Short Messages with a Big Impact
It buzzes and makes noises. I'm not talking about a motor, but rather a cell phone when it receives a message. The messages are brief, but their content can vary in depth and significance.
I've been waiting for months for an important message like this from my engine builder. After our visit this spring to Franz Durrer in Neuheim , things have been a bit too quiet for my liking. The crankshaft, in particular, still needed some work—specifically, the worn and partially corroded bearing surfaces, as shown in the picture above at the main bearing at the end of the crankshaft.
First, the crankshaft needs to be centered; this grinding machine ensures that the small, conical hole at the end of the shaft is ground to a perfectly centered shape. Only then will the main bearings and crankpins be round instead of oval at the end.
“Everything has to be just right; I have to stay focused on the task at hand; I shouldn't let stress get to me; and anyway, anything that's supposed to turn out well needs the right conditions,” said the expert. I fully understand that, because in fact, a failed connecting rod could have been remade, and so could a bearing. But when it comes to the crankshaft, we only have this one original one. Sure, even a part like that could probably be remade today—but it would come with a hefty price tag. So I was glad to receive an honest answer rather than a false completion date or even the news that the crankshaft had met its end. But during my vacation, the phone buzzed, and my inbox revealed that a whole stack of photos had arrived, along with a short message: “It's been ground—the crankshaft!”
“Prince Engineers Ltd.” at work. The machine with the swiveling grinding wheel is a cult classic among engine builders. At the right edge of the picture, you can see the mandrel that centers the shaft; at the rear end, the concentricity can be fine-tuned using another mandrel in a chuck.
Now this impressive component from my 4.8-liter six-cylinder engine in the Graham-Paige looks like new again. The bearing surfaces are gleaming—as smooth as a baby's bottom—and now the shaft is being freshly balanced.
Next up is reassembling the engine, which I had removed together with a colleague shortly before Christmas 2024. With a bit of optimism, I'm now hoping that we'll be able to complete the engine reinstallation, the adjustment work, and the subsequent careful break-in by November.
There they are, shining again: the seven main and six connecting-rod bearing surfaces of the crankshaft.
This would mean that the Graham-Paige—after being taken out of service in 1955, rediscovered in 2006, and re-registered on November 17, 2023—would once again be fully roadworthy and ready for the road by fall 2026. Admittedly, the classic car season will be nearly over by then, but given the sweltering days this summer, it would have been questionable anyway just how much enthusiasm I would have had for facing those thermal challenges—both for man and machine.
A 1929 Graham-Paige 619. The engine overhaul is scheduled to be completed this fall.
