the transmission (727 auto). Possible??? Searched around on forums to see if anyone has a step by step on this process, but no luck. Does anyone have a step by step for this? Anyone in the tampa area want to help? Free beer and food provided!
 
IF I was in the Tampa area, you could borrow a host and stand from me.:(
I would not consider removing the K member form what you say.
 
My stand is occupied but that is the way to go. Do you have a lift available?
 
Pull from the top.. theres room.. just cover the fenders and try not to hit the rad support..
 
Times like these are when small blocks are advantageous.
440s are a horse of an engine and will test any cherry-picker, engine stand, and the poor soul who is removing it.

:thumbsup:
Good Luck, nothing too complicated, just a lot of cast iron dangling from a chain.
 
Can be done easily but if you’ve never done it before I would wait until you had some
Help from someone who’s done it, like said that’s alot of iron hanging around and one mistake can turn bad quick. Would hate to see something happen to you.

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Pretty simple if you have done it before. Kinda dangerous if you haven't. Like Beekool says it's a heavy beast and an experienced set of hands to help would be best for your first time.
 
Times like these are when small blocks are advantageous.
440s are a horse of an engine and will test any cherry-picker, engine stand, and the poor soul who is removing it.

:thumbsup:
Good Luck, nothing too complicated, just a lot of cast iron dangling from a chain.
Amen to that.
I've done just that twice in the last couple years. The 440 alone weighs over 650 pounds.
Shipping weight on the one I bought said over 750, but you have to allow for shipping shenanigans on those tickets.
I figured with both the 440, cast iron bellhousing and 4 speed I was pushing 1000 pounds all together.
Although the fine Asian lineage engine hoist I had was rated double that, it was apparent it had all it could handle.
Poor similarly born engine stand had such a hard time with the replacement 440 that I propped up the nose of the
crank with a 2x4 while it sat waiting for installation.

I've learned to take whatever the "Harbor Freight" class of lifts, hoists, etc. are rated for and divide by half
for safeties' sake. :)
In fact, a similar approach is now used when figuring out if my emaciated, old tired *** can handle a given task
as well: remember what I could do before all the cancers and surgeries, then divide that by half. :thumbsup:
 
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if you're just wanting to clean the engine and paint it, then I'd leave it in. Not bad, especially if you're running stock exhaust manifolds. Just need to take off the alternator,PS pump,fan,wires (plug and electrical),hoses, and cover what you don't painted. Done it several times and save alot of work. It's doable if if you have headers.
 
Oh, almost forgot to answer the OP's actual question:
ksurfer, if you wind up wanting to pull the engine anyways, get a Factory Service Manual.
You want step by step instructions? Boom, there they are. :usflag:
 
When you look for an engine stand be sure it will span span of arms that hold engine will open wide enough. Bought a stand mail order and had to add a new face plate.
 
Build yourself a 3-point trolley with steerable wheels, and hire an engine lifter (to lift the body). You will need to jack up the car first to unhitch some items, but this is far easier than taking the engine out from the top.....and you can detail all the front end at the same time. This is how I assembled my car after paint - however the next time it came out I had access to a full size 2-post hoist.

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If you think a 440 is heavy try a gen2 hemi. I've put it in 3 times and hope I never have to do it again.
 
When you look for an engine stand be sure it will span span of arms that hold engine will open wide enough. Bought a stand mail order and had to add a new face plate.
This is what I had to do to get it to hold a BB.
es1.jpg
es2.jpg
Bracket on 1 arm for another project.
 
To ksurfer2... I've done this job maybe 8 times and it's not all that tough, just time consuming. A good hoist & engine stand can hold a 440 BUT I have always tried to have the cherry picker chained to the nose of the engine once I start putting on all the accessories...just to be safe.

1. I've always pulled motors out the top with the hood off.
2. Watch for garage roof clearance since the hoist will be a couple feet higher than the engine, which will be higher than the fender.
3. I prefer to install the "long block" (block/heads/oil pan) & bolt the intake & accessories in after the motor is bolted up. It's less weight for the hoist. Also, I personally like to lift the engine by two diagonal intake bolts (intake off). I've seen many people do it, but I don't trust the smaller carburetor bolts on the intake to lift the motor (too small, ESPECIALLY with an aluminum intake)
4. If you have headers, lay them in place & position the starter in its "header cage" before you set the motor completely in the engine compartment. If no headers, the starter can go in later.
5. Definitely remove the radiator & a/c condenser so you don't smack it.
6. Removing the water pump & accessories before pulling the motor gives you extra clearance. This is also why I like to put those back on after the motor is installed.
7. Once the motor is bolted to the motor mounts, I personally like to let it hang down a little bit, maybe with some blocks of wood in back, to make it easier to install the transmission.
8. Take your time & be safe. Until the trans & motor are bolted together + the motor mounts & transmission cross member is installed it could fall.... after those are in, you're completely safe. Also, make SURE to have the car up on very sturdy jack stands, higher up in the front. I like to remove the radiator & accessories on the ground, THEN jack up the car.
 
To ksurfer2... I've done this job maybe 8 times and it's not all that tough, just time consuming. A good hoist & engine stand can hold a 440 BUT I have always tried to have the cherry picker chained to the nose of the engine once I start putting on all the accessories...just to be safe.
Sage wisdom from PB here and I agree with every bit of it.
Things get a lot more "fun" when doing both engine and transmission, but that's been the case the last few times I've done it.
 
Right on PurpleBeeper. That's all good advise and almost exactly how I pulled the 440 from my A12 without any trouble at all...
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I plan on installing my 440 into my 70 Coronet this Feb.
I have a shop and a hoist but I've never pulled/dropped ANY motors any other way than w a cherry-picker so I shall be watching this thread
 
I removed the 318 poly, 727 and propshaft out of my car as one unit by raising the car and going out the bottom with the k frame. It was very daunting - the front of the car was miles up in the air and I was crapping myself. I had ropes around the dolly I'd built so I could pull it out without being anywhere near the car. I'll be putting the motor and gearbox back in shortly, this time through the top, but I'm still very nervous about it. Having someone there who knows what they are doing will be worth a few cartons for sure. Do your research first, make sure the chains, bolts etc are all rated - safety is no 1 priority (plus not scratching anything )
 
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