So several of my C-10's are leaking oil between the rear of the block and the flywheel housing. It's pretty straight forward except that the rear engine mounts are on the housing and I need to find another way to support the engine. Obviously a crane or hoist off the back would be the best, but they just sent our dilapidated crane truck off to auction. So I need other options, I'm thinking: A. Bottle jack under the oil pan. (Easy, but do I really want to gamble that the pan is strong enough for this? Has any one ever tried it?) B. Custom "upsidedown U" frame that I can hang engine off of. ( I started building one of these that would sit on the frame rails and hang the engine but it's starting to look sketchy the more I look at it) C. "L" shaped brackets I could bolt to the engine and put a bottle jack under ( Sounds good but all the bolt holes in this area are little 5/16 holes and it would take allot of them to build strength. Since I have several engines to do this to, fabbing something reliable up is not a problem, I'm just not sure which route to take and wondering if I'm missing something obvious. I miss the automotive days when I could jam a 2x4 between the block and the firewall and it would hold it fine. thanks fella's
I did the bottle jack/block of wood trick with a N-14 one time. It had been wrecked and I had to change the bell housing on it Good Luck Heath
I have an N-14 to go look at, I'll see if the pan on the Cat looks as stout. Good to know it can be done without damaging the pan. That would make things so easy.
Hear is a tool that I made for splitting farm tractors.It's made out of 4 inch tubing .The top angle brackets bolt to the engine bock at the oil pan bolts on each side.Then I put a bottle jack between the lower tube & "T post" to raise or lower the engine.You probably wont need the caster wheels.
C10 All of us has done the block of wood and jack and even though its not the best way to do it, we still will continue to do it. I have made a 4 leg C frame, fabin the legs to just clear the sides of the oil pan and the top of the 4 legs (angle iron 2-3") maybe 3/8 plate (maybe 12" long X width of pan +width of angle) of steel for the bottom. Its real easy to make this, it doesnt have to bolt up, just rest against the oil pan and bottom of block. You can weld pieces on it to fit other engines. I would recommend either making a place for the jack to set it (so it wont slip) or using a hard piece of wood, like oak, so it wont bust/split. Good Luck and be safe
Is there a lifting lug or attachment point on the rear of the head that you can put a chain block on to support the rear?. The problem with blocks and jacks is they can be bumped and then things get scarey..or expensive.
Two 4X4s lenghwise just inside the sides of the oil pan with another 4X4 crosswise beneath them and the bottle jack under the crosswise 4X4. The lenghtwise 4X4s are near the edge of the oil pan where it is the strongest and they really distribute the weight of the heavy block. If you are worried about things slipping/moving, then nail the crosswise 4X4 to the other 2 so nothing can move.
Hey this is good stuff, I am definatly making a cradle from below, I'll take a pic when I'm done. I'll try to make one that fits Cat and Cummins. Thanks alot you guys I knew I would hear some good ideas, nice work 25c that looks handy
so here's what i built, it fits like a glove around the sump of the pan and rides on the side rails. Then I will put a jack under it. Thanks for the idea! hopefully it works.
The only problem you may run into the c-10, c-12 , and c-15 all used a rubber clad pan gasket, it might be a little tight getting the housing on the dowels. I've done a number of these on all engine makes and usually end up with the pan down with bottle jacks on the pan flange. I have used blocks on just about every pan out there to jack them up, and never had a problem. I dont know the weight of a c-10, I know the c-15 is right around 3000 lbs. I did one last week by jacking up the pan, but broke the gasket when I broke the housing loose, had to pull the pan anyway. Good luck with it. Kirk
That looks like it will work fine Muffler Bearing.Many times a mechanic has to build tools and attachments to gain advantage and get the job done quicker.Good work Muffer Bearing.
I usually drop the pan and put a jack under the #6 main cap. I always replace the pan gasket so I wont have to worry about it starting to leak after the flywheel housing is slid on it. It also makes the housing eaiser to stab.
I definately thought about dropping the pan for a place to support it, I'll just see how it goes, it looks like I'll have clearance from the housing, but I do wonder if this process is going to wreck my pan seal in the end anyway. thanks again for the insight guys.
I am an idiot You guys were totally right, the pan had to come down and I just jacked the block up with some wood, it was pretty easy. I should have spent 2 minutes really looking at how it was put together, and not half a day building my crazy block catcher. Next time I will try to post a question more than a day before I start.