Loose flywheel saga.

[chrisabes]

About six weeks ago, we set out in "Daisy", our 28 Phaeton for the annual Australian Model A Rally been held at Darwin, 3500kms. from home. We only got as far as Toowoomba (175kms) when the engine started to develop a very loud thumping noise. My thought was a main bearing failure. We returned home with the vehicle on a flat bed truck and went to Darwin in our ute with a slide on camper.
Fast forward to this last week. I removed the engine, removed the clutch pressure plate and found the bolts securing the flywheel to the crankshaft were all loose, the two flywheel dowels were not located, one had fallen out and the second was only in the flywheel. There was no flywheel dowel retainer and the wire locking was as in the photo. Could have been very nasty. Note the damaged rear main bearing, I wonder if this is a result of the excessive load on the crankshaft?
A couple of photo's attached.

[J Franklin]

I would think if everything was bolted up to factory specs this would not have happened. The safety wire looks to be placed wrong also. I always use a drop of lock tight on bolts and nuts for added (cheap) insurance

[Bob C]

Safety wired wrong and the flywheel dowel retainer is missing.

Bob

[Patrick L.]

It could have been nasty, you caught it. Thats a bad lacing job.
It doesn't seem to me as though that caused the bearing to fail, but,,,,,,

[Special Coupe Frank]

Geeze Louise !

Good thing you shut it down before it completely let-loose !

[Brentwood Bob]

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A good time to fix it.
So that is what the retainer is for.

[James Rogers]

Where is the pilot bearing? The wire is a joke and the missing retainer is crucial to the assembly. The damage to the main is not because of the flywheel but because the groove is incorrect and probably bad babbitt.

[Marvin/TN]

safety wire is wrong,

[Kurt in NJ]

It looks like the "oil groove" was cut all the way through the babbitt

[Tom Wesenberg]

How's the babbit look in the cap, which takes the real load.

[chrisabes]

The babbit in the cap was fine. It looks like I will have to get the mains line bored and slipper bearings installed. The big ends are babbit and look fine, the engine rebuild company are going through it all and will send me a recommendation.
Thanks for all the comments.