Those of you with TSP shortblocks... Opinions?
01-15-2010, 11:45 AM
#41
You also have to take into account many people buy short-blocks and try to install them themselves and don't exactly have the knowledge on assembly, engine breathing, etc. Even people in this thread have called after purchasing a bigger cube motor complaining of oil consumption on a new motor with absolutely no breathing or crankcase venting on the motor. If this isn't setup correctly then it is hard to get the rings to ever seat properly and the result is a motor that consumes oil. I've also had customer call after installing a new motor and installing larger injectors and trying to break the motor in without a tune. The result is washing out the rings and then the motor has to be honed and re-ringed right off the bat. These are just a couple quick examples of things that if not done properly initially can result in problems down the road on any engine, no matter who the builder might be.
However, as Erik is mentioning, with a properly assembled engine, we are seeing strokers being used in daily driven cars for years without any issues. Like with any motor, regular maintenance and a little TLC goes a long way to improving the life of the engine!
Jon
However, as Erik is mentioning, with a properly assembled engine, we are seeing strokers being used in daily driven cars for years without any issues. Like with any motor, regular maintenance and a little TLC goes a long way to improving the life of the engine!
Jon
01-15-2010, 12:23 PM
#42
FormerVendor
Exactly Jon. It took me half a day to get the front cover and oil pan and windage tray and pickup set up on a stroker (bigger than normal) yesterday. I had to modify both sides of the oil pump and the windage tray and the pickup and the front cover and the oil pan and finally even the damn damper! Imagine that going on in someone's garage that doesn't have a clue!
I know some people are very competent but some are not at all especial cold turkey the first time out on their own engine and there's even some shops that can barely put something like this together until they have done a few. I know as I spend sometimes hours on the phone with them.
Then like you said you have the PCV and crankcase breathing issues and valve stem seals and intake rocker arm holes without sealer all feeding oil into the engine etc. I have people with pinched O-Rings or spacers upside down on double rollers and so on and so on. They could have paid us 50-100 more to do this and I have seen engine trashed just because of the little stuff. We get them in here over and over.
I know some people are very competent but some are not at all especial cold turkey the first time out on their own engine and there's even some shops that can barely put something like this together until they have done a few. I know as I spend sometimes hours on the phone with them.
Then like you said you have the PCV and crankcase breathing issues and valve stem seals and intake rocker arm holes without sealer all feeding oil into the engine etc. I have people with pinched O-Rings or spacers upside down on double rollers and so on and so on. They could have paid us 50-100 more to do this and I have seen engine trashed just because of the little stuff. We get them in here over and over.
01-15-2010, 07:09 PM
#43
On The Tree
iTrader: (1)
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Vancouver BC, Canada
Posts: 116
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Something was wrong with a stroker I recently purchased and it consumed a quart or oil per 200 miles from the day it was installed. The company was great to work with and redid the shortblock without complaint.
Swapping a shortblock (especially for a second time) is a fair bit of work. My recommendation is now:
- If possible spend the extra money and buy a shortblock from the very most recognized and respected companies.
- When buying a shortblock make sure that whoever you buy it from is willing (and able) to stand behind their product.
- I might even suggest paying for the shortblock to be broken in on an engine dyno by the company building the engine. This would ensure the engine is broken in properly, and a compression and leakdown test could be done before the engine is shipped to you.
Swapping a shortblock (especially for a second time) is a fair bit of work. My recommendation is now:
- If possible spend the extra money and buy a shortblock from the very most recognized and respected companies.
- When buying a shortblock make sure that whoever you buy it from is willing (and able) to stand behind their product.
- I might even suggest paying for the shortblock to be broken in on an engine dyno by the company building the engine. This would ensure the engine is broken in properly, and a compression and leakdown test could be done before the engine is shipped to you.
