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Engine Balancing Scale |
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68Rogue
AMC Apprentice Joined: Jul/06/2009 Location: Pewaukee, WI Status: Offline Points: 90 |
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Posted: Jan/23/2021 at 8:23pm |
Can anyone recommend a good digital scale for balancing pistons and rods that won’t break the bank? Bought one from HF but it does not seem very accurate/repeatable. Thanks in Advance.
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tomj
AMC Addicted Joined: Jan/27/2010 Location: earth Status: Offline Points: 7544 |
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I have a crappy $30 "postal scale", craptacular plastic. I bought it for shipping a bunch of small packages, but turns out it has a "grams" setting, and I'll be damned if it's at least very repeatable. Meaning I don't know if the rod I weighed was really 600 grams, or 590 or 610, but it was repeatable, meaning every time I weighed the same part it came out the same, plus/minus 1. I bet though, if I dropped a rod on it hard it might break!
Last engine I balanced I used a real lab type balance beam. Those are moderately delicate, in the obvious way. BUt the electronic stuff costs one tenth of those. And I am surprised how usable this cheap P.O.S. is. Then you can use it for postage later. |
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1960 Rambler Super two-door wagon, OHV auto
1961 Roadster American, 195.6 OHV, T5 http://www.ramblerLore.com |
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Steve_P
AMC Addicted Charter Member Joined: Jun/28/2007 Status: Offline Points: 3806 |
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like tomj, I have a generic digital postal scale, and like he said, it appears very accurate. It has something like a 4 lb capacity. If I wanted to buy one today, I would search on Amazon. You'll still need a stand or fixture for the rod because it's not just the total weight, you want to balance the ends
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68Rogue
AMC Apprentice Joined: Jul/06/2009 Location: Pewaukee, WI Status: Offline Points: 90 |
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I am making a fixture for rod big and small ends. Any degree of accuracy? Is going to the nearest gram, tenth or hundredth of a gram? Do most shops prefer weights in ounces or grams?
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Class Guy
AMC Addicted Joined: Jul/02/2007 Location: Arkansas Status: Offline Points: 969 |
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Tenths of grams is best. Grams will do. Never ounces.
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Addicted to acceleration.
Owner and Admin for www.classracerinfo.com |
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tyrodtom
AMC Addicted Joined: Sep/14/2007 Location: Virginia Status: Offline Points: 6213 |
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I've been lucky working at bodyshops with their own paint mixing systems.
Paint mixing scales are accurate down to 1/10 of a gram. I borrowed fixtures from a racer to weigh rod ends. I done that with 5 engines so far, it seems to be worth the extra work. The local NAPA decided to quit mixing paint, I tried to buy their scale, but they would only sell the whole system, that I couldn't afford.
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66 American SW, 66 American 2dr, 82 J10, 70 Hornet, Pound, Va.
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Japa109
AMC Apprentice Joined: Jul/17/2018 Location: Millersville, P Status: Offline Points: 55 |
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I found an excellent scale on Amazon for around $15 that weighs to the gram with accuracy. I use it for piston/ rod/ pin combos. It is simple, two buttons, rugged, easy to clean and puts sup with a shop and a kitchen environment.
For stuff requiring tighter measure I use an Ohaus triple beam balance scale I got at auction on line from govdeals.com for $30. It measures to .01 grams with +/- .5% accuracy.
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Japa 109
1963 American 2 dr wagon OHV-2V OD 1962 American 400 4 door OHV-2V Auto AC PS PDB |
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tomj
AMC Addicted Joined: Jan/27/2010 Location: earth Status: Offline Points: 7544 |
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For tasks I do once a year or less, I improvise. I used small cheap V blocks, metal stock, etc to make jigs for weighing rods, etc. Take it all apart and restock the parts when done. When I find myself doing jobs over and overl, I think it out and get the/a tool.
I'm over trying to own all the tools. Everything consumes space money time and maintenance. Took me four or five years to get around to buying a saw. In the mean time I got really really good with a hacksaw. I only got the saw when I got the point I needed to make multiples.
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1960 Rambler Super two-door wagon, OHV auto
1961 Roadster American, 195.6 OHV, T5 http://www.ramblerLore.com |
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