mgmuscari

So I just got my windage tray and corresponding ARP main studs and I was doing test fitment of stuff tonight... Actually I was planning to install the crank, and got up to plastigaging the bearing journals when I noticed that these studs are too long for my deep sockets. So I couldn't torque down the nuts... crank installation & bearing clearance checking aborted.

I figured as long as I had everything in I'd do some test fitment with the windage tray and studs (they are the ARP kit for 351W blocks, by the way - the studs for regular 302's don't thread all the way into this block).

The windage tray is for 302 blocks, and I've got a Dart SHP 302 block, which has the splayed 4 bolt mains on the center 3 caps. The edges of windage tray do not clear the edges of the center 3 main caps.

Even worse, these new studs don't clear my oil pan (yes, it is stroker clearanced). They also don't clear my oil pump. I guess I should grind the pump, but I'm wary of trying that - what if I grind through the casing?

Is it wrong of me to want to cut off the insanely long ends of these studs to clearance the tray, oil pan, and pump? There's a good inch of threaded stud past the nut on the short studs, and an inch of plain stud plus about two inches of stud for the windage tray on the long ones. It seems to me that at the very least I could trim the tops off of the long ones to clearance the oil pan. If I leave about 3/8"-1/2" of stud above the nut, will that be ok?

While I'm at it, I want to trim the edges of the windage tray to clear the main caps (I'm thinking about 1/4" gap to the caps will be good).

I wanted to hear what people on the forums had to say before I go ahead and cut up a $90 set of studs and an $80 windage tray. FWIW I'm planning to dremel them. I realize I'll probably go through a lot of cutoff discs on the dremel getting through the studs.

tinman

It looks to me like you have the wrong main studs from ARP.
Even ARP can/does make mistakes in packaging things.
Studs for a 302 should go all the way in......

mgmuscari

FWIW these do thread in all the way in.

These studs are definitely the right size as far as threading into the block and threading for the cap nuts goes. I compared them to the studs that came with the block (also ARP) and they are exactly the same except for the windage tray provisions. The part of the stud that is threaded for the 1/2" cap nuts seems to be a reasonable length... I wouldn't want them to be much shorter. It's the windage tray provisions that seem freakishly long to me. I guess I could see needing that length for really long stroke cranks, but this is just going to be a 347 so there's plenty of clearance from the windage tray to the crank even bottomed out. FWIW I decided to fit the tray again, this time with its nuts installed, and with the nuts underneath it the clearance of the tray isn't as bad as I thought it would be - one edge of the tray still touches the main caps on one side but i'll probably just bend it a little bit to fit it.

The main concern is still the 1.5" of extra stud that rises above the tray nuts when the tray is on. These studs are hitting the hump in the oil pan, and like I said I don't want to modify the k-member to fit a deeper pan than this one - it's already a 7 qt Moroso. I guess I could hammer away at the bottom of the pan to fit it, but it needs another 1/4" - 1/3" of clearance. That seems like it will require a lot of hammering and a severely dented (possibly warped) pan.

uedlose

Cut the studs it wont hurt a thing get the depth of the tray right and go for it. Don't start beating up your pan that's just nuts. I would do it for what that's worth LOL. You could also call ARP and ask them. They maybe for the full sump oil pans like you see on rail type cars and some dirt track stuff.Check your clearances twice and cut. again IMO your 3/8 to 1/2 sounds good.