Engine break-in?

[volvoguys]

About two years ago I spun a main bearing in my Series V. The crank was pretty gouged and the cylinder walls worn so I decided to ‘freshen’ another engine instead of rebuild the original. The replacement was a running engine and once torn down the drive components were spot-on to the factory dimensions. So, no machine work was done since the bores, crank, cam, etc, were just what they were meant to be.

We replaced most mechanical parts, rings, bearings, gaskets, oil pump, etc. Lapped the valve seats, put in new guides and springs, and opened the head water passageways just a bit.

Mounted the engine and slowly cranked the engine up to 40psi. Once there we gave it spark and fuel and she fired right up. A few seconds later we shut her down and walked away …. for about a year! We’re about to resurrect it again but there’s a bit of debate about how long and hard to let the engine run.

Opinions please. Any break-in necessary?

Thanks, Mark …… volvoguys

 

[chazza]

The piston rings will need bedding-in.

The best way is a variety of throttle openings on a hilly road; going up hill, use a high gear with the throttle wide open, whilst the revs are moderate, this apparently puts maximum gas pressure on the rings helping them wear to the shape of the bore.

Don't be scared to take it for a long drive, but don't keep it on steady revs,

Cheers Charlie

 

[sunalp]

Mark,
You should be OK with fresh oil in there. Drive it , just not too hard for the first 500 miles or so.
Then change the oil and filter to make sure there are no metal bits in there and adjust your valves.
Then you should be good to go!
Hope that helps,
Steve

 

[alpine_64]

Agree with carlie you need to bed the rings properly so you dont damage or wash the bores. As he said different engine loads and no constant rpms. The laoding the motor up a hill in a higher gear is a good one, but dont let it labour to hard at the lower end of the revs.

 

[volvoguys]

Thank you for the helpful replies.
By "moderate revs", what RPM range would be good and how long (time) should I drive up hilly roads at varying R's for bedding the rings?
Also, would it be advisable to use leaded gas?
Mark ..... v

 

[alpine_64]

Mark .. Assume you have modern vavke seats and valves so leaded shouldn't be needed. A good qaulity break in oil to help the lifters .. Maybe brad penn.

As for revs 2300-4000 should be fine. Let the revs rise and fall and load it up.

Id break in for 500miles then torque hed then do another 500 and repeat.

What type of head gasket is in it?

 

[65beam]

Mark,
Michael mentioned the Brad Penn oils. They blend an excellant SAE 30 break in oil. The Brad Penn name is being transitioned to use the name PennGrade due to the buyout by D A Lubricants a couple years ago. Same great product.

 

[volvoguys]

Last year we filled the sump with Castrol 30W for the 15 seconds the motor ran. Shall I drain all the Castrol in lieu of the Brad Penn? New valves and hardened seats weren't done to the head, only new guides minor widening of the waterways and lapping the seats.
Don't remember the brand of head gasket, only that Rick (SS) supplied it.
M ..... v

 

[chazza]

Last year we filled the sump with Castrol 30W for the 15 seconds the motor ran. Shall I drain all the Castrol in lieu of the Brad Penn? New valves and hardened seats weren't done to the head, only new guides minor widening of the waterways and lapping the seats.
Don't remember the brand of head gasket, only that Rick (SS) supplied it.
M ..... v

Good idea to change the oil if it has been sitting for that long.

If you don't have one, fit a magnet to the sump plug as well.

 

[65beam]

Last year we filled the sump with Castrol 30W for the 15 seconds the motor ran. Shall I drain all the Castrol in lieu of the Brad Penn? New valves and hardened seats weren't done to the head, only new guides minor widening of the waterways and lapping the seats.
Don't remember the brand of head gasket, only that Rick (SS) supplied it.
M ..... v

Mark,
The Castrol should be fine. It has probably 800 ppm of zinc and this is not a high horse race engine plus the fact that there still is zinc in the oil galleys if you didn't have the block dipped to clean it. Brad Penn is an oil that that has additional additive added and is used by folks with big horse, hard run engines. As long as the oil added after the first drain has SN (current spec) in the starburst label you should be fine. If you decide to add more zinc as a safeguard it's available at any of the big box parts stores.

 

[volvoguys]

Hi-octane leaded fuel? Lead additive?

 

[65beam]

Hi-octane leaded fuel? Lead additive?

Gas with lead has been gone for several decades. Advance, Autozone,, etc all sell lead additive. It's an upper cylinder lube that replaces and does the same thing lead did. It works and is environmentally safe.

 

[volvoguys]

I have a supplier about 10 minutes away who sells leaded 103 octane racing fuel. A bit pricey but if would be worthwhile if it helps in the break-in of a somewhat 'freshened' engine.
M

 

[volvoguys]

So, last night a buddy and I sorted all lingering issues and fired the ole 'Beam up again. Ran kind of rough at first and shut it down. Checked the static timing and it was waaaay off. Reset the distributor and it settled down a bunch. Set the timing via the timing marks, tweeked the carbs and it idled nicely at 850RPM. Took a trip around a couple of blocks and then we quaffed a few IPAs for a job well done.
Temps here in PA were about 90° with a heat index of 102° just about the time I set out on a nice drive to bed the rings. About 45 minutes later I returned home, soaked in sweat from the heat & sun but well satisfied with the efforts. Car runs out great, no smoke, no puddles, great OP and no overheating!
Its about 2:48 in the afternoon and I'm about to crack the first brew of the day. After all, its a holiday and I figger I deserve some suds to celebrate.
Back on the road.
M ..... v

 

[sunalp]

Good to hear Mark! We have just about the same here, weather wise, but I beat you by about an
hour on the suds!
Cheers!
Steve