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To bore or not to bore..

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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 03:06 PM
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Default To bore or not to bore..

To bore or not to bore that is the question. IF the rust is just surface rust and not pitted or deep that requires it be bored anyway, should I go with just honing the cylinder's(all of them) or go ahead and have the block bored?

Pics of the cylinders in question

I dropped off the heads to have pressure tested and surfaced (if needed)
My question though is the block.. if the rust can be honed out, is there any reason to go ahead and bore it out anyway? If its just honed, wont I still need new pistons or just rings for them?

if it has to be bored, how to choose how much of a bore is done on the block? is that up to the shop or is there a specific bore I should ask for if possible?
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 03:24 PM
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Its a stock 99 ls1 block correct? If so the MAX you can go is .010 over bore. I would hone it if possible more than likely thats all it'll need because that rust doesnt look bad and these motor wear very well. if not go .010 anything more than that and you risk cracking the liner
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 03:36 PM
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ok, im far from taking the motor out now, but weighing my options so I know where to go next after I get the heads back.

if the heads are good, id like to save the block and just upgrade some of the lower end while they have it at the shop..
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 03:45 PM
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So if they do bore it .010 over, what piston size should I look into?
Im guessing that's something we have to wait for once the work is done and the shop can tell me what I need?
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 03:55 PM
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Get pistons first, then hone the bores for those pistons. Unless the cylinders are REALLY bad, 3.905" is plenty.

FYI, boring and honing are two different operations. Boring removes material faster and the cylinders must be honed after boring. So going from 3.780" to 3.905", like on a 4.8/5.3L block is a lot of material to remove, so you would want to bore and hone it. Going from 3.898" to 3.905" is minimal so honing is all that it needs.
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 04:01 PM
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Yea I agree with ^^^^ . Boring might not be necessary. If you have deep scary to the cylinder maybe. Bit after a certain depth, there's no point in saving the block unless you're sleeving. Look in to getting it honed.
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 04:04 PM
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Its stock LS1 from 99TA 5.7L.
It has over 100k miles on it already, but with the rust found, need to see what needs to happen next or just forget it and look for another block
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 04:19 PM
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A good machine shop should be able to look at it and tell you if just honing will work for you.

You should know what pistons you will be using prior to doing any machine work. If you don't know which pistons you are going with you might end up with a bore that is not for a common piston.
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 04:33 PM
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All they can do with a LS1 is hone it. As said get the pistons and rings and then it will more than likely be 3.903 or 3.905. If possible get it honed with a torque plate as that will make the cylinders the best, bolted down round shape
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 04:42 PM
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ok thanks everyone.. and as far as the crank, any reason to replace that? just have it checked while there?

Besides summit and jegs any other good sources for the pistons and rings?
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 04:57 PM
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ive already emailed texas speed since that's where I have got all my other parts.. waiting on quote from them, but any other good sources(I know there is a lot of sponsors) but guess im looking for good feedback from others that have used some of them for the "sources" that im looking for.
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 05:35 PM
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I buy all of my engine stuff from Erik at HKE here in Texas. He's helped me with a lot of stuff and kept me from buying some overpriced junk on a few occasions.

As far as the crank, you shouldn't need to replace it, but it may need to be rebalanced for the new pistons. Heavier pistons may require heavy metal to be added to balance out properly, but lighter pistons will only required some drilling, which is cheaper than adding the heavy metal.
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 06:38 PM
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TSP was the best pricing I could find for my stroker rotating assembly. My Wiseco pistons and Callies rods are a little lighter than stock BTW and yes, get it all balanced. Unless you want to stroke it there's no reason to replace the crank.
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Old Aug 22, 2014 | 06:41 PM
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Thompson Motorsports was the best deal I could find for my setup. Might want to check them out
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