# Engine assembly has begun



## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

I have finally started assembling my engine. Here are the highlights of what I am working with:

- Len Williams 455 short block
- Nitemare Performance Stage II heads. Heads are 6X with larger exhaust valves installed. ARP studs to mount
-Melling 60 PSI oil pump (wanted to go with a Butler unit but not available). I installed a deep pan pick up for use with an 8 qt Canton pan
- Billet timing gears with double roller chain
- Comp Cams 507 intake, 510 exhaust cam shaft (recommended by Darrin at Nitemare)


https://butlerperformance.com/i-31643453-butler-comp-sp-street-performance-cam-and-lifter-kit-hyd-ft-284-296-240-246-507-510-112-hyd-bpi-cl-bp6018sp.html?ref=category:123479


-Comp Cams Ultra Gold 1.5 ratio rockers
-FlowKooler water pump with a new housing (my old one was no good)
-Cold Case radiator (not sure if I plan on running electric fans or not)
-RARE manifolds with the larger exit ports
-HEI distributer
-Torquer II intake manifold (I'll explain the reasoning on this)
-McLeod 11 inch clutch

I have just about everything to put this back together so the list would be long. Not to mention I ordered a lot of these parts last summer.

I'm running way behind on this project. I have been working really crazy hours the last year because my company moved around staffing to ensure we could operate if some one (or multiple someone's) got sick. Parts availability has also been spotty this year and some other projects took priority (painting and replacing the floor in the bed room to keep the enabling wife enabling). 

I have the oil pump, cam, and timing set installed. I installed the heads yesterday and have taken some preliminary measurements for the push rod length. 

I need to pick up some brake clean so that I can clean out and turn one of my original lifters into a home made solid, but my rough measure using one of the new lifters and the adjustable push rod is 9.40 inches. Does this sound at least ball park correct with the valve train I am using?

I'll think all you guys in advance. I know I am going to come up with tons of questions as I work through this project. The going may be a bit slow since I am doing this around other things and work. Not to mention that I blew out one of my legs a couple weeks back and am waiting to see how bad it is.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

I'll also throw this out there. I am a novice at this so please don't use anything I do here as a tutorial.


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## pontrc (Mar 18, 2020)

I understand the wife part Jared, that’s life but you will get there


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## Old Man Taylor (May 9, 2011)

I think 9.4 is in the ball park. I think one of mine come out to be 9.314. As to checking, you can install light springs on the valves and check both the pushrod length and the cam position (LCL) with the new lifters.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Thanks OMT. As always, solid advice. The 9.40 makes sense since when I test fit a pushrod from the old engine, which I assume is just a stock 9.13, it is WAY to short. The roller is barely on the top of the stem when the valve is closed and the geometry just looks off. As an added question. The heads only have the outer springs installed right now. Would that be light enough to use to check length using one of the new lifters? I plan on doing the actual measurements this weekend. I didn't want to trust my judgment and do this after work.

I'll be honest, I don't think I could have done this years ago. I sifted through 1/2 dozen videos on how to do this. Some are really good and some were posted by guys who are bigger hacks than me. There was one guy building a SBC that really explained it well that I found to be very helpful (I think his channel was Pete's Garage or something like that).

I joke about my wife, but she has always been great. Very supportive of a hobby that she doesn't really understand but knows is super expensive. Great example is when I bought the car years ago, her only question was what color it was. Never asked about what I paid or any other details, just the color.


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

Looking good! 

While you're checking/measuring for pushrod length, also make sure to check for clearance between the rocker and retainer throughout the whole cycle, but especially with the valve closed and on the base circle. Also check clearance between the back of the rocker slot and the lock nut at max lift. If you're using a hydraulic cam, make sure the lifter plunger isn't getting depressed when you check this. Use your light checking springs, or remove the clip and internal plunger then pack the lifter full of aluminum foil, or use a solid lifter that has the same dimensions as your hydraulics. Metal to metal contact in either of these areas can cause bad things to happen.

Bear


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## Old Man Taylor (May 9, 2011)

"As an added question. The heads only have the outer springs installed right now. Would that be light enough to use to check length using one of the new lifters?"

No, you need really light springs. Just enough to hold the valve up.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Old Man Taylor said:


> "As an added question. The heads only have the outer springs installed right now. Would that be light enough to use to check length using one of the new lifters?"
> 
> No, you need really light springs. Just enough to hold the valve up.


Thanks OMT. I ordered a pair of the light weight springs to do the measuring. I really didn't want to disassemble one of the new lifters to pack and I thought hard about using an old one for the measuring and decided it was a bad idea. This has been a long time in the making and I don't want to mess it up over a $10 pair of springs and a couple days wait time. I'll have the light springs early next week and will be good to go. Added bonus on doing it this way is I will need to remove all of the valve springs to install the inners after I break in the cam anyway. Doing one now allows me to try it out while the engine is on a stand and out of the car. While I have been working on cars since I was a kid, this is by far the biggest project I have tackled. I really do appreciate everyone's advice on this. Know that it is not going towards deaf ears here.


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

Good deal. I know the temptation of wanting to get it done, but making yourself stop and do everything right will pay off. Do you have a good valve spring compressor? I recently got a different style and it's SO much better and feels safer to use than the c-clamp style I'd always used before, even the heavy-duty ones. I don't remember which brand I bought, but it's this style:

Moroso 62370 Moroso Stud Mount Valve Spring Compressors | Summit Racing.

It took just a little heat and bending on the forks to get the angle right for Pontiac heads, but that was easy to do. A plus is that it can be used with the heads installed as long as you have a way to prevent the valve from dropping. 

Bear


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

BearGFR said:


> Good deal. I know the temptation of wanting to get it done, but making yourself stop and do everything right will pay off. Do you have a good valve spring compressor? I recently got a different style and it's SO much better and feels safer to use than the c-clamp style I'd always used before, even the heavy-duty ones. I don't remember which brand I bought, but it's this style:
> 
> Moroso 62370 Moroso Stud Mount Valve Spring Compressors | Summit Racing.
> 
> ...


I have the Proform version of the one you linked. It looks exactly the same. I had heard the angle was a bit off on all of that style but figured I'd give it a shot. Heat is a good idea if I need to adjust.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

OK. The light springs came in yesterday but I was having a lazy day and blew off going into the garage until after work today. I remeasured and got 50/1000 bigger than my rough measure for the other day. I started out with my original measurement and covered the top of the valve with sharpie this time. The line was a little high on the valve so I made the rod a little longer and nailed it dead on center. Unless I am totally missing something I have this measured correctly. Both intake and exhaust is the same which makes me feel even better about this. I also watched the rocker the entire cycle of the engine, twice, and it looks like it's good. I just placed an order for the push rods, a poly distributer gear (I kept forgetting to order this), and the break in oil. I know there are some small odds and ends that I still need but this last order should at least get the engine in the car. Well, once the manifolds arrive that is.

Side note. The valve spring tool I bought is the Proform version of the one posted above. The feet on the Proform were a bit off too. There is a small lip on the side so I was able to straighten them out a bit using my vise. Worked perfect once the feet hit the top of the spring cap flush. That was way easier than I expected it to be. I used compressed air to keep the valves closed while I worked.


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## Old Man Taylor (May 9, 2011)

9.450"?


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Old Man Taylor said:


> 9.450"?


That's what I came up with. Sounds like it would be too long but when I put a stock one in to compare, it was WAY too short. I'll double check this again once the push rods show up before I get too far. Easier to reorder if needed then to have an issue on start up.


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## Old Man Taylor (May 9, 2011)

It's certainly in the ball park, and it sounds like you did the measurement properly.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Thanks OMT. This is my first rodeo. The feedback from you seasoned guys really does help. The pushrods shipped yesterday so it is possible that I'll have them by the weekend. Shipping to me from Tn is a few days so it'll be pretty close.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Hey guys. This may be a dumb question but which end of the push rod is up and which is down? I am using the style supplied by Butler that has a ball on one end and the other is rounded off with no indentation (ball).


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## Old Man Taylor (May 9, 2011)

I would install the ball end up, but only after confirming it with the Butler's. My logic is that the lifter moves in one dimension, whereas the rocker is sweeping over the top end.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Thanks OMT. That was my thought too. I confirmed with Butlers as well. They did say typically installed ball side up though so I guess someone might go the other way(?). I'll be proceeding with the assembly this weekend and will post more pictures once I make more progress. I've been side tracked with other things and haven't had time. I bought a cheap car for my son (first car) and it needed a little work to get it ready for him. Nothing major, just some little things to make it safe and reliable.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Rainy here today. Decided to install lifters and rocker arms. I had everything soaking in break in oil overnight incase I felt like doing this today. Glad I did. Excuse the mess in the background. I am working is a small two stall garage that has my LeMans and my dads Vette so I have limited room.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Well, someone on here told me there would be things I forgot along the way and those things are going to be a headache. 

I kept forgetting to order a new dipstick and since the one from the old engine is in decent shape, I figured I'd reuse it. I bought the bottom end assembled with the dip stick tube installed. I can't believe I almost missed this but the lower tube was not installed, only the upper that is pressed into the block. I finally got around to sticking the dipstick in the hole and it just dangled out the bottom (someone else on here warned me of this and I thank you). The engine that came out of my car was a 74 block and did not have a windage tray. Since I am going to be running a baffled oil pan, I wasn't planning on using one on this engine either. I've had the engine bottom side up on the stand several times and just did not notice this. Well the #3 main cap is not drilled and tapped for the lower tube while the #2 and #4 caps are so looks like I need to order a windage tray and the lower tube. I'll order a new dipstick as well. It seems kind of silly to go through all of this and not replace a $14 part at this point.


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## PontiacJim (Dec 29, 2012)

Jared said:


> Rainy here today. Decided to install lifters and rocker arms. I had everything soaking in break in oil overnight incase I felt like doing this today. Glad I did. Excuse the mess in the background. I am working is a small two stall garage that has my LeMans and my dads Vette so I have limited room.


Looking at your polylocks, you may have the wrong ones. They look too short and in the photo when I size it up, looks to me that rocker arm is going to hit the "nut" edges. I believe you need the taller set to put those "nut" ends higher above the rocker arm. You can put a feeler gauge between the nut and inside of the rocker arm to see how tight, but if any movement, I think you are going to find it'll hit.

Valve covers may not fit with the taller poly locks and you may need spacers to get them to work unless going aftermarket tall covers.

What lube have you put on the cam lobes and bottom of the lifters for break-in? You want something that will cling and not run off on you. I got Driven's "Engine Assembly Grease" as it had many good reviews, sticks, and melts when it warms up and mixes with the oil.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

PontiacJim said:


> Looking at your polylocks, you may have the wrong ones. They look too short and in the photo when I size it up, looks to me that rocker arm is going to hit the "nut" edges. I believe you need the taller set to put those "nut" ends higher above the rocker arm. You can put a feeler gauge between the nut and inside of the rocker arm to see how tight, but if any movement, I think you are going to find it'll hit.
> 
> Valve covers may not fit with the taller poly locks and you may need spacers to get them to work unless going aftermarket tall covers.
> 
> What lube have you put on the cam lobes and bottom of the lifters for break-in? You want something that will cling and not run off on you. I got Driven's "Engine Assembly Grease" as it had many good reviews, sticks, and melts when it warms up and mixes with the oil.


I double checked the clearance and then looked back at my pictures. I think that the angle I took them at makes it look way closer than it actually is. There is at least 1/4 inch or more between the bottom of the nut and the closest spot on the rocker. I am going to double check this another time just to be sure. Have my kid turn the engine over while I watch everything. Valve covers won't be a problem. I have a set of fabricated aluminum to go on there.

For lube, I went with a comp product similar to the Driven grease you described. I used a thin coat of that on the cam itself and the supplied lube on the lifters and the contact points of the pushrods. Up until recently, I worked in the lubrication industry (my wife joked and said I worked with lubes) and there are additives in the sticky oil they give you that may not be in the grease. Different additives for different applications. While I wanted something I know would stay in place until start up, I also wanted the extra additives in place so I compromised. While I don't think the supplied stuff would be there in a year, it does hold in place pretty good.


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## Old Man Taylor (May 9, 2011)

Jared said:


> Rainy here today. Decided to install lifters and rocker arms. I had everything soaking in break in oil overnight incase I felt like doing this today. Glad I did. Excuse the mess in the background. I am working is a small two stall garage that has my LeMans and my dads Vette so I have limited room.


Your garage looks like a clean room compared to mine.


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## PontiacJim (Dec 29, 2012)

OK, on the reply. I know pics can lie, but rather point something out than let it slide, you know how that goes.

Same with the cam lube, you mentioned "soaking" the lifters and I could not see any layer of cam lube, so wanted to make sure that "soaking" was not in place of the lube.

So far, looks good.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

PontiacJim said:


> OK, on the reply. I know pics can lie, but rather point something out than let it slide, you know how that goes.
> 
> Same with the cam lube, you mentioned "soaking" the lifters and I could not see any layer of cam lube, so wanted to make sure that "soaking" was not in place of the lube.
> 
> So far, looks good.


I appreciate all feedback on this. I'd rather have to double check my work now than hear a boom when I start this thing up. I did go downstairs and double check right away when you mentioned the poly locks. They do look really close in the picture. I used a very thin coat of the assembly grease and a pretty thick coating of the cam lube. While a little of that did run off, it seems to coat and then cling to whatever you put it on. I wouldn't want to trust it if it was used and then left to sit for a long time. I'm hoping to get this back in the car soon so it should be good. I plan on putting the engine in the car before I install the intake. Maybe I'll hold off on installing the valley pan too and apply a bit more closer to start up. I may be over thinking this a bit but that's how I seem to work best.

Windage tray shipped yesterday. I figure I'll have it in hand early next week. Ground shipping from Tn usually takes a few days. I'm still waiting for the RA manifold but those should be soon too.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Was home from work sick today. Got my second Covid shot yesterday and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I was up all last night with body aches and the chills. My latest shipment from Butler arrived in the morning with the windage tray and lower dipstick tube. Yes, I did order a new dipstick finally. I felt a bit better after lunch so I went downstairs to do a little work on the engine. Installed the windage tray and tube without any drama. When I checked the clearance, the crank was way closer to the tray than I would like so I had to shim it. I ordered the shims and hardware at the same time as the tray since the Butler site said that I may need to do this. While I was at it, I also installed the timing cover and the harmonic damper.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

OK. I also have a question about the damper. I had a heck of a time installing it. I do have the right tool for the job so that wasn't the issue. It seems like it would go on so far and then stop. I had this thing on and off the engine about a dozen times and kept running into the same issue. Finally I pulled out my micrometer to check what the depth should be and it appeared that I was getting is as far as it would go from the beginning. It still didn't look right since the damper was not flush with the crank. Lucky, I still have all the parts from the blown engine so I installed the timing gear and the old damper (that one was cracked where the keyway slot is). When I look at this one, it also doesn't sit flush. I've attached some pictures to compare. Does this all look normal? I thought there was more exposed shaft behind than there should be. It was almost a year ago that I tore this all apart so my memory on it is a little fuzzy.

As always, your help is appreciated.

I know OMT said my work area wasn't that bad but I think tomorrow after work I'm going to clean up in there. It's getting ridiculous.


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## Old Man Taylor (May 9, 2011)

It doesn't look normal to me. Are you using the same crank? If so maybe you need to hone the damper a bit, although be really careful. If it's a different crank, then try working it first. You shouldn't see much if any of the damper sleeve outside of the seal.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Thanks OMT. It didn't look right to me either. It's a different crank. I've had it on and off of there at least 10 times and that is the furthest I could get it to go. I had to hone the lower timing gear too. Maybe this is a continuation of that same issue. I'll try test fitting the old damper on the new engine later to check the depth. That one has a crack the entire length of the shaft so it should slide on all the way with little effort. I knew I didn't toss any of this old stuff yet for a reason.


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## PontiacJim (Dec 29, 2012)

Jared said:


> Thanks OMT. It didn't look right to me either. It's a different crank. I've had it on and off of there at least 10 times and that is the furthest I could get it to go. I had to hone the lower timing gear too. Maybe this is a continuation of that same issue. I'll try test fitting the old damper on the new engine later to check the depth. That one has a crack the entire length of the shaft so it should slide on all the way with little effort. I knew I didn't toss any of this old stuff yet for a reason.


Measure the balancers - total inside depth length, then from back side of the balancer to the end of the sleeve portion that goes onto the crank snout. Measure thickness of the main balancer section having the timing marks - may be made/machined narrower than stock. If it is not correct, you will also be placing your pulleys on the balancer more forward and you will have belt alignment issues.

It may simply be that the balancer is new and stands out more as the original was dirty and not as noticeable or the balancer is machined to be slightly more narrow than the stock one.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

PontiacJim said:


> Measure the balancers - total inside depth length, then from back side of the balancer to the end of the sleeve portion that goes onto the crank snout. Measure thickness of the main balancer section having the timing marks - may be made/machined narrower than stock. If it is not correct, you will also be placing your pulleys on the balancer more forward and you will have belt alignment issues.
> 
> It may simply be that the balancer is new and stands out more as the original was dirty and not as noticeable or the balancer is machined to be slightly more narrow than the stock one.


Thanks Jim. I'm thinking along those lines too. This could be a case of it looks wrong but is actually right. The measurements I took yesterday seem to point in that direction. There's been a bunch of time since I took this apart so I am pretty fuzzy on what the old one looked like. I'd rather mess with this while the engine is on the stand than get a nasty surprise once it's in the car. I'm going to pull the new balancer off later today and compare it to the old one. Then slide the old one on there to see if it looks the same. I have no doubt that one will go on easy since I didn't need a puller to remove it from the old engine.

I don't think this is a case of it getting jammed on the keyway. I have an extra keyway that I used to make sure the slot in the damper was big enough.


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## PontiacJim (Dec 29, 2012)

Jared said:


> Thanks Jim. I'm thinking along those lines too. This could be a case of it looks wrong but is actually right. The measurements I took yesterday seem to point in that direction. There's been a bunch of time since I took this apart so I am pretty fuzzy on what the old one looked like. I'd rather mess with this while the engine is on the stand than get a nasty surprise once it's in the car. I'm going to pull the new balancer off later today and compare it to the old one. Then slide the old one on there to see if it looks the same. I have no doubt that one will go on easy since I didn't need a puller to remove it from the old engine.
> 
> I don't think this is a case of it getting jammed on the keyway. I have an extra keyway that I used to make sure the slot in the damper was big enough.


Never had a Pontiac balancer that did not slide off - they don't need a puller or installer like some other makes. I never installed a new balancer myself, so the "shiny" was not evident. I have installed the thin "saver sleeves" when the balancer neck gets grooved/worn from the hardened timing cover seal - but that's it. My 455 build uses the same new balancer, so I will check mine as well.

I think it was better and less anxious when we did not know what we were really doing and just slapped things together without ever considering all the fine point tolerances. Somehow they still ran good and did not seem to come apart.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

PontiacJim said:


> Never had a Pontiac balancer that did not slide off - they don't need a puller or installer like some other makes. I never installed a new balancer myself, so the "shiny" was not evident. I have installed the thin "saver sleeves" when the balancer neck gets grooved/worn from the hardened timing cover seal - but that's it. My 455 build uses the same new balancer, so I will check mine as well.
> 
> I think it was better and less anxious when we did not know what we were really doing and just slapped things together without ever considering all the fine point tolerances. Somehow they still ran good and did not seem to come apart.


This was eating at me so I took my work laptop down to the garage, turned the volume up incase anyone tried to reach out to me, and looked this over. I figure that my boss wouldn't care even if I told her what I was up to so it was OK for today. 

I pulled the damper back off the crank and set it side by side with the old one. They are identical in height. The grooves in the old one do show that it stuck out similar to the new one. I installed the old one on the crank and it does just slide into place but that one is cracked so that is not a huge surprise. I used an adjustable square to measure the distance from the timing cover to the flat where the pully bolts. Reinstalled the new balancer as far as it would go, and verified the measurements. They are the same. I included a picture of what the old one looks like installed which instantly jogged a memory.

This is a very tight fit. I doubt I would be able to install the new damper on the new crank without a tool to press it in place. If you're going to run a new crank on your 455, you may run into this as well. Mine has an Eagle crank and I had to hone the lower timing gear to get it on there. It wasn't just tight, it would not go on. When I measured it, the Eagle crank is just a few thousandths bigger round than the original one was.

I tend to over think things anyway. It's how I operate and it has saved me from making costly mistakes in the past.


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## PontiacJim (Dec 29, 2012)

Jared said:


> This was eating at me so I took my work laptop down to the garage, turned the volume up incase anyone tried to reach out to me, and looked this over. I figure that my boss wouldn't care even if I told her what I was up to so it was OK for today.
> 
> I pulled the damper back off the crank and set it side by side with the old one. They are identical in height. The grooves in the old one do show that it stuck out similar to the new one. I installed the old one on the crank and it does just slide into place but that one is cracked so that is not a huge surprise. I used an adjustable square to measure the distance from the timing cover to the flat where the pully bolts. Reinstalled the new balancer as far as it would go, and verified the measurements. They are the same. I included a picture of what the old one looks like installed which instantly jogged a memory.
> 
> ...


........and I do have an Eagle crank. I'll have to check that along with the crank fillet radius clearances.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

PontiacJim said:


> ........and I do have an Eagle crank. I'll have to check that along with the crank fillet radius clearances.


I thought I remembered that was the route you were taking.

I only knew about the timing gear because there was a notation on the Butler site for the set I bought. Otherwise, I would have been lost on this. The damper may be slightly tighter than it should be but I doubt this will cause me any issues in the future. While it was tight going on, I really didn't need to use any real pressure on the tool to press it into place. I did some cleanup in the garage earlier and noticed there was a card in the damper box that gave tolerances. The card does say that it's supposed to be an interference fit so I think I should be good.

I'm hoping for smooth sailing going forward. This project has fought me a bit up to now. I checked my order status for the manifolds the other day and it's still listed as pending. I'd be working faster if they were on their way.


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## Old Man Taylor (May 9, 2011)

I've heard of a lot of Eagle cranks that were 0.003" too big on the crank snot. I had an Ohio crank that was the same way.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

Old Man Taylor said:


> I've heard of a lot of Eagle cranks that were 0.003" too big on the crank snot. I had an Ohio crank that was the same way.


Spot on sir. 

Next step is to add oil and prime the oil pump to make sure oil makes it to the top of the motor. I forgot all about an oil filter so picked up a Wix on my way home from work. Would have made a pretty big mess if I overlooked that little detail. I am hopefully going to finish what I can get done this weekend and have it where I just need to install the manifolds when they arrive to put it in the car. I plan on leaving the intake off until after it's in the car. I'm running an aluminum intake and don't like the idea of having the weight of the engine with cast heads, plus the flywheel, starter, and bell housing supported by a carb plate bolted into aluminum. I used an engine tilter bolted to the heads to get the old engine out, and plan to do the same with this one going in. Leaving it off also allows me one more shot to add a little more cam lube before start up.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

OK. I am as far as I can go on this until the manifolds arrive. I need to pull the engine off the stand to do the last few things before this can go in the car. Those will have to wait since the engine will not fit on my stand once the flywheel is installed.

Most of the rest of this went pretty smooth except for priming the oil pump. I had a typical Jared moment and I didn't notice that the builder left the galley plug near the distributer out. This should have been obvious as it is staring right at you but I missed it all the same. I hook the drill up to the priming rod and start spinning the pump. Oil comes out. but just a little. I didn't have a pipe plug so I tried to improvise with a smaller bolt wrapped in a rag. I figured I wouldn't hurt the threads and it would probably work (half right, the threads are fine). My improvised plug held long enough to see the oil make it to the top of the engine, then it shot out like a cork followed by a stream of engine oil. What a mess. I was cleaning oil out of all the crevice's on the back of the engine for the next two days. I didn't utilize that port for anything on the old engine so I picked up a plug for it yesterday.

The filter housing is new and that is a Wix filter on there. I am running a flat aluminum valley cover (just set in place for now). The water pump is a FlowKooler. One of the few things I am reusing from the old engine is the front pulleys and brackets. I think they were original to the engine that came out, but not correct for the car (old engine was a 1974 400). Everything lined up nice before and I didn't want to rock the boat. I did check the alignment after the bottom damper fiasco and the crank pully lies up perfectly with the water pump pulley so score. Valve covers are fabricated aluminum with one of the rear breathers being a PVC valve, relocated from the valley pan. I went with the Mitey motor mounts. I plan to be proactive and install spacers under the chassis mounts before the engine goes back in. I am running an aftermarket oil pan and don't want to have to mess with this after. Call it preventive measures.

Thanks again for everyone's input on this. Your support was definitely appreciated!


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## coyote595 (Dec 4, 2019)

Looking Great!


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## PontiacJim (Dec 29, 2012)

You can use that oil hole near the distributor for an oil pressure gauge instead of the one at the filter housing. That is where I run my gauge off of - it is said to be a more accurate reading of your oil pressure in the engine. It also allows you to keep the Idiot light if you have a non-rally gauge cluster like me or just want to add a back-up gauge to your existing rally oil pressure gauge - or even an oil pressure kill switch sender.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

PontiacJim said:


> You can use that oil hole near the distributor for an oil pressure gauge instead of the one at the filter housing. That is where I run my gauge off of - it is said to be a more accurate reading of your oil pressure in the engine. It also allows you to keep the Idiot light if you have a non-rally gauge cluster like me or just want to add a back-up gauge to your existing rally oil pressure gauge - or even an oil pressure kill switch sender.


Good idea. I plugged both for the time being. My car would have been an idiot light car but the connection and wire is no where to be found. Changing the harness is on the to do list for later but I didn't want to add rewiring the car while the engine was out. The car did run before and I didn't want to add any more variables to this project. Baby steps.


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## PontiacJim (Dec 29, 2012)

Jared said:


> Good idea. I plugged both for the time being. My car would have been an idiot light car but the connection and wire is no where to be found. Changing the harness is on the to do list for later but I didn't want to add rewiring the car while the engine was out. The car did run before and I didn't want to add any more variables to this project. Baby steps.


OK, I don't see any need to upgrade to a rally gauge set when you can add mechanical gauges - unless you just have to have the rally gauges, have them rebuilt, and then have matching senders calibrated with them, and oh, upgraded wiring harness.

I just left mine original so I could also keep the speed warning speedo and low fuel light. Still will have the Idiot lights all working, but will have the mechanical gauges as well - sitting right in view right outside the windshield ala drag race style in chrome cups. Since I have the 455 and it won't see 6,000 RPM's, I purchased a analog 6K tachometer just to be different - hope it'll work.


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## Jared (Apr 19, 2013)

PontiacJim said:


> OK, I don't see any need to upgrade to a rally gauge set when you can add mechanical gauges - unless you just have to have the rally gauges, have them rebuilt, and then have matching senders calibrated with them, and oh, upgraded wiring harness.
> 
> I just left mine original so I could also keep the speed warning speedo and low fuel light. Still will have the Idiot lights all working, but will have the mechanical gauges as well - sitting right in view right outside the windshield ala drag race style in chrome cups. Since I have the 455 and it won't see 6,000 RPM's, I purchased a analog 6K tachometer just to be different - hope it'll work.
> 
> ...


The PO had installed a mechanical oil pressure gauge and a coolant temp gauge under the dash. My plan was to reuse those. They had the coolant sensor installed to a port on the front of the manifold near the water neck (car had an old Street Dominator intake on it). It's been a year so I don't remember if the temp idiot light worked or not or if that sensor was hooked up at all. I may reinstall the temp gauge sensor into the head. This is another detail I have time to think about and can always change afterwards.

I like the 6K tach. Different to be sure. I have to figure out what I want to do on that front. The is an old Sun tach in the third gauge hole in the dash. It was not working when I bought the car. When I looked under there. the wires are not hooked up (maybe never were). I have never liked how this looks so I will probably pick up the blank gauge and return it back to original looking. If I decide to install a tech, I think I'll go with a column mount. This is another in the future add on. At some point I do want to rewire and the dash is a bit rough. I would do all of that stuff at the same time. I have sunk a ton of money into this over the past year and need a breather once it's running. 

While my wife and I drive new cars for our dailies, I seem to always be working on jalopies. I have 2 early 20's sons who both own clunkers. This weekend I have to remove the front subframe from a Chevy Cobalt to get the control arms off. GM used caged nuts on the big mounts and both sides are broken and both control arms are bad.


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