sam pace

Lately, I have been looking at other options for connecting rods and pistons for my motor.
The rods that are in my motor are the factory forged not the pm rods.
How much power are these good for with arp studs and how much do they weigh?
My other question is i've been looking at scat rods. The ones that caught my eye were the Scat Q-Lite connecting rods. Are the lighter rods worth the extra cost?
http://www.cnc-motorsports.com/produ...11&CtgID=15410
compared to the normal h beam.
http://www.cnc-motorsports.com/produ...143&CtgID=8183
Almost forgot, I have been looking at Keith Black forged pistons. Are there forged pistons any good?
Any good advice would be helpful.

94CamaroZ28

ttt I wanna know about the 94 rods myself

joe-96z1le

I wouldn't use lightweight rods for anything but an all out race only motor that's gonna get frequent rebuilds. The lightweight rods (comparably) won't last long in a street engine like a standard forged rod. Its not just about HP rating. You need to consider cyclic fatigue.

Scat and others make decent rods but I'm partial to Lunati. Great value for the money.

sam pace

why not use lightweight. I thought they were just as strong. As for cycle fatigue, how much shorter of a life span do they have?
Am I better off using the factory forged rods and just call it a day?

94CamaroZ28

TTT...
I myself want to know about the 94 rods (factory forged or not, how would I know?). What torque/hp/rpm levels are they good to, both as stock and with ARP rod bolts . (And would I just use the ARP bolts for the PM rods, or do I need to get something else?)

sam pace

Well... I just got done talking to a VERY knowledgable person last night. Great guy I might add!!!!
Factory forged rods are actually pretty good once you put the arp bolts into them and weight wise they are about the same weight as the pm rods. the only thing when you do arp bolts is you have to get them resized. If you want true strength from these rods you need to get them polished and shot peened to get them to pink rod status.
Once you do this they are good for 500HP.
The only drawback to this is the expense to get them resized,magnifluxed, polished, and shotpeened, and if you have a bad rod then you have to purchase another one to have a full set.
Almost forgot then you have to balance to get a matched set.
Aftermarket rods are cheaper if not the same price of doing all of this work. I guess my mind is made up, I'm going with aftermarket forged rods.
If you are an oldschool hotrodder like some of you on the board, you what a PITA doing all this work to connecting rods is.
NOW WHAT is a good piston for a 6" rod? I was thinking about the Keith Black forged or the Probe forged pistons.

SStrokerAce

You also have to realize that the cyclic fatgue in a race motor happens faster because of the RPM loading is much worse for every rev of the motor since it's mostly at high RPM where a street motor rev is most likely at very low RPM.

Bret

joe-96z1le

Your questions are a bit too general. Its easier to select parts if you let everyone know what your goals are. Nitrous, NA, S/C? Stroker? RWHP? I agree on the 500HP number as max as long as that's flywheel, not rear wheel. But I'm sure you can find others who have done more with less. For pistons, a lot of ppl. seem to like Mahle and Diamonds.
Also, Bret makes a good point.

sam pace

What I am trying to accomplish is a good blend of durability and longevity without going heavier than the stock parts that are in my motor now.
I am building a 350 and the more I look at how I drive, the more I want to make sure its going to hold up to my kind of driving. I will be adding nitrous with a 100-150 wet shot. That is one of the reasons for looking at forged rods and pistons.
Isn't that what everybody is looking for lighter, stronger, faster?
Just keep in mind, technology is always moving forward, just beacuse it lighter does not mean it's weaker or will not last as long.
Prime example is the LS1 motor same weight as a cast iron v-6 but twice the power.

joe-96z1le

The Scat lightweight rods you referred to previously cost more and are rated 100HP less than the standard forged ones. Personally, I like Lunati. If I had to choose between the two Scat rods I'd buy the cheaper, stronger ones, but thats just me.