Block assembly question

[Vanspeed]

Putting my 37 back together. Crank and pistons/rods are back in. Today I am putting the cam and valve train back in. Do I put the number one cylinder at TDC and align the cam/crank marks? Somebody told me not to bother, just align the marks. Is this true? He also said only worry about TDC when installing the distributor.

[flatjack9]

The marks will only align when 1 is at TDC.

[Vanspeed]

Excellent, thanks flatjack.

[JSeery]

Your 37 block/crank does not have a TDC mark/indicator. The cam and crank have to be in the correct position for the marks to line up. And again, on the distributor, there are no TDC marks to line up!

Now, as a suggestion, if it were me I would establish some TDC mark and add an indicator for future reference. Make a piston stop by bolting a metal strap across the #1 cylinder. Turn the engine until it contacts the stop and mark the crank pulley in relationship to the indicator you use (there is a resent thread with several good indicator suggestions). Now turn the engine 360 degree in the opposite direction until it contacts the stop again and again mark the pulley. TDC is halfway between the two marks.

[V8COOPMAN]

Originally Posted by JSeery

Now, as a suggestion, if it were me I would establish some TDC mark and add an indicator for future reference. Make a piston stop by bolting a metal strap across the #1 cylinder. Turn the engine until it contacts the stop and mark the crank pulley in relationship to the indicator you use (there is a resent thread with several good indicator suggestions). Now turn the engine 360 degree in the opposite direction until it contacts the stop again and again mark the pulley. TDC is halfway between the two marks.

......Now turn the engine (as far as it will go) in the opposite direction until it contacts the stop again and again mark the pulley. TDC is halfway between the two marks. DD

[GOSFAST]

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I would just put a tip here about assembling these Flatties.

It's much easier on the entire procedure if you put the crank, timing set, and cam in first. Set all the valve clearances at this point then put the pistons in. I believe you may find it much easier.

It's actually common procedure to install the cam first just in case there's any issues with how it fits?? These are not "etched-in-stone" rules, only recommendations.

Thanks, Gary in N.Y.

P.S. I know your pistons are already installed and this is a "late" tip in your case but it may help others here down the road.

[JSeery]

Originally Posted by V8COOPMAN

......Now turn the engine (as far as it will go) in the opposite direction until it contacts the stop again and again mark the pulley. TDC is halfway between the two marks. DD

I wondered how long that would take when I wrote it!

[V8COOPMAN]

Originally Posted by JSeery

I wondered how long that would take when I wrote it!

Ahhh........WE knew that YOU knew what ya meant! DD

[fftoddster]

Can the procedure to find TDC) be used on a complete engine? Is there a tool (piston stop) made that screws into the spark plug hole?

[V8COOPMAN]

Originally Posted by fftoddster

Can the procedure to find TDC) be used on a complete engine? Is there a tool (piston stop) made that screws into the spark plug hole?

The problem with that idea is that the spark plug is NOT situated OVER the piston. DD

[fftoddster]

That's what I was afraid of. Done it before on a reg ohv eng. Was not sure if Spark plug was close enough. Now seeing pic it is quite obvious it is not.

Guess it was wishful thinking.
Thanks

[Vanspeed]

Valve train and cam are in. When rotating, the #1 piston is at TDC when the cam and crank pulley marks align. Thanks guys.

[JSeery]

Originally Posted by fftoddster

That's what I was afraid of. Done it before on a reg ohv eng. Was not sure if Spark plug was close enough. Now seeing pic it is quite obvious it is not.

Guess it was wishful thinking.
Thanks

Yes you can do the same thing, just takes a little different approach. Need something you can insert into the spark plug hole that is flexible enough to reach over to the area between the piston and the head and soft enough to not damage the piston or head. There are lots of options, I would use a piece of copper (believe Ol Ron suggest a zip-tie). Just don't get carried away, turn the engine slowly and stop when it hits the resistance (if you start smashing what your using you won't get consistent results). With either approach I always want to repeat it several times to be sure I am getting contestant results.

[Ronnie]

Originally Posted by fftoddster

Can the procedure to find TDC) be used on a complete engine? Is there a tool (piston stop) made that screws into the spark plug hole?

This has been discussed at length many times Bruce L will chime in with a short tutorial about using a ty wrap that does a decent job if the engine is in the car.Quite easy as you will discover.Ball is in Bruce's court. "LOL"

R

[Ronnie]

This works well also.
http://www.btc-bci.com/~billben/tdc.htm

R