re-sleeving, school me!!!!!

[gmjim]

I'm looking at the possibility of sleeving a merc v6, i spent some time checking the Advanced sleeve catalog & some LA sleeve info i found, I noticed that the sleeves are available with different thicknesses, does this mean you can bore the existing sleeve to size and pop the new one in, or is it as i originally thought and the existing sleeve needs to come out first?

[HStream1]

Existing sleeve needs to be removed.

[ChrisCarsonMarine]

Depends entirely on the type of block you are working with.A dry sleeve block like many of today's motors that have sleeves that are removable by heating the block do not require boring,but heating for sleeve removable.Oversize sleeves are available to restore the proper interference fit between block and sleeve when there has been block repair or damage,in this case the block must be bored oversize to fit the oversized sleeve.
Many earlier blocks and some modern ones are cast with the sleeves in them,and these cannot be removed by heating and must be bored out,or in some cases,partially out.It is common to install a steel sleeve inside a steel sleeve in many of this type of block..crossflow omc's and Chrysler/force are the most common of this type,as well as 2.0 liter Mercs.Some blocks use a plating such as nicasil,chrome,boron carbide,and others that can be bored out,allowing the installation of a replacement steel sleeve as is the very common 2.4 chrome bore Merc,so you need to be specific as to what block you are discussing,Chris

[dompie99]

Hi there, I copied this procedure from L.A. Sleeves site:

Step 1.


The cylinder must be stripped of all removable parts: studs, nuts, bolts, manifolds, etc.






Step 2.
The cylinder is bored out to accept the sleeve. When the sleeve is installed into an all

aluminum cylinder, the interference fit is .004. When the sleeve is being installed into a

cast iron cylinder bore, the interference fit is .002 to .003.

The interference fit is determined by measuring the outside diameter of the sleeve, then

boring the cylinder diameter smaller than the sleeve.

The interference fit is a critical aspect of sleeve installation because this step insures

that the sleeve does not move when in the cylinder. Also, proper interference fit is

important for cylinder cooling purposes.

Step 3.
The cylinder is then heated in an oven between 400o, up to 450o for an hour or more.

Do not use a torch or hot plate for this procedure. It is important that the cylinder heats

uniformly.

Step 4.
The cylinder is then removed from the oven and the sleeve will drop easily into the cylinder.

Turning the sleeve by hand to line up the ports is a common practice, or you can use a

needle nose type device to align the ports.

You will have between five and ten seconds before the sleeve and cylinder lock up.

Step 5.
The cylinder must then be put under a hydraulic press to keep the sleeve from rising while

the cylinder is cooling.

Step 6.
The ports of the sleeve must then be blended with the cylinder by using an assortment of

hand grinding porting tools. Mismatched ports will cause some power loss to the engine.

Step 7.
After the ports have been matched, the cylinder (sleeve) must be bored out and honed to

insure proper piston clearance.

Measure your piston at the skirt to properly bore the sleeved cylinder to the correct

bore size. Chamfer the edges of all the ports to prevent the rings from catching on a sharp

edge.

Next, hone your cylinder to the correct piston clearance.

Properly sleeved cylinders can use the O.E.M. recommended piston clearance. If you

have a doubt, add a half thousandth (.0005) to the clearance.

Step 8.
As an added finishing touch, surface decking the top of the cylinder is recommended in

order to make sure that the head gasket will sit flat on the cylinder to create a good sealing

surface.

Make sure you only take the minimum cut off the top of the cylinder.

[bobthebuilder]

If you have the proper equipment to do the machinist work then you can do the rest too.. I use an old oven and have a complete machine shop.. I use a Rottler boring bar and it has a table clamp which makes it very easy to clamp a block and center the bar in the cyl. And whe I put sleeves in the block I use 1 1/2 by 1/4 inch steel straps to bolt over the sleeve until it cools... I do not have hydraulic press to clamp it in but my way works perfectly every time.. I did 6 sleeves yesterday.. As far as porting to match perfectly I do that here but you do not have to be perfectly matched on a stock fishing motor.. 1 couple thou difference in port heights will not matter much in it... I had one come in here with about .020 difference in Exhaust port height and it idled very rough before it blew a cyl form a trashy carb jet.. I cut that port to match when I did the new cyl to match the others.. then that ole 2.4 200 ran perfectly smooth and the guy said it was unbelievable the difference.. but that was .020 in a port too low.. Now it has 3 steel bores and 3 are still chrome but it runs fine and hauls the mail..

[gmjim]

Guys thats great info,, thanks a million.
I think i can setup an oven and swap the sleeves in my shop, but the boring & honing i will have to out source, but i have a really good guy to do it!

I am thinking of doing an early 2.5 block i have here, I have just found a company here in Aus that will re-chrome aswell so not sure if i will use Alloy sleeves or go with steel, whats the difference between the cast iron and ductile steel sleeves?
Any idea roughly on the cost of custom sleeves?
Thanks again, Jim

[gmjim]

Another question!!
Is there a theory as to why the 2.0 litres had the sleeves cast in, vs the 2.5 method?

[wired247]

Another question!!
Is there a theory as to why the 2.0 litres had the sleeves cast in, vs the 2.5 method?

Behind the liner vs piston ported ?

[bobthebuilder]

The guy boring the block needs to see it before hand and notice the bottom in the cyls. If he is equipped to bore outboards you will be OK. Most machines that bore automotive engines will not reach the bottom of the cyl. in that outboard block. Some even have centering fingers below the bit. One made for outboards will have the fingers or some call them cat paws.. above he bit and it requires an offset bit.. I also use a DRO on my machine so I know how far to go down when doing an oversize sleeve. That cyl in the pic of yours is not that bad looking. Hone it and cross hatch it good. Stay less than .003 past the bore size.. >003 will still run OK... I was into a factory reman block with only 25 hours on it a few weeks back where they hurried a break in or just did not even break it in Just went WOT from the start. The holes that did not stick were .002 over STD bore which was 3.502.. I was able to hone all but one cyl out some and bore one to 3.515 and hone another .002 out 3.517 is good.. if the others were that loose then match it up.

[TEXAS20225]

believe me its not novice work in any shape form or fashion, oversize sleeves are for the sleeve holders that are not making contact with the sleeve all the way around and proper heat transfer is not happening , which causes piston stick, la sleeves in my opinion are not as good as advance sleeves it cost around 250/275 to have a sleeve installed, bored, honed (cross hatched not brake cylinder hone job)and ports champered by the right machine shop or you will have another melt down soon, real soon, i have personally taken out and replaced several sleeves and it not worth the hassle if your not a machine shop with experience in marine stuff

[bobthebuilder]

Exactly correct texas20225 !! I do them on a regular basis here.. I am a machinist and have mt own machine shop fully equipped.. Oversized sleeves need the ledge to sit on too and that's why I have a DRO on my Rottler boring bar. And a good Sunnen Hone.. Bridgeport mill and a Southbend lathe and plenty of mics and bore gauges and such... This is not cheap novice stuff.. I have a small fortune invested in it. But if you reman outboards ya got ta have it all! Even a good TIG welding machine which mine is having issues right now but will be fixed soon I hope.. I am having to outsource the welding right now on a block and a lower unit I am repairing. It really sucks to not have it working when I need it. I think a HF capacitor went out in there.