Rebuild in my future

[Canuck]

My 70 has developed a tick. We eventually determined one of the #2 rocker arms barely moves so the cam must be worn. It does not make a noise when it is cold and the engine still has plenty of power. Once it is warmed up the ticking noise is quite loud but seems to go away at higher RPM. The engine has 132,000 miles and has never been out of the car or had any major work done.

 

 

[jft69z]

That sucks, but realistically, you got your money's worth out of that engine with 132K.

[cny first gen 71]

If the rocker isn't moving it sounds like the cam finally wore out, your right time for a refresh. Better to find out now than on the road to the meet. Good luck with it at least a sbc are easy to rebuild and pretty affordable unless you get crazy with it.

[1970mcss]

Another good reason to keep the 72 in the stable a while

 

[Vaughn]

20 hours ago, 1970mcss said:

Another good reason to keep the 72 in the stable a while

 

I concur!!!!!!!!

[TheBMan]

Oh man, that sucks. I agree that you got your money's worth but look at the bright side... you get to rebuild a small block chevy, which is always fun! By the way, your engine compartment looks great!

[Glen]

Are ya gonna go bone stock internals with the rebuild?  Or spice it up some while retaining the stock appearance?

[Canuck]

On 5/3/2023 at 9:05 PM, Glen said:

Are ya gonna go bone stock internals with the rebuild?  Or spice it up some while retaining the stock appearance?

I am planning on keeping it a stock build. I would entertain some internal modifications to increase longevity of the engine. I plan to keep this car a long time and drive to work a lot.

[Leghome]

I love the roller cam and roller rockers in  my 20 over 350. Just a mild upgrade but increased fuel economy and a quieter running power plant

[Canuck]

I pulled the engine and trans last month. I already have the trans back from the rebuild. My engine builder took the engine apart and the cam was very worn. I decided to spend the extra money for a roller cam. He said the engine is a great core. I should have the engine back by mid-January. 

[Montemedic]

Great news Aaron. Glad to hear you engine is good to rebuild and going with a roller cam vs flat tappet is a very wise decision. Way too many issues with the metal cores are using for flat tappet camshafts, destroying brand new and rebuilt motors. Enjoy the process !!!

[EVC]

Hope you use oil with zinc… Not zinc additive..  Some say you don't need it with a roller cam…  My question has always been,, what harm will it cause ?   

After two roller cams failed because those stupid doggy bones on the lifters broke,  I went back to the flat tappet….   Luckily it didn't destroy my block… Adding moving parts means more crap to break or fail..

I never liked the design in the first place and should have followed my original instincts… I'm certainly not a mechanical engineer,, but the idea that complete engine failure can occur because of this poor design makes no sense to me. 

Good luck on yours Aaron. 

Ed... 

[EVC]

BTW.. I enjoyed the roller cam twice .. one lasted 3000 miles and the other one lasted 2000 miles… 

[Canuck]

Update: The builder said the block was in great shape and no decking was required. I'm happy I won't lose the factory stamping. Heads are assembled and short block will be assembled this week. He still has to determine length of pushrods needed and order those. I'm happy with the progress and will be excited to get the engine back in the car.

I've been doing a lot of cleaning and some painting of the parts to get ready for reassembly (brackets, manifolds, trans lines, etc). I've collected all the new parts I need as well. I still need to work on painting the areas of the frame and firewall I didn't have access to before when the engine was in the car.

I hope to get some photos soon.

[Leghome]

On 12/16/2023 at 7:56 PM, Canuck said:

Update: The builder said the block was in great shape and no decking was required. I'm happy I won't lose the factory stamping. Heads are assembled and short block will be assembled this week. He still has to determine length of pushrods needed and order those. I'm happy with the progress and will be excited to get the engine back in the car.

I've been doing a lot of cleaning and some painting of the parts to get ready for reassembly (brackets, manifolds, trans lines, etc). I've collected all the new parts I need as well. I still need to work on painting the areas of the frame and firewall I didn't have access to before when the engine was in the car.

I hope to get some photos soon.

The push rod on my Erson cam were from  a stock V6 GM engine if I remember correctly. They may not work with your cam lifter combo but here is my part number Part number 1921485 SBI New pushrod for select 1996-2014 GM cars and trucks 

[Canuck]

I should have it home soon.  A few photos from the builder.

 

[1970mcss]

It's looking good, just in time for spring

[MC1of80]

Getting there Aaron! Looks great! 

[Ron Tevis]

B E A U T I F U L !!!   

[cny first gen 71]

I'd be willing to bet Aaron will do some touch up to it before it goes back in.

[1970mcss]

Then shrink wrap or bubble wrap the motor until its back in

[Canuck]

I will paint the water pump and a few other accessories, install them and do a final coat on the whole block before installation.

The engine will come to me shrink wrapped but will need to wrap it again after doing the above.

 

[Canuck]

Here’s what was done:
Disassemble, hot tank, bore/hone, resize connecting rods, re-re cam bearings, re-re pistons, surface heads, valve grind, valve guides, grind crank, assemble engine
Parts:
Rod bearings, main bearings, cam bearings, oil pump, pick-up tube, double roller timing set, pistons .020, rings, comp 981 valve springs, gasket set, frost plugs, paint × 2, primer, positive stem seals, hardened spring shims.
Milodon reinforced timing cover, lock plate and cam button
Upgrades:
Hydraulic roller cam and lifters
Exhaust valves and hardened exhaust seats

[Rob Peters]

Looks great Aaron.  Getting exciting huh....  It will be a new engine, you could more than likely drive it to Carlisle in June.

rob

[Canuck]

9 minutes ago, Rob Peters said:

Looks great Aaron.  Getting exciting huh....  It will be a new engine, you could more than likely drive it to Carlisle in June.

rob

If I could take that much time off in June I would do that.