[slammedR/T]

True, If you trust someone to build your motors! I always do my own.... so its no big deal to me. Ill save the $$ on the labor for more parts ... hehe

hey man, I got THREE trucks to hotrod.. hahaha Gotta do as much as I can myself

Danno

That is true you have to have a machinist you can trust,lucky I have been friends with my machinist for a long time and he has WAY more engine building exp. than I do.He has built many a drag motor and oval track motor,He set my motor up for the spray.That kind of know how only comes from building race motors where you try one set-up and another till you get what makes the powa and can live.I could have built my motor on my own and would prolly run like a champ,but his little secrects and tweaks would out perform anything I can build every time at the track.Because plain and simple he knows his shit,now I'm not saying he is a god or anything just has 30+ years of drag racing and oval track racing under his belt.
Its like what you stated somewhere else about letting shady dell work your cylinder heads,I bet you could do it your self and save some cash.But I bet they wouldn't perform like what Ryan at shady can do to them now would they nethumb:


DEPUTY

 

[slammedR/T]

slammed.... me think you sexy in atlantic blue regular cab dakota

:stick: UM Yeah Steve,but my dak is IB blue and I think you have been talking to devilbrad WAY too much :nana:



DEPUTY

 

[03SXT]

i read through this thread and all i can say is, what a good read. good fortune on your engine build. nethumb:

i found this 408 link;

http://www.popularhotrodding.com/enginemasters/articles/mopar/smallblock/0506em_410/

they also got 412hp on a 318 cheap buildup;

http://www.popularhotrodding.com/enginemasters/articles/mopar/0667em_mopar_318_engine/index.html

thanks man :beer: . i'm hoping i'll get it all together pretty smoothly and all, but if not, its always a learning experience. i'm keeping the entire process logged in this thread, maybe it'll help others who are building 408's too. btw, another good article is this one:

http://www.truckinweb.com/brandpages/dodge/0303tr_dakota_408_stroker/

lots of info and pics on that one. mines coming along good, i'm ready for the block filling and i'm going to start ordering parts to build the block up within the next week or so....still need to get it alignbored though....then i'll probably go ahead and order the arp main stud kit with L19's, clevite 77 HP main bearings, eagle h-beams and the eagle crank....then i'll have to save up more money and order the pistons (still trying to decide which ones), plasma moly rings, camshaft(still deciding on it too) and the timing set. if i forgot anything i'll double check before i order so i get everything i need.....i'm going to have the machine shop put it together....they've been around 20+ years, so i feel better having them do it. but anyway, glad you enjoyed the read nethumb:

 

[Danno]

That is true you have to have a machinist you can trust,lucky I have been friends with my machinist for a long time and he has WAY more engine building exp. than I do.He has built many a drag motor and oval track motor,He set my motor up for the spray.That kind of know how only comes from building race motors where you try one set-up and another till you get what makes the powa and can live.I could have built my motor on my own and would prolly run like a champ,but his little secrects and tweaks would out perform anything I can build every time at the track.Because plain and simple he knows his shit,now I'm not saying he is a god or anything just has 30+ years of drag racing and oval track racing under his belt.
Its like what you stated somewhere else about letting shady dell work your cylinder heads,I bet you could do it your self and save some cash.But I bet they wouldn't perform like what Ryan at shady can do to them now would they nethumb:


DEPUTY

Lucky for me Ive been building race motors for about 20 years myself then eh? hahahaha. And also been a machinist at one point. So I have a pretty good handle on whats what

Thats why I let the people with the knowhow port the heads. Thats a very specific knowledge set, and I know when to say that I dont know....

Danno

 

[slammedR/T]

Lucky for me Ive been building race motors for about 20 years myself then eh? hahahaha. And also been a machinist at one point. So I have a pretty good handle on whats what

Thats why I let the people with the knowhow port the heads. Thats a very specific knowledge set, and I know when to say that I dont know....

Danno

Yeah I have only built a few motors myself so I let Stan build the stroker.
I know what you mean about the heads,if you don't know what you are doing you can fu<k them up.


DEPUTY

 

[Axiom]

N/A 360 I love you.:beer: I saved your first post in a word document for when I do my 360 build. :mullet:

 

[Danno]

Agreed,

That was a good detailed post. And I actually agree with him on almost everything.

Danno

 

[addicted2blue00]

N/A 360 I love you.:beer: I saved your first post in a word document for when I do my 360 build. :mullet:

i agree, very nice post :twothumb:

 

[03SXT]

ok, update:

i just need to start ordering parts now...i'm looking for a complete rotating assembly kit....i e-mailed hughes engines and they gave me a quote on a CPR kit with almost everything upgraded: eagle 4340 4" crank, eagle 4340 h-beams, clevite 77 p-series (all bearings...cam, rods, and mains), diamond forged .030 over pistons, speed pro moly rings, and a race balance.....all total would be $2425, and i think thats with shipping cause i asked if they could include shipping, but they didnt specify in their response if it was included, so idk. right now, i'm just focused on getting the short block together....i still need to decide on a cam too, i want to get it ordered around the same time and get all this installed at once. anyway, what do ya'll reccommend as far as a cam goes? and do you think thats a good price on that CPR kit? TIA.

 

[Jasonb61]

Any progress on this yet? I'm still trying to get a start on mine but stuck with no main caps... :rant: I'm about to look into the BCR caps but their site says its for big blocks :huh:

 

[RagingRedR/T]

Any progress on this yet? I'm still trying to get a start on mine but stuck with no main caps... :rant: I'm about to look into the BCR caps but their site says its for big blocks :huh:

I believe that if you call Ryan at Shady Dell Speed Shop he can get the correct BCR caps for ya!

And I second the request for an update!

 

[03SXT]

haha, well here's the update.... so far these are the parts i've gotten so far:

eagle forged 4.000" crank
diamond .030 overbore dished pistons for forced induction
eagle h-beam forged rods
clevite 77 tri-metal rod and main bearings
total seal moly plasma piston rings
had everything internally balanced

ordered a main stud kit from jegs, but i've got to either return it or get credit back for it cause i completely forgot i needed the main stud girdle, which that kit includes main studs and oil pan studs....or if anyone is interested in just the main studs, PM me and we'll set somethin up.

also, the half fill of hardblock is done....did it myself, wasnt really anything to it. the hard part is getting the rust out of the water jackets....muratic acid did the trick but because the block is such a pourus metal, you have to flush it extremely well and dont let it stay in more than 3 minutes or so....usually thats all it needs. the worst part to avoid is the acid getting on the decks and the piston bores....you dont want that....so it is kinda difficult to turn the engine over fast enough to keep it off, which i managed to do somehow. filling it is really pretty easy. follow the mixing instructions for the hardblock, but when you pour it in, pour in all the jackets....dont do it in one spot, which is pretty obvious to see. also, under hard acceleration the coolant is going to slosh backwards toward the rear of the engine, so filling it with the block at a very slight angle will net you better cooling.....to an extent anyway, plus the coolant needs somewhere to go under acceleration too.

that pretty much is it so far...i'm starting to order alot of the other parts within the next few days and all.

as for the caps, i'm using the stock ones. i've read from several different sources that the stock caps are actually just about as strong as aftermarket...with a girdle there really shouldnt be any cap walking....i would hope.

also, all the rotating assembly (crank, rods, etc.) was ordered from hughes engines and they also did the balancing. it took about a month to get it to me cause eagle had the crank backordered, and then they shipped hughes the wrong crank....so had to wait longer. but i'm not blaming hughes for it, and i'm satisfied with the price and what i got. kevin is a pretty fair guy about it, as is dave.

anyway, thats about it that i can think of. i've put alot of time, research, and money into it so far ($4200 including the price i paid for the engine). i'm looking to have it in the truck by this time next year, unless i get a better job that pays well. if you guys need any help with your builds PM or just ask and i might be able to answer now.....i've learned a $hitload in the past several months. l8r guys.

 

[Danno]

Any progress on this yet? I'm still trying to get a start on mine but stuck with no main caps... :rant: I'm about to look into the BCR caps but their site says its for big blocks :huh:

http://www.pro-gram.com/index.jsp

Try these guys. I have a set of their caps on one of my LA 360 motors. Should be the same caps for the Mag motor.... spendy yes... but VERY nice pieces..

Danno

 

[Jasonb61]

Ouch the price is alright except for the $409 "wet sump rear".... Girlfriend is going to kill me lol.

 

[Danno]

Yeah cheap they arent.. hahah

But at least youll have a really stout lower end. Especially if you go with the splayed 4 bolt option.... then put the Hughes main girdle in. You could do whatever you wanted to that shortblock, and the crank and mains would never fail hahaha

Danno

 

[Jasonb61]

ya but from what im reading they wont fit the magnum blocks :rant: ... I will be going with the main girdle though but I've heard 4-bolt just weakens the block because lack of material... On an LA engine it may be a different story but I've even heard of people saying thats a bad idea as well :huh:

 

[Danno]

I am still trying to figure out where people ( even experienced machinists ) are getting the idea that the splayed caps will in any way weaken the lower end..haha

FWIW, I have a LA 360 with the Program splayed caps, and I have a magnum 360 block side by side in my shop right now. There is absolutely NO difference between the main webbing in the two blocks. And if you saw how the splayed part of the cap taps into the pan rail webbing, you wouldnt doubt for a second the gains from it. If it was done like the Chevs did, with all 4 bolts going in parallel, then yeah, thats a bad idea, but these actually triangulate the whole lower block area.

Id love to see some substantiation to the "it makes it weaker" theory. IE a block with splayed caps that actually cracked the main webbing, in a situation where it wouldnt have cracked the webbing with only 2 bolt caps...

Anyway, thats mostly academic For where you are going ( from what Ive read ) the 2 bolt mains will be fine for you, going to the 4 bolt would be a minor added expense at this point. Might almost be cheaper for you to find another block really.... WITH main caps intact

Danno

 

[Jasonb61]

well I was just going by what i've read and heard over and ove... I really would like to have the 4-bolt main because I'd really like to get a lot of power and reliability from this motor. I may end up just going with an LA block if I have no luck with this one mainly because I hear they are stronger due to higher nickel material in the block... But I can probably get some main caps if you think the LA caps will fit the magnum but on the Mopar Performance catalog they say that they wont fit the 92+ blocks :huh:

 

[Danno]

I think the reason they are saying they wont fit is the rear main. They changed the way the pan seals against the cap when they went to the Magnum motor. So at worst you would have to use an LA style pan/gasket when you go to the Pro-gram caps. The LA/Magnums share the same main bearings and crank journals. Ive built a Magnum with a 72 360 crank and 360 LA full groove main bearings.. so I know they work just fine

Danno

 

[Jasonb61]

Ok, Thanks! It's really great having such informative people like you around here! One last question for you and I'll shut up :jester: ... Would I have to use all LA/Magnum-style caps or can I use the Pro-gram #1-4 caps and my stock rear main? :huh: The price of that rear one is what is stopping me lol