Panhead Engine Repair

[WickedTwins]

Hello AMCA Members,

I have a question that I hope you can answer. I have a 51 Panhead that I'm building. Unfortunately, someone replaced the cam bushing from the cam side of the engine and installed roller bearings. It appears that when this was done, the case started to crack. I'm posting this to see if you can recommend someone who is very good at repairing Pan cases. There is no one close to me that can do this work. So I'm reaching out to you for recommendations. Any info you can give would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, Jeff.

[Rubone]

The case was likely cracked before the needle bearing installation. They break more often from seized bushings, often when someone installs a later type cam without resizing the bushing to correct specs. Needle bearing cams are .001-.002 larger on the journal than bushing cams are. Sometimes the needle bearing is installed to prevent further cracking but no other repair is done. The biggest issue in attempting a repair is the cracks spread dramatically and spiderweb. It is a very tricky repair. Try contacting Phil at Knuckle Works in CA who does a lot of case repair.

[jgbrown59]

Advanced Cycle Machining in Superior Wisconsin is really good with these types of repair as well.

[larry]

Welding sometimes creates more problems than it solves. It's a judgement call.

[WickedTwins]

Everyone, thank you for your responses. I apologize for the late reply to your information. I thought I would get an email when a reply was posted to my question. I was wrong. Again, thank all of you for your information.

That was a good point about the seized bushings. I didn't think of that but it makes sense. My first thought was the case split due to improper sizing for the needle bearings.

Thank You Everyone.