ok so i go to start working on my car tonight, i wanted to set up the timing on my engine because im getting ready to attempt to start it. i go to turn the engine by hand with my breaker bar and it wont turn! my friend asked me if i ever set the timing with the cylinder head and i was unsure... ( i assembled my engine a while ago) so he thought that maybe the valve was coming down as the piston was going up and they were meeting which is why the engine wont turn. so i took manifold off tonight as well as the valve covers and rockers so everything is just sitting loose and the engine still wont turn!! any suggestions? thanks

 

Do you have roller rockers or solid rockers?

 

i have solid rockers, but as of right now i took them off just to see if i could get the crank to turn. also the engine is in the car with the trans hooked up but i have the car in neutral . so i have no idea why it wont turn. unless the pistons are stuck in the block. would spraying some oil on ttop of the piston help? maybe some marvel mystery oil

 

remove the spark plugs so you aren't fighting compression... are you absolutely sure you don't have a main cap in the wrong place, bearing installed backwards, rings too tight...? Which direction are you trying to turn it?

 

Is the engine locked up "solid"? (won't move at ALL, either direction).

Don't panic or jump to conclusions. there are a few things that can cause this and not all of them are "bad".

Assuming the engine turned when you assembled it, the first thing I would think has you locked up might be in the bell housing... wrong spacing of flywheel, clutch jammed, etc.

You need to be methodical to find the issue.

 

spark plugs are out. and when the engine first went back in the car i was able to turn it? as of right now i cant get it to turn in either direction

 

How did you install it, with tranny attached or separately? The last time you were able to turn it over, was the tranny attached? I'll bet you have something jamming up in the bell, as JMD said.

 

i installed it with the tranny on, however i did drop the tranny afterwards and put it back in.. im going to pull the engine out again, or at least separate it from the tranny and see if it will turn then. if it still doesn't then ill know its an internal issue

 

Are you certain the trans is in neutral? And yeah, if it turned after it was assembled then it's likely a trans issue or something in the housing.

Just as a side note, what was the bearing clearance?

 

how long has it been sitting?? rings might have rusted to the cylinder walls if its been a while