I figured since I work at a call center, and its really slow, I could give some tips or heads up of some of the things you will run into on a build. Also list your own tips as well. please only well researched or experience based tips

First off patience is the key, buy parts as you go so you get them at the right price. If you deal with the right people off here you ll save tons. Also if you plan on moving soon or with in six months of when you hope to be done, just wait so you dont lose stuff and have to move a half assembled car, trust me it sucks.

Second really think about your set up. Take into mind costs of the intial build, and the cost of keep up. Dont get caught up trying to make 1000 hp for no reason. Alot of times a more complete car will out run huge hp cars. Dont get caught up in which is cooler, sc or turbo. Look at what best suits you. For instance if you have a really nice exhaust setup that isnt easy to sell, stick with an sc setup. If you are a good diy'er, starting with a stock, car I'd go turbo.
I started with an 383 d1 setup worked great until i hurt the motor. In hindsight I probably should ve just fixed the motor, upgraded the ic and moved on.... instead i switched to a 408 iron block single turbo setup. Its nearing completion and I am sure Ill love it but it would ve made more sense to stick with what I had and would ve been easier. Oh well.

Third stay organized and really think things all the way around your head, and research all ya can.

Now here is a on going list of small and big things to be aware of.

1. A canton oil pan will not clear the rods bolt if you have a stroker. Or at least if its an iron block ,with a lunati crank, lunati pro billet rods and with arp bolts. But with a little hammer love it will.

2. DO NOT lose a castle nut for the lower control arms, if you take the suspension apart. They are not easy to find, and the dealership software has the wrong thread pitch, and its fifteen dollars.

3. If you are putting you suspension back together and the castle nut keeps spinning the ball joint instead of tightening, its a simple fix. First jack up the lower arm so you get it in there all the way, then put enough washers so that the nut will still spin freely till it hits the washer stack. Then tighten it and that should pull the ball joint up far enough so it wedges in and doesnt spin.

4.If you have adjustable perches and a moser 12 bolt you ll need to cut the moser spring perches so your car dont sit in the sky. also lock tight the torque arm bolts, and you ll need to make your own vent, oh and mounting the sway bar is not a bolt on deal, either get the mountin kit or make one from exhaust clamps

5. 1/2 in fuel line is all you ll ever need unless you are shooting for sevens or running straight alky

6. Dont forget to put your turbo up high enough so the oil drains back properly

7. if you install the motor from the top its not possible to do with an eldebrock intake and the hoist plate. unless you get it in partially and then hook up the hoist on the front and support it from the back with a jack. also aftermarket fuel rails dont clear well from the top either.

8. If you dont have a clutch alignment tool just use your tranny, if the motor and tranny are out, dont try to install it aligned by eyeball. I knew better than to try, so Im just giving my solution.

9. If your using head studs and for some reason you have to loosen a nut, make sure the stud is all the way down before retorqueing

10. If you own a ls1 and plan on modifying it, either get adjustable rockers or a push rod measuring tool, you wont get as lucky as I did.

11. Huge cams and stupid expensive heads are not that necessary, a solid good combination with more attention to the actual combo and the fi selection, is more important and that has been proven.

12. make sure your front oil plug is in, as is the rear oil restrictor

13. if you run a double roller chain make sure you modify the pick up so it sits in the pump properly. easiest way is to oblong the mountin hole that goes to the mains.

14. tubular k member is the easiest way and imo the only way to go.

ill have more but this is a good thing to have i think. ill also fix grammar errors later... feel free to add on

 

Good info, maybe ill have to come down and check it out so I can get some pointers when im building mine this winter.

 

Spend plenty of time and effort on "mock up". The more careful you are with mocking things up and carefully fitting things, the cleaner the final install, and more enjoyable the final product will be....

You dont want to be fully installing certain parts only to have to pull them off again to fix a clearance issue etc....

Above all... take the time to enjoy the project!

 

GASKETS AND SEALS!!!!!!!!!

dont skimp on those!!! even if your rear main seal is fine now, spend the extra 20 bucks and get a new one. you dont want to replace it later down the road.. learned that from my cam install on the timing cover....

anticipate for the little fees. for example, i spent over $300 in header wrap and ties lol you never expect that kinda stuff.

do it right the first time. and dont go "bigger is better"

built a turbo kit on a stock motor, and the tuner talked me into going up to 11psi even tho i said i would never go over eight. well, 2 days later, i had 4 broken pistons, 3 bent rods, and a block cracked in 3 places.

now im building a fully forged 403" LQ9 with almost $1,000 just in ARP hardware

 

Dont take offence to this, but the biggest thing I learned is dont listen to people at call centers or tech lines... A lot of them are on the phone and not under the hood for a reason. And they have generic answers from a book that 99% of the time dont apply to you, but they will tell you it does apply to you. Like the adjustable rocker one....Some person that doesnt know is going to get suckered into spending money on something he doesnt need.
I've heard so much BS and misguided info its unreal.


Why? I have 2 cars with modified engines. Both have stock rockers. Quite a few people I know also run stock rockers.

Hardware store has them. Its not an uncommon item by any means.


Or just use an impact like everyone else and have it done in 20 seconds.

 

helpful, not annoying bs. if the castle nuts are so common why didnt any dealership except one in denver and colorado springs have one and it was the wrong one and no part store or hardware store i went to had one...

and it doesnt always work with an impact and how many people have one. i do and it didnt work the point of this thread is for when the obvious things you mentioned dont work

 

gaskets is a very good point. in build threads people always ask how much it ll cost to build something. the little "fee's" are carzy. i spen 7 bucks on a little brass fitting cause the linelock kit i was sent had the wrong one. theese are some of the little bs that adds up if you dont have a setup garage already.
brake clean is like 3.40 a can
loctite
threadsealant
silicone
rags
razorblades
little gaskets
antiseize
lost bolts or nuts
vacuum line fittings and hoses
something is always wrong or extra at the machine shop for me-
two oil changes right away and a third soon after
gaskets you may mave to change include(besides the obvious ones)
front and rear main seals
intake "o" rings if one sticks or gets cut.

 

When listing tips on how to do something, you should mention the easy obvious way first... and then if that dont work.....

Easy way to use the impact is to put a load on the ball joint first, jack the wheel up or set the car down on it a little. Then it works fine. No load on the ball joint will spin, or overcome the spinning by a really fast powerfull impact.



Gaskets...I wouldnt buy new ones unless the old ones broke. Ive had my 5.3 apart a few times (oil pan, timing cover) and used the same old gasket. No leaks.


$300. on header wrap?? Wow..maybe if you wrapped it all the way to the back of the car. I spent $40. on 2 50ft rolls of 2" stuff. It pays to shop around.

 

no i wrapped 2 headers, a crossover, merge pipe, and downpipe. 3 50' rolls of 3000-degree wrap. it the best wrap you can buy, although it was 75 bucks a roll. then add stainless locking ties, wrap spray, and heat tape. came out to over $300. you just bought some cheap stuff .

and yeah your gaskets are fine now, but if your spending the money on parts, spen the extra $100 and get new seals. they will go out eventually...

 

I agree with the seals...it sucks to pull off accessories and the transmission to replace leaking gaskets.

Dont get in a rush and spend money on fast shipping because more then likely something else will hold you back.

Assume the worst and hope for the best, lol.

 

One thing I am adamant about is bagging and labeling all your nuts, bolts, washers, etc.
I purchase 4 sizes of baggies: Gallon, quart, sandwich and snack size, and make sure I have several permanent markers around. Then, when each part is removed, such as the alternator, take those fasteners, put them in a baggie, label it, and set it aside (or even tape it to the component). Makes reassembly easier, faster, and you are not scrambling to find the appropriate fastener.
AFA gaskets, make sure they are the ones you want. I used Fel-Pro for my latest engine build. I wanted their full engine gasket set, but did not like the head gaskets included in the kit, not really the best for FI. I ended up purchasing the ones I wanted separately, then the others in sections, i.e. cam replacement set, bottom end set, etc. It ended up being cheaper, although no one had all the sets, so I had to get them from multiple vendors.
Also, make sure you have the correct parts at hand when you need them. Nothing is more frustrating than waiting for the part to arrive b/c you can't continue w/o it.
And put ARP bolts wherever appropriate. GM TTY bolts are crap, plain and simple.

 

smart dude^^^^^(baggie trick) I do it as well. Only way to go. No extra parts left laying around when you get done! lol

 

Plan your time accordingly. Don't tear into something major when you know that you have to be somewhere in an hour. Rushing a project is why things go wrong.

 

this is one thing i like to do as well, although i have been known to tear off a large piece of cardboard and stick the bolts and fasterners through it, and then label. but both work well. great stuff so far.

 

1. be patient. very patient
2. keep a spreadsheet/buildsheet with part numbers and costs

 

I keep a digital camera in my toolbox old one and take pictures of everything. This is more for other people than myself but it makes great documentation and reference for this place. No telling who in the future will find one of your pictures in a search and it will save there ***. Also helps when it comes time to sell ****.

Don't pick one style of FI based on it being cheaper. There both extremely expensive if you do it right. Do what you like and plan for goal changes in advance if that's possible.

Also it becomes real tempting to just say screw it and turn your car into a race car.

 

that camera idea is great!

 

here is some i ve ran into.

dont be dumb like me get good motor mounts from the beginning if your gonna make a ton of hp like 750 or more.

if someone balances your twin disk clutch make sure the weights dont hit the floater plate

the remote oil filter adapter on a canton pan sucks and leaks. i have had nothing but problems on my canton pan. i had to convert the flare fittings to o ring fittings to get it to work

we should all know this by now but dont buy summit or jegs -an fittings, only ones that worked for me were the straight ones

dont be a moron like me and buy a standard 5 in v band flange for down pipe on a gt 47 its the wrong size.

a fast tb does not bolt to the eldebrock elbow. nor does a stock tb

great place for a turbo supprt is to come off the the ac mounts

 

so this is what i had to make to get the canton remote oil filter setup to stop leaking

 

this what my tensioner looked like after i grinded it down to avoid belt alignment issues for a smokinhawk alternator relocation kit