Hey guys, Ive had more 350 problems and will probably be starting a 454 project very soon. Will need some help along the way :D All the external parts I can handle, rockers, heads, manifolds, Ive never ever toyed with pistons and cranks, is this something the machine shop should be doing? Or when get a used shortblock, should probably have it checked out first? Might even buy a bare block but it may be more costly. Im broke, Im looking for a short block currently, have a few lined up....

Hey Phil;

When the time comes for the machining and parts, go see Good Heads Engine and Machine on Riverside in Roseville. Don is the sole proprietor, machinist, etc and did all my work as promised with a LOT of good recommendations, and his cost was less than any others I found around. He has a fair amount of recon'd heads and blocks in the shop too.

He's pretty quick too...

-curt

Hey Curt!
I called Don, really nice guy, and the prices are good. Im sold on this place smile.gif Theres a guy on Greenback who sells alot of Chevelle Parts and blocks, he has quite a few 454's I think I'll go see him this week.

This may be a silly question but ive never had block/bore work done before. Do I pull the pistons and crank and that or is that a part of what there doing? I guess Id be pulling them out anyways because im getting new pistons to fit the bore size I choose (still want .60 over) ;) So basically, how should I go about my pistons and crank install? That part I dont know...

Depends on what you want to have done. Make sure you either provide the pistons or make the machine shop provide the pistons as they need them prior to boring the block. You would NOT believe how many screw ups I have seen in this area. As the piston isn't bored for the hole correctly.

You can have them set up your crank, clearances and bearings,etc. If you pullthe parts you run the risk of more damage and lost parts, but if they pull it apart they can see how it came apart and look for damage, scoring and etc. If you have some experience in this area do it yourself, as you will probably take more time to do it right vs a machine shop. I personally farm this out as I don't want to take the time to do it, but it costs more then too!

buy the book"How to Hot Rod Big Block Chevys" by H.P. books...I used it to build my first 396, lots of good info in it which still works today graemlins/thumbsup.gif

When I took the whole bundle over to Don, I had completed stripped the motor down to a bare and open block and tore down the heads too. Gave him several boxes of parts and said go for it!

When he built everything back up for me, he ground and polished the stock crank (to .010)
Tanked, Mag'd, bored, ground and then even hung new pistons on the orig rods for me. I did the master kit thru him (tell him what you want in terms of pistons, bore, etc. If you can get away with a 30-over, why go 60?) He measured the pistons and rings and then bored the cylinders individually to match. He then did the 3-angle valve job too. As part of that, he also re-installed the valves and springs, etc.

The whole cost was around $1400 for my BBC, including the Master Kit and machining labor.

If you're comfortable putting everything back together yourself, he'll hang the pistons and put in the cam bearings and give you a box of everything else. Labor will be a heckuva lot cheaper this way! The book mentioned above is one that I have too and was a help, along with a Haynes manual for the BBCs. It's time consuming, but not real technically difficult. Pay attention to the details and get each step perfect before moving on to the next. I even borrowed all the specialty tools required, except for a torque wrench, at AutoZone for free...

-curt