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Nuclear re-construction...going back together!

4K views 40 replies 17 participants last post by  JBoggs 
#1 ·
Getting the shortblock back together after the unfortunate piston melting excursion.

Luckily the cylinder and deck weren't damaged...so pretty much a freshen up deal.

Honed it with a flex hone. What appeared to be some marking stuff at the same spot as piston damage on the #1 cylinder wall was a little aluminum from piston. Came right off.

Cleaned up the block with the pressure washer (hadn't used it in two years...took a little time to get it back in the game!).

Threw some paint on it before oil drips all over it. The brass freeze plugs have been in it since original assy. 17 years ago. I like them to look shiny..so I cover them with grease when painting. I'll then use some Scotchbrite to shine them up.

Spent last night gapping the Speed Pro Hellfire rings...that's always fun.

Laid the Callies crank back in place with new bearings. Old ones looked fine...but "while you're there" right?

Went over all the pistons to be sure all was good. Ring grooves are excellent...no issues. The Oliver rods are also perfect. Rod bearings looked perfect on disassembly also.

Thought I had some rod bearings in stock...turns out I didn't. Ordered them from O'Reilly's at 7:30 this morning and picked up a few hours later.
"While you're there" right?

Got 7 pistons loaded back in place. Still waiting on the new one from Diamond. Hopefully soon.

Also need heads back from Brodix...again hopefully soon. And a set of Cometic head gaskets haven't got here yet. Everything else I think I have.

I've got a new timing belt to install on the Jesel belt drive. Other one looks fine but it's been there a long time too. Also new seals for it.

The cam was sent to Bullet to see about re-grinding it with a few more degrees of duration and re-arranging the timing events somewhat. I'm spinning the heck out of this thing (more than I thought I would) so might as well tweak it a little.


I've got a new set of roller lifters to install. The old ones have been there for 5+ years as well as took a 2500 mile road trip when it was N/A.

So, I'm going back together as quick as possible. I was scheduled to do a track rental last weekend, but of course had to bow out. But I will be back at it as soon as this thing is back together!


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#5 ·
Here I am afraid to let a hair fall out of my head while I am near my block and you just toss it all together like nothing.


I need a bigger man card.

LOL..just gotta jump in there!!!




It helps that me and this engine have been together for 17 years.


It knows I'm going to spank it every chance I get...and I know where to look for the bruises!!:D


JIM
 
#11 ·
Much to admire about an engine which has been in service for 17 years.
A little tune up from time to time keeps it in the happy zone.
17 years!! Who says big inch BBCs aren’t tough??
Looks great! Thought I was the only person crazy enough to polish brass plugs, glad to see someone else doing it!
 
#10 ·
I knew there was a reason you were being quiet.:yes:
 
#15 ·
The ones currently on these heads are what came from Brodix years ago. I believe they are Manley NexTek's. Knock on wood...I've never had one break over the years. My N/A cam was very, very easy on springs and even after years of use and they had lost tension down to 400 psi OPEN they were still revving 7500 RPM with no issues.

I didn't test these before I sent them in to Brodix...but I'll know how they ck out as they freshen the heads.

But overall...it's actually not something I've ever worried about. I ck them occasionally and replace them every few years maybe. Let's see...in 17 years...my old heads came with a set....and I think I changed them twice. And then there is this set that has 5 years of running on them if that gives you an idea.


JIM
 
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#16 ·
Here's a good testament to building with a modern block. Every time I bring up suggestion of ditching an old MrkIV block to start a performance build I get slammed. 17 years of abuse, how many combos, piston melts, flex hone and put it back together. If this were a 4.310 bore kinda deal on a production block, I guarantee you'd be looking at bore, new pistons. balance , etc.
 
#23 ·
It's got a 21cc dish in it.


I'll need to open the valve pocket a little to clear my 2.350" valves. It handles up to 2.300's.


JIM
 
#20 ·
Great meeting you at PRI, purty piston... 8's are just around the corner. My new motor has Diamond flat tops but I'm not going to use them,going with a small done to get closer to 10.5/11.0 compression,you got of Dodge before the snow hit how was the trip home?

Brian
 
#25 ·
Great meeting you at PRI, purty piston... 8's are just around the corner. My new motor has Diamond flat tops but I'm not going to use them,going with a small done to get closer to 10.5/11.0 compression,you got of Dodge before the snow hit how was the trip home?

Brian

You too...that new project is going to have it's hands full to proportionally best that 'lil 433" you have now! That dude rocks!!


Good plan on putting some compression in it. My heads are at 112cc...so I can get up there with a small dome. I used some Mahle's when it was N/A. Nice light 4032 piston that you can fit tight with thinner rings. Nice package. They were quiet even though I ran them a lot looser than normal.


I usually stay through Sat...but this year I decided to bail Friday night. Got out OK with no drama...so that's a good thing.


Keep us up to date on your car...love that thing!


JIM
 
#24 ·
What...you don't??? :beers:




I get excited when new parts show up and they often get opened in the kitchen. Christmas comes early!!


JIM
 
#28 ·
Not sure. I have some other buddies going....I need to ck off this "8 second" box first!

One of them has a 64 Galaxie with a turbo. He wants to hit 200 also. Battle of the big cars!!

It was a lot of fun. Everyone is friendly and helps each other.

JIM
 
#30 ·
Finally some progress this week! The Holiday's seemed to slow down production of parts and shipping had all sorts of issues. Plus it's freaking cold in TX this week. 15*-20* in an uninsulated shop is chilly! Normally insulation isn't a big issue in TX....supposed to be back in 50's by the weekend.

I sent my old cam off to Bullet to be re-ground...but when it was done.....

Somehow UPS decided to take it to my old house in this same town...but I haven't lived there in almost 5 years!! How does that happen? They've delivered other stuff to my current one! Luckily the people remembered my name and could see my phone number on the label and called me. Also luckily they had THAT address instead of the one in Utah where I lived before moving back here and buying a house on the other side of town. Oh well...strange stuff!

Anyway,,,cam turned out great and degreed in perfectly on every single event...opening, closing, centerline. Impressive! It ended up being a 255/257@.050 with .741/.725 lift. It has a 114.5 LSA. It's installed at 110* ICL.

The old cam was a 248/248@.050 with .756/.714 lift on a 114 LSA. I had it installed at 114 ICL. Both lift figures are with 1.8/1.7 rocker ratios.

So.....all of this adds up to I'll be opening the intake valve 7.5* earlier and closing it 0.5* earlier. The exhaust will open 9.5* earlier and close 0.5* earlier. All of this is geared to give it a chance to allow the little turbos more time to get exhaust out...should spin them harder with earlier opening of exhaust and get it out quicker. The added intake duration should help the power overall. We're adding 7* of overlap...from 20* to 27*....but that doesn't seem to worry anyone with this cam. Since the heads carried RPM very well before...should do at least as well this time. We'll see!

Went through the fun process of assembling the belt drive. PITA to put it all together but sure is sweet when it comes time to degree the cam!

Then there's the fun of tightening rod bolts with a stretch gauge. My Oliver rods have ARP 625 bolts in them. Suckers take right at 120# to get them to the .0062"-.0067" stretch! (even using ARP slick-em lube on them!)

My first set of head gaskets arrived bent pretty bad....and that's after waiting for Cometic to make them and get them to Jeg's who shipped them to me. So I sent them back and just ordered new ones directly from Cometic. Costs a little more but at least they know how to box them so they don't get destroyed! They just arrived today.

The heads came back the other day also. They look nice also.

Now time to get this thing screwed together and back in the car. I've got a track rental lined up for February 25th!!

JIM
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#31 ·
Jim...I`m with you on those Oliver rods and how much it takes to get them to where they need to be !.

I remember having to call them saying "I`m at 100Lbs already and I`m not where I need to be yet, is this right ??"
"Yep, keep pulling" was my answer :D

Looks good Jim :thumbsup:
 
#32 ·
Made some more progress today. Weather much nicer....but only got to work on it for a few hours.

Oil pan on...re-verified TDC on balancer...installed heads.....

Just gotta set up the rockers, adjust valves...and then go to sticking it in. I'll install intake after it's in the car...it's a little elaborate to put together.

It'll be nice to have it back together...shop is a mess from thrashing!

See it...does have "oval ports"!!

JIM
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#33 ·
How do you live with the echo in that garage????
 
#36 ·
I'm thinking I need to add an annex.......with a dyno cell.....:D


But does help provide a little "reverb" when the tunes are cranked up!!:thumbsup:


JIM
 
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#35 ·
Looking good Jim, are you going to squeeze it any harder? How bad is it to work on in the car? Will be fun 8's this year for sure.

Brian
 
#39 ·
Looking good Jim, are you going to squeeze it any harder? How bad is it to work on in the car? Will be fun 8's this year for sure.

Brian
Not planning on it. I think I need some bigger turbos to do that effectively. I actually dropped compression a hair with some thicker Cometic gaskets to give up a little of my "piston rubbing the head" quench distance. Hopefully the new cam will make up for that.


It's actually pretty easy considering it's a BBC in a little car. I can grab all the plugs easier than I could when it was N/A, I can get valve covers off in a minute or so. I can pull engine while leaving radiator and shroud in place. Even left the hood on! The coil packs are inside under the dash...with "passhthroughs" for plug wires....so no distributor to mess with...just unplug the wires and leave them laying there,


So a lot easier than some of my previous rides. I was determined when adding the turbos I wasn't going to make it a nightmare with plumbing all over the place.


JIM
 
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