FARMALL M ENGINE CRANKSHAFT

Gentlemen,
I have just about got the engine out of my M. I'd like to start getting some quotes on machining, but, I have a few questions about the crankshaft:

Does the machinist need to have experience with Farmall specificallt to be able to do this?

How do I know if there is enough meat left to regrind it? I can mic it, but have no idea what the wear limits are?

Is it up to the machinist to decide how much to take off, or am I supposed to tell him?

How do I know what size bearings to get/use?

Lastly, in order to have the head and block magnafluxed do I have to removed the studs from the block and the valves from the head?

Oh...one more important one.....I need a sleeve puller any idea where to get one? I could nake it myself but am not sure how to get the bottom piece the right size/strength, I am not a machinist and do not have a lathe.

Thanks for your help, please be patient with my lack of knowledge, at least I'm trying to learn
Brian

I took my engine parts to a machine shop that builds dirt track racing engines. I bet my Farmall parts were the only tractor stuff in his shop that day. He did a nice job. Your bearings will be determined by how much the crank needs to be turned depending on condition. I had him strip the head, clean and magnaflux it too. Had the valves and seats ground and the head planed to be nice and flat. All of these services add up but are worth it in the long run. A good machine shop will tell you what you need. Mine was a great help to me. Good luck. Bob

I've only done a Super-A, but I believe the process is universal-
To answer the first four, my machinist had all the info he needed. It will be interesting to read of other's experiences.
Have him 'magnaflux' the crank also- mine was found to have a crack when magnafluxed, and I was glad it was found then, rather than when it cannonaded my engine. He should be able to tell you if it needs grinding, and he should be able to supply you the bearings for your mains and rods, but moreover, I think that is standard practice. He will take off only enough to make the journals perfectly round, and should be able to tell you if it is beyond regrinding.
You can probably get an idea of where you stand by looking at the old main bearings. Mine were stamped with, among other things, the letters "STD", (for 'standard'), which meant that they were original-sized bearings, and in a case like that, you can feel assured that your crank could be successfully ground. There are a couple of sizes under this that it could still be ground.
Consider, in the process, to having your connecting rods 're-conditioned', a process where the machinist resurfaces the mating surfaces, then torques the rod and cap together and rebores it to size. It'll be one more thing to feel reassured about.

Which ever auto machine shop you decide on have him furnish the new bearing inserts. You won't know what needs to be done to a crankshaft until the machinist measures all the journals. It may still "standard" not worn, but I doubt it. It could be a few thousands undersize and may only need to be polished and they would supply the correct bearings. So there's a lot of ifs and they won't grind off anymore than what's needed.

I would have them to press out the sleeves and clean the block of any sludge and blow out all the oil passages with air. If they do, make sure all plugs are reinstalled once the block is clean.
Have them install new cam bearings so you have good oil pressure. You don't want to cut corners
when doing this engine or it will bite you in the butt. Hal

I got lucky with the first crank I ever had to have turned and was directed to the shop that actually does the work, as opposed to dropping it off at a parts house that would send it to them. A crank lathe is a very specialized machine, and the guys that run them will know more than you or I.

My guy looked at the number onthe crank, and went to a book the size of the Manhattan white pages and looked up the base specs for it (so no Farmall-specific experience is necessary). Pulled a mic out of his pocket to run the pins on mine. His assessment was that it had never been turned since manufacture, and he should be able to take it to .010 under, but there were a couple of pins close enough that he wasn't sure he'd be able to polish them at that cut, so he might have to go for .020 under.

In the end, it came back with .010 under on the rods and .020 under on the mains, and stamped as such in the meat of the crank so that the next guy will know what's been done and where he's starting from.

AS far as your crank, trust the machinist. He'll know how much to take it down and is well accustomed to supplying bearings to fit his handiwork. My sense is that it's a bit of a courtesy to buy the bearings from him, rather tha get them elsewhere. And they WILL be the right size.

one other thing, take the new sleeves to the machine shop too. when i put my super m sleeves in , they were a little to hign in the bored and needed to also be machined down.

M had different bearings early versus late.

Since the early Farmall M's crankshaft was smaller to serial number 278049 the main bearings
measured 2.7475"-2.7485", rod bearings 2.4975"-2.4985". The Farmall M's from s/n 278050 & up
the mains were 2.8075"-2.8085" and the rods were 2.5475"-2.5485". Hal

Load it all up and take it to you machinist. He knows what to do if hes a compitent machinist. He'll have the tools to do it all with, and should be able to get everything youll need. I quit wasting my time with all of that especially since Ive found that my machinists parts price are right in line with everyone else.