Jeepers! That's a comprehensive bunch of great advice. Almost makes me feel like I should tear-down my engine and start all over again ;-)
Two problems I ran into: one main bearing bound a bit by way of the flanges -- the machinist sanded a down a bit, measuring crankshaft fore and aft play as he went along -- and one of the head bolts would come up to torque, but continue to allow further tightening repeatedly after running the engine for a while. I, finally, pulled the bolt and blew out the hole. It appears that somehow oil from lubing the pistons had got into the bolt hole. So, along with heeding all the advice about cleanliness, make sure the bolt holes in the block are clean and dry. Oh yes, be scrupulous about making sure the coolant circulation holes in the head gasket line up perfectly with the coolant passages -- trim as required to make it so. I, for one, would be interested in hearing if, after doing so, you also experience the seemingly high temperature readings at idle that so many of us do. Have fun,
Bob S.

Mario;

Excellent advice all around. To which I only have a couple of things to add.

Rifle cleaning brass wire brushes on extension rods work great for cleaning out the oil passages in block, crank and head. I forget what caliber...

After learning the hard way, I now safety drill and wire the cam nut, and across the top of the oilpump countershaft (one of those ba****ds backing out...after 165,000miles cost me an engine! see: http://www.intelab.com/swem/afunny.htm).

Cheers

As everyone else has said: Clean Clean Clean! & also Measure!

Other things to look for:
Crank end-float: try & make the rear side of the 2 thrust bearings parallel.
Oil pump: if you a reusing, replace the spring as it gets a good hiding since the pump is very oversize for the job.
Oil pump O-rings: I like to use a regular O-ring to back up the orignal style ring.
Assembly lube: make sure the cam & lifters has plenty of Moly grease or Lube from a cam grinder on it. For the rest of the engine, just use oil.
Priming: after you have buttoned up the sump, turn it right side up, pour in 2 litres of oil & crank over the oil pump with a big screwdriver down the hole where you would put the drive gear. After a short while it will come out the side, put the filter on & continue. After the filter is full it will come out the top of the block from the rocker feeding passage, you are now certain your oil pump is good to go.
Startup: After you have the motor in the car & the head & rockers are bolted on, turn the oil pump again until oil emerges from the rockers, now you can put in the drive gear & distrubutor & set the timing statically. Assuming you've taken care of the water & fuel side of things you are now ready to start. Assuming that you still have 2 litres of oil in it already, pour another 2 litres into the rocker cover just seconds before you crank it over for the 1st time to start it, hopefully you will have some still pouring over the cam when it fires up. Do not let it idle!, speed it up to 2000 rpm & keep it at 2000-2500 for the 1st 20-30 minutes of it's life. This is when the camshaft is breaking in. After this 30 minutes set the timing & shut it down. I would now drop the oil & filter, check the cam, adjust the tappets & refill with new oil & filter. For the 1st couple of hundred miles do not rev the enginge, do not lug the engine & do not baby the engine either! Try & keep it between 2000 & 4000 rpm & use plenty of full throttle between these speeds. When you are confident all is well, change water & put in some coolant. After 500 miles change the oil & filter again & continue on as normal.

Hi mario,

not sure if this has been mentioned already, but i'd think about
replacing all stress bearing bolt - ie connecting rod bolts and head bolts- go for ARP studs on those

also ipd sells the front and rear timing covers with better seals to prevent oil leaks.

Whats going into the engine?

good luck , i dont envy you mate, took me 8 months to get mine back from the machine shop


ozzi
'67 220s

Clean everything, then make sure it's clean and as a final precaution clean it again.

Use lots of oil during re-assembly.

When re-assembling make sure everything is clean.

Make sure you fit the con rods the right way round.

Make sure you get the caps the right way round and on the right rods. Ideally have the rod eyes re sized by a shop with the right equipment.

Make sure they're clean.

Classic cock up is leaving the spacer ring off the camshaft.

Cleanliness.

Make sure the oil squirter is clear, pointing in the right direction, clean the oil gallery (remove plugs).

Make sure you don't push the plug out of the back of the engine when re-installing the cam gear.

Remove the rings from the pistons and check the gaps.

Make sure you fit the pistons the right way round.

Make sure the gugeon pin circlips are properly installed, a losse on will wreck a bore beyond redemption faster than you can say "oh dear that's unfortunate" or words to that effect.

As you tighten each bearing cap turn the crank to make sure that cap doesn't lock the crank.

Spend time centralising the front and rear oil seal covers, it prevents leakage, and check after you pull the final bolt down. There is no such thing as that'll do on these.

Clean everything properly.

Wriggle the valves in the guides to check for play. People that knurl them are cowboys, you're far better off spending your money down the pub. It'll save you doing it twice cos you'll be tempted to drown your sorrows once you find out what a rubbish job you got.

Hardened Valve seats.

At this point I'd get the die grinder out and attack the ports.


Clean everything.

New water pump, hoses and radiator.

Cleanliness is everything.



Regards


Pete

Everyone has said Plastigage and I concur. I have only rebuilt a few engines (domestic and volvo) and have had several missized bearings (.20 under bearing in a box of .10 unders. Didn't believe it until I put micrometer on it). Fill the oil pump before installing.

Skip
'93 850GLT
'83 240TI Flathood

Clean, clean, clean everything. Then clean again. Everything must have no trace of brown on it.

Plastigage, like Jim said. Don't assume the machine shop got it right. Oil the lifters and their bores, and check that the lifters sink slowly through the bores from gravity alone. If they don't hone the bores as needed -- this assures the lifters will be free to rotate.

Assemble with lots of motor oil on all pressurized bearing surfaces, and in the cylinder bores. Assembly lube on all cam lobes, lifter friction surfaces, and rocker arms (I use Redline brand, FWIW). Assembly lube on the main seals, assuming you upgrade to the modern kind.

I use sealant on all gaskets except the head and manifold. Permatex Hylomar works very well -- apply thinly to all surfaces.

Initially torque the head to 61 ft/lb using anti-seize on the bolt threads.

Run in: Keep the engine running for 20-25 minutes on first start, varying between 1500 and 2500 rpm, to establish the wear pattern for cam and lifters. Do NOT let it idle -- you can tune it later. Shut down and change the oil and filter.

Let it cool down completely. Retorque head to 69 ft/lb. Readjust valves.

First 500 miles, use no more than 2/3 rpm and 2/3 throttle. Change oil and filter at least once during that period.

After 500 miles, retorque head to 69 again and readjust the valves. You can then gradually work up to higher revs and more throttle. Keep an eye on the valve adjustment for a few thousand miles after that -- if the head gasket has finally crushed fully, they should not need further adjustment for months or even years.

When reassembly is begun use a quality assembly lube on bearing surface parts !
Be certain to clean all your oil passage points with a chemical solvent as well as blown clear with compressed air prior to assembly to component parts!
check all mating surfaces are burr free and file off any interference points !
if the engine is at the machine shop request that all threaded holes be cleaned out of debris with proper bottoming taps.Have the machine shop check head for flatness and have the head valve seats reseated to coresponding valve.Use new valve guides and springs !If you are going with another cam for valve train have the shop check the bore the cam is to fit in. May need to be fitted in. Is the machine shop going to fit the crank up for you? Typically it is a good practice to have the crank ground and polished and then have the shop fit the crank up to insure the bearing package is a good fit on journals and caps. Someone said use plastigage and they are right and the shop doing the crank work will know the procedure .
you may want to consider to have the intake/exhaust mainfold bead blasted intenally to clean up any loose rust. I had mine vibratory finished as well with a stagged cermaic media to polish the ports so engine would breathe easily.
With the investment of shop work put a new oil pump in the engine. Oil PSI is a wonderfull thing.Use good gaskets not cheap ones. When reassembly is done then always fit the componets togther lossely first do not torque or apply sealants until you have checked the fit first, do not force things together.My volvos I worked on always seem to place the oil filter right by the hot exhaust mainfold. You can purchase a kit to put the filter on the fender or firewall and single or double stage filter the oil. I like clean oil in my engine. Ask the machine shop about the run in procedure they recommend so you do not void there policy. Hopefully they will have somthing in writing for you with there letter head a fixed.

first start up: leave the plugs out and spin the engine using the starter. This circulates the oil some. I watch the temp very carefully, even new thermos sometimes stick.

Plastigage: DO IT A LOT.
Every bearing.
--
Jim McDonald