Pistons and Rods.

You will need to either buy a small shop press or you will need to take your old pistons to a machine shop to have the piston pins pressed out. New pistons will come with the rebuild kit so these will need to be connected to the rods and new pins pressed in. If you are doing this yourself with a shop press you will have 6 pistons to practice which is the best way to position the piston so that you do not crack the pistons. If you break the old ones it is no big deal because you are replacing them anyway. After you have put on the new pistons and pressed in the pins it is time to put on the compression rings. Start with the oil ring (the funky shaped gold ring) place it in the bottom groove. Then put 2 of the really thin rings, one on either side. In the package for the rings you will notice one says "1" and the other says "2". "2" is the first ring that goes on and it goes in the 2nd groove from the top. "1" goes in the top groove. Use a set of piston ring pliers to put them one. I did mine by hand and it was a pain in the ass. After you have put them on it is time to put the new bearing into the rod and rod cap. You will notice a groove in one end of the rod and cap, there will also be a groove on the bearing. Fit the grooves together and push the bearing into the rod and cap. Both grooves will need to be on the same side once the cap has been put back on the rod. Now it is time to put the pistons back in the motor. You will notice an arrow on the top of the piston, these arrows need to be pointed towards the front of the engine, if they aren't then you will mash your valves. Turn the engine upside down. Use a piston ring compressor to put the pistons back in the engine. When I did this process I turned the engine upside down and put one if the middle pistons in and bolted it to the crankshaft. I also temporarily put the oil pump and rear main seal assembly back on just to hold the crankshaft in place because you will have to turn the engine on it's side to put the pistons back in. I also had a problem with one of the rods. When I tightened it to specs it wouldn't allow the crankshaft to turn. I found out the rod was out of round and this problem is only discovered once new bearings are put in. As the old rod became out of round it wore the bearing down so that it was still round and once the new bearings are put in it becomes out of round again. If this happens you can either buy a new one or you can have it machined. Most places have a single rod brand new for well over $100 but I bought a reconditioned one from DSMgraveyard.com for $35.00. Once all the pistons are put back in and torqued to 38-40 ft lbs you can take the oil pump and rear main seal assembly back off.Make sure your crankshaft turns easily. Now it is time to reassemble the engine.