How many assemble their engines

How many assemble their own engines... and how many of you do not

  • Yes I assemble my motors

    Votes: 205 63.1%

  • Yes I assemble and do some machining of my motors/engines

    Votes: 85 26.2%

  • No I do not, Im not equipped to do and I pay other to do so

    Votes: 16 4.9%

  • No, I dont know how and I pay somebody to do it for me

    Votes: 19 5.8%
  • Total voters
    325
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most of the time i try to do it my self until i don't have the machinery to do it with then it is off to the shop with it
 
Yep
 

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My buddy and I built my 440. We finally broke it in last sunday. Very street friendly.
 
MOPARMITCH said:
I always do as much as I can myself. To me , it's the most fun part of the car build. Besides the insurance that it was done correctly. I have used several different Machine shops over the years. Some are better than others. I've had issues with a few of them, but I'm pretty picky.
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That first motor, what is that? Size i mean? Looks like a 440 but????? Looks mean nothing on the outside!:D
 
I do my own dissassembly and reassembly. I gasket port match myself, smooth out the runners and bowls in the heads. But i have a great local machinest who does all the boring, decking, and head work otherwise.

If i had access to the tools, and was taught how to run them, i'd machine all my own stuff.

Matt
 
67 Power Wagon said:
That first motor, what is that? Size i mean? Looks like a 440 but????? Looks mean nothing on the outside!:D
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All those pics are of the same engine. It's just a little stock looking 383 that I cooked up for the 68 GTS. Matching engine for that car.
 
Built a 273 hipo when in high school that went in my 67 Barracuda

Then a 350 SBC for my 72 Hugger orange and white 3/4 ton 4x4

An olds 455 in my 18' sidewinder jet boat

Don't do machine work

The 340 in my Dart had done hoping that one time would be the last, 3 x later it still isn't right. The machine shop machined it, built and run on dyno. Kept bending the push rods in the #5 cylinder. Have about 4,000 miles so far so good, just leaking too much oil.

Thinking today I should pull it and go thru it myself and do it the way I think it should be
 
Personally, I disassembled/assembled/measured and did some of my own machining.....

I'm just glad to see Justin's thread revised. I'm probably one of a few here that miss his knowledge & offbeat whit/personality.
 
Assembly is not as difficult as some make it seem. A lot of people are afraid to get their hands dirty but as long as you pay attention when tearing it apart it's a breeze. After a couple of times you will not need to seperate bolts and crap and you can really fly through it.

Go one part at a time and triple check things and before you know it you got a short block together. Torque the heads down and slap the intake and carb on it and your ready to rock. Short block takes me the longest but that's because I get frustrated with rings very easily.
 
Worked in a speed shop,two years... My own :Five or six small block Chevs, 3 L series Datsuns,2 small block Mopars, 1 Pontiac,top end only.
 
I have a buddy do my boring and decking and hot tank or any serious machining then I do all the rest including mild porting gasket matching lapping in valves. it don't make sense to pay someone when you can do it yourself but I was wrenching on stuff since I was about 10 and am 54 now, I love checking tolerances and file fitting rings degreeing cams and stuff it gives me a reason to be in my shop working on a 392 hemi now for my 60 dodge truck my first hemi
 
I've done several over the years, I started by helping my brother rebuild the 360 in his 74 Duster after I kind of blew it up LOL.
 
Did a '71 318 for my '71 swinger. Followed a Chiltons best I knew how. Had shops in the town where I let do the machining, just the basic, no decking. Had rods recon'd, crank checked and polished, mic'd. All measurements were stock. Didn't know about....squat actually. Got it together and went to start it. Wouldn't fire, nothing. Checked everything and had gas and spark. Then I dropped the dist bolt on the ground, it was then I noticed ALL, well almost all my oil on the ground. LOL. Had to pull the engine again cause I traced it to coming from between the tranny and rear of block. Turns out the shop forgot a gallery plug on the passenger side by the cam, back of block. $1.00 and 1/2 hr later back with a plug in. Then back in car. Then found I had it out of time, #1 was where #6 should be........ I said I tried to follow the book the best I could. LOL Finally got it running, broke the cam in, and 1 month later drove it 1,000 miles back home. Ran for another 8 years until I moved to where I am today. Don't have the car any more. It seems the "welcome wagon" rear ended my car not once, but TWICE in a weeks time. I was so pissed!! That was my first car, with the rim blow tuff wheel, hood and trunk trim, rocker panel trim, wood grain on dash. I loved that car. Wanted to fix it up. Oh well, 19 years later I get the '70 I have today. Now I have a 340 to do, and I will do it myself except for the machining. I WILL do better because I may know more, but I know I don't know it all. Does that make sense? More humility today, ASK FOR HELP.
 
Not really a rebuild but recently I freshened up this 400 by installing new cambearings, fresh cam, Offy intake, 915 heads, HP ex.manifolds and some paint;




 
yeah..got a couple to assemble this winter...need a spare 360 short block...plus got a 318 block ...bored hone..and all...and a 4 inch crank..and kb pistons for it....
 
My family has always raced since before I was even born. I grew up learning how to assemble chevy 350's. I love it. The issue is, that's all we really did. I've never built a transmission, or a rear end. We usually had different shops do that. We'd have out blocks machined, and the shop that machined the heads usually put the valves / springs / guides and ground seats for us. I have a ton of experience in "assembling" the engine, but I feel like I missed out on a lot of experience by having different shops do most of the work. One of these days, when financials allow, I'd like to try my hand at rebuilding a transmission. Soon enough I'm gonna try my hand at a rear end lol
 
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