Brand new forged build problems! Please help!

[timlowthian]

I will have to check that! The guy that built it did so to his own engine so i thought all would be fine but im having no end of problems now! He has since moved away from the island which really isnt helpful in a situation like this!
Im not really sure what to do with it now! The drive seems to have gained an expensive garden decoration!

[dawesy]

could also be a spun bearing but unlikely. you can loosen all the bolts on the main and big ends (so they are just finger tight) and try turning over by hand.
if it turns ok then tighten and check one by one until it doesnt move. also check the thrust bearings either side of the centre main bearing

[bobhatton]

See if you can get some photos of the bottom end so we can see the main and big end caps etc.

[timlowthian]

I will get the pictures for you tomorrow morning!

[Century Motorsport]

What Bob said really. If any of the caps are in the wrong order or the wrong way round it won't last long.

Are they std rods?

Edit - just saw they are not std rods. If the big end caps are mixed up then its a case of rods out and getting them measured up to get the right caps on the right rods.

If they are 180deg out this is pretty easy to see by removing the cap and taking note of if the tabs on the big end bearings are together or apart.

But if you find these are out then I would want the motor to be taken out and checked over properly as i'd be worried what else could be a potential issue...

[Chris]

Another thought,

Some forged rods don't go too well with JE Pistons. There is not enough clearance for the rod. If the builder has not got this clearance sorted, you will have trouble turning it over.

You don't say what pistons/rods you are using, but just a thought.

[timlowthian]

Yeh they are Wiseco Pistons and Eagle Rods! Im thinking the best bet here is for me to take it out!

I think this time ill strip it down to bottom end then send it to a more reputable place to get sorted then build it back up i think!

[dawesy]

cant remember, have you tried turning it the opposite way? not recommended to do it repeatedly but i just had a thought that if its been stood for a while its possible for something to have dropped into the chamber stopping it from turning. turning in the opposite direction will highlight if this is the case

[Fourveesix]

Oil clearances should all be on the build sheet, i never put a motor together without and doing every single measurement even though it can take a while and making sure the client gets the copy of it, it helps prevent this kind of mistake.
Sounding more and more like the bearing shells arent sized correctly or as Century suggested, caps may be on wrong way round......either way its not good and itll mean a thorough check.

The only other question you need to ask now is: "what else isnt right?".

Check *everything* id say, piston to bore, mains /big ends, crank end thrust and so on.

[Daemonslayer]

good tip from century about the long bolts.
what isnt clear to me - cant you turn it at all or does it stop at a certain point only?
If thats the case - your valves are touchig the piston which isnt that bad.
We made an interference engine out of mine by decking and using CP pistons.So you were able to run it until it touched the valves (no timing belt mounted)

If it does not turn at all i would not use a big wrench to force it - somethins wrong here.I definetly would check for the main bearing clearance with plastigauge for an estimate.As the others already said it also could be the rod bearings.With the correct clearance it should turn with a wrench "mid-easy".(i used assemply lube on the bearings).

good luck.

[mrdb]

could also be a spun bearing but unlikely. you can loosen all the bolts on the main and big ends (so they are just finger tight) and try turning over by hand.
if it turns ok then tighten and check one by one until it doesnt move. also check the thrust bearings either side of the centre main bearing

Id try this first as you can do it in situe. If its still locked up it could be gearbox? so drop that off and try and turn again.

[Century Motorsport]

Last 4 posts are all good ideas.

Dawsy has a very valid point... try turning it counter clock wise first... if it spins easy you know there is either a cam timing issue or something has been dropped down into the bores.

You've done the right thing by not trying to start it though.. could have saved yourself a lot of money!

[timlowthian]

First off thanks for all the posts and help!!!

It is completely stuck and does not turn either way! As has been suggested i think i will loosen the bolts off to see if it turns and then gearbox off if no success!

As others have said though i am worried about whether there is any other underlying problems with it all though! The more i think about it the more i feel i would have more confidence if it was looked at by the right people!

[bobhatton]

First off thanks for all the posts and help!!!

It is completely stuck and does not turn either way! As has been suggested i think i will loosen the bolts off to see if it turns and then gearbox off if no success!

As others have said though i am worried about whether there is any other underlying problems with it all though! The more i think about it the more i feel i would have more confidence if it was looked at by the right people!

Its a shame we are so far from you, it may be very easy to sort out when you know what you are looking for. Try and get the photos of the main and big end caps

[timlowthian]

Yeh the Isle of Wight strikes again, not really the best for specialist here either! Ahh yes i knew there was something i was meant to do! I have a day off tomorrow so i will take some then for you!

[Chris]

Either way, in my opinion, the lot needs stripping and rebuilding. If you are havinhg issues like this now, who knows what else is wrong!

[Daemonslayer]

ok completley stuck is definetly wrong.
but what i dont understand yet - you have the timing belt installed as far as i know.In that case turning by hand seems impossible to me from the harmonic balancer side.You would need a wrench and even then quiet some strength.but you already seemed to have tested that by :
By this i mean we used a breaker bar and all a mates strength to rotate it a very fractional bit

check this out :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Q72IFU599Y
assume with rods+pistons its more dificult,but if lubed right very similar to that!

like chris said - some piston pins dont like some rods,f.e. eagle rods or vise versa,i can verify that by using eagle rods with CP pistons,the rods had to be honed a bit to give the right clearance.I cant tell if they really would go so far to stuck..but it was pretty tight..

we can speculate all day long.I dont see a reason to freak him out more then he is
my tip is main bearings or rod bearings.-/crankshaft

Check for that turning issue first/what bob says/or halfloosen the caps.I wouldn hazzle arround with it no more assembled.

good luck!

[schaumi]

which clutch do you have mounted?
once i had a problem with a spec pressureplate which was somehow to thick and interferenced with the bellhousing of the gearbox

[Slarty]

Ok, quite likely a massively dumb question, but you don't have the car in whilst trying to turn the engine over do you?