Engine Bearings

[SS/GN]

Looking at building a new motor, any recommendations on bearings?? I have always used Clevite.
Thanks

 

[PSID6]

Keep using them

 

[Jay J]

The black ones

 

[SS/GN]

Black ones ???

 

[Jay J]

Do not have a part number--but they are harder and not silver in color.

 

[Phoneguy]

You can have the ones that were just removed from my engine ....

Bryan

 

[earlbrown]

I like the FM A-series bored aluminum bearings.

and based on Clevites recent track record with me, I wouldn't use them on my lawn mower.

 

[Jay J]

Earl: When did they go sour?

 

[earlbrown]

Not sure. I used a set against my better judgement on my BBC boat engine. A couple hours later I'm on the bow with a paddle.

The "gooey" top layer decided to roll up on the rod bearings and grab the crank. The Mains had no signs of anything yet the vertical clearance increased over .001".

A 10/10 crank with a set of A-series later with no other changes ran like a champ for many hours. I tore it down to change pistons and could still see the witness marks where the bore gauge slid in and out (giggidy).

 

[SS/GN]

A few friends use the Clevite Calico bearings but have not seen them listed for the Buicks. I also notice some guys recommending the bearings from a newer 3800 engine. Why use these for our application??

 

[earlbrown]

the 3800 rod bearings are a drop in replacement and they are almost as wide as the rod. For some reason 3.8 bearings are much skinnier than the rod and crank journal. It's compounded being an off center rod arrangement having a slimmer footprint too.

 

[SCOOBY DOO]

Kevin...PM Joe on the other board and ask the brand of bearings he uses in my engines. I beat on this engine for 3 years at the track almost every weekend. When Joe tore it down for a freshening this fall...the bearings were mint. The most important thing for bearing longevity...is NO KR! You see KR...you get your foot out of it...it's that simple. FWIW I change the oil and filter every weekend...15/40...Wix filter...and a can of EOS. If you're building your own engine...once again...PM Joe...and he'll be happy to give you the clearances and ring gaps. I got absolutely zero blowby...even at silly boost levels.

 

[turbodave231]

For main bearings, I have been using FM 107M bearings. They are a performance tri-metal bearing and you can still get a .001 undersize set so fitting bearings for proper clearance is still an option. I've never had a bad experience with Clevite (unlike what Earl stated in his post). I use Clevite rod bearings. On narrow rod applications I'm using cb1228P bearings, and on wide rods I use the H series. I like Durabond for the cam bearings.

I don't like Aluminum (bimetal) bearings for a performance application for a couple of reasons: They tolerate very little dirt (low embedability), they won't handle higher loads as well and they have a lower conformability than a Tri-metal bearing

 

[SS/GN]

I found this in my search, another good read
http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/th...to-get-bearings-to-get-for-650-hp-109.380656/