A J 602 repour- Part 2
Posted: Fri Aug 29, 2025 10:48 am
The oil return hole location is marked on the outside of the case. Note the distance between it and the pour hole. This is the reason for having the snoot almost straight up for the pour. Use a piece of wire to insure your oil drain hole remains open.
aj40.jpg aj41.jpg Don't forget to chase the oil scraper
threads with a tap. A reamer can be
used for tight pours. The one shown
is 1.0025 in size.
Note the oil goove ends on the spout side.
Make sure the spout washer opening
is clear.
aj42.jpg
The front snoot bearing needs an oil return grove also. This can be easily made with the Babbitt-Rite damming material. Flatten out some Babbitt-Rite to about 1/4 inch thick and using a putty knife cut out an 'L' shape piece, 3/4 X 3/4 Inch square on the bottom part, and 3/8 to 1/2 inch wide, about 4 inches long on the top part. I've also seen it round at the oil scraper hole, your option here. This will give you the bases for the oil return. Form this piece straight onto your mandrel, with a VERY slight twist in a CW direction, and make sure it fits in the snoot, long enough to make it into the center cavity. Some additional forming, flattening and trimming may be needed as you go about this process. When installing the shaft to make the pour, make sure the 3/4 X 3/4 inch square or the round section is just below the oil scraper (# 520) hole, and centered. Roll out a little piece of Babbitt-Rite about 3/8 of an inch in diameter and plug the oil scraper hole.
aj43.jpg
When making and installing the oil return groove
it can be square (pic 1) or round (pic3). The
groove is straight with a slight twist as shown.
aj44.jpg After your pour use your hub w/ shaft to test fit
insuring everything is in order.
The snoot needs to be pointing almost straight down, when making this pour, or the center cavity will start filling up.
After the pour, and things are cooled down, clean out of the Babbitt-Rite is a simple matter of using a screwdriver to pick it out. It normally comes out in big chunks.
A Word About Screw-up's
No matter how hard one tries, blow outs will happen!! This occurred doing my center bearing snoot pour on this project. Molten babbitt will find any hole or weak spot and breach the dam. If this breach occurs, everything needs to be taken apart, melt out the remaining babbitt, clean it up, and start all over again. Don't make a cold joint pour!!
Orchestrating the Boss Gear Bearing Pour
Due to the size of this bearing, I find it's the hardest one to pour to get a real nice smooth finish on it's surface. This is going to be a zero clearance pour, and no provisions were made for clearance on my jig. The separating agent I used on this jig is the sheetrock powder. Because hand fitting this bearing will be required, a real nice smooth looking surface won't matter anyway, but I do want a sound bearing to work with.
I start off doing a preliminary jigging of my journal jig setting my tin seats, and start my damming in strategic places. As I'm doing this, I'm also checking for centering, and the height off the mainframe cast bearing saddle. Once satisfied, I carefully remove my jig and place it on top of my babbitt pot to preheat the jig. I also prepare my damming material ahead of time, so all I have to do is just place it when things come together for the pour. I add a little tilt to the mainframe by adjusting the engine stand, so the babbitt will get a little gravity assistance and flow from back to front. (The hub shaft side of the mill being the back.) Once I start my pour, I want the babbitt to flow and fill the full bearing surface in the saddle, and it's a large area to fill.
aj45.jpg
Preliminary jigging for boss gear bushing. Preheat
each piece before you pour.
aj46.jpg Fit the journal (pic1). Top egdes need to be
knocked off (pic2). Lateral adjustment needs
to be checked.
With torch in hand I start preheating the mainframe cast bearing saddle. Here I want to add more heat than normal, maybe more in lines of 300 + degrees. Once there, it's a mad dash scramble to get everything together and dammed, then ending up with babbitt melting pot in one hand and the torch in the other. As I'm doing the actual pour the torch flame is concentrated around the pour hole of my jig, flame licking inside and out, right to left, during the full pour. I want to keep the BTU's high and even throughout the pour.
Using a hammer and chisel, I knock off the babbitt overflow from my pour hole, remove my damming, and loosen the nut and bolt on my jig. I then pop my jig off the pour. When things cool down I start fitting the regular boss gears to the new pour. Using a rasp for the high ridges and the right and left edges (lateral adjustment sides) of the bearing. A tin scraper with a very slight burr to even and level the bearing surface, adding a little clearance in the process. Basically doing a custom fit for the boss gear journal. As a final process I use some fine steel wool on the bearing.
aj49.jpg
Allow the pour to cool before fitting your
boss gears.
Turn your boss gears in the bushing saddle. You'll be able to see any high spots that may need to be scraped for proper fit.
Pitman Arms
Though I didn't re-pour my pitman arms on this project, it's rather straight forward, and think you can get a good general idea on how it was done.
So there you have it buckaroos, this is how I poured babbitt in my 602...
*******************************************************************
aj40.jpg aj41.jpg Don't forget to chase the oil scraper
threads with a tap. A reamer can be
used for tight pours. The one shown
is 1.0025 in size.
Note the oil goove ends on the spout side.
Make sure the spout washer opening
is clear.
aj42.jpg
The front snoot bearing needs an oil return grove also. This can be easily made with the Babbitt-Rite damming material. Flatten out some Babbitt-Rite to about 1/4 inch thick and using a putty knife cut out an 'L' shape piece, 3/4 X 3/4 Inch square on the bottom part, and 3/8 to 1/2 inch wide, about 4 inches long on the top part. I've also seen it round at the oil scraper hole, your option here. This will give you the bases for the oil return. Form this piece straight onto your mandrel, with a VERY slight twist in a CW direction, and make sure it fits in the snoot, long enough to make it into the center cavity. Some additional forming, flattening and trimming may be needed as you go about this process. When installing the shaft to make the pour, make sure the 3/4 X 3/4 inch square or the round section is just below the oil scraper (# 520) hole, and centered. Roll out a little piece of Babbitt-Rite about 3/8 of an inch in diameter and plug the oil scraper hole.
aj43.jpg
When making and installing the oil return groove
it can be square (pic 1) or round (pic3). The
groove is straight with a slight twist as shown.
aj44.jpg After your pour use your hub w/ shaft to test fit
insuring everything is in order.
The snoot needs to be pointing almost straight down, when making this pour, or the center cavity will start filling up.
After the pour, and things are cooled down, clean out of the Babbitt-Rite is a simple matter of using a screwdriver to pick it out. It normally comes out in big chunks.
A Word About Screw-up's
No matter how hard one tries, blow outs will happen!! This occurred doing my center bearing snoot pour on this project. Molten babbitt will find any hole or weak spot and breach the dam. If this breach occurs, everything needs to be taken apart, melt out the remaining babbitt, clean it up, and start all over again. Don't make a cold joint pour!!
Orchestrating the Boss Gear Bearing Pour
Due to the size of this bearing, I find it's the hardest one to pour to get a real nice smooth finish on it's surface. This is going to be a zero clearance pour, and no provisions were made for clearance on my jig. The separating agent I used on this jig is the sheetrock powder. Because hand fitting this bearing will be required, a real nice smooth looking surface won't matter anyway, but I do want a sound bearing to work with.
I start off doing a preliminary jigging of my journal jig setting my tin seats, and start my damming in strategic places. As I'm doing this, I'm also checking for centering, and the height off the mainframe cast bearing saddle. Once satisfied, I carefully remove my jig and place it on top of my babbitt pot to preheat the jig. I also prepare my damming material ahead of time, so all I have to do is just place it when things come together for the pour. I add a little tilt to the mainframe by adjusting the engine stand, so the babbitt will get a little gravity assistance and flow from back to front. (The hub shaft side of the mill being the back.) Once I start my pour, I want the babbitt to flow and fill the full bearing surface in the saddle, and it's a large area to fill.
aj45.jpg
Preliminary jigging for boss gear bushing. Preheat
each piece before you pour.
aj46.jpg Fit the journal (pic1). Top egdes need to be
knocked off (pic2). Lateral adjustment needs
to be checked.
With torch in hand I start preheating the mainframe cast bearing saddle. Here I want to add more heat than normal, maybe more in lines of 300 + degrees. Once there, it's a mad dash scramble to get everything together and dammed, then ending up with babbitt melting pot in one hand and the torch in the other. As I'm doing the actual pour the torch flame is concentrated around the pour hole of my jig, flame licking inside and out, right to left, during the full pour. I want to keep the BTU's high and even throughout the pour.
Using a hammer and chisel, I knock off the babbitt overflow from my pour hole, remove my damming, and loosen the nut and bolt on my jig. I then pop my jig off the pour. When things cool down I start fitting the regular boss gears to the new pour. Using a rasp for the high ridges and the right and left edges (lateral adjustment sides) of the bearing. A tin scraper with a very slight burr to even and level the bearing surface, adding a little clearance in the process. Basically doing a custom fit for the boss gear journal. As a final process I use some fine steel wool on the bearing.
aj49.jpg
Allow the pour to cool before fitting your
boss gears.
Turn your boss gears in the bushing saddle. You'll be able to see any high spots that may need to be scraped for proper fit.
Pitman Arms
Though I didn't re-pour my pitman arms on this project, it's rather straight forward, and think you can get a good general idea on how it was done.
So there you have it buckaroos, this is how I poured babbitt in my 602...
*******************************************************************