383 main bearings

[miller]

They used to have .001 , .002 undersize bearings, to get clearances where you want them.

Not available anymore?

 

[lewtot184]

They used to have .001 , .002 undersize bearings, to get clearances where you want them.

Not available anymore?

nothings available that i know of. i'd need something like an .011" under which was never made. there are some .001" under race type bearings out there but nothing that would apply to a stock build. i'll have to get creative to whittle at this problem. i hope all the 383/400 people out there doing a build take note of this post. this is a real problem.

 

[lewtot184]

That's why you buy bearing before turning a crank. Get it turned to your clearances. Plan and simple

you are correct. clean-up everything, install new bearings, check with dial bore gauge and then give the crank grinder a number to hit.

 

[dieseldazzle]

Not to thread jack but the bearings I posted, anyone is free to have them. I only like to run king bearings. I won't use the sealed power bearings.

 

[mopar 3 B]

Clevite or TRW nothing else

 

[lewtot184]

the way manufacturing is now i doubt there's a bunch of bearing manufacturers. there's probably only a couple of sources who make bearings to somebodies specs or just put the vendors name on their bearings. there's nothing wrong with sealed power or clevite. i haven't used king bearings and seriously doubt they're better than anybody else's. i just look at the material, specs, etc and find something that fits my application. i'm pretty much over the "name game". i can find good or bad in any of them and believe a lot of "make it or break it" is whether the user uses the right part for the application.

 

[dieseldazzle]

I'm the type of guy that likes to have something in my hand to make a decision or comparison.

The king bearings just look and feel quality as compared to some bearings.

I first started using the kings when I scabbed together a little small block ford and ordered summits brand of hp bearings to save a few bucks on a motor I knew was gonna live on the ragged edge of what the block could support (460hp at the wheels, 302)

When they showed up I was like man these are really nice pieces. They were clearly marked acl bearings aka king alecular bearings.

All I've run every since with the exception being the 440source stroker kits that come with their own bearings or an application that king doesn't support.

Not saying it's an end all to be all but lewto is probably right there is probably only 2 or 3 that produce the bearings for everyone.

My 512 with an eagle crank, eagle rod diamond pistons will have king bearings. Just my preference not saying any and everything else is junk.

 

[moparwacko]

Feel your pain my friend, but haven't been able to buy half grooves (Clevites) for quite some time. I have 10- 12 sets sitting at the shop, I'll look when I get home and some have been around a while. I'll pm ya if I do- you did say .10 under??

 

[miller]

Probably not an option you'd look at, lewtot, but something I had done on a 383 steel crank, probably 35-40 years ago. Almost doubt you could find a shop that does it, now.

That 383 crank was .006-.007 undersize. Just outside Dallas, was a well known crank grinding shop. At that time, many drivers were having their cranks re-done, something that shop did alot. Also had mine done the same way.
They would grind all journals to -.010 from standard. Then, using a flame metal spray, would build each journal oversize, with hard chrome. Once done, the journals were simply ground back to standard. Had been told alot of fuel car drivers would have that done, even to new cranks, since the journals would hold up much longer.
Worked great on mine, and was also able to close up end play.

 

[lewtot184]

Probably not an option you'd look at, lewtot, but something I had done on a 383 steel crank, probably 35-40 years ago. Almost doubt you could find a shop that does it, now.

That 383 crank was .006-.007 undersize. Just outside Dallas, was a well known crank grinding shop. At that time, many drivers were having their cranks re-done, something that shop did alot. Also had mine done the same way.
They would grind all journals to -.010 from standard. Then, using a flame metal spray, would build each journal oversize, with hard chrome. Once done, the journals were simply ground back to standard. Had been told alot of fuel car drivers would have that done, even to new cranks, since the journals would hold up much longer.
Worked great on mine, and was also able to close up end play.

hard chroming used to be common back in the day. doesn't seem like anybody does it anymore. lunati did a bunch of crank hard chroming some years back but don't think they do it anymore. the journal sizes on the crank i have are good; if i had the correct bearings.

 

[moparwacko]

Nope, sorry Lewlot- all the ones I have are full grooves

 

[Mark B]

I think hard chrome has fallen by the wayside because of the cost. We do repairs for customers and offer chrome plating as an option. Our cost to plate 1 main journal would be probably 150 bucks. plus our time to prep it and finish grind it. So do the math on the cost to do the entire crank. Also finding a place that does quality plating can be pretty tough. The EPA has caused so many plating shops to close it's a shame.

 

[miller]

For these days, fully agree with you, Mark B.
When I had my crank done, over 30 years ago, total cost was $150!

 

[lewtot184]

Nope, sorry Lewlot- all the ones I have are full grooves

thanks for looking!

 

[lewtot184]

i had a crank nitrided (gased) back in the nineties and i think the cost was $50. the shop won't do it anymore because the cost has jumped to $450.