Re: crank to rod slack – opinions ?

[jethro]

Thanks for the helps there…..
i have to get a clean debticated table up and lay all the cleaned parts out and carefully inspect everything with a 10X magnifier. I think I kind of
suspected that the needles in the rods had rusted from errant water in them many years ago…..
Now when i look at the lower rod races I can kind of see very faint slightly darker stripes which looks like old rust stains from the needles— they
appear to coencide to where the needles lay inside the race…… When I look at the rollers I dont see any pitting -but I havnt cleaned then and
looked at them under mannification yet (but I will in the next dat or two)
The top rod bearings- I can slide then on the pin easily- but I can not TIP them. Before i removed the rods from the crank- i COULD TIP them
a little bit- which makes me thing that the slack was comming from there……. I wouldnt think you should be able to tip them if they were
in a normal condition….. ( I could grab the piston and tip the lower rod bearing- moving the piston about 3/16 to 1/4 inch pivoting at the
needle bearing in the bottom of the rod. )

I am thinking a new pair of rods and new needles for the rods and crankshaft might be a safe ,first try —— Does that sound like a good way to go-
or should I try to obtain a good used power head ??? or both even ?

FYI- thanks for the correction on grit size for cleaning crank—–ill try NAPA for crokus……
I did remember about the rod caps being cast and then broken in half when made -leaving a jagged, unique junction…. thanks though…
You never know what you dont know till someone tells you……. (hopefully before parts get broken 🙂 )

I have taken appart and overhauled several antique car engines, and a couple aircraft engines to different stages- but I am just getting
into 2 cycle marine engines. Lost of strange and new features on them.

I have a 10 to 70 X sterio microscope- I may look at the needles under that to look for rust evidence. (after soaking with acetone in a jar)

Will report further once I have carefully cleaned, inspected under magnification and noted any flaws……

Thanks
Tim