Damn Blake, I just read through this thread after you posted the link on mine and I gotta say, you're doing this the right way man! I'm also surprised at how clean your car's underbody was to begin with... that definitely saved you a lot of work in terms of rust repair that us northern people usually have to deal with LOL. And I love the way you've painted the rear end components, I'm usually not crazy about colors other than black/silver on suspension parts but I actually think that you're doing a vey tasteful job and once it's done your 'vert will be a show stopper. Good luck and be sure to keep us updated.

 

Steel flywheel kit:
http://sdparts.com/details/scoggin-d...center/sdls7ck
Current price: $459.95

Aluminum flywheel kit:
http://sdparts.com/details/scoggin-d...enter/sdls7ack
Current price: $559.95

The steel flywheel kit was $399 when I got it a couple of years ago. I've beat on it at the track last year and even more this year, still works like a charm both on the street and at the track.

 

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I'm running a factory 2000 f-body MC with drill mod. But, I shift at 6K RPMs, so I'm probably not as hard on it as some are.

 

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Tick MC... No question.

Tick MC and GM slave cylinder. No drill mod required with this set up, and will work about as good as you're going to get with this hydraulic set up.

J.

 

Trans turned out really nice!

 

I bought the Transdapt plates early in the project, did a test fitting, and discovered the interference with the AC compressor. So I sold them to another TGO member and got the Spohn mounts for the first swap.

For the 2nd swap, I got the plates off of eBay. I don't recall any problem getting the plates to sit flush on the block. But, it's been right about a year since I did the last one.

Can you get a pic of what's going on? Is it just one side, or both sides?

 

[quote=blakecharles;5014998]Who makes those billitt strut caps/mounts, those a real purty (pretty), dam those look boss, does anyone know what kind those are? I bet they are huge $$$$$$ too!!

 

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Are you telling me the stock ones are aluminum like in the pic?

 

It looks like it's these: http://www.hawksthirdgenparts.com/ca...ountspair.aspx that have been ceramic coated or something.

I think Blake was saying you could get a similar result on the stock strut mounts, You probably couldn't do it by just polishing them, but you could have them ceramic coated or chromed. And no, they aren't aluminum.

 

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Looks like there are 3 bolts on both the alternator and p/s pump brackets. Along with one bolt on the back of the alternator. Should come right off if all of those are removed. Maybe post a pic so we can see what you are having trouble with.

What color are you planning on painting the block?

 

you need a gear puller to get the harmonic off/ crank pulley if your having trouble with that!!!

 

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tap it with a rubber mallet

 

When you say all 6 bolts, it leads me to believe you are talking about the water pump bolts. Because your alternator bracket is already removed & the only other accessory bracket remaining is the power steering pump bracket. It only has 3 bolts holding it on, iirc. Take all 6 bolts out and tap it with a mallet like Tyler suggested. It's probably just stuck on there. I think you have to pull the p/s pump off before you can remove the bracket that holds it on to the block, iirc.

 

i remember in auto shop last year ford donated a whole bunch of prototype all aluminum 4.6L that were sitting for years, and they get corroded and you have to give it a gentle but firm slap with a mallet and if all the bolts are off then youll know because itll pop right off

 

2 of the PS bracket bolts are a bear to get to, and one doesn't come out - you basically have to loosen it last, and let the bracket move away as you loosen the bolt. I only see one of the three bolts in the pic, the rest are WP bolts.

 

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You can rent a hormonic balancer puller at o'rileys

 

Oh yeah! I had one hell of a time getting mine off. Luckily I had a high torque impact wrench to get the bolt off. It still took me awhile to get the balancer off after that, but you can do it. I'd probably leave it on the engine though too, like you said, if you don't need to remove it for anything.

 

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that good sir is a pickle fork =)

 

Ah the pickle fork...useful for SO many things, yet I dont think Ive ever used it for separating an actual ball joint haha.

Looking good Blake! Taking the motor apart, cleaning it, and painting it was something I should have done before each of my swaps. I get so darn impatient though. Once its all together, its really hard to get that gunk out of the little crevices. And the motor is so pretty when its clean! This time, since I have to take the motor apart, Im going to clean, and probably paint the block. And seal the heads if I can.

Removing the P/S pulley isnt too bad with the correct puller. Can be a bear, but the tool does all the work.

If you dont have any real need to pull the balancer other than to paint, I would clean around it, tape it, and paint around it. Unless you are installing an underdrive pulley or something. There should be enough room for you to get some paint in there without a problem. Just my opinion... Not worth the hassle.

J.

 

So, you were trying to get the water pump off...

I've gotten the PS pump off without removing the pulley. Needed to use a combo wrench is all. Much easier than removing the pulley, which has to be pressed back on.

The damper can be removed with a simple 3-jaw puller, but putting it back on requires a special damper tool. The parts store loaner tool set didn't have the right stuff to install it, though.

 

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Balancer is cast iron with a rubber dampner ring separating the pulley. Wire wheel all you want

I wouldnt go deeper than pulling the pan and looking for blued rod caps. If the bottom end is as clean as the rockers then you should be golden

Be things Ive found for block cleaning are pressure washers, wire brush and common brake cleaner

 

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took off the rocker support bracket to clean some crap out of there and saw some debris... so I took the whole head off. All the Rods seem to be in good shape, but the pistons look like crap and something looks to be growing on the otherwise smooth walls.

what should I do?

 

looks as though the walls still have thier crosshatching, as for the pistons themselves i dont know what to determine

 

looks like it sat for some time and got moisture in the cylinders. I bet you could have ran it and never would have known a thing. if your this far into it you may want to look at honing the cylinders and freshen up the engine. you need new bolts and head gaskets now

 

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ARP has alot of reusable bolts, but definitely not factory ones. id invest in a set of ARP's your gonna want to clean that debri out also otherwise it will scratch your piston walls

 

felpro makes the bolts as well.. my last tear down I went with arp studs and GM multilayer head gaskets.


personally I would just clean out the carbon and rust and then oil the cylinders before putting it together however since the heads are off you might want to inspect the lower-end first

 

yeah id say drop the pan, check for any of that junk in the bottom, also excessive metal chunks are always a good thing to check for.

 

When a rod bearing spins (fails) is creates an excess of heat which turns the rod end blue. Very easy to spot

If none of the rod ends are blue and you dont see an excess of bearing extruded out (high mileage) then I wouldnt touch a thing. Button it up and call it good. It is general practice to replace the oil pump on any used engine though, but many have been successful not doing so. I will tell you LSx pumps are a HUGE PITA to replace in a 3rd gen

Personally, I wouldnt have bothered to pull the heads unless you dropped something down in there. FYI, summit has the best price on head gaskets and bolt kits. GM sells their own bolts but not in kits. Remember, there are two different kits available. You want the 97-03 version. Dont bother with ARP studs/bolts or whatever, they're not worth the cost for a mild build. Heck, high end guys still use stock bolts without a problem. Also, you want multi-layered steel (MLS) head gaskets, not the nasty graphite ones you'll have fun cleaning off in the next few days

To answer your questions the stuff growing is rust. Generally you want to knock this off with a rag and WD40, never the piston rings because the rust particles are actually iron and can get between the rings and cyl wall to cause scores. Since you already knocked it off, run the back of your fingernail across any vertical lines in the cyls. If they catch your fingernail, a hone is in order. If there arent any, button her up. The crosshatching looks excellent, lots of miles left in that engine

The black stuff on the pistons is just carbon build up, totally normal. Clean it off with a brillo pad if you want, but it wont help/hurt anything. A year of use and it will look just like that again

 

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that is still some beautiful crosshatching

 

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