Someone wanna help find the cause of death?

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Vamisk

Vamisk

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First, it's a 383 but i figure this is the most relevant board.

I recently bought the complete, but torn down 383 for $800.

Now i know why it was torn down.

It came with every rod bearing except a single pair.
You reckon the rod got chewed up, plugged some oil passages and seized 1.5 cylinders?
I checked all the pistons, every one except the two pictured are fine. The one on the left though, the rings are stuck and so is the wrist pin so i reckon that one had some problems too.
All the other bearings show almost no wear on them though.

Really hoping i didn't just buy a paperweight.

WP_20170331_001.jpg
 
The rod is bent and the pushrods are bent, better look at that thing very carefully before you put any money in it.
 
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GeorgeH said:
And the rod is bent and the pushrods are ugly, better look at that thing very carefully before you put any money in it.
Click to expand...
Taking the whole bottom end to a machine shop before i bother buying a single part for it.
I know these are strong blocks but that's asking an awful lot.
 
The 5/6 pair seems to always be the first to feel an oil starvation issue.
I'm sure your block is fine, and the crank will probably be OK after a clean up cut.
Look carefully at the pump.
Original problem could have been something as remote as a pushrod bending and allowing the lifter to jump out of its bore.
These engines feed the lower end oil through the lifter galleries
 
For what it's worth the previous owner apparently ran a hydraulic roller cam with solid lifters.
I can't explain why 3 pushrods bent though.

whitepunkonnitro said:
The 5/6 pair seems to always be the first to feel an oil starvation issue.
I'm sure your block is fine, and the crank will probably be OK after a clean up cut.
Look carefully at the pump.
Original problem could have been something as remote as a pushrod bending and allowing the lifter to jump out of its bore.
These engines feed the lower end oil through the lifter galleries
Click to expand...

I was really only after the block and crank anyway. Hopefully everything is fine but there's a machine shop two miles from my house. Better to be safe then sorry.
 
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Is there anything i can do to prevent this from happening in a future engine or is just luck of the draw?
 
Hi Vamisk , to answer your last question , the answer is "yes". #1. the oil feed holes from the lifter gallery to the main bearing journals is a stepped hole . Open hole with a long 3/16" bit , chamfer holes . #2 Use fully grooved mail bearings . These bearings will lower the oil pressure some but not enough for concern . #3. I using a Melling standard pump , shim the relief valve spring . Option : High volume Melling oil pump only with a deep sump pan , otherwise you can suck the pan dry . Works for me . 20 psi @idle , 50 psi @ 4500 rpm
 
Neat, thanks for your information i'm going to bookmark your post. Extra oil flow never hurts i guess.
 
I bet the engine was run at high R.P.Ms for awhile and the push rods were bent by the pistons hitting the valves.
To avoid this, follow the specs for piston to valve clearance, and run an appropriate spring.
And don't rev it to the moon!
The oiling mods already posted should handle that part of the build...........
 
Maybe the previous owner read that article on Hotrod that said a set of 440 heads would let a 383 be a rev monster.
 
moper said:
Except the 383 all used the same heads as the 440s...
Click to expand...
when using the long bit to drill the galleries to the mains (1) grab a helper to shoot a constant steam of oil onto the drill bit (2) go slow & keep the drill centered. You DO NOT want to break off the bit in that passage! (3) use a quality bit frequently sharpened with a drill doctor.
 
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