idf1966

I'm using a 5.3L from a 2005 truck, and putting my TKO600 behind it in my 1966 Chevelle. I understand at this time that the crank offset for the LSx engines is approximately .4 inches shorter than a standard small block chevy. In my mind, this would then require a crank spacer/special flywheel, and an extended pilot bushing.

I purchased a special bellhousing from Keisler that is supposed to allow the bolt-up of a Muncie, Tremec etc. to the LS engines and remove the need for the spacer/long bearing. My measurements show that this has the same depth as my old Lakewood, and therefore would be no better than a standard bellhousing.

Can anyone confirm that my understandings above are correct, and also have you had to use a special pilot bearing to have proper input shaft engagement and do you need a crank spacer, or extended clutch fork pivot ball to be able to properly set the clutch up?

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Brains

iTrader: (7)

There's always the option of swapping the crankshaft with the 4L80e version, the flange is longer. I even happen to have one sitting in the garage

militant_x

iTrader: (1)

as I understood it, you just need the extended pilot bearing/bushing. The part number is 8617 (mc leod bushing). Im pretty sure you dont need a crank spacer or special flywheel. You can always get an adjustable ball stud to compensate if anything is off. I decided to go hydraulic throwout and then get that matched up.

check this post: https://ls1tech.com/forums/showthrea...9&page=1&pp=20

sssuch

Here we go again, this question comes up every couple of months . Do this it works great. :Heres a copy and paste from my post on this last year:
I just test fit a new Lakewood blow proof #15005 to my LQ4 fit good except for some minor grinding near the top of the block for the nut on the block plate. This may not be an issue with the aluminum block LS1 & LS6. It also comes with a machined adapter that presses into the back of the crank to use a standard pilot bushing. Instead of the adapter and bronze pilot bushing I used a GM pilot bearing #12557583 which is a sealed ball bearing , everything fits perfectly and it cost less than $10.00 . Much less than some dealers want for the adapter to use the old-style bushing. This bellhousing even has a bracket on it so I can mount a bracket for my clutch cross shaft. This bell will ONLY bolt up to Muncie,Borg Warner T-10 , Doug Nash , and other transmissions with the old style bolt pattern.

idf1966

Thanks everyone.

I was really hoping I wouldn't have to tear the engine down at this stage, but at least it would have been a solution.

I'll look for that GM part number and use the bellhousing I have.

Thanks again, much appreciated.

Ian

V8 Supra Builder

iTrader: (37)

I am planning a similar setup, 2003 5.3 LM7 to a TKO600 going into a 1988 Supra. I've given up on the idea of using the Supra Turbo R154 trans due to several issues.

I've been wondering about the .400 issue, since I'm using a mid 80's truck bellhousing with the large bore (5"+ I believe) that has a provision for a hydraulic slave cylinder. I have a LS1 flywheel & clutch setup for the motor.

Have you made any progress with your install?

Novas Forever

I used a Lakewood scattershield as an adapter on my Chevy II and then the pilot bearing mentioned above. It caught the input shaft just fine. I did have an adjustable clutch pivot and also used a long throwout bearing.

V8 Supra Builder

iTrader: (37)

I did some measuring today, and according to the specs at Rock Auto (parts house), the GM 12557583 pilot bearing (listed as fitting a 2002 Avalanche 2500 and other late model trucks) is 22.7mm ID, 43.3 OD, and 13mm thick. I measured my crank (2003 Avalanche 5.3 LM7 originally an automatic) and TKO input shaft, and the OD is fine, but the input shaft is only about 15mm- way smaller than the bearing's stated ID.

A 2002 LS1 F-body pilot bearing shows as 15.2 mm (.600") ID by 27.8mm (1.096") OD by 18.2mm (.72") thick. This means the T56 has a 15mm input shaft, just like my TKO600. This bearing will not fit in the large opening like the 12557583 one will, because the OD is too small. BTW, this shows as the same pilot bearing used for the Gen 1 V8 when I checked a listing for a '92 Camaro with a 305.

If I recall correctly, the LS1 T56 trans has a different input shaft and won't work with the earlier motors. This would explain the pilot bearing difference.

From what other users have stated here, the 12557583 bearing works fine. One possibility is the specs as quoted by Rock Auto are off for the ID, but I checked the AC Delco catalog online and they quote the exact same numbers.

I'm not comfortable putting in a pilot bearing with 7mm (.275") of ID slop!

v-8

hmmm why not the t56 which already works on the ls1?

V8 Supra Builder

iTrader: (37)

Wouldn't fit in my tranny tunnel!

V8 Supra Builder

iTrader: (37)

Found a SKF roller bearing, part #6302-2RSL, low-loss sealed on both ends, specs are 15mm (.5906") ID, 42mm (1.6535") OD, and 13mm (.5118") wide.

This is as close as I can come, and based on my crank/input measurements this may be the way to go.

EDIT
6302-RS sealed bearings on Ebay, about $5 shipped:


Looks like same type of bearing as the 12557583 C/K truck bearing mentioned above:

Novas Forever

If I remember right that is a better external diameter than the one I used.

V8 Supra Builder

iTrader: (37)

My $5 Ebay bearing arrived today, and as with most aspects of this engine swap it doesn't fit . The ID at 15mm is perfect for the trans input shaft, but the OD is 1mm too small for the crank. Good old non-standard dimensions. Kind of like using 11mm flywheel bolts.

Next try will be an extended pilot bushing.

V8 Supra Builder

iTrader: (37)

I did some more measuring, this time the crank, back of block, bellhousing, and input shaft.

The input shaft sticks out .40625" past the bellhousing.

The crank flywheel flange sticks out .28125" past the block.

The crank pilot flange sticks out .59375" past the block.

The overall pilot opening is about 2.0625" deep, of this, 1.34" is the standard 1.094" LS1/SBC pilot diameter. The remainder is the 43.3mm or 1.704" large opening.

The three pilot bushings I've found measure for width as follows:
Standard SBC: .750"
"Long" SBC: 1.00"
McLeod 8617: 1.69"

The "long" Chevy bushing is made for engines with adapter plates, and apparently has a .250" flange to make it 1.00" long, so it compares favorably to the McLeod in my diagram since it actually does not have to bottom out in the crank.

Looks like either the "long" Chevy bushing or the McLeod come close for my application, assuming the McLeod is a uniform diameter (haven't seen a pic of it yet).

I'm going to attach a screen capture of the diagram I made for reference.

EDIT
Found this info at http://www.rebuiltautoengines.com/ch...-articles.html
Crankshaft Replacement Caution For 1998-2005 GM 4.3, 4.8, 5.3, 5.7 & 6.0L Engines

Read this article on crankshaft replacement caution for 1998-2003 GM 4.3, 4.8, 5.3, 5.7 and 6.0L engines. Design changes in the flywheel flange thickness have been made to some crankshafts used in the above-mentioned engines. This bulletin is being re-published with additional information.

The later crankshafts are shorter on the flywheel flange as seen in the listing below. These changes are due to the many different vehicle / transmission combinations being built by GM.

A flywheel spacer ring GM Part #12563532 and a longer bolt set GM Part #12563533 is required when using a thin flange crankshaft to replace a thick flange crankshaft. Also, if the crankshaft is being used in a vehicle, which is a standard shift application, you also need pilot bushing GM Part #12557583 or 12479894.

(Part # 12479894 must be old- can't find a listing for it. Web page has list of crank info that won't display correctly here, but I noted my 2003 5.3L crank flange @ .857" is indeed almost .400" shorter than the 4.8L one which is 1.250" )

All GEN III crankshafts used in Camaro, Corvette and Firebird have a .857 thick flange and also have a freeze plug installed at the bottom of the pilot shaft hole. The 4.8, 5.3 + 6.0L don't have the freeze plug. The drilled hole thru the centerline of the 5.7L LS1 & LS6 crankshafts allows a path to balance crankcase pressure within the lower crankcase. Doing so has eliminated possible oil consumption when the engine is operated over 4800 RPM.

Caution: Early crankshafts use a flat reluctor wheel and late have a recess. Recess will work on all years. Do not use a flat reluctor on late applications as it will cause an engine misfire.

355ss

iTrader: (9)

I found this on rock auto for a 2001 6.0 3500 truck by searching for 12557583: If these 2 parts are interchangeable then one of them has incorrect dimensions.

ACDELCO Part # CT1082
BEARING,CLU PILOT WHEN REPLACING 1999-2000 CR/SHF WITH 12561302 2001 CR/SHF, ALSO USE 12563532 SPACER, 6-12563533 BOLTS AND IF APPLICABLE 12557583 PILOT BEARING; w/5-SPD M/TRANS(MW3); 22.7MM ID, 43.3MM OD, 13 THK {#12557583} $9.17 $0.00 $9.17

BCA Part # 302CC
{Ball Bearing Outer Race Radius=0.0402" Bore=0.5906" Outer Diameter=1.6535" Width=0.5118" Inner Race Radius=0.0402"} $22.79 $0.00 $22.79

TJ

iTrader: (10)

only the 99-00 right?
in which the 01-present are the same as the rest of the family, it just uses a crank spacer.
no reason to swap out a crankshaft when you can just use a spacer. of course this isnt an automatic, so its not the case.

im not up to par on manual trannys, but my friend used the mcleod parts to mate his tk0 600 to the ls1.
hyraulic clutch setup as well.
good luck.

iansane

I know this is an old topic but it's the only thing that came up under the search of "5.3 pilot bearing" with any decent info..

Supra builder did a greaet job illustrating the differences but the line drawing picture looks a little confusing to me. Maybe even if the lines were thicker so I easisly see. Is the best thing to use; a "long" SBC bearing? Where would I get one? Is it a stock app on some rig or a custom jobber?

jeejee

iTrader: (3)

same here, it wasn't very clear in this thread what the correct number is that one would need
There are many numbers and some are not correct.

i need one for in position 2 with 15mm inner diameter (T56 imputshaft diameter)

leonpiper69

iTrader: (3)

also no one has mentioned how the bolt pattern is diff between the old style and sl crank flanges. i was reading an article in the october 08 issue of car craft and they were saying you had to use the adapter flywheel cus the ls style flywheel only comes in 168 tooth and wont fit in most of the older bellhousings?

i tried searching car crafts website but cant find the article (i was going to post a link) i have the issue in my hand so i know its october 08 though.

the article is called " how-to: install any early trans behind your ls1"

its a pretty good read.

DGGM WX3

iTrader: (1)

I've read that article as well and plan to use their recommended parts to put a 5.3/TKO600 in my Camaro.