Advice on my "new" motor

[mrk5]

Spoiler alert, this is a discussion on a boring TBI350, so don't get too excited. I have been planning on doing a 5.3/6.0 swap in the crewcab because the 350 in there is tired and smokes like crazy at start up and under load. My buddy likes to call me Puff the Magic Dragon every time I fire to motor up to leave. However instead of the Vortec motor swap, ktmoutfront set me up with a good deal on a GM Goodwrench 350TBI motor that had low miles/hours before it was decommissioned. It was too good a deal to pass up.

I know this has been covered in other threads but today is a snow day and it sounds like a good excuse to spark a new conversation on an old topic. The motor has not been run for over 5yrs, probably pushing 8yrs. It has been in a dry climate and garage kept. Anyway, some thoughts/questions I have:

• I plan to put fresh oil in and use the tool to run the oil pump and circulate the oil. Would there be a particular oil I should use or an additive? Any other thoughts?

• Should I replace any seals/gaskets?

• I figured after circulating oil I would rotate the crank a few times. I was thinking about the good possibility there's at least a little surface rust on the cylinder walls so I was wondering if there might be an idea on something I could use inside the cylinders first? Like may be spraying some WD40 in the spark plug holes. Or some sort of fuel additive?

• What about the water jackets and passages? Should I try to do a coolant flush with one of the products you'd normally use for a coolant flush?

• All the fuel injection stuff will be swapped over from my current motor so no concerns there.

Maybe I'm over thinking this but I'd like to give this motor the best shot I can. Down the rode finances might better permit a Vortec swap but I'd like to get a few years out of the "new" motor.

 

[blazinzuk]

Your over thinking.

Lol.

Put in fresh oil. Spun it around. Replace gaskets toss it in

I suppose a coolant flush would be a good idea after its in

 

[diesel4me]

I have installed quite a few engines that ran well when removed from a wreck,etc,and then sat idle in someone's garage,or shed,sometimes for years...

All I did was put some Marvel Mystery Oil in each cylinder and spin it over by hand carefully,feeling for any hard resistance that would indicate a stuck valve,or rust in the cylinder bores...
I was lucky and never ran into that scenario,and the engines all fired up and ran well after installed...
You can run the oil pump with a drill,using an old distributor with the drive gear removed or the teeth ground off..
I just cranked the engines over with the coil wire off until I saw oil pressure,before firing them up the first time..

More than a few "good" engines we sold at the junkyard ran quite well at first,then suffered bearing damage ,after warming up--our fault for just dumping the old oil,and adding fresh 5 qts and a new filter--sludge,water & dirt had built up on the oil pump screen and oil pan bottom,and it got sucked into the oiling system,and starved the bearings.....it wouldn't hurt to drop the pan,replace the gasket,make sure all looks good in there--valve cover gaskets will probably leak after sitting that long too..its also a good time to inspect the timing chain for slack when the pan is off..

I usually find a pile of nylon cam gear teeth in every Chevy V8 I have taken the oil pan off of--some stuck to the screen on the pump--one engine a few actually got in the pump and smooshed between the gears--a new oil pump was like 15 bucks,so I just replaced it,along with a steel drive sleeve,I dont trust those nylon ones GM used..

I liked to put a new timing chain & gears in before installing the engine,so I'd increase my chances of no further troubles with them later on...replacing them "in the truck" sucks...
I also replaced all the exhaust manifold studs ..those can suck to do after the engine is in too..

 

[ktmoutfront]

Do all of the external gaskets. They get dry when not ran. Easy to do now. Marvel Mystery oil in the cylinders before rotating. Oil change is obvious.

If you have your old distributor, pull the top guts and the drive gear off. Use that to drive the pump.

Install it and run it.

 

[mrk5]

Thanks for all the advice. Sounds like Marvel Oil in the cylinders is a good idea. I had planned on valve cover gaskets, but didn't really think about the others. Oil pan would definitely be easier now and a good way to get all the old oil out too. I'll just pick up a gasket kit so I can hit all of them.

I'm actually going to have 3 distributors. For some reason I didn't think the "new" motor had a distributor but it does. So I have the new one in my truck, the failed one, and the one in the motor. At least I should have a good spare now and another I could use to make into an oil pump tool.

 

[GWeakland620]

Yep, Wade's plan. We sell previously enjoyed engines all the time. Some reach the 2-3 year mark for when they ran last.

We require the shop to swap all exterior gaskets, and address timing (if it has a belt), and them run them.

 

[mrk5]

Does the intake gasket(s) fit in that category?

 

[blazinzuk]

I wouldn't pull the heads but that's about it. So I would do intake manifold

 

[mrk5]

Okay yeah, didn't really want to do the heads so that sounds good to me.

 

[ktmoutfront]

I wouldn't pull the heads but that's about it. So I would do intake manifold

I consider those external gaskets.