Engine - End Caps query

Phil

Phil

Super Moderator
are the engine end caps specific to the block they are with?

I.E can you not swap the end caps from another 4e block?

also is there any way of telling if a set of endcaps did indeed come with a particular block?


(background
recently bought a block which came with some endcaps and i know it has had a few owners all of which own multiple blocks and endcaps so potential for them to pass on a random set by accident is worth considering)

Phil
 
dac69er

dac69er

Super Moderator
as far as i am aware the caps on the block and the head are fitted and then the parts are machined so they match.

due to the tolerances during manufacture, chances are they will be pretty interchangeable. best bet would be to take them to a machine shop. they can fit them and measure to match them up.

if your doing a stock rebuild for yourself and not going mad performance wise i would personally dry fit them myself, measure as best you can and take a best guess. chances are they will be fine :)
 
S

Skalabala

Member +
They are not interchangeable!
At best if you have a real good machinist you can have the caps and block skimmed and then re-line bored.

Scrap the block to spare yourself a lot of problems :(
 
G

gorganl2000

Lifer
i've always been told they are not interchangeable ---cam/main/rod caps
was led to believe the engine would eventually destroy itself if they got mixed up

i agree a good machinist should be able to sort it out, however the cost factor versus getting a "reliable" used block may worth investigating
 
Rory

Rory

Lifer
triple j said:
U could check your self with some plastic gauge
Click to expand...

Its not this you should be worried about...
Its the alignment of the cap against the crank and then the alignment of the 4/5 caps together..
Bear in mind that just because the caps, blocks etc are manufactured in the same place does not mean the tolerances that they were machined to will be exactly the same. A few thou here or thee will cause havoc on a rotating assembly...
 
M

Murray

Member +
Skalabala said:
Cylinder head cam caps and connecting rod caps are interchangeable guys.
Line boring there is easy and cheap.
Click to expand...

No one is saying other wise. Line boring is easy but im unsure about cheap. If you have to get it done you will change the centre line of the crank in the block.
Might be minimal or it might be bad, it all depends on how far off the caps are to the block.
 
dac69er

dac69er

Super Moderator
Phil said:
If you were local that would suit well :)

I've another engine here I can use.

Really just wondering now how I can tell if these caps are a match for this block.?

They may well have come with it.

Phil
Click to expand...

get them checked at a machine shop. they can check everything is true and can measure it all up.
 
S

Skalabala

Member +
weeJohn said:
Dont think so mate, tried interchanging cam caps before and they have been way out, even to the naked eye.
Click to expand...

That is why I said "Line boring there is easy and cheap"
It needs to be re line bored. Skimmed on both surfaces and then line bore.
I have done all these things before :)
 
5e colin

5e colin

Member +
cant use them from other blocks otherwise you will nead 2 bearing cups in 1 spot going to be really hard to measure that ha ha

you can always get a engine shop to machine them to size if oversize bearings allow it ???
 
S

Skalabala

Member +
The problem with the main caps are that they seat with four surfaces.
When the cap sits loose on the vertical mating surfaces on the block then it can not be used.
If it sits tight or is to big you can carry on with machining.
The use of over size thrust washers may be compulsory if machining has been done to fit different caps.
 
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