Secondchance - 380 build begins!

[A26B]

Originally Posted by Scrrem

That's what has me really worried with my build, this is the second build that I have seen that have encountered this issue.
Rich

There is a slight difference in the fabrication of the King thrust bearing, compared to the OEM thrust bearing. The OEM thrust bearing flanges are spot/tack welded to the bearing shell and does not have any fillet on the back side. The King thrust bearing is formed from one piece and has a very small fillet which interferes with the bearing surface in the block (both upper & lower crankcases), resulting in the bearing not being completely seated. The result is a tight bearing that doesn't allow the crank to turn freely. The solution is to simply grind a slight chamfer (abt 1/32") on the outside edges of the bearing surface if the block so that the bearing shell will fit completely into the main bores.

When we ship a set of King Main Bearing to a customer, a detailed instruction sheet is included which describes the modification required.

Personally, I think the King Main Thrust Bearing is better than the OEM. I have seen a few of the OEM bearing that the thrust flange welds have cracked/broken.

FWIW, we also had King make +0.0005" main bearings in addition to the std size, so the main clearance could be in the middle instead of the top of the recommended clearance when building a new engine.