Old Days Are Gone; Now, Reconditioned Con Rods Must Meet Critical Specs

Too much twist and bend will limit oil clearances and can cause engine damage

I can remember in the old days how rods were reconditioned. We had a dry hone with limited mandrels. Rods were ground, assembled, torqued and dry-honed to final specs. Because there was no liquid, it took forever to recondition the big end. Pin bushings were removed then burnished and dry-honed to fit the pin bore and replaced using a vise as the press to install them.

We checked our bend and twist on an antique tester that had a red zone for rods out of alignment and a green zone for good rods that could be reused. The tester used a pointer with a spring-loaded bar on the bottom for straightness and a spring-loaded bar for the twist. Although we never knew what the exact bend or twist was, if the rod was in the green range, it wasn