- Moderator
- #1
- Joined
- Nov 9, 2000
- Messages
- 7,504
- Location
- Edgerton, Ohio, United States
- Corvette
- 1959 black 270hp (9/2/69) 1981 Beige L81(10/20/80)
While I was working on my other project, a mild custom '69 C10 Stepside, I decided to pull the distributor and intake so I could more easily paint the firewall back to the original yellow. I bought this project as a basket case but I do remember this engine running when It was in the donor truck.
I soon found out that I could not turn the engine far enough to line up the timing marks. After trying various things and pulling the distributor and intake it still hit a stopping point. I pulled the valve covers and bounced all of the valves with a hammer. No stuck valves so off came the heads. #3 and #6 cylinders had a 2" water line in them from water coming in the open intake valves. Obviously someone (brother in law that I bought it from) left it out in the rain with the air cleaner off. The cylinder walls were heavily rusted since the last time this engine would have been ouside was at least 10 years ago. That water sat and rusted until it was gone then his damp shop helped it along.
It was just a 2 bolt out of a '72 Monte with who knows how many miles on it before it was put in the donor truck. Not worth spending money boring. Anyway, now I get to build an engine. The problem is that I don't have any budget for a big time engine project like Ken's. Hense the title Anti-Ken.
The goal here will be to put together a good running 350 for under $500. Nuts you say? Maybe, but in this case I don't require NASCAR tolerances or high tech parts. I need an engine that will perform to new car specs for general transportation but will get up and go when I need to merge or get out in traffic. I will try to follow a course of action that others can follow to freshen up their basic 350s in their older cruiser Corvettes that won't be seeing any severe duty use.
Things I don't need for this engine are forged pistons, cast are just fine; forged crank, alloy heads or heads with high rpm potential, high dollor rods, roller anything, super balanced job, or hundreds of dollors worth of machine work that only a all out racing engine can benefit from.
As you can tell I believe that most street or street/strip engines are overbuilt. If you consider that factory specs engines have went zillions of miles and been exposed to untold abuse and usually lived to talk about it you underestand what I mean.
Here's what I come up with to begin this project after taking apart the bad engine and cruising the shop for parts:
1) '79 Z28 4 bolt block. Std. bore with no appearant wear.
a warranty block removed when almost new. The problem wasn't the block. All it needs is a clean up honing.
2) The crank out of the bad engine is std., std. and only needs a light polishing. Thrust plate is as new and so is the snout. Mics round and std. throughout.
3) The heads off of the bad engine are new enough to have hard seats and have never been ground before. They will be fine for a low to mid range engine after rebuilt.
4) Flex plate is as new and balancer appears ok.
5) Old rods mic near perfect so I'll have them magged and put on the new pistons with new rod bolts.
6) I have an Offy manifold and '66 Holley off of a Chevelle to go on the finished engine.
7) I have iron exhaust manifolds and a complete new chambered exhaust system.
8) The single point distributor needs new bushings and shimmed but I may go electronic
Things I need are pistons, rings, bearings, gaskets, timing set, cam and lifters, valve springs, push rods and oil pump. Other things may pop up.
Well this is where I'll start and I'll post progress reports as it goes. Comments are welcome and yes I do expect to catch flack for the things I won't be doing along the way. Some will probably say that all I need is a dirt garage floor to make this build perfect.
Wish me luck.
Tom
I soon found out that I could not turn the engine far enough to line up the timing marks. After trying various things and pulling the distributor and intake it still hit a stopping point. I pulled the valve covers and bounced all of the valves with a hammer. No stuck valves so off came the heads. #3 and #6 cylinders had a 2" water line in them from water coming in the open intake valves. Obviously someone (brother in law that I bought it from) left it out in the rain with the air cleaner off. The cylinder walls were heavily rusted since the last time this engine would have been ouside was at least 10 years ago. That water sat and rusted until it was gone then his damp shop helped it along.
It was just a 2 bolt out of a '72 Monte with who knows how many miles on it before it was put in the donor truck. Not worth spending money boring. Anyway, now I get to build an engine. The problem is that I don't have any budget for a big time engine project like Ken's. Hense the title Anti-Ken.
The goal here will be to put together a good running 350 for under $500. Nuts you say? Maybe, but in this case I don't require NASCAR tolerances or high tech parts. I need an engine that will perform to new car specs for general transportation but will get up and go when I need to merge or get out in traffic. I will try to follow a course of action that others can follow to freshen up their basic 350s in their older cruiser Corvettes that won't be seeing any severe duty use.
Things I don't need for this engine are forged pistons, cast are just fine; forged crank, alloy heads or heads with high rpm potential, high dollor rods, roller anything, super balanced job, or hundreds of dollors worth of machine work that only a all out racing engine can benefit from.
As you can tell I believe that most street or street/strip engines are overbuilt. If you consider that factory specs engines have went zillions of miles and been exposed to untold abuse and usually lived to talk about it you underestand what I mean.
Here's what I come up with to begin this project after taking apart the bad engine and cruising the shop for parts:
1) '79 Z28 4 bolt block. Std. bore with no appearant wear.
a warranty block removed when almost new. The problem wasn't the block. All it needs is a clean up honing.
2) The crank out of the bad engine is std., std. and only needs a light polishing. Thrust plate is as new and so is the snout. Mics round and std. throughout.
3) The heads off of the bad engine are new enough to have hard seats and have never been ground before. They will be fine for a low to mid range engine after rebuilt.
4) Flex plate is as new and balancer appears ok.
5) Old rods mic near perfect so I'll have them magged and put on the new pistons with new rod bolts.
6) I have an Offy manifold and '66 Holley off of a Chevelle to go on the finished engine.
7) I have iron exhaust manifolds and a complete new chambered exhaust system.
8) The single point distributor needs new bushings and shimmed but I may go electronic
Things I need are pistons, rings, bearings, gaskets, timing set, cam and lifters, valve springs, push rods and oil pump. Other things may pop up.
Well this is where I'll start and I'll post progress reports as it goes. Comments are welcome and yes I do expect to catch flack for the things I won't be doing along the way. Some will probably say that all I need is a dirt garage floor to make this build perfect.
Wish me luck.
Tom
