I have started into my re-build of my 75 225.

can someone point me to information on proper break in lube for bearings? everyone I have talked to in my area gives me a different answer.

one guy told me to put grease on only one side of the mains, another said lube was a waste, another recomended a brand I knew was crap.......

I have used white grease, STP, STP and 30 w oil mixed, and straight 30w oil with equal success. It doesn't really matter as long as you use something. Big thing is to not rev the engine to the sky when it starts.

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Official Cookie and Mater Tormentor.

Don't use a grease any heavier than something like white lubriplate, DEFINITELY not wheel bearing or chassis lube! I prefer any one of the "engine assembly lubricants" that you can buy at almost any parts store over plain old grease. Don't use cam break-in grease (except on the cam LOBES not the cam bearings). Plain old "engine assembly lubricant" is a safe choice.

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I have settled on just 30wt. or better yet 30wt. mixed with a fortifier like STP or GM EOS. I also use only a clear plastic squeeze bottle for assembly lube. I had a problem with a pump type oil can contaminating the oil one time and decided it is not worth risking again. Keep everything CLEAN!

can you explain to me what that is?
are you saying the cam bearing should not have any lube on them? just put it on the lobes after installation of the cam then?

also, when you other folks are saying just to use striaght 30 w, do you mean just dumped into the crankcase like a regular fill up?

White Lubriplate is a brand of lightweight grease.

Cam *bearings* need an assembly lube or oil, but the cam *lobes* should be coated with the special cam break-in lube that comes with the cam and helps etch the lobe surfaces. But its bad for bearings. If you look at pictures of people assembling engines and pay attention closely, you can often see that the cam lobes and cam bearings are coated in different colored lubricants. You should be careful when inserting the cam not to drag the lobes over the bearings in the block, both because it can nick the bearings and because it will get the cam break-in lube on the bearings.

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As assembly lube on bearings.

I break in all my motors on 10-30.

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Official Cookie and Mater Tormentor.

440 magnum:

thanks. I understand that much clearer now.

dennis, how long do you leave the 10-30 in for? change it after a couple hundred miles or so?

I was planning on running full synthetic once its all together.

A lot of people say to start it up and make sure it runs, then immediately dump the oil. Put about 200 miles on the next oil change, and then about 1000 on the third. After that just go to your regular intervals. Personally, I skipped the immediate one and just did one at 200 and 1000.

One thing though; it's important not to switch over to synthetic too quickly. It's important that there is enough friction in there to get the rings to seal, and good synthetics can make that process take a significantly longer amount of time.

Re: lube, personally, I just dunk everything in STP before it goes in. So far I've done two engines, and I haven't had a problem yet. However, if I was going to leave it assembled for quite some time before I started, I would definetly use something a little bit heavier, like the lubriplate engine assembly lube.

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Used to own:
'82 Dodge D150
Erson 270 Cam, O/S valves, mild port work, ~9.5:1 compression

Currently fighting with an '85 VW Cabriolet

My other passion

Let it idle 20 minutes at about 1200 when you get it started, and then change the oil, and filter. The filter change is more important than the oil change, as it will trap the assembly lube, and any meatl particles that might be present.

Don;t forget to put fresh oil back in. With all the excitement at getting it running, it is really easy to overlook something stupidly simple. While it is shut down for the change, retighten various hose clamps, oil pan bolts, etc, to get them reseated. You will most likely see a leak or two when you first get it started. If it has power steering, I like to start it at first with the power steering belt off, if your belt configuration will allow that and still have the water pump working. Don't be alarmed if your temp gauge reads real high, and then suddenly drops. There will likely be a big burp of air behind the thermostat that will finally give way and allow the thermostat to open. You can drill a small hole in the thermostat blade to keep this from happening if you wish. After the engine cools down, you can top off the coolant, and start it up and start tuning.

I always used the lube they sell as engine assembly lube, applied to the bearings as I assemble the engine. It is basically lithium grease, which is also essentially what lubriplate is.

One more tip, and forgive me if you know this already, don;t try and start your engine with the air filter off. If it back fires through the carb, the air filter will keep you from setting your car on fire, and possibly burning your house down in the process.
Sam

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I run one about 500 miles or 50 passes, which ever comes first.

The motor in the car now got 1 street mile before making it's first pass, and it got a 100 shot in low gear before it had 1/2 mile on it.

If it's assembled properly, break-in is bullshyt anyway.

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Official Cookie and Mater Tormentor.

I disagree... regardless of assembly procedure, rings take some friction to get themselves seated and sealing properly. That being said, a 100 shot of juice would be a hell of a good break in procedure.

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Used to own:
'82 Dodge D150
Erson 270 Cam, O/S valves, mild port work, ~9.5:1 compression

Currently fighting with an '85 VW Cabriolet

My other passion

My understanding is the break in is mostly for the cam. If not broken in properly, you can damage a lobe, even before you drive it. This is just what I am told. It states this in pretty much every single rebuild text or manual I have ever read. Maybe it is BS, but it seems a simple thing to live by, and does not take much extra time. It does not cost any extra, except for oil and filter, so why not?
Sam

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Sam,

The cam break-in where one runs the engine above about 1800 RPM or so and not at one particular speed for very long is true of any engine with a flat tappet or sliding contact cam follower. Running the engine slow puts a tremendous amount of pressure on the nose of the cam and also severely reduces lubrication since most cams are splash lubricated. Varying the engine speed moves the point of maximum pressure to different parts of the cam lobe. Roller cam engines do not require this break-in procedure so the largest part of the break-in is for the piston rings. With modern rings and cylinder wall finishes the rings should seat very quickly unless the rings were dunked in something too heavy and/or slippery. To seat the rings there must be gas pressure behind them to force them into contact with the cylinder wall to break through the oil film. This means heavy throttle useage so Slantzilla is right on once the cam is broken in. The local Cat dealer breaks in the engines overhauled at their facility on the dyno under load. They have large water columns to measure crankcase presure. Once the rings start seating the crankcase pressure drops. If the engine is not loaded heavily enough, soon enough the rings will not seat.

Further reading:
http://www.hastingsmanufacturing.com/Se ... cedure.htm
http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm

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Joshua