Polishing journals
Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 9,078
Likes: 7
From: DFW TX
Cruise-In VII Veteran
St. Jude Donor '07
Polishing journals
What did you guys use to polish your journals with? I chamfered the oiling passages today and thought it might be good to polish everything to a mirror finish. 
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,877
Likes: 13
From: Doha
St. Jude Donor '08
I always hear that its not a good idea to fully polish a crank journal to a mirror finish, its better to leave a lightly rougher surface to help holding the oil, just like the cross-hatch pattern in a cylinder bore.
Drifting
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 1,360
Likes: 3
From: NORTHEAST
We have always polished are cranks to a mirror finish and no issues so far in 35 years and we have got some old Cup Winberg cranks in and there is no cross hatch pattern or coarse finish on any of those cranks.
It would be really hard to get a good finish with out using a crank shaft polisher finish is criticle on the journals.
I have seen some home polish jobs that were not pretty.
It would be really hard to get a good finish with out using a crank shaft polisher finish is criticle on the journals.
I have seen some home polish jobs that were not pretty.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 2,989
Likes: 198
From: Meriden CT
We have always polished are cranks to a mirror finish and no issues so far in 35 years and we have got some old Cup Winberg cranks in and there is no cross hatch pattern or coarse finish on any of those cranks.
It would be really hard to get a good finish with out using a crank shaft polisher finish is criticle on the journals.
I have seen some home polish jobs that were not pretty.
It would be really hard to get a good finish with out using a crank shaft polisher finish is criticle on the journals.
I have seen some home polish jobs that were not pretty.
Polishing somehow by hand could give it an out of round condition.
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Team Owner
Joined: Apr 1999
Posts: 21,953
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From: Reno Nevada
2024 C3 of the Year Finalist- Modified
I broke a cheap *** Bill Miller motown 427 4 inch stroker crank. It probably was SCAT or ... 350 main size light weight
Like MotorHead I bought Callies Mine was a 44# pound or so $2000 crank that was pendulum cut. It looked like Chrome.
Oil repellent coatings are much better than the finest polish job
Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 9,078
Likes: 7
From: DFW TX
Cruise-In VII Veteran
St. Jude Donor '07
I think we are only talking about microns or smaller. Not an expert here, but with all the metals floating around at breakin, wouldn't that screw up that mirror finish. Since the journal bearings aren't round (two halves) and they are torqued down, wouldn't there be some rough edges.