Thanks Dwight! I imagine the comment I made about pressed in vs. floating piston pins come into play. The rod's not going anywhere if the pin is keeping it in place. Hmm.. that brings up something else though. The pin is pressed in the rod, and floats in the piston. With the big side clearance in the rod, the rod could conceivably move far enough that the pin scores the side of the block, assuming there is enough room under the piston for the rod to shift sideways that far.