almighty, well I just called around Jacksonville machine shops and there is actually a very good one in town, several other machine shops that I called that don’t do full rebuilds recommended me to these people.

http://www.power-engines.com/

They are located here in Jacksonville, fl, and for a 350 fully rebuild (from an 87) with a 3 year 36k mile warrantee its $1395, that’s uninstalled, for it to be installed it will cost $2400, but I asked them if I get the engine installed by a certified mechanic (my mechanic) will the full warrantee still be there, he said certainly, as long as he is certified. I was like cool.

I am defiantly going to be doing my business there. Tomorrow, I’m going to take a trip to their facilities and see what it’s all about, maybe even try to find some local people who have their engines and all.

The guy that I talked to had worked there for 31 years he said, which is amazing I can figure out why and that cause they must be good. He have me a tutorial of how they rebuild the engine before we said anything about price, he asked me if I knew how they remanufactured engines, I said "sort of in general gut go over it again" so we did. He said first thing we do is Bath the tub in molten salt, then they clean it, check for magnetism, and start to machine, they bore each piston the same size, guaranteed. I said ok, he said they only use remanufactured cams and Driveshaft; the Connecting rods, pistons, freeze plugs and all, are all brand new. Once he was done with his demo we went over everything, I told him my car is an 86 Trans am but I want the engine from an 87, because they had the 350. He said that’s ok, but you do understand you'll need new fuel injectors and recalibrate everything, I told him I understood.

We went over prices, we went over uninstalled first, and that’s the engine, with heads and everything. He told me I could pick it up for no extra, or they’d have their delivery truck bring it to my house or whatever for $100. I said that’s not needed. Then we went over installed and as soon as I heard double the price, $2400, I said no thanks. But I made sure my engine would still be ok installed by my mechanic. I asked them what kind of service I would get after the warrantee is up and he said you can pay for an extended warrantee, that’s an extra $400 and that covers another 3 years 36k miles. I was like awesome, oh yeah and both include 2 year parts warrantee, which is if I get anything new, like maybe a 383 built that crank, is warranted from them for 2 years against installer defects.

They even have a lot of buildings too, the guy had to run from building to building because nobody else would pick up the phone, so... And guess what, I called them and left them my number and name, and guess what, they actually called me back, that’s a big wow right there.




Shane



I'm happy with these people.

 

Sounds like a lot of wasted money.

Obviously you care about performance, otherwise you wouldn't be asking about a 350.

But, you are asking the wrong questions. I can almost garauntee they are going to set you up with a stock taxi rebuild 350, complete with low compression pistons, ****ty heads, and a crapass cam. If you don't specify otherwise, thats what you are going to get. It's possible to get a less powerful 350 going that route than the stock TPI 305.

What you need to do is research a decent combo, and go from there. Otherwise, you are going to see nothing but dissapointment.

Another thing- nothing about what they are doing for a rebuild is any different than anybody else. Hell, most will refuse to reuse a cam, and for good reason.

 

i'll call them up again right now,

**dialing numbers**

rang twice and i got the same guy, YES,

asked him if i ordered it to be a factory stock engine, would it be the same price he said certainly. Factory stock meaning same cam same heads everything. He said when you order factory stock engine your pretty much gettign what came with the car brand new.

Also i'm thinking about buying a new cam just for the more power.

Your wrong about this place man, they're good, i think 5 other machine shops i called said to call them, by the third time i wrote the same number down i realized it was the same company.



Shane

 

You aren't getting it.

Factory stock means a factory stock engine, the same kind that came in a caprice of that era.

You need to ask them the part #'s for the cam and heads they are putting in. I garauntee you that for that price the answer is not going to be B2L heads and the long duration cam.

I'm trying to be as nice as a I can about this, but you need to do more research. You are demonstrating that you simply don't know enough to be asking the right questions, and that will get you burned.

 

Yeah find out the exact specs (cam, compression, heads, etc.)are. What most places offer in place of our engines is the L05 caprice motor with has like 200 hp. This motor wont give much over your 305 even though it will give you a good starting point. I really dont think that many stock motors in from 82-92 are worth a crap. If your going to get a new motor you should go crate, that way you know exactly what performence your getting and you get the warranty aswell. This place does sound like a very nice shop we are just saying that be sure you know everything about this motor so that you dont waste $1400 just to gain two tenths in the quarter. Good Luck.

 

Ya thats alot of wasted money..I agree..WTF is this up here??? Ya, lol you sound like your gonna buy an engine from them just because they have a lot of buildings..

 

i'll call them tomorow guys.

 

I dont want to seem a wise guy but how many of your 1950 posts are posts of projects you wanted to start but never have? Maybe 1900?? Now your talking about a new engine. This isnt some cheap project you can do for 150 dollars. If your going to get a 350 then dont buy a reman one like these others guys said. Have it built by someone who will do it right. They should be asking you what your expectations are for the car...do you just want a daily driver? Do you want to race it? Do you want a street/strip car? Based on that info they can build up a motor for you that will fit what you want for the TA. So the guy ran from building to building. Big deal! Give him a star and a glass of cold water. It tells me a lot if noone would answer his calls. Maybe they dont give a rats .... Personally, I hope things work out for you as far as the car goes. I visited your web page. You dont even look old enough to drive but who am I to say. Why not do what you want and then come and tell us what you did so we can all learn something. If you never start these projects, there really isn't much benefit to anyone except spending quality time with their computer punching keys and getting carpul tunnel. Cant wait till tomorrow to see what your next project adventure will be. Maybe it will give me some ideas. You sure do have a lot to say tho.

 

capt, speaking of projects that never quite get off the ground, i'd like to put a warp drive in my car. do you know anyone that makes a kit or adapter so i can do this? maybe i should ask guido on the power adder board.

 

He must of run out of new episodes because we are in a rerun, we went down this road a couple of months ago.
Shane do a SEARCH on your own posts on this same subject and see what the end result was.....it hasn't changed for some unknown reason in the last 3 months......maybe the effort of those 1949 pipe dream posts purged the info from your memory so before you waste the time of people that are truely trying to help you "again" go reread your own posts!

EDIT: By the way ede have you been eating you humor flavored wheaties again :hail:

 

Man you guys need to chill out with the personal attacks. For some reason every thread Ive read lately has had a few in it. Alot of people ask what ifs that will never happen on this board. They are asking because they want to know if this is a good idea or not. Who cares if they wont ever do it, I am sure they want to but not everyone on here has a million dollars to spend on an ls1/t56 swap. Especially teenage kids. If you dont like the thread dont post in it. Be a bigger man and just let it go when you feel the need to put someone down. I am not tryin to sound like a jerk but people post here for support from other third gen owners not to get put down for their ideas. He is posting here so that we steer him in the right direction not to get called stupid for what hes done so far. Relax guys.

 

ok i just called them, and the guy said, "when we hand the engien over to you, you can check the casting number to make sure its right, we'll even let you see it while the engine is apart."

I think thats proof enough they know what they are doing.


Shane

 

What casting number should i be looking for here? Where are they located in all.

 

Who cares what the casting number of the block is. That doesn't tell you anything other then the engine size. What you want is the heads casting # and all the part # and specs and the components in the engine. A factory replacement engine is the LO5. Not a good performance engine. I don't think that you want a factory rebuild style engine. You looking for a street performance engine. They are too completely different things.

 

IROCaholic, I agree with your post compleatly but Shane seems to want to hear himself type. He addressed these issues in this thread
https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=226166 but seems to have forgotten that. Its one thing to ask for advice and accept it but its another to ask for it then ignore it and waste the time of people that are trying to help!

 

but the thing is people make good engines outta what what comes stock easily. Why cant i just get a stock engine and tune it up right? I dont get that, why should i get something different when manufacture specs were good enough for 425HP?



Shane

 

What "manufacture specs"? TPI will not support 425 HP. Get real.

What happened to the LT1 idea?

If you don't even know where to find casting #'s, a rebuild mill spread out over several buildings is going to have a field day with you.

 

I dont know what combo i shoudl be getting, Jegs just started selling a new truck crate engien that has a 9.5 compression ratio but is only rated at 200HP, might be from the cam though, lemme paste the specs- would this make a good engien for my build?

I just cant justify spending so much more for a street strip motor, what is the big deal, maybe all i wana produce is around 350HP, thats it. YOu need to remember a L98 is a good engine, it can be tuned up really nicely.

 

The LT1 idea is going sour, even though the swap will be cheaper, it still is a bunch more complicated IMO, i'm not too good at wiring unless i got lots of diagrams and pictures, i'm a visual learner and in order todo something i gotta see it. Swapping in the same engien so to speak will be the same, just a little prom tuning, fuel injectors, and the sort and wala done.

 

We appear to have forgotten a lot.

 

lol

 

It seems like we're right back where we were about 1000 posts ago.
Back then I suggested something like getting a 350 block, flattop pistons etc... or maybe a zz4.
My current reccomendation is that you'd benefit from the educational experience of just doing a ring and bearing job on a tired motor that you pick up at the junkyard.
Buy a tool set, an engine stand, a cyl hone, a valve spring compressor, a ridge reamer, and a few other things.
And then get a re ring kit from Summit, and the book 'How To Rebuild The Smallblock Chevy' and freshen up a used motor for probably about $1000 total. Including the tools if you shop wisely.
If it doesn't run right, you still have your tools and the knowledge you gained from the experience. And then you can do it again - better the second time.
The down time would be minimal and if you're careful and follow instructions, you'll end up with an engine that will actually run strong and hold together for a while.
Since you claim to be a visual learner, I'd guess that applies to hands on too. Give yourself the experience and the satisfaction of rebuilding your own engine. Just don't put a lot of money into expensive parts on your first attempt.

Today's inspirational message is brought to you by....

 

Absolutely,

I have a warp drive in my "Z" but if I told you how I did it then there would be two guys with technology from my century and that wouldnt be good. Guido wouldnt be able to help you. He's been assimilated for trying the warp thing in his car. Now if you could get me a date with Ryker's new wife.......

 

This two bolt main block features a one piece nodular iron crankshaft. Includes powdered connected rods with dished hypereutectic pistons for a 9.4:1 compression ratio. It includes a high volume oil pump, flat tappet hydraulic camshaft with an intake lift of .382'' and exhaust lift of .402''. The intake duration is 165.9° @ .050'' and exhaust duration is 174.8° @ .050''. It has a swirl port intake design, a 65.3cc combustion chamber and 1.94'' intake and 1.50'' exhaust valves. The exhaust flange is 7-bolt and the valve covers are centerbolt style. Rated at 200HP @ 4000 RPM and includes an 8'' balancer.

Specifications:
Block: Cast Iron, 2-Bolt Main, 1-piece Rear Main Seal
Connecting Rods: Powdered Metal Connecting Rods
Pistons: Dished Hypereutectic
Compression Ratio: 9.4:1
Oil Pump: High Volume Oil Pump
Timing Chain: Morse Link Type
Camshaft: Flat Tappet Hydraulic, .382''/.402'' Lift, 165.9°/174.8° @ .050'' Dur., 111.9° Lobe Sep. Angle
Cylinder Heads: 65.3cc Chamber, 1.94''/1.50'' Valves, Swirl Port Intake Design, Center Bolt Valve Cover Design


That is absolutely the worst engine you could ever get, that is worse then a LO5.

 

then i might as well just hope for an LT1 in the near future. That was always my backup plan, it would be cheaper also.

 

If you really like TPI:

http://www.sdpc2000.com/cart.asp?act...=1577&pid=9009

You supply the headers, runners, injectors, and 52mm TB.

 

Shane, if your stuck on TPI and don't want to build an engine yourself, buy one of these ^^^^.

My best reccomendation, is go to the junkyard, buy a L98 shortblock, freshen it up, buy a good set of budget heads, a nice roller cam, and a HSR. It will make more power for less money, and educate you along the way. That way, afterwards, we won't be having this conversation.

 

the local yards only want a $100 for an L98 too. I dunno i might try that. IT will be cheaper and educate me along the way, except i have nowhere to put an engine build at, my mother would abolutely kill me if i put it in the house, and i cant use the yard, cause "her grass will die," NOt even in the back yard where all the grass is already dead cause "i have feritliser down and it will grow soon." I have nowhere to put an engine build, if i had space yeah thats what i would be doing but... I dunno i'll prolly end up building it myself, that way i'll have better performance and i know its made right.

I'll prolly get a nice rotating assembly, if i can a 383, and go from there, get some high compression stuff, nice set of iron heads(i like them better, i'm always reading how good iron dukes are so i might use those.

But i will prolly end up getting my mechanic and some of his friends to get an LT1 in there, i mean, pasky did it all on his own, he just had questions about it everyday. That'll be my better solution. Justa stock LT1, witha few things done to it, i dunno what though, and it'll be running nicely.




Shane

 

This is ****ing hopeless.

 

Teh stats of that vortec TPi are amazing man. 420ft lbs of torqu, makes me think there. I'll prolly end up creating that witha nice short block. I'll just try to see if my mechanic will let me stash stuff in his garage or whatever. I could get the short block rebuilt, get assembled heads and bolt them on, and then vortec TPI manifold, and a LT4 Hot Cam and i can get out of that like a bandit. That'll be like $2500 if i can learn howto do all this stuff while doing it. Not bad but LT1 is still cheaper so....

 

Rent a garage...
Get a teevee, and a cot, and a microwave, and a fridge...
Your gf can move in with you and cook tv dinners for you while you wrench on your junkyard 350.
It doesn't get any better than that...

 

rent a garage, hmmm how much are we talking here? I could see renting a space like that onc ei have enough money todo everything. The Hobby Shop on base charger $2 an hour, and like 12 a day. Thats expensive though.

 

Yeah, It's pretty tough trying to become a motor sports enthusaist without parental support. All the guys I knew who had fast cars as teenagers got help from thier dad. If you decide to move out, by the time you've found a space that's large enough to work in, you're shelling out all your money for rent, and then you can't afford parts.
I bought a trailer to live in, and one of those steel shipping containers to do my work in, and I made a deal with my boss to let me park it at work a while back. I still have the trailer and the shipping container today. The difference is, now I'm the boss.

 

Iron duke? I guess you could try getting two iron duke heads. Hmmm, that would be interesting. I can already see the post.......