My 1989 Red Regular Cab

Axel-Breaker-Earl

Awesome forum Mitch!! I am glad that you decided to start it!

So, I bought this truck years ago, without the original engine. Seems that a guy that was a friend of the Owner decided to buy the truck, pulled the engine, dropped it off at a machine shop for service......then lost interest and left it there! I saw it listed somewhere, went to look at it and bought it, since it was mainly unmolested......which is hard to find in Florida these days!
Here is what it looked like the day I brought it home....

Axel-Breaker-Earl

And what it looks like now......

I have many hours invested in this truck to date, sold it twice, and bought it back twice.......and will probably keep it til I die now! I drive it every day now, and have still more things that I want to do to it......I rebuilt an engine for it......fixed it when my Son (who I sold it to the first time) overheated the engine due to a non sealing radiator cap, and recently put a new clutch, PP, and throwout bearing......and new transmission & rear end gear oil.

I will keep adding to this thread all of the different things that I have done to it, as the days pass by! Thanks for letting me join the forum Mitch!

Mazdarick

Axel-Breaker-Earl

Very Nice

MazdaMitch

Thanks for joining and we all know you're no stranger to a forum and I see you've taken to it very well nice post please spread the word.

Axel-Breaker-Earl

Will do buddy!

Axel-Breaker-Earl

Continuing on.......once I got the truck home, I started cleaning it all up and seeing exactly what I needed to get it back on the road again.
First thing was an ENGINE! Luckily I had a couple of 2.2's laying around from past projects, and trucks that I bought and pulled all of the parts from, before sending the carcass to the crusher.

Once I disassembled the doner 2.2 engine, I started cleaning it up so that I could measure everything to see what I had to start with.

Axel-Breaker-Earl

After making some measurements on the engine, I decided to NOT bore the block out.....it simply did not need it. No taper in the cylinders, and the factory honing marks were still visible inside the cylinders. The original pistons were not scored along the skirts much at all, and all had measured within the factory service manual specs to allow them to be placed back into service. All said....I probably had a better engine than the original engine that was already MIA when I bought the truck.

So I finished cleaning the block, and I painted it, to get it ready to start the rebuild process. Since I had no machine work done to the block, this would be a rather inexpensive rebuild. I have always tried to keep my engine rebuilds to the standard size if possible........on my collector classics that I own, this is actually preferred if it is possible.......and so I soldiered on.

Even the factory freeze plugs were in great shape......inside and outside. I let them be!

Axel-Breaker-Earl

So, if you look at the time stamps on the pictures above, you can see that I spent some time that day really cleaning the block well.......all of the oil passages were rodded out and cleaned, then washed, rinsed, and blown dry. I even used a heat gun to warm the block to ensure that all moisture was removed from the engine block before I painted it. I love a clean engine!

When rebuilding an engine where I didn't have the block bored, I will lightly hone the cylinders with a 240 grit flex hone of the correct size, to help in sealing the new piston rings.

Axel-Breaker-Earl

To be continued.....

Axel-Breaker-Earl

So......over the years.....as I built some of these Mazda engines, I have had other Mazda enthusiasts react negatively about not reboring the engine block and installing new pistons. Some of those Mazda engines I have done a re-bore.......but most of them I haven't, since those engines fell within the factory service manuals tolerances for not requiring a re-bore. Would I do this on a small block Chevy? Probably not.......reason being is, those older Chevy blocks are typically not of the same metal material/quality that we see in the Mazda blocks of their era.......at least that is what I believe anyway. I have built several SBC engines, and at 100,000 miles, there is a considerable ridge at the top of the cylinders. It is rare to see that in these Mazda engines......hence, very little bore wear at the top of the cylinders. This can also be contributed to the Mazda's having a lower ring tension that was in place to promote better fuel mileage, compared to the older domestic engines. I have read some articles on these practices, but this thread is not the place to discuss all of that......I just simply wanted to state my beliefs here, so you know where I am coming from, when I post an engine rebuild on one of my Mazda projects that I've done in the past........and thanks for reading this!

Axel-Breaker-Earl

So, after all of that.......I ordered most of the engine rebuild parts on RockAuto.com and did not look for a "Rebuild Kit" as some enthusiast's do. I like the way that RA has several different brand name items that you can pick from when ordering most parts that they supply. Some of those engine rebuild kits you see on Ebay and the like, have very low quality parts, but are priced competitively. I would rather buy quality parts, and only what I need for the rebuild.

So, standard sized rings were ordered, a new oil pump, new standard sized main and rod bearings (some engines I have ordered a crank kit, especially if the crank keyway was wallered out), a Felpro or Mazda head gasket, new rear main seal, front crank & camshaft seals, etc.

After the honing process, you want to clean the cylinders again very good! First, I will spray WD-40 in them and then wipe them out with white paper towels, to clean most of the metal and honing stone debris out of them, then use soap and water (I use a Sam's Club product, similar to Purple Power, to wash the block with) to finish cleaning them, and then dry the block with compressed air really good. In Florida, you have to be quick doing this, as the air moisture will cause the clean bare metal surfaces to flash rust! After I wash and dry the block again, I will coat those bare surfaces with a light oil or WD-40 again.

What the paper towels look like when you wipe the cylinders after honing.......I do this several times, to get as much junk off of the cylinder walls as I can, prior to washing the block afterwards.....

Disregard my feet in these pics! 🙂

Also, if I decided to grind down any of the block casting flash, I would typically do this prior to honing the cylinders so once I wash the block afterwards, I can just start the assembly process then, as that would be my final cleaning before assembly.

Before and/or during assembly though, I thoroughly clean ALL of my engine parts and have them ready to install again......rods, pistons, crank, bolts, etc. Cleanliness is next to Godliness!

MazdaMitch

Axel-Breaker-Earl How did you get this piston so clean?

Axel-Breaker-Earl

Thanks! Mitch I use a "Purple Power" cleaner that is sold at Sam's Club, and follow up with Simple Green. It does take some time to do this, but the results are great. I will usually only use Nylon brushes on pistons so as not to add anymore scratches along the skirts especially. Old toothbrushes work great for this......along with Plumber's style acid brushes used for brushing flux on copper. I will trim the bristles so that they are not so long (unless I need a long bristle) so they are slightly stiffer.......these get into the crevasse's better. Dental picks can help get into the small areas, especially in the ring grooves. BUT.....I only use very light pressure there, and usually none at all......I let the tool do the work.

I know that ANY scratches on the pistons, ring grooves, surfaces FOR the bearings, etc. only cause more issues and undesirable results. When I put and engine together, it's CLEAN!

I will put the Owner(s) to work also......if it is not MY engine!

Valve covers get ultra cleaned this way also........

From this....

To this......

MazdaMitch

@Axel-Breaker-Earl I think you do great work and it's very much the same as what I do or would do. It's as if we were cut from the same cloth 😄

Axel-Breaker-Earl

Agreed!!
I think sometimes people might not understand how much time (and money!) you have invested in all of the information, videos, managing the website and now the forum too.......I know! It is a massive amount of time & effort that you have given to all of us members, and internet surfers that stumble across your pages. I just want everyone to know how much of yourself that you've put into this all, and I for one, THANK YOU! Much appreciated Mitch!!