Motor update..... block is cracked beyond repair. So, thinking this might be the case, I've been doing some looking in the meantime. I want to stay with a 230 motor. I'm sure everyone thinks I should drop a new crate motor in, but I just like to keep things the way they were (except for some cosmetic things). Anyways, I found a place on the web called S&J Engines. They will build a 230-L6 as needed for $1156.00 plus $200.00 core. I emailed them to get some info and this is what they had to say. There's also some links to videos of the process they go through. Any comment/thoughts would be greatly appreciated!
> Each engine casting is cleaned in a steel abrader. The steel abrader
> blasts
> steel shot at the casting, cleaning it, while at the same time
> strengthening
> the integrity of the castings.
> After cleaning each casting, cylinder blocks, cylinder heads and
> crankshafts they are checked for cracks, using an electro magnet and
> fluxing
> powder. All cylinder blocks, cylinder heads and crankshafts have all bolt
> holes cleaned and taped.
> The cylinder blocks are precision bored to the exact same size as
> the new pistons being installed.
> The cylinder blocks are then precision honed with a diamond honing
> machine. This process is very important to the longevity of an engine. The
> honing process gives .0015 to .004 of an inch clearance (depending on the
> application) between the cylinder wall and the piston. It also machines
> the
> cylinder walls with a fine cross hatch finish for proper piston ring
> seating. Today's engines require a much finer finish then they did in the
> 80's and only the newest diamond honing technique (not stones) can
> accomplish this finish.
> The crankshafts are cleaned again with fine wire brushes through
> each individual oil galley, ground on the latest model crank grinder and
> polished to a mirror like finish. The oil galleys are cleaned again with a
> white cleaning rag. NOTE: 80% of all engine manufactures warranty claims
> are
> cylinder head related. Consequently, we take great care to make sure our
> cylinder head machining and replacement parts are as good as possible.
> The cylinder heads are machined to accept new valves only, not
> centerless ground many boast, that is a used valve, nor do we use thin
> cheap
> guide liners, we use original equipment guides only. After rough machining
> is accomplished on the guides each individual guide is diamond honed to
> fit
> the new valve stem. This process is very expensive and time consuming;
> however, this is the only way to accomplish the critical finish today's
> engine required between the valve stem and the valve guide. The valve
> seats
> are precision ground using the latest three angle cutting machine called a
> Serdi. The Serdi automatically cuts (not grinds) a three angle seat
> pattern
> for the individual application. The cylinder head is then taken to a
> broach
> machine. This machine mills the cylinder head surface (not grinds) to
> insure
> a smooth surface and proper sealing. After the machining is finished the
> cylinder heads are once again cleaned and assembled with new valves, valve
> springs, valve keepers and high temp seals. The cylinder heads are then
> put
> on a vacuum tester, this tester assures all valve seats are sealing and
> checks the casting integrity for cracks a second time.
> The connecting rods, which have been cleaned and shot peened, are
> resized to conform to the rod bearings being used. Pistons are hung and
> piston rings installed.
> The completed bare machined cylinder block, crankshaft, connecting
> rods, and assembled cylinder heads are now ready to be assembled into a
> long
> block.
> The cylinder block is now in the prepping area, here all the brass
> soft plugs, oil galley plugs, and cam bearings are installed. High
> pressure
> air is then blown through all the oil galleys and water jackets once again
> to be certain all contaminates are removed. The cylinder walls are then
> wiped down with clean white towels.
> The cylinder block is then moved to the assembler, here the main
> bearings (tri metal only) are installed, a special prelude called AL22
> (cost
> $155.00 a gallon) is used to coat the bearings. This lubricant is a Teflon
> coating substance that reduces the danger of a dry engine start (no oil).
> The crank is then assembled into the block. The pistons are then coated
> with
> AL22 and slid into the correct cylinders and attached to the crankshaft
> with
> the tri metal bearing and more AL22. A new camshaft and timing components
> are installed. The cylinder heads are now installed on the short block.
> All
> new rocker arms, hold down bolts, push rods and lifters are then installed
> to complete the long block.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJ0k9oYTN6k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKwDvQRvOOw&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfYVk2qdgmg&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsMyKDjisxw&feature=related
