Used engine... What should I do to it before I drop it in???

[Veltboy618]

I just picked up a SBC 350 for my car the other day. I didn't get to hear the engine running but I kinda believe the guy saying it was a good engine & it looks to be in good working order. He said it was a Jasper rebuild & it had about 22,000 miles on it from the time it was put in til it was pulled. It had some kind of "Warranty void if removed" think stuck to one of the freeze plugs on the front. It spins freely & it looks clean under the valve covers when I pulled them off to inspect it except where they were leaking. The outside is a little oily from valve cover leaks & the intake looks old. The heads look like some type of aftermarket heads

. Should I remove the heads or anything else to check everything out before I clean it up & install it into my car? What are the normal things you guys look at before dropping it in? I plan on doing a couple things...New gasket set, double roller timing chain... What else???

 

[ElCamMan515]

Re: Used engine... What should I do to it before I drop it i

Those are World Stock Replacement (S/R) heads. i would check the bores and see for any scar markes as well as the crank bearings and rod bearings are all tight and not sloppy.... im sure others will chime in to this thread. good luck!

 

[othtim]

Re: Used engine... What should I do to it before I drop it i

put some oil in it, and use an oil pump primer to see if the oil is getting to the top of the motor. also, check if there is oil in the cylinders after you do that. i'd also look over the valvetrain while turning the engine, check for bind or cracked springs or anything.

 

[67rstbkt]

Re: Used engine... What should I do to it before I drop it i

If it were me, I would invest a few bucks into new head gaskets, oil pan gasket, timing cover gasket, etc. It also would not hurt to stick in a new oil pump. I know that the engine only has 22,000 miles, but you are taking someone's word without any proof. Those parts will not break the bank and will give you an opportunity to closely inspect everything. You might as well clean it good and throw some fresh paint on it too.

 

[hurst1979olds]

Re: Used engine... What should I do to it before I drop it i

Well since you said your going to change the timing chain I would change the oil pump since the pan will be off. I would also pull a rod and main bearing just to look at them. I like to choose the ones furthest away from the pump. But before I took anything apart I would do a compression check to make sure there is a good ring seal.

 

[Peter]

Re: Used engine... What should I do to it before I drop it i

oil pan gasket for sure and i would consider doing an oil pump if you havent heard it run before because this is stuff that is much easier to do right now. I would really worry as much about stuff like intake or head gaskets because the job is the same whether the engine is in or out of the car.

clean that thing up and paint it too :lol:

 

[Veltboy618]

Re: Used engine... What should I do to it before I drop it i

Thanks you guys for all the tips! If you have any more let me know! I am going to start with the compression test tomorrow. What if the compression is low on a couple cylinders... What will I need to do then? I'm going to head over to the auto parts store & buy all the gaskets, timing chain, couple cans of paint & a oil pump so I can throw it all on if it pass the test. I read on another site that I should squirt a little oil in the cylinders to lube the walls since it been sitting for a while before the compression test. What do you guys think about that? I want to pull the heads off to check for scars on the walls but then again I don't. Will i be able to see the cylinder walls good enough from the bottom with the oil pan off? i never did it but checking the rod bearings & the main bearings shouldn't be that hard. I already looked up the tq. specs & have them saved to my computer.

also, check if there is oil in the cylinders after you do that.

How would I check for oil in the cylinders after priming the pump?

 

[RegalBegal]

Re: Used engine... What should I do to it before I drop it i

Granted it looks clean under the valve cover, but the outside looks awful for only having 22K on it. Even with a valve cover leak. Never mind, why it would leak that bad at 22K. I would defiantly tear that sucker down and go through everything.

 

[83hurst-olds]

Re: Used engine... What should I do to it before I drop it i

Compression check first just to see. If ANYTHING is out of line, then I'd ring, rod, and main it...

 

[Veltboy618]

Re: Used engine... What should I do to it before I drop it i

Granted it looks clean under the valve cover, but the outside looks awful for only having 22K on it. Even with a valve cover leak. Never mind, why it would leak that bad at 22K. I would defiantly tear that sucker down and go through everything.

I was thinking the same thing. It does look pretty bad & that makes me think it has more than he was saying. Ill see how everything goes with the compression test then go from there