[Danno]

You can use a stock rear main if you want! No reason not too

( thats how I did my LA motor )

Danno

 

[03SXT]

alright guys, the time has come to ask more questions....the engine is coming along nicely as far as parts go, now i just need to get it all thrown together, lol. here's what i have so far:

eagle forged h-beams
eagle forged crank 4"
diamond forged pistons
clevite 77 main and rod bearings
melling HV oil pump
4bbl (2bbl adapter plate) M1 intake manifold
moroso street and strip deep sump oil pan
flow kooler water pump
main studs (which will be returned to jegs so i can order the girdle kit from hughes which comes with main and oil pan studs, but i didnt know that at the time, :rant: )



so now i need some info before i order more stuff. mostly i need to know what should be studded and what can be bolted....like, i would really only need the maincaps and the cylinder heads to be studded right? i can just use hex head ARP bolts for everything else correct? or would it be ok to use the stock bolts on everthing else?

and about putting it together, i know it will probably need to be clearanced for the h-beams and the crank, so is this something i should do myself or just have a shop assemble the entire engine? clearancing is just grinding the block so the rotating assy. will clear so it cant be that hard to do....if i decide to put it together myself, should it be cleaned of the deep creep or will that not hurt it? just dish detergent soap and water to clean it if i need to? or should i just get a shop to do it all?

and the gaskets....what is the best brand gaskets to use for basically everything on it? i'm going to use Titan gaskets for the heads when i get to them, but for stuff like the oil pan, manifold, etc., whats good? and should i look for a gasket kit, or just buy them all separate?

and this isnt too important right now, but suppose i want to convert to a manual tranny, how much work is it besides getting a pcm flash and getting the pedal assemblies....what happens to the column shifter and the dash gear selector for the auto? i was really interested in the t56 conversion, but thats a little too much $$$ for me, so i was thinking of going with a tko or is it possible to get a 5 speed from a 5.9 ram or a 318 dakota and modify it? if i dont go this route i guess i'm looking at an auto with a manual valve body.....right?

any input/opinions/advice is greatly appreciated. thanks guys. :mullet: :beer:

 

[03SXT]

anyone?

 

[mrkindweiler]

somebody help the guy out! shoot i wanna hear what you motor builders have to say...

03SXT,
have you picked out a cam yet? or type of head? fully ported?

 

[TurboBlew]

alright guys, the time has come to ask more questions....the engine is coming along nicely as far as parts go, now i just need to get it all thrown together, lol. here's what i have so far:

eagle forged h-beams
eagle forged crank 4"
diamond forged pistons
clevite 77 main and rod bearings
melling HV oil pump
4bbl (2bbl adapter plate) M1 intake manifold
moroso street and strip deep sump oil pan
flow kooler water pump
main studs (which will be returned to jegs so i can order the girdle kit from hughes which comes with main and oil pan studs, but i didnt know that at the time, :rant: )

Buy another set of main bearings and use the upper grooved portion on both halves.

so now i need some info before i order more stuff. mostly i need to know what should be studded and what can be bolted....like, i would really only need the maincaps and the cylinder heads to be studded right? i can just use hex head ARP bolts for everything else correct? or would it be ok to use the stock bolts on everthing else?

Have you considered the Hughes girdle for the crank?

http://www.hughesengines.com/partDetail.asp?partID=12313&eTypeID=1

and about putting it together, i know it will probably need to be clearanced for the h-beams and the crank, so is this something i should do myself or just have a shop assemble the entire engine? clearancing is just grinding the block so the rotating assy. will clear so it cant be that hard to do....if i decide to put it together myself, should it be cleaned of the deep creep or will that not hurt it? just dish detergent soap and water to clean it if i need to? or should i just get a shop to do it all?

are you familliar with checking clearances and runout on the crank? Most shops wouldnt charge more than a couple hours of labor to assemble a short block. Also this puts the responsibility on the shop to ensure proper assembly. Probably best to talk to your machine shop to get an idea on cost.

and the gaskets....what is the best brand gaskets to use for basically everything on it? i'm going to use Titan gaskets for the heads when i get to them, but for stuff like the oil pan, manifold, etc., whats good? and should i look for a gasket kit, or just buy them all separate?

You can buy a complete gasket set from any auto parts or summit or Danno.

and this isnt too important right now, but suppose i want to convert to a manual tranny, how much work is it besides getting a pcm flash and getting the pedal assemblies....what happens to the column shifter and the dash gear selector for the auto? i was really interested in the t56 conversion, but thats a little too much $$$ for me, so i was thinking of going with a tko or is it possible to get a 5 speed from a 5.9 ram or a 318 dakota and modify it? if i dont go this route i guess i'm looking at an auto with a manual valve body.....right?

any input/opinions/advice is greatly appreciated. thanks guys. :mullet: :beer:

The NV3500 came behind the daks. The are on borrowed time from the get go. If you already have a 46re you'd come out cheaper adding a few upgrades and be on the road alot quicker...hehe

 

[03SXT]

Buy another set of main bearings and use the upper grooved portion on both halves.



Have you considered the Hughes girdle for the crank?

http://www.hughesengines.com/partDetail.asp?partID=12313&eTypeID=1



are you familliar with checking clearances and runout on the crank? Most shops wouldnt charge more than a couple hours of labor to assemble a short block. Also this puts the responsibility on the shop to ensure proper assembly. Probably best to talk to your machine shop to get an idea on cost.



The NV3500 came behind the daks. The are on borrowed time from the get go. If you already have a 46re you'd come out cheaper adding a few upgrades and be on the road alot quicker...hehe

thnx for the reply....i got the girdle on last week, shimmed it to specs (.008-.010" clearance), torqued it to 90lbs, and had the shop line hone it. as far as checkin clearances and all, i got people who know. i know how to use plastigages and feelers. for the transmission, i decided to go auto (martin saine probably) with manual VB. but i still need to figure out a cam, lol. i want somethin lumpy, but not where it shakes drinks out of the holders.....just kinda rough. and i dont know what brand would be best...ideas?

 

[mrkindweiler]

crower is good.

check out www.socaldakota.com for some good prices

 

[Mopar]

I have a Compu custom grind I bought from Marty at KRC performance. It lops nice(sounds like an old muscle car) and hits in the 1500-5500 range. Give Marty a shout if you have questions. His number is on his site www.krcperformance.com

 

[03SXT]

yea, i've heard that it would be best to get a custom grind on it....there's a guy around here who is a friend of a friend and has connections to comp cams....he got my friend a cam custom grinded for his LA 360 he's puttin in his off-road Ram...got it at a damn good price is what he told me, and said he told them what he had planned for it and what he had in it now and they did the rest....its crossing my mind...

and i have another question...when installing main bearings and pistons, should i completely clean wd-40 off those surfaces? and i was told at the machine shop to get a spray bottle and mineral spirits to clean the block, rinse it off, then use soap and water as the final prep, rinse, blow dry, and wd-40 it down. so does there need to be wd-40 even where installing main bearings....i know its probably alright for cylinders, as it will probably just burn out of there and keep it from firing dry anyway...i just wasnt sure about the mains. thanks again.

 

[slammedR/T]

don't use wd-40 on the main bearings just use motor oil,or if the short will be sitting awhile you can use assembly lube.I don't like using wd-40 it is water based and you will still get rust,I like deep creep(by seafoam) better.



DEPUTY

 

[cloknem]

i don't know if its the best application for your use but wd-40 is not water based.

WD-40 is the trademark of a widely used penetrating oil (cleaner, lubricant and anti-corrosive solution) spray. It was developed in 1953 by Norm Larsen (then working for the Rocket Chemical Company) to eliminate water and prevent corrosion on electrical circuitry. It also has many household uses.

WD-40 stands for "Water Displacement, 40th attempt", a name which came from Larsen's laboratory notebook. Larsen was attempting to concoct a formula to prevent corrosion by displacing water, and arrived at the formula on his 40th try.[1] A common myth is that "WD" stands for "war department".

It was first used by Convair to protect the outer skin of the Atlas missile from rust and corrosion. The product first became commercially available on store shelves in San Diego in 1958.

Main ingredients, from the material safety data sheet, are:

* 50%: Stoddard solvent (mineral spirits, also commonly known as dry cleaning solvent)
* 25%: Liquefied petroleum gas (presumably as a propellant, carbon dioxide is used now to reduce considerable flammability)
* 15+%: Mineral oil (light lubricating oil)
* 10-%: Inert ingredients

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wd40

my boss started our operations meeting asking everyone what wd-40 meant. anyway, i thought it was a good read.

 

[03SXT]

don't use wd-40 on the main bearings just use motor oil,or if the short will be sitting awhile you can use assembly lube.I don't like using wd-40 it is water based and you will still get rust,I like deep creep(by seafoam) better.



DEPUTY

yea, i've got deep creep too. i've been using it awhile.... and it cleans as it protects....gotta love that. anyway, i was told to wipe the mains with a lint free cloth and make sure they are completely clean before installing them...is that right? do i need to use assembly lube to place them? i'm planning on getting this beast mocked up and clearanced hopefully by the end of next week.....once i make sure of clearances, fit, and etc., then i'm ready to start getting it together for the truck! seems like its taking forever though....but hey, i'll get there someday:drive::mullet:nethumb:

 

[03SXT]

somebody help the guy out! shoot i wanna hear what you motor builders have to say...

03SXT,
have you picked out a cam yet? or type of head? fully ported?

still lookin for a cam, probably go with a custom grind. for heads, i'm thinking about R/T's with stage 2 porting. hughes engines probably. i thought about the iron rams, but i just dont know about them. and eddy's dont flow as good as R/T's....from what i read. anybody got any other suggestions for heads? R/T's seem to be tried and true. i hope this thread is helping others out there, i know i've learned a ton compared to when i first started. :beer:

 

[mrkindweiler]

you should look into SoCal heads... Sam claimed that they flow better than R/T heads... and they are cheaper. talk to him, he is a referable dude!

 

[03SXT]

does anyone know of an easy way to separate the rod caps from the connecting rods....the tools to do it are like $109 through summit....i'd like to find a cheap, preferably free, way to do it besides buyin a tool. i thought i could pull them apart by hand, but damn, they wouldnt budge. thanks.