hot rod c10 engine damage

Even the best wrenches make mistakes

Hot Rod’s John McGann can wrench. He can write and photograph his process too. But he can also make a mistake, which is what he talks about in a recent column related to his 1967 Chevrolet C10 pickup. And I have to tell you, even though it sucks to hear about his engine problems, it’s also refreshing to hear about respected wrench turns also making mistakes.

While performing work on the engine, McGann lost track of a small, inexpensive part. It wound up heading down through the open throttle and on into the engine. The result? A fairly heavily damaged piston, gouges on the cylinder head, and valve damage. A part that costs $12.15 will wind up costing John a few thousand dollars instead.

It sucks. But it’s also great to see McGann write about this. Wrenches of every level need to see and hear about these sorts of mistakes. It can help you remember to check things on your own builds but also reminds you that shit happens. Go read the column using the link above, and to see more photos of what happened.

[Source: Hot Rod]

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One response to “Even the best wrenches make mistakes”

  1. outback_ute Avatar
    outback_ute

    I don’t remember the exact details because this happened 25 years ago but a guy I know had a rebuilt Jag XK engine, used a piece of welding rod in no.1 spark plug hole to find TDC and set the timing or similar, then after a couple of other tasks came back and rotated the crank for something else. I’m not sure if he saw the rod drop into the cylinder or heard it snap when the piston rose, but he realized what he’d done… Sump (oil pan) came off and piston out to remove pieces of rod, don’t think there was any damage luckily.