Introducing..Summit Pro LS Forged Pistons!!!!!
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From: Ohio, Georgia, Nevada, Texas
We considered some high compression stuff, but generally those get to be a little more custom. Let us think on it for a while though. We REALLY appreciate your ideas folks. It's this direct communication that leads us in new directions.
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From: Ohio
Really stepping up the game here lately. High quality budget cams, the most affordable forged 4.8/5.3 pistons.
Any chance (without specifics of course) that you're working on other product lineups?
Any chance (without specifics of course) that you're working on other product lineups?
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Joined: Jan 2008
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From: Ohio, Georgia, Nevada, Texas
Ohhhh yeah.
Something i feel is pretty important that was left out. the weight. or am i missing it? say I have a 5.3 stock bottom end that i want to put just pistons in, and i'd rather not have to pay extra for balancing ( you stated that it was important to you to keep extra machining costs down) are these light enough to match factory weight pistons?
I was at my buddy's shop the other day. He was showing me some knockoff china dart heads. He was impressed with them, especially for $500 for the pair. The only problem with them was the valve job, but thats easily fixed. They had a super thick deck on them too. He said He'd opt out of buying their valves too. So hey, If summit does offer some cheaper heads that really perform, thats would be the icing on the cake for alot of guys.
I honestly wish they would offer complete rotating assemblies cheaper than whats available. Kinda like how building an old SBC 383 stroker was the biggest bang for the buck back in the day. I say do it. You'll sell that stuff like hot cakes.
I honestly wish they would offer complete rotating assemblies cheaper than whats available. Kinda like how building an old SBC 383 stroker was the biggest bang for the buck back in the day. I say do it. You'll sell that stuff like hot cakes.
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Yes, we can get you some estimates for each of the series. Probably starting at the biggest bore for each of the 23 series of pistons so we're erring on the side of heavy.
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Teching In
Joined: Jan 2019
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From: Saginaw Mi
Im building a 3.898-3.903 bore ls and using the destroked gen 4, 4.8l crank and floating rods. With those they have the .943 pin and i had planned to bore it out to .945. Your specs show the .945 pin only as pressed, Could they also work as full floating?
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Yes, we built the .945 pin "gen. 3" pistons with circlip grooves for people doing what you're doing. You will have to order the clips separately. The reason we left the clips out of the packing was trying to keep someone from accidentally trying to press fit AND put clips in. That could be disastrous of course, so we try and eliminate the chance of error that way. Clip part number would be JEP-945-073-MW
In the grand scheme of things considering what we spend on our cars $300ish isn’t much to spend to have a rotating assembly balanced. Drop in no balance pistons would be cool, but I’d find somewhere else to save $300 rather than skip balancing.
Agreed. I think it’s more important to have a well engineered piston with meat in the right places than to have to comprise the design just to try to avoid balancing.
Smart move Summit. The days of low mile fresh sbe jy swaps are pretty much over so rebuilds are required and quality WELL PRICED parts are the future so you position yourself well here with these. With earlier supporting the 6.2L block would be good as well in the usual stock plus a couplea three over sizes. Plenty of builds focused on the 6.2 block nowadays
I disagree. I have to ship my stuff off because the places around here are hack jobs. Been there, done that. Having to ship a rotating assembly will be very costly on top of the fee to have it balanced. so yes, having drop in pistons would be very nice. Having an option to throw a set of forged pistons in a 5.3 budget build without having to have additional machine work done, would make sense. No matter what you think, alot of people dont want to have to send a rotating asembly to the machine shop and wait. I remember having to wait a month or more to get my stuff back. Sorry, but that doesnt interest me. I'm at the point to where either i'd buy a complete rotating assembly thats balanced already, or just leave it stock and not mess with it vs having to pay $300-$500 for a balance job. Eff that. Drop in pistons just make much more sense to me, would save lots of people, lots of money.
It's always so easy for someone on the internet to spend someone else's money too.
Last edited by Kfxguy; Feb 5, 2019 at 09:28 AM.
You guys are talking about can vs should. Its all a risk even the worlds best engineering blew up a couple space shuttles so do the best you can and live with your choices. No need to stress it all
We don’t have to agree that’s perfectly ok by me if someone does things differently. I thought you lived in Texas? Seems like most of the top LS builders are in your state. Honestly if I was in Texas I wouldn’t be doing my own work I’d load it on a trailer and let the pros down there build it lol.
I live in louisiana. It pains me to pay someone else to do something for me. That’s why I learned to weld, build transmissions, powdercoat, lathe/mill. Etc.
I can agree with that. I’m also of the buy once cry once mindset of spending a little extra to do it right might save a lot of time, work, and money fixing things later that could of been avoided.
Ok, for some reason I thought you lived in Texas, sorry about that. I do most of my own work also just because of the cost to pay someone else. If money wasn’t a factor I’d let better people build it for me. I will say this RPM trans has been money well spent. I know nothing about transmission building and I love this thing.
Second story. Take new rotating assembly to another shop have “balanced”. Build engine. Has a nice harmonic around 3500rpm. Try to chase it down. Then one day I lose oil pressure. Pull pan, pickup that was tack welded in the pump was broke off. Ok. Buy late model pump with bigger fatter pickup tube. Of course I make sure it’s the right depth. Tack it. Same thing happens in a couple months. Wtf. Yea, it’s vibrating so bad, it’s weakening the pickup and breaking off. I end up having it rebalanced by another shop, engine smooth as silk now. Pickup problem went away.
I know I said two stories. But the shop I had the assembly rebalanced, I started using because they did a good job on the balance. So I brought a set of rare aluminum corvette heads that were nicely ported, to have decked. They end up making a .250 cut halfway into the first combustion chamber before they noticed they were cutting too much. Smh. Offered to buy me a new head but I was on my own with the portwork. So they ending up having the head welded, decked and I fixed the combustion chamber.
So..... this is why I don’t like to farm my stuff out. I have one guy I trust for valve jobs and seat replacement (I do my own guides and have him do the valve job) but that’s about all he can do.