If it's your first time at that shop look to see if it is clean and organized.Talk to the owner and don't let him know you are a newbe by asking questions you know nothing about.Your gut feeling will tell you if you can trust them and they aren't trying to BS you.Ask for references and talk to some of your racing buddies and see who they recommend ask the shop who's engine's they have worked on.You will narrow it down to a few,then see what your gut tells you.

 

1racerdude you are an eng builder, what kind of questions would you ask, and trust me i am not a newbe here...

I have called a few shops local and thay are very ifie at best...But if i go to a race eng shop what am i asking .....

thx

 

I said IF you were a newbe.Machine work is pretty basic,but shops don't seem to get it on the money all the time.As far as assembly you can tell the care that will be take with your stuff by the cleanleness of the shop and how it is organized.I would ask about clearancer on your engine and do they follow the manufacturer's spects or do they have something special for your application.To much SPECIAL stuff ain't good.
Choose your own cam and head work and let them install them,and go by what is recommended by several cam makers then choose same with heads.Call around,it is a lot of research to get it right.

 

First impressions go a long way. You're looking for cleanliness and organization... aka pride in workmanship. The equipment doesn't necessarily have to be the latest and greatest but it should appear to be well maintained.
Word of mouth is everything in business. So what's the reputation of the shop?

One big mistake alot of people make is looking at a shop in regards to their big name clientel. That's not to say that the shop is bad.. just that you need to get opinions from the average joe who had his engine built at the shop too. One builder who use to advertise on this board... was in all the magazines and turned out some damn fast strip cars for guys waving their banner everywhere. However their customer service was shoddy to say the least. Not the kind of company you want to be dealing with.

Other observations.... Is the builder busy? Busy is often a good sign...

Ask for an estimate but realize that it's just that. A visual inspection is not going to tell a builder everything he needs to know. So things are subject to change.

Tear the engine down yourself. A major problem is better found by you in your garage than after $100 worth of labor. So disassemble at home.. check carefully, chunk parts you don't plan to use and take the shop your parts.

-Mindgame

 

I agree with you totally dude but unfortunately for 99% of us out there, we don't do it for a living, have a shop, tools or extensive knowledge to double check someones work (to exact specs). I'd also feel safe in saying that I'd bet only a handful of people have sent their engines out to be rebuilt and double checked the specs when it came back.

As for my engine, you're right on that. I don't know the exact specs on what it was machined too except for the bore and when I plastigauged the mains. But all we out there can do is ask around for a good shop and PAY the MAN. He has an excellent rep and me a 1 year warrantee on the work.

The original question I believe was if he should have someone do the whole thing (as in drive in drive out) or do the machining and put it (the shortblock) together. So by his statements alone, I don't think he has the knowledge to double check specs.

I'd just so like the majority of the guys out there and ask around for a good shop and have them assemble the shortblock. Do the rest yourself.

GOOD LUCK my friend.

 

I would agree.That is why I took the building side of it and to try to show the things that CAN and do go wrong.There are a lot of engines assembled that are not checked and a portion of these fail to stay together or have problem's.
So my recommendation was to let someone assemble it for him and let them take the responsibality.Recon I am picky when it comes to engine building.And no I don't wash my hands all the time.

 

S.J.S I no i have the knowledge...As i have been working on car for the last 6 years now as an Automotive Tech, i have the resource and access to all the tools, As i am thinking of 550-600hp here....So i would like it done once and right.

 

Then the answer is obvious... you have the machine work carried out by a compotent automotive machinist and you check everything and assemble. Same way I do my builds.
It's a hobby for me but just like any hobby that you're serious about, you buy the right tools if you want to play. A few of my work colleagues have spent ~$6k on a set of golf clubs for the love of god....

I only trust myself... and then I only trust myself once I've checked three or four times. So I like to do my own assembly/blueprinting work. If you havea shop do your work then you'd better check everything. Perfect example... my buddy got his engine back. I insisted we tear it down and check everything and he reluctantly agreed. Found one piston with the 2nd ring upside down.

-Mindgame

 

One ring upside down?
I bought my 383 engine from these guys, http://www.chspdx.com
But after your experience, I will tear my engine down too, to investigate. It has 50000 miles warranty on it but........

Is any of you knows this guys?

 

Yep, better believe that. They have had my block for 6 weeks when they told me 2-3. Its just like any place that does machine work.

I have a friend who used to building engines and was a mechanic who is helping/showing me how to build my engine. Oh yea, he has all the tools.

 

A piece of advice I have is if your gut is telling you to take your **** back, then take your **** back out of the shop.

I did it wrong the first time, it's getting done right this time. I should have taken my stuff out of the original shop a LONG time ago when he kept putting other customers ahead of me.

If he tells you a timeframe and says "Oh we got busy, we got busy"...well assmunch, my **** has been sitting here for 2 months, what makes their **** more important than mine?

Sorry just a rant.