Putting a Chrysler Industrial Hemi in a 52 Dodge truck

Yes I do....I don't see myself ever tossing that high-tech and very expensive tool.

 

Question about the front crank bolt.

I replaced the harmonic balancer with a new one from hot heads. If I crank down the bolt till it's super tight (80 ft.pds+), the balancer is too far in and the crank pulley doesn't line up.

I pulled the balancer off and tightened the bolt until the pulley is now lined up. The torque on the bolt is about 60lbs. With my torque wrench set at 70lbs, I can still turn the bolt and the balancer moves inward with each turn.

If I put locktight on the bolt and have it set to 60lbs....will the balancer stay put?

OR

Do I have to remove the balancer and send it back to hotheads because something just isn't right?

The hotheads balancer is a Dodge 340 unit with the insides turned to match the hemi diameter and with the timing marks removed.

 

If it were me, I would torque the bolt to specs, ( is it 80 ft. lbs.?), and insure that the balancer is "bottomed out", and shim the pulley to align with the rest.

That is, if the pulley is removeable from the balancer.

But I truly believe the balancer should be bottomed out.

 

When the balancer is all the way in, do you have any problems besides the front pulley not lining up? Does the balancer contact the front cover or anything like that?

The balancer has to be all the way in, it should bottom out. The bolt isn't there to locate it, its just there to keep it from coming off. So, if the only problem is the pulley not lining up, don't try to fix it by moving the balancer. You'll have to shim the pulley, or find one with different dimensions to line the pulleys up.

Now, if the balancer is hitting the front cover, you may have to shim the balancer. That will be more entertaining. But it still has to bottom out on something, and the bolt needs to be torqued to spec.

This isn't an uncommon problem, for some reason aftermarket balancers for small block Mopar's are notorious for not being the same dimensions as the originals. I've heard of more than a few aftermarket brands not being able to get it right, either having the balancer not bottom out until after it hits the front cover, or more commonly not having the front pulley line up. And keep in mind this is even on small block mopars, the engine that the balancer was designed for. Do you know who Hot Heads is getting their balancers from?

 

Yeah, as Bryan says, the hub has to bottom out. This is what keeps the crank sprocket in place.
You can shim the hub or the sheave, which ever is easier.

For those with an interest, any 'older' Mopar balancer will work although the small block is the usual choice. Even the fat 360 type can be used if the odd balance is dealt with. The fat balancer is helpful if you've been mucking about with the innards...
The timing marks can be removed with a light skim cut in the lathe or just ignore them and put new ones where you need them. Timing tape is convenient.
As to the keyway, the Hemis uses a .25" wide key and the newer stuff uses a .1875" key so you can rebroach the hub or use a stepped key.
No rocket science here.

New balancers are available from places lik Durabond. Several vendors on ebay. Good prices.

Gary

 

The balancer isn't hitting the front cover, so I'm good there.

For a pulley spacer, where's a good place to find them....or am I going to have to figure out how to get one made?

 

Got the balancer firmly mounted and measured. I need a 1/4" spacer to move the pulley out a bit. Any leads on where to find something that will fit? I've tried searching on google and the major online parts houses and not finding anything the right thickness.

I'm thinking it would be best to have a solid spacer and not use something like washers behind the pulley to move it out...right?

 

For a ¼" I'd be tempted to stack some flat washers in there, but it will be a juggling act to keep the in place...maybe glue them together?
If you have a friendly lazer cutting shop you could use the sheave for a pattern and cut one but it likey won't be inexpensive.

If you have a lathe and a scrap balancer you could cut a ¼" ring off the hub and put it in front of the crank gear.

.

 

To move a pulley out, I once got a huge washer, a little smaller than the inside of the hub. I filed notches in the outside of the washer to miss the bolts, and it went well. So maybe a variation of that idea might work.

 

Got any extra lower pulleys? Cut the mounting surface off and stack them up.
That or you could get a 1/4" thick piece of steel plasma cut to the ID and OD and then transfer the holes. Wouldn't think it would throw off the balance that close to center, wouldn't be any worse then stacking washers. Gene

 

Dividers, holesaw, sawzall, transfer punches and a 17/64 drill come to mind.

 

Bring me the old balancer, Dan. I'll put it on the lathe at work and cut you a 1/4" spacer. Don't mess around with this.

 

A friend of mine owns a machine shop on the south end of Greensboro. He makes spacers for fords, so I brought him my pulley and he making one to fit it.

If what I get back doesn't work out, I'll bring the old balancer over to you.

 

Ok. Good.

 

This bitch is fighting me every step of the way.

Last night, I mounted the radiator and started to fill it up with coolant so I could get it started. I wound up screwing up and putting a water port cover that's on the rear of the heads on it the wrong way, so it was leaking. My fault...so I fixed it and let the sealant set over night.

I go out there today and see that I have a slow & steady drip coming out one of the lower exhaust manifold studs. It wasn't leaking before the teardown this time and the studs weren't removed. So now I have to seal that up...going to try to just unscrew the stud without removing the whole manifold.

Sometimes, I feel like setting fire to this project....hope it's worth it when it's 'done'.

Ok...I feel better now.

 

Time to take a break!

 

Venting is a good thing, it'll be ok Dan!

 

Your doing great ... keep at!

 

Just keep thinking "if it was easy anyone could do it." Its not easy, and not everyone can do it. That is part of what makes it worth while. Hang in there, it will be better. gene

 

You've come this far. A little further isn't going to kill you. Hang in there, you'll be glad you did in the long run when you get to cruise in your truck.

 

I totally agree!

 

Got it fired up today. Runs smooth too. Feeling better now!

 

...about damn time......slacker....

Ya know Dan, we're still waiting for the video of that thing 'boiling the hides'...

All kidding aside. It is good to hear that you're back on track.

Gary

 

Thanks Gary. I should be roadworthy by next weekend...so the video will be up then.

I got a lot done while i took it apart again.
Redid all the springs and shackles
Painted the radiator...the aluminum finish just didnt look right
Sound deadener on the floors and in the doors

So i think it will handle better than it did a few months ago.

 

one thing i remember with swapping an ind engine is to use different motor mounts. ind. motor mounts are great for constant rpm but you'll be driving this one on the street--use automotive motor mounts. great project! DAN C

 

Noticed today that I still have a very slow drip coming from that one exhaust stud.

When I took it apart last weekend, I used the copper colored high-temp RTV on the stud. Then I waited overnight so it could cure before I filled it back up with coolant. I also dried the hole as much as I could before putting the stud back in.

Did I not use enough sealant (although I was generous with it) or should I be using a different sealer.

 

I would use a thread sealer on the stud instead of RTV. RTV is better for sealing gaskets, not so much on threads.

 

I'm with Bryan on this. But then I don't even like to use rtv on much of anything... Blue locktite is also good.

When you pull the offending stud out, chase the threads with a tap to get the rtv out of there.

.

 

Nothing's working for me. Tried thread sealer and it leaked. Then i tried some teflon tape. It sealed, but i think because the shoulder of the stud had some tape on it and that sealed against the block. But when i put the nut on to secure the header, the stud turned and leaked again.

When the stud is going in, it is a bit wobbly...and its the right size stud. I even used a new stud and same thing.

I dint think i want to do anything permenent like use jb weld.

What next? Drill and tap to the next size up or helicoil it? Will a helicoil seal enough to avoid the dripping?

This is the only thing keeping me off the road.

 

Have you tried a new stud? My bet would be on the threads in the head, but if you're using an old stud that may be compounding the problem.

I would heli-coil it if it needs to be repaired. Drilling into the head and retapping it isn't the easiest thing to do, especially if you're going to leave the engine in the truck. It's hard to get the right angle and keep everything straight and true. Plus then you'll probably have to open up the hole in the manifold for the larger stud. The heli-coil should seal well enough, you could loctite it in just for extra insurance. I wouldn't mess with the JB weld for this.