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Engine rebuild kits

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nsxxtreme

1/2 ton status
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Wow guys first forum I have been to where they want you to pay for a membership. I left another k5 forum because to many stupid people. Hope this one is better.

I bought an 87 blazer to take out an 4 wheel and just have fun with.

The motor is a TBI 350. I would like to rebuild this motor myself. Anyone knoe of some good places to buy rebuild kits. So far I have found this place http://shop.enginekits.com/osb/showitem.cfm?Category=261

Thanks in advance.
 
i use the big name speed places like jegs or summit, doug herbert, howards, etc. they typically have the best prices for decent parts since htey buy in big volumes.
 
nsxxtreme said:
Wow guys first forum I have been to where they want you to pay for a membership. I left another k5 forum because to many stupid people. Hope this one is better.
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It will be the best $25 you spend on your truck, ever!:saweet: Welcome to THE site.:thumb:
 
Shopengines.com, shoptires.com etc are tied to either Summit or one of the other biggies - I can't just remember. Shopclassictrucks.com goes to LMC. These sites are shills for the online companies.
 
Still shopping and debating buying a preassembled motor. I pulled the motor already and I think the motor needs to be bored and honed. Some things I can't do myself because I dont have the tools. Like grind valves, and polish the crank.

So right now I'm just trying to run numbers but thanks for all the tips!!
 
You won't know if it needs to be bored until you take it apart and have the block evaluated by the machine shop doing the work.

At that point you can buy the appropriate rebuild kit, with potentially oversize pistons and potentially undersize crank and rod bearings. A good machine shop will measure the new pistons and assign them to a specific cylinder. They will then bore and hone the block to get the right clearance for each individual piston/cylinder combination.

To do a complete CORRECT rebuild is expensive. Having the block align bored and having the new rotating assembly balanced adds major bucks.

Before going down that road, I would suggest looking at some of the GM crate engines.
 
I'm guessig the motor needs to be bored. A few cylinders have huge ridges at the top where the rings stop. I don't think I would ever only bore a couple cylinders. If one got it they would all be bored to the same size. The crank looks to be in good shape but would need to be polished. It's still running the standard bearings so it's never been turned.

A crate motor cost more then I paid for the truck. I just dont see myself doing that. A rebuild is the best this truck is going to get. So far what I have come up with is $640. Much more then that and I'll buy a rebuilt motor on exchange for $895. I'm still searching and adding costs up.

Thanks for all the links guys bookmarked them.
 
nsxxtreme said:
I'm guessig the motor needs to be bored. A few cylinders have huge ridges at the top where the rings stop. I don't think I would ever only bore a couple cylinders. If one got it they would all be bored to the same size. The crank looks to be in good shape but would need to be polished. It's still running the standard bearings so it's never been turned.

A crate motor cost more then I paid for the truck. I just dont see myself doing that. A rebuild is the best this truck is going to get. So far what I have come up with is $640. Much more then that and I'll buy a rebuilt motor on exchange for $895. I'm still searching and adding costs up.

Thanks for all the links guys bookmarked them.
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WHOA, ****ing whoa!

If it has ridges at the top of the cylinders where the rings stop, this can be fixed on the cheap. It's called a ridge reamer you can rent it from any shucks, checker auto, what ever parts store is around. Its a hand tool that will cut away that ridge by hand, as soon as the ridge is gone, you just got to hone out the cylinder with a bottle brush style hone, replace the rings with new rings with the same size that were in it. Walla, fixed! I've done this exact procedure many times.
The only time you want to bore a cylinder is when you have a serious problem, or are looking at a complete rebuild. If, your just solving a smoking issue, do this. It saves time and money.:D
 
To give you an idea of costs, I just had a valve job done on a set of 454 heads. No new valves and no new seats, all of those were fine after grinding. The shop did install 16 new spiral cut cast iron guides. The cost for the valve job was almost $350.00 plus tax. They automatically hot tank the heads and mill a few thousandths to clean the mating surfaces.

Could I have found a place to do it cheaper? Probably, but when I've got the engine out of the vehicle and sitting on an engine stand I want to do it right. It's a lot of work to pull an engine, take it apart, reassemble it and install it. I also spend the money for genuine GM gaskets. I think they're better, and worth the extra cost.

It sounds like the operative word on your project is "cheap". When you said you drive a Range Rover and an Acura NSX I assumed (erroneously) that you wanted to do it "right".

I seriously doubt you can buy all the parts and have the machine work done for $895.00, but I'm not sure a $900.00 exchange engine will be so great, either.
 
Wasatch K5 said:
To give you an idea of costs, I just had a valve job done on a set of 454 heads. No new valves and no new seats, all of those were fine after grinding. The shop did install 16 new spiral cut cast iron guides. The cost for the valve job was almost $350.00 plus tax. They automatically hot tank the heads and mill a few thousandths to clean the mating surfaces.

Could I have found a place to do it cheaper? Probably, but when I've got the engine out of the vehicle and sitting on an engine stand I want to do it right. It's a lot of work to pull an engine, take it apart, reassemble it and install it. I also spend the money for genuine GM gaskets. I think they're better, and worth the extra cost.

It sounds like the operative word on your project is "cheap". When you said you drive a Range Rover and an Acura NSX I assumed (erroneously) that you wanted to do it "right".

I seriously doubt you can buy all the parts and have the machine work done for $895.00, but I'm not sure a $900.00 exchange engine will be so great, either.
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What he said. I just sold a Caddy 500 that I paid over $1000.00 just for machine work on, not including any parts.:D
 
Yes I know about a ridge reemer. I am doing a complete rebuild. The wear in the cylinders is uneven and this motor was not taken care of. I want something reliable. This motor smoked like crazy. I don't know for sure if the motor needs bored. I don't have a bore guage. I'm just guessing and adding up numbers. If I take it to the machine shop I'll let them decide if I can get by with just a hone.

Thanks for the comments.
 
nsxxtreme said:
Still shopping and debating buying a preassembled motor. I pulled the motor already and I think the motor needs to be bored and honed. Some things I can't do myself because I dont have the tools. Like grind valves, and polish the crank.

So right now I'm just trying to run numbers but thanks for all the tips!!
Click to expand...
I polish my own crank all the time:haha::whistle:
 
planedr said:
I polish my own crank all the time:haha::whistle:
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Not an image I really wanted in my head.

Wasatch K5 said:
To give you an idea of costs, I just had a valve job done on a set of 454 heads. No new valves and no new seats, all of those were fine after grinding. The shop did install 16 new spiral cut cast iron guides. The cost for the valve job was almost $350.00 plus tax. They automatically hot tank the heads and mill a few thousandths to clean the mating surfaces.
Click to expand...
The place I have been looking into wants $75 per head to rebuild. That includes hot tanking the head, grinding the valves and installing new seals.

Wasatch K5 said:
I seriously doubt you can buy all the parts and have the machine work done for $895.00, but I'm not sure a $900.00 exchange engine will be so great, either.
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I have to be realistic here this is a 170HP TBI 350. Paying a ton of money into the motor isn't going to get me much more then 170HP. This truck will be driven maybe 10 times a year and I have to pass a smog test where I live. I'm hoping to keep the rebuild costs if I do it myself under $700 if I buy a rebuild with a 7 year warranty that's $895. One thing some people forget is we don't pay sales tax so my numbers don't include tax.
 
heres an idea what machine work will cost for rebuilding

block
hot tank & mag $100
bore and hone w/torqueplate $425
align hone mains $150
regrind crank $250
polish crank $30
balance rotating assem $200

heads
hotank mag $60
cut seats for 3 angle valve job reface valves $200
surfacing $60 min cleanup

these prices are typical for the machine shops in my area.

the last engine i built for a customer the machine work alone was over $2k

for the price you want to pay you will have to do it yourself. my assembly fee alone (no parts) is 1k.
 
nsx,

I don't recall a 170 HP 350 TBI engine. I think in 1987, when the TBI 350 was introduced, it was rated at 210 HP. It was a significant improvement over the 1986 models with "computerized" carburetors, which IIRC were rated at 180 HP.

Another option you might consider is getting a used engine. That may be a cost-effective solution for you.

The price you were quoted for a valve job is artificially low. Here's why: In an earlier post you said that the engine was not maintained properly and is very worn. I would suspect that you will need some new valves and some new guides. Those are not included in the price you mentioned. You won't know what the total is until the work is done and it could be quite a bit higher.
 
Damn your prices are high

Prices in my area
To hot tank, mag, install cam bearings,install soft plugs and bore and hone=$175 no tax
polish crank $20
rebuild kit $338 rv cam,hi volume oil pump, flat top hypereutectic pistons and moly rings.
$150 for both heads rebuilt exchange.

I am surprised anyone outside of high performance motors rebuilds any of them in your area. You can pick up a brand new GM crate motor for $1700. $2k in machine work sounds excessive.

not getting the crank ground, nor balanced
 
Wasatch K5 said:
I don't recall a 170 HP 350 TBI engine. I think in 1987, when the TBI 350 was introduced, it was rated at 210 HP. It was a significant improvement over the 1986 models with "computerized" carburetors, which IIRC were rated at 180 HP.
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I looked it up by the number on the motor says 170hp. I was shocked. Oh well it's going to be a mule. As long as it can make it up a hill with my boat I'll be happy. Hopefully with the flat top pistons and rv cam I can pick up a little more horsepower.
 
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