Kohler Command Main Bearing Repair Sleeve
Posted by Cathy Stahl on
You can save your Kohler Command Block if you have main bearing damage, this fix will also save your cankshaft and make it better than before. The repair sleeve is a steel back copper overlay bushing with a tough Teflon coating.This repair will require the use of a Mill and Crank grinder. Step one for flywheel side main bearing repair. You will need to narrow the bushing our part # 52995 to 1.400"wide and then machine the 2 oil holes with a 3/8" hole. when you machine the oil holes in the bearing put them midway(.700") from edge and put the 1 st hole in opposite the split seam and 2nd hole will be clocked 90degrees from there . The holes must be in the correct orientation to make sure the chamfer side of the bushing will godown, so not to catch and drap during installation.. After machining the holes make sure to debur the inside of the holes with a 3/4" ball die burr. Also debur the edges where it was narrowed and the outside of the holes. Set the block up in the mill making sure its clean & perfectly flat and toe clamp it down to the table. Indicate the main bearing hole to find the center. You canuse the existing bearing surface if its not too badly damaged. Sometimes there is a concentricity issue between the bearing bore and the crank seal bore. Machine main bearing bore to 44mm (1.7324) all the way through. go down 1.5" to insure that its all the way through thebearing area.Next machine yourself a bushing driver to install the repair sleeve.I make the guide portion of the sleeve 1.465" diameter so it doesn't drag on the sleeve once the sleeve is installed. Leave a step on the driver that il. diameter. it will act as a stope when you get to top of the just smaller than the bearing location. Last step is to machine the crankshaft main bearing diameter (in a crankshaft grinder) to 40mm (1.5748) Check the fit of the crankshaft in the block, you may have to machine it smaller to get the correct fit. Leave an oil clearance of .003" to .005" Please call and we can email you a copy of this article with pictures befor you start the repair. We do not have a video of this repair as of 2025.