hello honda-tech folks...

ive got a 89 std hatch ive been building for the last few years right now ive got a a6/z6 mini me in it right now, runs strong.

but i bought the car with a d16z6 that i want to try to build now, the oil pick up tube stopped up with rtv sealant (not my doing) and as a result it killed a couple of bearings, the very center main bearing, and number 3 connecting rod bearing (im positive cause its the only one i can shake back and forth). the journals dont appear to be gouged at all nice and smooth all of them but the center looks like it may have some bearing material embedded in it im not sure. its a little bit ummm "bluer" i guess than the rest. this is my first attempt at a rebuild and id like to do it right. i guess my question is can i turn the bad stuff out or do i need to find another crankshaft which right now is proving hard to find

 

take it to a local machine shop and have it inspected. if it isn't too bad then they may only need to re surface then micro polish it

 

You can check it yourself with plastigage and a micrometer, but the machine shop will be easier. Offhand, it sounds like you should replace it.

 

You can NOT check it with plasti-gauge... You can however check bearing clearances with plasti-gauge as a primitive/not as accurate method though. To check the journals of a crankshaft you MUST use a micrometer. The reason being unless you do plasti-gauge 100 times you won't be able to find out if the journal is out of round or tapered. This is where the misnomer of what "blueprinting" an engine comes into play. All blueprinting an engine means is to go though and measure all the clearances of every part that measurable. You can set an engine to the loose/tight/middle/or mixture of readings.

All in all, if you are unsure of what you are doing it never hurts to take it to a shop to have checked out. If you can feel anything with your finger nails it needs to be serviced. If something is "blued" the signs don't look so good.

 

well upon further inspection and with a brighter light i noticed the center jourrnal isnt really blued but it has blue colored specks in random places. im guessing bearing material, im going to get it torn down the rest of the way and ill update.

as far as bearings go should i let the machine shop order them, ill be doing all the assembly

 

the machine shop will order standard sized bearings and then you will have to measure to see if they will even fit. then you will need to order whatever other sized bearings you need to make it all work.

 

ahhh i see, this is my first crack at actually doing my own re-build so any tips/help from somebody skilled is greatly appreciated. kinda sad ive been toolin around with hondas since high school and im just now trying to build my own motor

 

heres some pictures hopefully they do right lol

 

ill have some more soon

 

When you are trying to look at things that are measured in ten-thousandths, it helps to use a high quality camera and not a cell phone. Regardless, as I clearly stated before - if you can feel anything on the journals with your finger nails then it needs work. The rod on the other hand looks pretty bad. Either way, why cheap out? It doesn't seem like you have the tools required to do a proper analysis so why not take it to a shop?

 

yeah i know....dont bash me man i obviously now know for sure that it needs to be turned and it wasnt a phone just an older digital camera....smarty pants...ill continue to take pictures as i break it down and take more when i start to actually build the thing

 

and there was no need to use my fingernail, theres a bunch of bearing material on the rod journal that rod came off of