thoughts on removing main cap Options

[enderswift]

Hey 6g,

I'm working on attaching the upper oil pan to my 3s but got stuck on the old ARP bolt clearance issue. I thought it would be easy to grind away some excess aluminum from the pan but I don't like how thin the casting is in that area. Plus the bridgeport I want to use wont be free for a while.

so my question is:

what possible harm do you see in removing the arp bolts from the one main cap and just reusing the old bolts. I want to know if anyone thinks removing one main cap, and then re-torquing it will be a problem. The FSM is pretty strict on torquing everything in a specific pattern so I don't know how I feel about working on just one main.

input is appreciated!

[Special_Edy]

On the old chevys Ive always removed them one at a time, as for a yota I have no clue.

I would imagine that the torquing procedure is for installing the crankshaft, because crankshafts are extremely sensative and must be seated in perfectly straight and evenly. If you are just removing one cap then the crankshaft wont move, so there is little risk of bending the crank or marring a crank journal. Also remember that there is a few thousandths of an inch of clearance within all the main bearings, so the maincaps dont actually put any pressure on the crank, just the block.

Just make sure it goes back in the same direction it was facing before you removed it. And it would hurt to spend a few dollars on some plastigauge and measure the clearance while youre messing with it.

This post has been edited by Special_Edy: Aug 9, 2012 - 2:00 PM

[enderswift]

On the old chevys Ive always removed them one at a time, as for a yota I have no clue.

I would imagine that the torquing procedure is for installing the crankshaft, because crankshafts are extremely sensative and must be seated in perfectly straight and evenly. If you are just removing one cap then the crankshaft wont move, so there is little risk of bending the crank or marring a crank journal. Also remember that there is a few thousandths of an inch of clearance within all the main bearings, so the maincaps dont actually put any pressure on the crank, just the block.

Just make sure it goes back in the same direction it was facing before you removed it. And it would hurt to spend a few dollars on some plastigauge and measure the clearance while youre messing with it.

Just the reasoning I wanted to hear, and you are absolutely right about about the oil clearance between the crank and the mains. There's just a lot of second guessing going on now that large portions of the motor are assembled. Thanks for the input.