Did I finally figure out what's wrong with my Stroker??

[Billygoat]

Well I pulled the engine, and I'm glad I did--let this be a lesson to anyone who decides not to degree the crank and cam with the head off, or throws an engine together in a hurry. When I had the engine on my stand I noticed a large ring of carbon around the tops of the cylinders, and the pistons weren't where they should be. I checked the casting number on the crank, and sure enough the shop that ground it gave me the wrong crank back--it was from a 1989 4.0L, not 4.2L. Naturally, that shop has since gone out of business, and with no other real option I ordered a crank from 505 Performance. Of course, FedEx just about destroyed the package and I had to have the crank straitened and polished and another set of bearings sent out (505 filed a claim with FedEx and is reimbursing me btw). I finally test fit the crank and bearings in the block last night and while the rod journals had about perfect tolerance of .0018, the mains were all around .003 (measured with plastigauge). The spec for the mains is .0015-.0025, and after calling 505 they are sending me out .001 undersize bearings and all I have to do is ship back the standard size Clevites. It was suggested that the block might be loose, seeing as 505 typically gets .002-.0025 tolerances on the mains, and I was told I could get by with the looser tolerances but it's up to me which bearings I run. I measured the 4.0 crank in the block and it was pretty loose--.0025 to .003--which makes me inclined to believe 505. The .001 undersize have already been ordered, but after I got off the phone I remembered that I installed a high volume oil pump while the block was on the stand (oil pressure was 10-25 hot before I pulled the engine). My plan is to run the undersize bearings since they should put me just within tolerance, somewhere around .0018-.002 on the mains, but if anyone thinks the looser mains would be better with the HV pump feel free to chime in.

Things I learned:
1. Never rush an engine build
2. A new catalytic converter can do amazing things

[Retlaw01XJ]

the mains were all around .003 (measured with plastigauge). The spec for the mains is .0015-.0025, and after calling 505 they are sending me out .001 undersize bearings
....installed a high volume oil pump while the block was on the stand (oil pressure was 10-25 hot before I pulled the engine). My plan is to run the undersize bearings since they should put me just within tolerance, somewhere around .0018-.002 on the mains,

I had the same situation.....crank mains were a bit undersize so I bought the Mopar 0.001" undersize bearings. They're expensive!
With stock type oil pump I'm running 50-60 psi and 40+ at idle.

Extra bearing clearance and a hi volume pump would give more oil flow and cooling to the bearings in case you want to race at the Daytona 500 or something.....
The stock pump and clearances will suffice for most of us.

Good to hear you found the cause of the problem. It should run MUCH better this time!

[Billygoat]

Problem: 505 doesn't actually carry .001 oversize bearings even though I ordered a set over the phone from the owner. I received a set of standard Engine Pro bearings in the mail instead. I called 505 several times only for my calls to be automatically forwarded to a full inbox without ringing first, then finally borrowed a friend's phone and got a hold of 505 on the first try. They sounded a bit surprised to hear me but said that the Engine Pro bearings run about .005 smaller than the Clevite's and should work fine (if this is true then the mains would all be right at max tolerance of .0025). I have never heard of Engine Pro, but the box says Made in Mexico (despite some people claiming Engine Pro is made by ACL, who supposedly makes their bearings in Tasmania) and they appear to have lathe marks on the bearing surface. Has anyone used these Engine Pro bearings? Should I even bother test fitting them or just send them back and order a set of bearings from the dealership for $323? I am not happy that 505 told me they would have a set of .001 oversize Clevite bearings on my doorstep in two days only to have a set of cheapo bearings of a different size show up 4 days later because they don't even sell the .001 size (which they must have known when they took my order). I did a search and found this http://www.jeepstrokers.com/forum/viewt ... 36&p=26572 which makes me suspicious of them trying to sell me the cheaper bearings from the get-go (they get their cranks from the same people as Scat, and I am not the only one with this exact same tolerance issue). Naturally I am hesitant to trust their advice after this, thus why I am posting again on here. So, any advice from somebody who isn't going to take my credit card info, ship me a different product than I ordered, then forward all incoming calls from my cell phone to a full inbox?

[Retlaw01XJ]

.... order a set of bearings from the dealership for $323?.....

That was me that posted about the mains being too small on the SCAT crank. I haven't heard of any others with that problem besides yourself.
I was measuring 2.4990" which is smaller than the 2.4996-2.5001 Chrysler spec. Rod journals were right on at 2.095".

I paid about $160 for a set of the 0.001" undersize bearings from the dealer:
PN 83507080-AB, $15.81 each, times six = $94.86
PN 83507086-AB, (thrush bearing, need one) $63.35
If you know someone in the auto service business, you should be able to get a 10-15% discount off list if you order thru them.
I have no experience with the Engine Tech bearings.

You should measure the main bearing bores in the block. Sizing of those can affect bearing crush and oil clearance 'slightly'.... maybe a few tenths (0.0001").

[Billygoat]

It looks like one other person in that thread had the same problem, but still I thought there were more when I first read it. Unfortunately it looks like either prices have gone up for the dealership bearings, or they are just more expensive where I live. It is tempting to just use the cheap bearings, but I need this engine to be reliable and I don't want to have to pull it a second time. Installing what they sent me will put the mains at max clearance if what I was told is correct, so any wear will put them out of spec, and it will still be a challenge to make my rescheduled Rubicon run this weekend. Honestly nothing ever goes right with this Jeep; I've been screwed over too many times by dishonest shops and arrogant salesman. If anyone can chime in and comment on the quality of the made in Mexico Engine Pro bearings it will both help my decision and reflect on 505's decision to send out different bearings from what I ordered. I just can't find anything online about these bearings, which makes me not very confident even if 505 claims to use them with no problems--I don't want to run 20-50 race oil like they suggested over the phone.

[Billygoat]

I found an online supplier with similar prices to the ones you listed...for $163 shipped it's worth it for me to have bearings with tighter tolerances and OEM durability. I can't risk spinning a bearing in the middle of nowhere--I don't currently have a means of towing the Jeep, and vehicle recovery is not a fun idea in a lot of the places I go to.

[SilverXJ]

.003" clearance on a daily driver makes me squirm. If it has a high HP race car that gets torn apart once or more a season it wouldn't be a big deal. I wouldn't had the damage crank fixed and told 505 to send another. It was their problem that it arrived damaged. I would politely explain the situation to then and ask them to send a new crank.

[superstingray77]

Sadly I had major issues with 505 and damaged items in shipping, head was "lost" for a month then showed up all banged up. By then I had lost trust and had another highly respected local head shop go back through it all, the 505 porting was a bit rough they cleaned it up flow benched/matched it all etc and cc'd it. My first set of forged pistons and rods showed up completely destroyed. Had them send another set which they shipped with .030 rings for .060 pistons. 3 days later I got the correct rings started to build the engine got to the final piston and the ARP rod bolt wouldnt come out! DAMMIT, so still had the first set of pistons and rods on hand, local shop changed the rod with one from the first set, then balanced it to the other 5. Cost 50 bucks to me not to deal with 505 again, money well spent. My crank is a Scat Crank and tolerances were good, i had it spin balanced and the block line honed and used Clevite bearings. Will i use 505 again... NEVER.

Bought my first kit from Titan, that engine wiped the cam because they had the seat pressures on the new head set at 135 and 300+ off seat. Lesson learned have someone you trust setup the head or do it yourself.

I had my cam ground by Lunati and sent it off to be nitrided, I learned a similar lesson to you with a Comp cam in an olds 442 clone /350 I built about 7 years ago... didnt degree it in just installed it straight on the markers. Engine wouldnt run over 4000 rpm... finally pulled cover, put degree wheel on it and found it was cut like 60 degrees off i couldnt believe it ran, much less didnt result in valve/piston collision.
Thats my 505 / Titan rant..... glad you got yours sorted out!