Buick Electra v8 430cid 1968 conrod bearings

Discussion in 'Street/strip 400/430/455' started by Jookyl, Oct 13, 2019.

  1. Jookyl

    Jookyl Member

    Hello!
    I am rebuilding a 430cid Buick engine and i ran in to a litte problem with bearings.
    I cant find any markings about size. Supposedly, STD size is correct but i have to make sure before ordering parts to Finland.
    all the markings i found (hard to read) was
    GMM400
    58043
    141V8
    And the other half was little more readable:
    GMM400
    58943
    141L8
    Its my first american V8 so i need a bit of guidance.
    Thank you in advance.
     
  2. flynbuick

    flynbuick Guest

    We moved your thread to the correct section.

    Order the bearings once the crankshaft is measured and machined.
     
  3. Jookyl

    Jookyl Member

    its not the plan. crankshaft is in perfect condition and bearings were fine, only mild wear
     
  4. Mark Demko

    Mark Demko Well-Known Member

    USUALLY if they're original bearings, and they sound like they are being the M400 marking, and theres no other reference to size they're USUALLY standard size.
    Example, my Grand National's crank is standard size, when I tore the engine down, the FACTORY main bearings were M400 and they were marked .001
     
  5. Jookyl

    Jookyl Member

    Here are nice pictures from bearings. No other markings found.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  6. Bens99gtp

    Bens99gtp Well-Known Member

    Just measure the crank and you will know
     
  7. Jookyl

    Jookyl Member

    i took the crank to local machine shop and they said that everything is in factory spec and that the std size bearings should work fine.

    I took the engine apart because camshaft gear plastic has come apart and chain was loose, and secondly, oil didnt stay insine the engine. Kind of a bigger service, because it was never opened.

    I also found out that piston number 2 was cracked from the skirt for about 3-4centimeters.

    I apologize my bad english if it sounds stupid :D
     
  8. TrunkMonkey

    TrunkMonkey Well-Known Member

    Your English is better than many American's. :D
     
    GS464, Footbag and PGSS like this.
  9. SpecialWagon65

    SpecialWagon65 Ted Nagel

    You are doing fine Jookyl- now are you looking for a standard 430 piston to replace the one with a crack?
     
    PGSS likes this.
  10. Jookyl

    Jookyl Member

    Well, thank you!

    Yes, only option for me is probably rockauto?
     
  11. SpecialWagon65

    SpecialWagon65 Ted Nagel

    Somebody here will have a good used one. Unfortunately the 430 pistons are hard to find new.
     
  12. Jookyl

    Jookyl Member

    Rockauto has new pistons in stock
     
  13. Schurkey

    Schurkey Silver Level contributor

    Verify the compression height. Aftermarket pistons are often too short. They purposely sabotage the piston by making it .010 or .020 too low.
     
  14. Jookyl

    Jookyl Member

    I will measure old pistons when i go to the garage today and compare that to new piston. They tell all the measurements in rockauto.
     
  15. Jookyl

    Jookyl Member

    Ok, i measured old piston and the compression height was the same as the new piston. I will also weigh the new piston and compare that to old. I once more made myself clear to the owners that i recommend new pistons and that i am not to blame for the explosion of the engine after rebuild :D
     
  16. Jookyl

    Jookyl Member

    Today i threw all big parts in to my schools big parts washer. Everything is very clean and nice now. I'm waiting for the last package to arrive. Should be here by tomorrow.
    I asked local machine shop if they would install new camshaft bearings for me. Price was 180€, about 200usd. Little bit shocked. Owner of the car is trying to find cheaper guy for that.
    Owner is luckily friends with many USA-car enthusiasts, so cheaper installer is possible to find.
    I can't continue the build if i have to wait him to find mechanic with proper tools for cam bearings, so im probably not going to write here for a while.
     
  17. flynbuick

    flynbuick Guest

    Make sure that you use the special TA grooved cam bearing clocked exactly according to the instructions.
     
  18. Jookyl

    Jookyl Member

  19. Schurkey

    Schurkey Silver Level contributor

  20. flynbuick

    flynbuick Guest

Share This Page