tips for an amateur engine builder?
tips for an amateur engine builder? So im putting together my first long block from scratch. So far I have 4 inch manley crank, 6.125 compstar rods, and 4.03 bore wiseco pistons.
For the guys with experience... any tips for me? Not nervous at all and so far I have most of the tools. Also ive heard from some guys that they don't like using plastigauge. What would be more accurate?
For the guys with experience... any tips for me? Not nervous at all and so far I have most of the tools. Also ive heard from some guys that they don't like using plastigauge. What would be more accurate?
plastigauge shouldn't really be used for much more than a sanity check - it's only slightly better than guessing. a dial bore gauge and mic set with 0.0001" accuracy are much more accurate. what I did was buy the bore gauge kit from jegs and "hot rod" it with a much better mitutoyo indicator.
aside from some books you can pick up, there's lots of good threads on here - Rezin's is one I'm aware of off the top of my head - he made a pretty detailed build thread which might be useful for ya: https://ls1tech.com/forums/generatio...lots-pics.html
and not to plug my thread, but I tried to do a similar thing and detail out a lot of the process. some of it I'm sure won't be applicable for you but hopefully it might be of some use. see sig
in general though, take your time. measure five times, assemble once. time consuming to do that way but you'll be rewarded with a reliable motor.
aside from some books you can pick up, there's lots of good threads on here - Rezin's is one I'm aware of off the top of my head - he made a pretty detailed build thread which might be useful for ya: https://ls1tech.com/forums/generatio...lots-pics.html
and not to plug my thread, but I tried to do a similar thing and detail out a lot of the process. some of it I'm sure won't be applicable for you but hopefully it might be of some use. see sig
in general though, take your time. measure five times, assemble once. time consuming to do that way but you'll be rewarded with a reliable motor.
Last edited by ckpitt55; Aug 16, 2013 at 12:04 AM.
be as clean during assembly as possible, make sure all the oil galleys in the block are free of debris.
the most accurate way to check clearances is with a micrometer and inside mic or dial bore gauge, with the bearings in the block and main caps, torque the caps and
mic the bore. then measrure the crank
journal, the differance between the two will be your clearance samething for the rods
the most accurate way to check clearances is with a micrometer and inside mic or dial bore gauge, with the bearings in the block and main caps, torque the caps and
mic the bore. then measrure the crank
journal, the differance between the two will be your clearance samething for the rods
Teching In
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 30
Likes: 0
From: Atlanta, GA
When your engine is built something will be wrong. There are many things that something could be. The more things you check and re-check and photograph/document now the less things you'll consider disassembling later. You'll be tempted to skip measuring everything, but thinking about future troubleshooting should motivate you to do things right.
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 1,343
Likes: 8
From: Katy, TX
Check Amazon and Ebay for Mitutoyo instrumentation. I got my 0.001mm resolution dial bore gauge new on Amazon for $301. Then just take your time and research everything. A clean workspace should be a top priority also.
Thanks for the shoutout! I'm learning quite a bit from your thread as well. This forum is one of the best I've seen for sharing information. 
plastigauge shouldn't really be used for much more than a sanity check - it's only slightly better than guessing. a dial bore gauge and mic set with 0.0001" accuracy are much more accurate. what I did was buy the bore gauge kit from jegs and "hot rod" it with a much better mitutoyo indicator.
aside from some books you can pick up, there's lots of good threads on here - Rezin's is one I'm aware of off the top of my head - he made a pretty detailed build thread which might be useful for ya: https://ls1tech.com/forums/generatio...lots-pics.html
and not to plug my thread, but I tried to do a similar thing and detail out a lot of the process. some of it I'm sure won't be applicable for you but hopefully it might be of some use. see sig
in general though, take your time. measure five times, assemble once. time consuming to do that way but you'll be rewarded with a reliable motor.
aside from some books you can pick up, there's lots of good threads on here - Rezin's is one I'm aware of off the top of my head - he made a pretty detailed build thread which might be useful for ya: https://ls1tech.com/forums/generatio...lots-pics.html
and not to plug my thread, but I tried to do a similar thing and detail out a lot of the process. some of it I'm sure won't be applicable for you but hopefully it might be of some use. see sig
in general though, take your time. measure five times, assemble once. time consuming to do that way but you'll be rewarded with a reliable motor.
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Based on your other post "What's good clearances" my advice is to take the money you were going to spend and burn it. This way you'll at least get the value of being warm for a bit.
Burning $$ is a much more valuable investment than trying to build an engine by guesswork without an assembly manual that includes clearances, torque specs, and procedures.
Burning $$ is a much more valuable investment than trying to build an engine by guesswork without an assembly manual that includes clearances, torque specs, and procedures.
Teching In
Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 20
Likes: 0
From: California
Based on your other post "What's good clearances" my advice is to take the money you were going to spend and burn it. This way you'll at least get the value of being warm for a bit.
Burning $$ is a much more valuable investment than trying to build an engine by guesswork without an assembly manual that includes clearances, torque specs, and procedures.
Burning $$ is a much more valuable investment than trying to build an engine by guesswork without an assembly manual that includes clearances, torque specs, and procedures.
Thanks all for the advise.
