Layed the crank in my 400 today, I guess everything is ok

[WH23G3G]

I picked up my crankshaft from the machine shop today. They said it was still good, just needed a polish, so they polished it and bagged it up. Being my first time putting an engine back together I hope I did it all right. I put my new .010 oversize bearings in the block, the one with the hole in the block and the one without went into the caps. I layed a strip of green plastigage across each main bearing journal and torqued down one cap at a time to 85lbs-ft. But I had a hell of a time getting the cap back off. I was coming up with very close to .003 on the scale, I'm sure some of the error came in trying to get the cap back off. I've never used plastigage and didn't realize that it looked like fishing line. It was kinda difficult to use. So then I took out the crank cleaned it off and lubed the bearings in the block with Redline Assembly lube and the main journals and the bearings in the bearing caps. I then torque the 1,2,4,5 to 30, then 60, then 85 lbs-ft. Then I pryed the crank back and forth, I really don't see what it did. It didn't move much. Then I held it forward while I tightened the number 3 cap to 85. I turned the crank over after that to see if everything felt ok. It was nice and smooth. Waiting on my re-ring kit to do the rear main and everything else.

[firefighter3931]

Sounds good so far. Crank endplay should be minimal...i would measure it just to be safe. 

Redline is an excellent assembly lube 


Ron

[WH23G3G]

I read something in the 1973 factory chassis service manual under the 400-440 ENGINE section that really got me worried. I know the main bearings with the holes are considered the tops and they go in the block. But there was note in the 1973 Chassis manual that said the number 1 top bearing is not interchangeable because it is chamfered on the tab to allow it to oil the timing chain and it would be marked with red on the side. I don't remember checking for that when I installed the bearings. There was no notes in the packaging. They were Federal Mogul bearings. The two books I go by Don Taylor's and just for reference if I don't understand something I use the Haynes Chrysler Engine rebuilding. Neither one of the book mentioned that about the number 1 bearing. Now do I have to remove the crank and recheck the upper bearings to make sure one is not different? Or are all the aftermarket upper bearings besides number 3 interchangeable?