Blueing of connecting rod

1stWoody

Member
I dropped the oil pan on a newly acquired A to check things out and noticed all the connecting rods are blued at the wrist pin. I know rods for racing engines are heat treated but didn't think that would apply to the model A engine.
Is this something to be worried about?
 

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Likely the rebuilder did not hone the new bushing(s) to fit the pin to, and just used a rod heater to insert the pin as done in a later model engine.

The issue will be that premature wear will come to the pistons pin bores however I am not sure how long that wear will shorten the life. Maybe 10,000 miles??
 
What temperature is needed for steel to go blue like that? Has the strength of the rod been compromised?
The OP is probably wanting to know the answers to these questions. So would I in his position before I install that engine.
 
Typically blue color is around 550-600 degrees f
It doesn’t change the metal many gm small blocks use this method

J
 
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