I see no visible difference between one side of my 460s connecting rods and the other, so does it really matter what order they're in? The reason I ask is I put the pistons in my 460 last night and apparently I've switched #s 3 and 6, although the piston notch still faces the right direction on both. Plus, I had installed one of the caps on another rod backwards - the numbers on the cap is opposite the rod. To make matters worse I torqued it all down. About the backward rod cap, is it really necessary to have the bearing slots on the correct side? I can't see how it matters, but what do I know - I thought it would be fine to drink most of the day, then assemble a motor.
thanks for any help, have I screwed this up bad?

 

In a word.....WHOOPS..the rod caps need to be correctly installed, and the pistons have "worn in" to their respective bore. as for the rods, the bearings also have their wear pattern.

Wayne
e-mail
http://home.pacbell.net/whomrig

 

If you look closey at the connecting rod's "big" end you will notice that the two sides are different. One side is flat, the other side has a chamfer. The flat side fits against another connecting rod on the same rod journal of the crankshaft. The chamfered side fits against the crankshaft, perpendicular to the connecting rod journal surface. I personally wouldn't mix them for obvious and not so obvious reasons, though some say it can be done.

Todd
BB79RANCH

 

thanks guys, took a while but I have everything the way it should be now.

 

Did you torque them down initially, before you noticed they were wrong? If so, IMHO, it would be best to get a new set of bearings as they have a certain amount of crush and if you put the wrong caps on it could have crushed the bearing too much.

 

they were tightened until there was no gap between the rod and cap, but definitely not torqued down. Think they'll be alright?
Matt

 

If they were tightened to less than 10 lb. ft. they should be alright. Ideally, you just snugged them down with a small ratchet or something similar; if you think you put more than about 10 lb. ft. on them, I would invest in a new set of brgs... They not that expensive, and its a lot easier to replace them at this stage than to find out you DID mess them up later on and have to tear down the engine Again.. Best of luck to you!

J/.c

1965 Ford Galaxie 500 (okay, so not quite a truck)
460/C6 transplant @ 389hp/491 lb.ft.
14.29@103.8, 13-14 mpg heheheheheh