siggyfreud

Hello all,

As some of you may be aware, I am trying to put together a really comprehensive guide to rebuilding our motors. I'll be hitting up members for their contributions via photos, information, etc. I'll also need information about portions that I wasn't able to explore during my build (auto trans, non-supercharged, etc).

However, for the purposes of this thread, I'd like to ask the general community;

What do you want to see in a rebuild guide? What, if anything, have you found to be lacking in other guides/books/etc?

Let me share with you what I have in mind:

• Step by step instructions with photos and diagrams
• Checklists of things to do
• Checklists of things to purchase
• Average pricing for parts - broken down by section so if you're installing the cams, it will have prices for cam related parts
• A table of torque specs in each section, as well as a master table in the appendix
• User stories of things that went good or bad, as well as things to avoid or do differently.
• Things to upgrade or change while you're in there. An example being if you're taking the cams out, what you might want to consider putting back in
• How to rebuild if going supercharged
• What parts not to reuse.

I'm sure I've forgotten a few things. But in any case, what other things would you like to see?

Just start tossing out some ideas, and hopefully we can create a book/guide that YOU will be happy with.

JIM5.0

Porting and polishing instructions. If not that, what needs to be ported and polished inside the heads. What I mean is what to request out of the porter who will do the work: What and where to grind down, how much to grind down, etc.

Piston and combustion chamber coating: When to do it and why. What are the coating materials to use, and what processes are the best to make the coating bond with no fear of flaking or pealing.

Crank journal truing and centering, crank counterweight balancing: Why and how it is done. Choosing the right crank journal bearings. How much is too much to punch out of the crank counterweights, and to make them heavier (if needed), what material of counterweights need to be used to fill in the hols you just had drilled into them.

daredevil95

Sounds great. The repair manuals basically covers step by step instructions. I would like to see part type combinations.

It would be interesting to read/learn from an intricate part types/combo. I was thinking it could cover the entire engine ex: what block to start off with - crank?/bolts(ARP?) - bearing type(CLEVITE?) - rod?/wrist pin? - piston?/rings?? & machining techniques....to the extent of what special modifications ex: head pocket/polish - deck height - notching block for crank rotation and that sort of info. Noting the costs are ok but, prices tend to change and it will give a round-about to cost.

Next to list would be the trans?(type) -clutch? - flywheel? - driveshaft? - universal joints - driveshaft loop - rearend?/gear type?/carrier?/axles?/strength mods? and what tire size(dyno).

It would be cool to have a sticky with a complete engine build from A to Z and know what the cost/power will be at the end. EX: STICKY: FI 625 RWHP BUILD. Documenting this will be a lot of work and probably take an immense amount of time. I was thinking of doing the same thing on a Vette LT1 engine build last fall. Never happened.

Good Luck and I look forward to read any type of engine build info.

siggyfreud

You guys just HAD to mention the difficult stuff didn't you?

Thanks for the input .

Daredevil, I like you list of additional pieces to consider. Perhaps that could be part of a follow up that would layout things to do beyond the engine.

I think your sticky idea is great, and perhaps something that could be added in the appendix. Users could share their engine combination and post a dyno sheet. Almost like a couple of road maps to put people in the ballpark of where they want to be power-wise.

Jim - Good suggestions. Some may be hard to cover without making the guide too large. Piston/chamber coating might be good to mention, but rather than diving too deep into it might simply point to external resources that talk about it. From my experience, many performance pistons come coated from the manufacturer. But going above and beyond, especially to coat the combustion chamber would be worth mentioning, especially since our heads are aluminum.

For this first pass, the focus will be on the at-home builder, and not geared towards processes that require tools that people generally don't have in their garage, such as those required to drill and balance a crankshaft.

2005Redfire6

Looking forward to it siggy!!! What you have listed is fine by itself, more would be great! Goodluck and looking forward to get myself a copy.