10/6/2007
Today was the start of the engine re-assembly. Earlier in the week the crank shaft made it back with a clean bill of health after an inspection. Following Bill's direction, the first order of business was to have a spotless assembly area. Then the parts were cleaned by spraying them with a clean solvent.
We first assembled the connecting rods onto the crank shaft. The connecting rods were labeled as to which went with which cylinder and they were oriented with the stampings pointed down (toward the sump) as per the Lycoming overhaul manual. The connecting rod nuts were a bit confusing to me since they go in a seemingly backward direction. The nuts and bolts were new.
We applied Locktite 518 and silk thread to the case halves. The cam shaft was installed and tied in position with safety wire. The middle and rear bearings were installed in the case and the front bearing was installed on the crank shaft. The front one splits 90 degress from where the case halves split. The case halves were then wrapped around the crankshaft which was attached to a stand. The center through studs were pulled through into position and all nuts were installed.
The accessory housing and oil sump were installed as well.