[rloban]

HI
I obtained a rebuilt chevy 350 longblock thats very hard to turn by hand. The block is 030 over and has 305 heads. The stock starter won't turn it over it just clicks.....I was wondering if I put a high torque starter on it will it be able to turn it over?...Any help would be appreciated.................

[Deuce]

IF it is hard to rotate by hand..........STOP

Remove the spark plugs and try it again..........

If it is still difficult to rotate............you have a problem with the engine.


SORRY.......



.

[scholman]

Rloban,

Deuce is right! Do not force it to turn! Once I had a student drop a washer in the intake and when we went to start the engine it froze. Pull the plugs and see if it turns.

Good Luck
Scholman

[BstMech]

Did the person who rebuilt it leave the Plasti-Gage in place instead of removing it after checking the clearances?

Could be any number of things from rods installed backwards to improper (too tight/interference fit) clearances.

Start by popping the oil pan and loosening parts until it turns......

[rloban]

Thanks for everyone's help...I'm gonna go out today and drop the pan and see what the problem may be

[club327]

Ive always found freshly rebuilt engines tight to turn by hand (spanner) and usually u hear the air being squeezed through rings. As the other chaps said, with the plugs out give it a crank to see what happens. But if it's frozen then there' a prob. There's a possibility that the torque converter popped out of the trans slightly and may have become misaligned with the pump tangs. This would cause the torque converter to get sandwiched hard between the flywheel and the transmission pump - the engine would not be able to turn as a result. If you think this is a possible senario for you, ie. you're not sure if the t/c is free, then it would be a lot easier to check than dropping the sump. All you'd have to do is loosen the bellhousing bolts and see if the engine becomes free. You'd know as u undo the bolts if there's a prob - cause if there is, then they'd be tight to undo untill the t/c is not crushed any more. When doing up bell housing bolts, you should have the bell housing pushed hard against the block before you start tightening the bolts......or at least see if the bell housing is able to kiss the block with ease. Then u'd know you're in business. Hope you're doing okay. Rob

[BstMech]

Man I must of drank too much last night....really I was drinking.

Definitely look into loosening the bellhousing bolts a little like club 327 said before tearing into the motor. The convertor might not be properly engaged in the pump slots binding everything up.

Sorry

[Auto-Part]

Here we go again. There is a 1000's ways of rebuilding an engine and only 1 correct way. Seems you are in the 1000's ways. Let us know what you find.

[V8 S-10]

My 383 did the same thing...turned out that the thrust clearance was too tight.

[johnsongrass1]

If it's a crate motor and you break the seal they may not accept it as a return.

[Auto-Part]

Make sure you let us know what you find.

[machine shop tom]

Take it baaaaaaaaaaaaack

[Kevin45]

I obtained a rebuilt chevy 350 longblock thats very hard to turn by hand. The block is 030 over and has 305 heads. The stock starter won't turn it over it just clicks.....

Most rebuilt engines are hard to turn by hand. Is it a crate motor or an engine rebuilt by a private individual. Also how did you come across buying it. By that I mean what was the reason he was selling it? Was it just rebuilt and never ran, or was it in a car and pulled back out? Need a little more info here. If the starter just clicks, pull the starter and have it checked out. If the starter was good, it would engage and try to turn the engine over or you would hear it spin if it was not engaging the flywheel. If it is just clicking, it sounds to me like the bendix is bad and not allowing it to spin. Before you do anything check the starter. Let us know what you find.

Kevin

[rloban]

I got around to checking it out and the main bearings were completely dry no oil or lube whatsoever!!! I put some white lithium grease on them just to see if it would turn and it did. I was able to turn it with about 40ft pounds on the torque wrench. But I took out the crank and brought to the machine shop to have the journals checked and I'm gonna get new bearings just to be safe.......