Oil clearances and a surprise

famous bob said
Thru out all this , I didn`t read anyone warning you about the rods facing the right way, better check the chamfer on them too.

Yes the rods are facing the wrong way, to install them with the top of the piston facing the correct way the non chamfered end of the connecting rod would be against the radiused ( and in this case undercut ) part of the crankshaft. And the spit holes would be facing outward. My biggest worry right now is the shop that I took them to now is breaking the pistons or damaging the piston pin when they press them out to turn them around. I guess I should have had the rods bushed or gotten some Scat rods. Even those were pushing the budget too much. This is a perfect example of spending less money before to spend more money now. I feel dumb for not noticing the connecting rod orientation until we started blueprinting the motor. Also, as you mentioned, the chamfers on the rods seem to be different sizes from each other. I don't think that's a problem as long as they're big enough. The rods were resized. I've gotten advice from a number of you guys here saying that that tight number 2 main at .002" clearance and number one at .0021" is probably okay. We'll see what the rod bearing clearance is when I get them back.

rumblefish360 said
I REALLY like Mr.Gasket’s Ultra Seals. However, any major gasket player should be fine. FWIW, a tip, don’t over tighten the center port bolts! It warps the flange.

I also use a reduced size head on the header bolts. From ARP. I’ll get the part number tomorrow. There a 3/8 head bolt. I cut down a small wrench to fit in easier on the tight spots. While the header is hanging on the end studs, I grab the tight ones first. Blue lock tight should do the trick on holding them in.

Thank you for the advice. I probably would have torqued those center two bolts too tight! I'll get a set or two of those header gaskets. I think my performer RPM heads are dry at the outer bolt hole ends. I think...

I was wondering if it was easier to deal with the headers once they're in the car, such as changing gaskets, with bolts in the outer ends instead of studs? It might give a small amount of maneuvering space. My car is a 75 Duster. It's a slant 6 and it's getting the Schumacher mounts. I'm not sure if those get the engine in exactly the same spot.