Engine stand with bearings

[Steve D.]

Has anyone seen an ad for an engine stand with bearings, so that it isn't such a chore to rotate the engine? I found one advertised on the net with a worm gear for rotation, but I haven't found one with bearings. Or, has anyone installed bearings on a stand?

Steve

[Joe L.]

Re: Engine stand with bearings

Steve----

I've never seen one and I don't think that bearings are really necessary. Apply a good coating of EP chassis lube to the inner surfaces of the rotating dowel and the engine will rotate plenty easily enough. You should not have to rotate it that many times when building up the engine, anyway. During piston installation you will have to do it 8 times; thereafter very few times. I expect that if you could find an engine stand with bearings at this point, when you heard the price you'd probably decide that the "standard type" wasn't really so hard to turn, after all.

[John H.]

Re: Engine stand with bearings

It also helps when you load the engine on the stand to orient the four pivoting support legs so you get the C.G. of the block pretty well aligned with the axis of rotation of the stand so you're just rotating the engine, not having the weight offset such that you have to "lift" it as well as rotate it. I always lube the O.D. and I.D. of the pivot tubes as Joe pointed out before loading the engine.

[Mike Geary]

Re: Engine stand with bearings

Steve:

I too was interested in a higher quality engine stand than the Chinese product.
I found the "ultimate engine stand" at my local speed shop right here in Tucson, a hand fabricated unit which was machined high-strength aluminum alloy, beautifully anodized, and with ball bearings throughout. Gorgeous! Of course it was $1700... Supposedly John Force had just ordered a bunch for his operation in Yorba Linda.

Not being in quite the same income bracket as Mr.Force, I have continued my search for a higher-quality stand around $200. The only thing I have found is the Sunex 2300 which looks pretty impressive in the photos, and has the worm gear mechanism you mention.

I would be curious to hear from any owners of the Sunex stand regarding their satisfaction level with this product.

MAG

[Joe L.]

Re: Engine stand with bearings

Mike ans Steve------

One other consideration is this: for the amount of engine building that most hobbyists and amateurs like us perform, it is really difficult to justify a very expensive engine stand. Even most professional engine builders use engine stands which are not a great deal different in design and construction than the relatively economical units which most of us use. Personally, I am wont to purchase a lot of things that I don't need when it comes to things automotive. However, even I can't justify a fancy and sophisticated engine stand. The one that I use is sturdy and well built and serves me perfectly well. Would easier rotation be desirable? Yes, it would, but not enough better to justify replacing my engine stand even if I built 10 times more engines than I do.

[Craig S.]

Re: Engine stand with bearings

I opted to weld up my own from steel stock, a 4"X6" steel rear cross section, and two 4" square legs running forward parallel to each other, all 1/4" wall thickness. I used a 4"X6" section of rectangular stock for the riser post, and fabricated a 4" round section with 3.5" round roating piece with peg holes, I don't recall the wall thickenss of these by they freely rotate. I mate the support length about 10-12" long, and welded on a .75" thick support plate, and fabbed up the support arms with round rod welded on the ends that I bored in my metal lathe. It rotates quite well, and as you can guess there is no visible flex even with a cast iron BB assembled and bolted on. The riser asm is removable, and I built 4 supports for the front and back of the main stand, that allow me to support both a BB or SB Chevy (these are sort of roof truss like supports). I even installed a pushbutton microswitch for starting the engine, and a toggle switch to kill the ignition. Maybe someday I will fixture a radiator support also, meantime, I have been supporting that on other boxes during run in.

Why did I do all of this? Well.....first, I am tool junkie and enjoy making my own, and I couldn't find anything on the market that met my strenth standards and the project only cost me about $80 and time, since much of the steel was a gift from someone cleaning out their garage....Craig

[John H.]

Re: Engine stand with bearings

We have about fifteen of these in a conveyor loop to build Viper engines, with beautifully-made roller-bearing gear reduction heads that make flipping this baby around nearly effortless; very nice pieces, but I don't think even John Force could afford them (about $30K each). But then again, he who dies with the nicest tools wins...


The Ultimate Engine Stand

[artarmstrong]

Re: Engine stand with bearings

I think I recognize that picture!
Art

[Tom B.]

Re: Engine stand with bearings

John,

I'd have to add onto the garage again for that stand.

[John H.]

Re: Engine stand with bearings

Oops! Photo credit to Art Armstrong (during our Michigan Chapter Viper Plant Tour back in May); Composition, A+; Use of existing light, A+. Nope, no free samples that day

[Clem Z.]

Re: Engine stand with bearings

you only have to rotate the engine once while installing pistons if you place the cly bores horizonal and install 4 pistons in one bank and then flip and do the other 4. centering the weight is very important as i had a friend who had a engine spin on him when he loosened the lock bolt and damn near lost some fingers.

[Chuck R.]

Re: Ok I Can't Say This Enough

At the risk of boring some to tears, I will repeat a prior experience regarding a value engine stand.

While restoring a 66 Charger I decided to rebuild a 440 I had aquired at the local junk yard instead of keeping with the original 383.

Well I needed an engine stand, so where do low budget engine rebuilder's turn? Why "Harbor Freight" of course!

I was able to pick up an engine stand for the unbelievable price of $50.00

Well all was going well until I slid the seventh piston assembly into the bore.

I turned to the bench to pick up a mallet to tap in the piston and that's when the welds that connected the mounting flange to the inner rotating shaft decided that they didn't want to hang around any longer.

The block missed my foot by barely six inches landing on a rear corner. I almost got a new nickname that night "Stubby Rice"

Fortunately neither the power plant nor I were physically injured.

I was lucky to have been just far enough out of harms way.

There are some things you should think long and hard on when planning a purchase along these lines.

Chuck 32205

[George C.]

Re: Ok I Can't Say This Enough

What's that old saying You get what you pay for. You were very lucky.>George