Thread: needing some advice on cheap rebuild

Tweet

ok i have a 1965 galaxie with a 352 in it i have pulled the motor. it ran when i took it out of the car. i did a compression test and the cylinders varied greatly in compression, the range was from a low of 70psi. to a high of 120psi. so the motor needs new piston rings. i have honed the cylinder walls and i am going to have the block boiled out. i really dont want to have to bore it out to rebuild it. the guy that had the car before me just put in stock size rings. my plan is just to put slightly oversized rings in it. im gonna have the machine shop tell me what they think but if my plan will work i was wondering if any of u guys knew where i could get piston rings, camshaft bearings, and rod bearings for a decent price/ everywhere i have looked has been pretty expensive (compared to my chevy) i just want a daily driver not a race car so i just want it to run good and be dependable. all the piston rings i have looked at have been like $170 i was looking to spend more like $100 so i have some money left over for bearings. like i said i am on a really tight budget so any sugestions would help me alot
thanks guys
Tyler

You may or may not be able to slide by without boring the cylinders depending on taper, out-of-round and finished size. Your machinist will advise you.
I found a set of cast rings at Autozone, standard bore, Hastings part #577 for $36.99

once upon a time I bought a 69 cutlass with a 455. P/O had just honed cylinders and trimmed down oversize rings over stock pistons. it was an awesome car for 4 weeks, before I had to do a full mechanical teardown. moral of the story is you can get a full rebuildd kit from J. C. whitney for $180 inc. correct size pistons. But while you have it torn down why not hot tank and magnaflux block + heads, so you can be sure you won't have to pull the block 2 months down the road? when you replace parts that have worn in unison with new parts, it puts more stress on the old parts that have not been replaced. it just makes sense- especially for a daily driver- to recondition all parts that are not being replaced to cut stress levels to negligable levels. and dont be afraid to put your micrometer on everything in the engine!

i had planned on having it hot tanked i think im gonna check out J.C. and just get a full rebuild kit

Originally posted by tyler
i had planned on having it hot tanked i think im gonna check out J.C. and just get a full rebuild kit

good choise. as you may have found out . chevy small blocks are the cheepest to rebuild. and amoung american vehicles the ford is one of the most expensive to rebuild. so dont expct to buy a ford part at the same price as a chevy small block's price.

im not trying to talk down of a ford or chevy. it's just the truth. and follow what ever your machinist warns or suggest to you, reguarding the condition of your block and worn parts.

in the past. I have ran out and bought a engine kit and to find that my block was junk. someone before me had tryed to bore the block and really messed it up.

if you plan to do any machine work your self you need to get an engine builers book and follow it to the "T" . an improperly honed or bored block could ruin everything .

I agree. I'd also wait until the block is checked before ordering anything. This will save you time, money and aggrevation if the block needs to be bored. If the block needs a overbore you can find a cheap set of slugs pretty easy. Everyone is right...the FE is about double on parts vs a SBC. But if you shop smart you can catch some deals. Mad Dog racing and the likes sell pretty cheap part lots on ebay sometimes. PAW is another fairly inexpensive source for parts and kits. NAPA online can give you some prices to compare also.

G.