Well, the time for rebuild is approaching... she's got 106k, and after the cam and heads, I'm a little paranoid about losing a rod. And this car will need to be able to drive to Vegas (from CT) and back this summer. What I've got- 72 Untouched block. Had almost no ridge. Cam- TA 212 TA intake, holley 750, TA comp headers. The heads have been milled .060 for more compression. The rocker shaft and arms have been replaced with TA set, TA oversize valves, and ported by me. What I'm thinking- (please comment or make suggestions) Block- decked .020 so I can use composite gaskets and not lose compression. Bored .030 over for the few extra cubes. New cam bearings/freeze plugs. As far as boring, what's the deal with the "torque plate", i think that's what it is called. I assume most shops won't have one for a buick 350. I will be shortly get a CNC bridgeport machine, so I imagine I could make one. How thick does it need to be and all that? I've never actually seen one. Pistons- I'm planning on TA's forged 10.2:1 pistons. Rods- I'm not to sure on this. I'm sure my rods need some help... What exasctly is "shot peened". Can most shops do this? Crank, machine it if nescesary. Heads- I have the original untouched set from the car. Since the ones I have were milled, I'd like to start over with the unmilled set. I'll port it out, and swap the valves and stuff over. And mill them just enough to clean them up if needed. The rest of the stuff will be kept the same (cam, intake, headers) Anything else I should be considering? Thanks -Nick
So anyone have anything to suggest? I got some recent oil pressure issues, as in zero oil pressure, so the car is parked, and the motors coming out this month once I get some time. Also- What are the advantages of "Plasma Moly" or "total seal" rings? -Nick
Shot-peening is like sand-blasting, except with steel shot instead of sand or glass bead. I'm sure the exact procedure can vary, but at the machine shop where I worked, you put the part in the machine (it was mostly used for cylinder heads), secured in between some rods and the machine rotated it horizontally, with the shot being blasted up from the bottom. I'm not sure exactly what they do with rods. As far as a torque plate goes, I'm no expert, but I don't think the exact thickness would be too too critical as long as you don't make it too thin (and it's milled perfectly flat). I can't remember exaclty, but I would say that the torque plates at the shop were somewhere between 1.25 - 1.75" thick. Just remember that the idea is too simulate what a head does to the block. I think the only thickness that you really need to be precise with is the thickness around where the bolt holes are. It will have to match the stock head so that you can use stock style bolts. Most torque plates seem to require countersinking (I think that's the correct term) and/or spacers to get the correct thickness. This is all just food for thought, like I said I'm no expert, just trying to share what knowlege I do possess. Good luck
