Ok, i'm looking at this block on ebay http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...spagename=WDVW
was wondering, if it had a trip to the machine shop, if it'd be alright to build up? i planned on boring out one of these .4 over anyways...let me know what you guys think

 

Sure, it'd be great if you were building a LS1.... it won't go .4" over though, might not even go .040" over, for all I know. Or if it did, you might not be able to get pistons for it.

 

my bad, i meant .04

 

You building a LS1?

 

am tryin to...

 

I'd try to find something else.... no sense in spending whatever you think you're "saving" in shipping, and getting a main saddle repaired.

Keep looking for one that hasn't blown up. Locally, unless you just enjoy making trucking companies wealthier.

 

well, i am wanting to build it up myself, and i don't know where i can get a block for that cheap...and i was wanting to take it to the machine shop anyways and get it bored out a bit

 

So where are all the other parts going to come from?

Looks like, you pay money to take somebody else's problem off their hands where they trashed their car; then you take it to the shop to get it repaired; then you buy a whole motor that doesn't have any of that wrong with it; set aside the good block out of that motor; and put all the other parts into this other block that you now have too much money into.

The alternative is, you don't buy this block; so you don't pay to ship it and repair it; you still buy the other motor you're going to have to have, to get crank and rods and heads and tin and bolts and so forth; and you simply don't spend that shipping and repair money.

It might be different if you already had a LS1, and your block was fornicated somehow, and you had everything else to make a motor and just needed a block only to complete it. I'm guessing you don't have any LS1 anything at all though, by your line of questioning.

That being the case, help me (and yourself) understand how that block is going to "save" you any money. This sounds like the guys that think it's a good deal to buy a 6-cyl T-5 because they can't find a V8 one, and they think they're going to "convert" it to the V8 stuff; problem is, you have to buy a V8 trans to got those parts. So, they propose to buy the V8 trans they can't find, AND the 6-cyl trans, AND do a bunch of work. So how does that 6-cyl transmission get them to their goal (a working V8 transmission) any quicker?

Why are you so dead-set on boring something? Why not just find a motor that runs, and put it in your car, and leave all that alone? Again, it's usually cheaper in the long run, even if it looks more expensive up front.

 

well, i was gonna buy alot of new parts off summit and some used parts i can get away with off of ebay....i was planning on rebuilding one if i got a complete one anyways...the heads i am looking at says i need to bore it over .04....

 

It depends whether you had plans to invest in a bunch of aftermarket stuff or not. If you were going to buy aftermarket rotating assy, and a new one of every single other piece that gets bolted onto the block then it may be a good starting point.
But it seems like with the purchace price + shipping + repairs + an oil pan, you could just about get a complete engine.

 

complete LS1 for engine for 1200 or so? let me know where and i'll be buying that engine instead...

 

Doing an LS1 swap piece by piece is a pretty expensive proposition...wiring harness, PCM, accessories, all the bolts, sensors, and whatnot really add up. I'd shop for a complete powertrain dropout...$2500-$6000 depending on year, mileage, and transmission.

I'm going to take a swag and say you don't have any experience or knowledge on engine building apart from what you've read in magazines.

If you did, you wouldn't likely want to build an LS1. Regular SBCs tolerate a lot more builder error than gen-3 engines from what we've seen thus far...lots of short-lived LS1 rebuilds showing up on ls1tech.com.

Got an angle-torque gauge? Super-duper accurate torque wrench? Inside mic set, bore gauges, runout gauge, etc.?

 

i'll admit i don't know enough of what i should...but i am doing this for a learning experiance and for pleasure.....
Before i would do anything for the engine, i would have guidance..books, friends that are mechanics (not sayin that they know **** about building engines, but they can help me a little)

 

How's $1250-1500 sound for a complete iron-block 6.0L gen-3?

I just hit www.car-part.com and found almost a dozen in that price range in various states.

Search under 2002 Chevy Silverado (99+) 6.0L

 

Ah, the School of Hard Knocks. Cheap entry price, but very expensive to graduate.

The LS1 swap is complex enough of an undertaking without adding an engine build in my humble (and experienced) opinion.