Originally Posted by Red16
chip - could you do a little post on plastiguages and how to use them.
from my understanding you basically put them on the bearing shell and tighten up the rod end / main cap bolt, then check the width of the strip against a chart to gauge the clearance between the bearing and the journal face. but do u use new bearings to do this? as if you used old ones it would give a different size to the new ones.
You just did it mate, i cant really write that any better than you did then!
Other than to state that when dry building any engine you use EXACTLY the parts you will use in final assembly, so therefore when you plastigauge the bearings you would use the new ones.