hey all
well im ready to start on my engine, and the last thing left is...bolts. i need some advice as to what bolts to get, i would like to have a windage tray, its a SBC. and its going to have around 500 Horse. so i need some bolts that can hold up. i have seen "Bolt Kits" from ARP and PAW, i was wondering, has anyone ever used PAW bolts? the bolt kit from PAW only has the exterior bolts (manifold, fuel pump etc) and not main or head bolts or rod bolts. i dont know if i should get studs or bolts for the main and heads, whats the difference? should i get ARP bolts for the interior? or are any main bolts good enough? what kind of rod bolts should i get? any advise would be great!
also, what are the pros and cons of using a 6" rod in a 350? lemme know what yall think

thanks

mike

Most all the exterior bolts (except the flywheel/flexplate and converter/clutch) are not stressed so most any thing will work. What ever you like. For 500 hp, main studs might be a good idea. Figure on align honing the block. It may not be needed but usually is. Head bolts will work fine, head studs are a real pain to work with. I'd spend the extra few dollars for ARP.

For 500 hp, I suggest going with an aftermarket rod. I'm using Eagle SIR rods (around $200 if you shop) and think they are excellent, much better than factory rods. They come with ARP bolts. I take them to 7000 rpm on every pass.

Lots of different opinions on 6" rods. I like them. Very easy to do, and no more money, in a 350 if you are getting rods and pistons anyway. Do a search on 6" rods, you'll get a lot of info.

Here is what I have in my 480HP SB. Scat cast crank, Eagle SIR 6" rods, and Wiseco ProTrue forged pistons (they come with rings). About $820 from www.dirttrackthunder.com (http://www.dirttrackthunder.com) for crank, rods, rings, and pistons. I use ARP main studs and head bolts.

awesome, thanks so much for your help it helped me get rolling on the bolts.

any other opinions?

oh yeah, what kind of arp bolts should i get for the rods? chrome-moly?

i second the opinions on the ARP bolts, when i did the 427 i used arp rod and main cap bolts, all the other little stuff was a PAW kit just like you are thinking.

Daniel

I saw BIG DADDY on T.V last week and he said ARP bolts are the only bolts he would ever trust on his engines. ARP for me then. graemlins/thumbsup.gif

When I built my 496, every bolt is an ARP bolt. I have to agree with Pat on the studs however. This was my first engine and I thought the studs would be better, which they may be but what a PITA. Main thing is you can't pull heads while the motor is in the car. And the main studs don't clear the oil pump. I'm running ARP Main Studs, ARP Head Studs.

I also ordered one of their engine bolt kits, which includes, intake, headers, dist., water pump, fuel pump, motor mounts, timing cover, valve covers and oil pan. I will say they are very nice quality however, I ran into a few problems. My Aluminum timing cover is too thick for the bolts supplied, and my oil pan once you get one of the Fel-Pro one piece gaskets under the supplied bolts were too short. The kits are made more for using stock gaskets and not thick aluminum pieces such as valve covers, and timing covers. I'm not complaining just thought I'd give you a heads up they were an excellent quality bolt. I also ordered the ARP flexplate bolts, Dampner bolt, and torque converter bolts. Keep in mind though the reason I did all of this is b/c I was starting from scratch. I also don't like to reuse flywheel bolts, head bolts, and main bolts but that is just my personal preference. Hope this might help a little.

Matt

ditto on the ARP bolts.i bought their complete engine bolt kit for mine.i won't accept any other brand.also,i heard head studs can create a clearance problem with head removal on the drivers side when a power brake booster is on the firewall. ;)