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Good source for Crank/Rod bearings and Pistons?

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brett

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Would you please recommend some sources and brands to use for the engine internal parts for my rebuild?

I'll be rebuilding an 18V motor, but would prefer to bump the compression, unless there are any reasons you think I shouldn't even do that.

I'm planning a stock head for now (depends on the price the machine shop gives me) and then down the road sending my spare head to Sean @ flowspeed.com for a port and polish job.

So...

Any suppliers I should steer clear of when discussing parts?

Any suppliers I should be more inclined to use?

Last bit, probably running a Crane Cam from Summit or the VP12 from APT depending on pricing with the lifters and pushrods which I think I'll need too.

Thanks again

Brett
 
APT sells all those goodies and can advise on what is best for your engine. Best of all, you can drive there and see the parts before purchase! I had Dave make me a custom dished set of AE pistons. I also bought a standard crank from him which was then Ion Nitride hardened.
 
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APT and I go WAY back, and I have nothing but the best to say about them, and their products.
Jeff
 
Steve I think you make more money than I do!

I was thinking of just regular parts...Victoria British, Moss...

APT just seems really pricey, but I'm sure it's one of those things where you get more performance, etc when using APT parts of course.
 
Brett, maybe look at a cam kit, along the lines of one of the Kent kits from VB.
They come complete with springs, lifters and retainers. If you arent radically cutting the head, the tubular pushrods available from the usual suppliers should work fine.
As to APTs prices, well, you pay for quality.
Jeff
 
Re: Good source for Crank/Rod bearings and Pistons

It isn't like I'm rolling in money or anything! He's had this engine for over a year so it's been like a payment plan! LOL! The downside of this approach is that I may die of a heart attack before I ever see it completed, should I decide to add up what I've spent so far. Either that or I'll be murdered by my wife if she adds it up first.

APT Fast aren't cheap, you're right. Good parts but you pay for the quality. I don't know what kind of quality you can expect from the big suppliers, but cranks and such are available used from private parties all the time. I believe Basil Adams has a huge stock of NOS bearings that he would love to sell off so there's another approach, once you have the crank and know what size bearings you need.
 
Re: Good source for Crank/Rod bearings and Pistons

I'm not exactly sure what I need yet. I am gathering the info for when it is time to pick up the phone and call in the parts, or shy away from my machine shop's suggestions.

I do not want to wait long to get the car back together. Gathering the parts may be the most difficult.

I'm hoping to be back on the road in 3 weeks, hopefully less...assuming the parts are available.

Searching showed some good results from AE and County for the pistons...probably have to try Basil for the bearings.

I have two engines to pull parts from, but my 'stock' engine may not need any crank work - oil pressure has always been fine.
 
Re: Good source for Crank/Rod bearings and Pistons

I build quite a few motor with the same basic recipe you are referring to, and have use most of the choices available.

The County 18V piston is a nice 3 ring design, I really like the oil control ring, it's quality piston for the money. I like AE piston for the Spridget, but on the MGBs, I like the County pistons better. Alot of vendor sell these piston for under $200 a set, that a good buy.

Bearings: I like using a tri metal bearing, NOS Vandervells, a few people have been saving these things and see you coming, they want more than I'm willing to pay. Then there is ACL, this bearing I throughly race tested and it passed with flying color, but ti too can be a little pricely for a street engine. My choice for a street engine would be the County upgraded tri metal bearing, which is made by King, it's good quality, David Anton (APT) and myself have been using these bearings for the last couple of years in performance rebuilds with no issues, and I getting ready to start race testing them, belive me when I say, if I didn't believe in them I would never stick them in a race motor, these are good tri metal bearing for a decent price, and King is a name well known to other performance markets.

You already saw what I said on lifters, don't even think about cheaping out here, go with APT CF-04 lifter, sure they are expensive, but far less expensive than doing this twice to save a few bucks.

Gaskets sets, another area to spurlge if you ask me, go with the Payen conversion and head set here, good stuff.

I recommend you replace the rod bolts and resize big end of the connecting rod. For your engine, I would just go with stock replacement rods bolts, the ARP units require you chamfer the edge of the bolts or you will hit the camshaft (long story), plus you're not really building the kind of engine that warrants anything above stock rod bolts. Have the machine shop measure everything and size the rods within the spec range to get you at .0015" on on rod clearence, this is the perfect number for a street engine, and will net you good solid oil pressure.

Hope this helps
 
Re: Good source for Crank/Rod bearings and Pistons

"size the rods within the spec range to get you at .0015" on on rod clearence, this is the perfect number for a street engine, and will net you good solid oil pressure."

Truer words were never spoken, I knew nothing, and that is just what my engine shop did. I have oil pressure I can loan out now. It is a real joy.
 
Re: Good source for Crank/Rod bearings and Pistons

Then again, I'm prone to just use whatever Moss offers in its catalog for a regularly driven street machine...

I'm in the process of finally rebuilding the engine on my '79 Vermillion roadster, the one I bought brand new & have never opened the engine on.....when the engine comes out, I'll just call my Moss guy & order everything from him once I've opened it & mic-ed the cylinders, etc. I already know I want to replace the cam so its just a matter of which directon to go with it...however, since I'm gonna reinstall all the smog stuff & continue using the Zenith Stromberg, a stock cam is almost a given for me.

So, IMHO, you've gotta ask yourself how you're gonna use the engine, how many miles a year its gonna see, how long you plan on keeping the car, etc. & then do a cost/benefit analysis to determine the direction to go with parts/machine work.
 
Re: Good source for Crank/Rod bearings and Pistons

Tony, as a friend, I have to repsectfully disagree, I want upgraded bearings and lifters in any engine I build, regardless of what it's use is, if lifter with a Rockwell C rating of high 50s and tri metal bearing were good enough for the factory, then they are good enough to use now, but this is NOT what Moss and other vendors are offering for their entry level offerings, which are way sub-par to what the factory used originally. I like Moss, but they are the last place I would buy lifters from. Oh and their cam bearings are junk too.
 
Re: Good source for Crank/Rod bearings and Pistons

No problem, Hap...no foul...I'm gonna call you tomorrow about some Midget carbs...
 
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