Quote Originally Posted by pat mccarthy View Post
well it nice to get a strip out block to hot tank as you can spend many hours getting busted bolts out along very rusty pipe plugs that can add up in time and $$ to the customer. but its way better for me to do the job all the way thru. then when some bone head bust off a EZ out or takes out the cam bearing s and cut s the cam bores all to hell so less you know what your doing bettter let some one do it. that knows what there doing . your not saving any money . BUT i will say i do not under stand getting heads with the spark plugs in them for a mill or rebuild all the time? nice thing about you. has you can clean all your stuff up. were i have to deal with the wast/water / caustic soaps that can burn and eat skin . its not cheap to haul this stuff off in a safe way.....
Pat - the average home builder just can't afford a hot tank in his shop/garage for a couple of engines in a LIFETIME. The way I do it described above is best for me - a guy who has built 6-8+/- engines from the ground up which is probably well more then most folks. Now as far as a cam bearing driver - I had one, sold it. Pipe plugs - never had one defeat me with my standard, Allen or pipe wrenches along with some penetrating oil and a bit of propane torch heat if necessary (never my acetylene - too much heat).

For head work - any I've ever had rebuilt have been totally disassembled as they would get all new parts. And yep, I have seen some in a machine shop that would look better at the end of an anchor rope that the owner expected a miracle when done.