Thread: Has this ever happened to you?- "Freshen Up"

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i built some big blocks i will not put a flat lifter cam in one no matter stock or races not just one thing but many and the first two on my list are no oil with zddp and not always there to make sure the cam is broken right i have been told after the fact of fresh engine getting crank over till the battery was dead and i have and fired up bbc engines watch everything go right fire right up and eat the cam or in a week or two .as for a rering job i do them .but there abit more to it .one point is just about any thing can run but how good and how long . bores are a big deal with me they need to be strait and round if not it needs a bore cast pistons work great to stock to mild builds and are cheap you may not see a lip at the top but there can be wear at bottom of the bore to so the bore can be worn past a rering the bores can be in so so shape but the pistons skirts can be worn you can tell this by looking at the shirts as well as ring lands can get worn and the ring will flop in the ring land groves a set of mics is handy a long with a good bore gages at lest a snap gage your engine has cast pistons in it they will not take a.004 piston to wall so at the lest use a feeler gage with your pistons take off rings and check it in the hole it came out of with a feeler gages and see what you have .002 would be great any thing past 003 is bad you will take some metal out with a hone your better with a ball type hone they give a good cross hatch with the lest amount of metal removal.on the heads bbc can be hard on valve guides this can be fix in many ways .i like to core them a put a 502 wall guides in mag bronzes or iron other then that they may not need much less crack or you have a burnt valve .on rods they are could be ok if not blue they should be check for size no matter what you do. so no need for a recon for stock use on the crank if it is in spec then get it polish and run it you can fit the crank if it on the low side by using a 001 rods or mains if needed .you would be far off to have the block dip or bake to get all junk out i hot tank or jet wash and put the cam bearings and i polish the crank i do not grind cranks less they are hurt or out of size .there many things i tell the customers were i will not not cut a corner. the deck and ring sealing long with a good valve job .i tell my customers that they will have time and money in to a re ring and not much more for a bore and new pistons if you buy a master kit .i cut the heads any ways after a valve job. if i long block there engine it will get deck it will get the rods re built with new bolts this better my chance and a roller cam .to just see you tell me how great it runs and nothing more

Thanks for the replies guys.

Well, I got a few things done. I used the ring and feeler gauge method to check the cylinders for taper and they're really not too bad. Five of them are around .0016 and the others about .0024. This doesn't tell me the actual bore size but my piston clearance is still closer to tight than not. The pistons look pretty good too. The skirts don't have any scuffs or signs of overheating but one piston had a broken ring and the grove is a little wide in one spot.
The crank looks good except for some scatches on the front and rear mains. The journals all measured up well within standard, round and without taper. I think I'll just polish it up and run it.
The heads are a done deal. I'm just pulling them off my other engine. They were just completely reworked with springs to match the cam and 3/8 guide plates.
When all is said and done I think I'm just gonna deglaze the cylinders, polish the crank and get it back together. I do feel a little better about it though now that I got some input as to what to look for, thanks again. Pat, you mentioned getting a good cross pattern from a bead hone. Is this better than using the stone honer? I read in one of these rebuild books to use the 220 stones very slowly for a good pattern. You think it'll take off too much material?

I would love to go with a roller cam but just can't swing the entire set up right now. I think this time around I will stick to the flat tappet and take some extra care in breaking it in. I think I read in a thread somewhere to use molly on the lobes, break in additive and zinc additive to the oil and lighten up the spring load by pulling out the 2nd spring. In a stock performance application like mine, how can you tell the cam is wasted? I mean performance wise where do you see it most?

OK lastly for now, why not WD40 on the block to keep the surface rust off after a bath? Does it break the oil down or something?

Thanks again for the input. It has helped alot.