Engine swap input

[L31MaxExpress]

Factory cams are almost always not great. They almost always leave lots of performance on the table. Your budget option would be to just send the factory roller cam currently in the engine off to Delta Camshaft in Tacoma, WA. They can regrind your factory cam to whatever spec you want. Just call them and tell them what you have, what you intend to use the vehicle for, and they will grind the cam to suit your expected use. They reground the factory roller cam in my 97 L29 454 and it was $140 plus what I paid to ship it to them. It took them about 2 weeks to turn it around and have it back to me. Your other option is to just get an aftermarket cam. Summit cams are pretty great budget cams. I believe @L31MaxExpress had a pretty good breakdown of several different cams, including a Summit one that were great truck/towing cams for the L31.

This one?

L31 towing cam upgrade

I'm going to be installing a new L31 block in my 98 silverado to replace my tired stock engine. My truck does lots of towing and hauling. Is there a better cam for towing over the stock cam? I know the vortec heads are somewhat limited to the lift you can add without modification, and I don't...

www.gmt400.com

 

[Ronchiggy]

Factory cams are almost always not great. They almost always leave lots of performance on the table. Your budget option would be to just send the factory roller cam currently in the engine off to Delta Camshaft in Tacoma, WA. They can regrind your factory cam to whatever spec you want. Just call them and tell them what you have, what you intend to use the vehicle for, and they will grind the cam to suit your expected use. They reground the factory roller cam in my 97 L29 454 and it was $140 plus what I paid to ship it to them. It took them about 2 weeks to turn it around and have it back to me. Your other option is to just get an aftermarket cam. Summit cams are pretty great budget cams. I believe @L31MaxExpress had a pretty good breakdown of several different cams, including a Summit one that were great truck/towing cams for the L31.

Thanks a lot thats very helpful, I was reading that thread and the Summit 8800 looks pretty attractive especially for the price. If I were to replace the factory cam would I need to replace anything else to get the most out of the upgrade? How much would it cost to get the truck tuned after doing the cam upgrade?

Rebuilding your engine is the best option. You know you have an engine that has not been cooked and the money saved buying an engine to rebuild can be put into your engine for strength upgrades and/or go fast/more power goodies. Another thing to spend your saved money on is micrometers,dial calipers and bore gauges. Don't just trust that the machine shop did a good job,check to make sure!!! Always remember that cleanliness is better than godliness when assembling any kind of machinery,dirt kills!!!

From what I've been hearing is modern factory heads are prone to cracking from just normal heat cycles so that may be one of the things you can spend your saved money on. Unless your building a race engine don't get stupid with big high revving cams. A torque monster that will turn 5500 will do you way more good in real world driving and save you money at the pump. I strongly recommend keeping you compression ratio around 9:1 You will have an engine that is not temperamental about fuel and will last a long time.

You brought up another question I had, what are the main things I should have as far as tools go? I have most of the basics, socket set, torque wrench, impact etc. What parts should I get to increase longevity and strength? What would most affect the compression ratio, from my understanding its the head gasket thickness? Also as a general question is it possible to pull and reinstall an engine without lifting the truck? I have my truck currently parked on the left side of my parents house, my ideal situation would be to pull the engine from the truck while its parked on the street, bring the engine into my garage and rebuild it there, and once it is built reinstall it into the truck parked outside. The truck cant be lifted while parked on the street because the road is pretty uneven and I cant have my truck parked in the garage as I am not sure how long this project would take and my truck would make it so my parents car would not fit. The other option is to have it parked in the driveway, it is even but it sits at a relatively steep angle. If you have any suggestions on how to go about it it would be much appreciated.

 

[Scooterwrench]

Get a good shop manual!!! You want good quality tools,you're not going to get them from wally world. You're gonna need a cherry picker(engine hoist). They sell one that folds up to reduce stored space. I have used Craftsman tools my entire life and still have many of the original tools bought in 1978. Many have been replaced because of normal use so the lifetime guaranty is a nice thing. If the tool doesn't have a lifetime guaranty you don't want it. Snap On are great tools but quite pricey and don't perform any better. If you have a snap type torque wrench get a spring beam type to check it with,they do get out of spec. You can use those power tools to aid in disassembly but put it back together with hand tools. You don't need a torque wrench for every bolt but until you learn bolt feel it may be good for you to use one. That means you will need foot pound and inch pound torque wrenches. You're gonna need penetrating oil,rags maybe a torch with a fine tip to warm stuck nuts and bolts. If your skinny enough and your truck hasn't been lowered you my be able to squirm under there without having to jack it up.
If you do have to jack it up you want it on level ground and use good jack stands. Never get under there with it just sitting on a jack. I've lost two friends from being squashed under vehicles. If I were you I would try to convince your parents to let you use the garage to pull and reinstall the engine. Which means you will need oil dry or they may not be happy with your project. Once the engine is out you can push the truck out while your building the engine then push it back in to drop it back in then push it out again to finish buttoning it up. Strive to do a nice,neat job. If it looks good it probably will be good.

 

[Ronchiggy]

Get a good shop manual!!! You want good quality tools,you're not going to get them from wally world. You're gonna need a cherry picker(engine hoist). They sell one that folds up to reduce stored space. I have used Craftsman tools my entire life and still have many of the original tools bought in 1978. Many have been replaced because of normal use so the lifetime guaranty is a nice thing. If the tool doesn't have a lifetime guaranty you don't want it. Snap On are great tools but quite pricey and don't perform any better. If you have a snap type torque wrench get a spring beam type to check it with,they do get out of spec. You can use those power tools to aid in disassembly but put it back together with hand tools. You don't need a torque wrench for every bolt but until you learn bolt feel it may be good for you to use one. That means you will need foot pound and inch pound torque wrenches. You're gonna need penetrating oil,rags maybe a torch with a fine tip to warm stuck nuts and bolts. If your skinny enough and your truck hasn't been lowered you my be able to squirm under there without having to jack it up.
If you do have to jack it up you want it on level ground and use good jack stands. Never get under there with it just sitting on a jack. I've lost two friends from being squashed under vehicles. If I were you I would try to convince your parents to let you use the garage to pull and reinstall the engine. Which means you will need oil dry or they may not be happy with your project. Once the engine is out you can push the truck out while your building the engine then push it back in to drop it back in then push it out again to finish buttoning it up. Strive to do a nice,neat job. If it looks good it probably will be good.

Ok will definitely keep that in mind, i don't mind spending extra on tools if they will last a lifetime.

As far as the rebuild itself goes, does anyone have experience with this one?
https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=5603016&cc=1303366&pt=5316&jsn=1106
I would be using the Summit 8800 cam, I would get a new oil pan as the one currently on is dented. Would new connecting rods be in any way beneficial? Also as far as getting a new cam would I just need to take it to a tuner and they would know what to do to get the best performance out of it? Sorry if there is any redundancy in the questions!

 

[Scooterwrench]

I have never used any engine tech auto parts but I have had to use some of their Harley parts. Pure,cheap,chinese junk! For pistons I would use TRW for an economy build and Wiseco for anything I want to last a long time and take some abuse. I've never used Keith Black pistons in a car/truck engine but I have seen them wiped out pretty quickly in Harley motors so I wouldn't recommend them. You can spend the money getting your rods reconditioned or spend the same amount on a set of new Eagle rods. For bearings you want Clevite. For gaskets Fel-Pro. A Melling oil pump and not a high volume unless you plan to do a lot of work on the heads and lifter valley to get the oil back down to the bottom. A five qt, pan is always a good idea. You can get all fancy with ARP bolts but personally I've never seen the need for them. I've built race car engines,mud truck engines and boat engines that get hammered on and never had a factory bolt fail. Once you get it all back together fill it up with high zinc oil. I run Valvoline VR1 in everything I own,even my lawnmower.
When searching for cams look for the RPM range that you are going to spend the most time running in. You will need to calculate your gear ratio and tire circumference to find that. No need for a cam that makes power at 4000 when you're only turning 2200 most of the time.
Get away from Crock Auto. Alright to look up parts there but buy them from a local parts store. You get to inspect the part before you give away your money and they need you business!!!

 

[0xDEADBEEF]

If you can add 2k to your budget, Blueprint has a drop in 383 which they say doesn't even need tuning if you have a 96+. It doesn't get much easier than that.

Vortec Truck & SUV 1996-2000 - GM SB Compatible 383 c.i. Engine - Long Block

BluePrint Engines 50 state legal 383 c.i. small block GM style stroker crate engine kit for 1996 - 2000 Chevy pick ups and SUV's. Includes 30 month / 50,000 warranty & BPE Dyno Promise. Part #: BP38350CT1

blueprintengines.com

 

[Erik the Awful]

Would new connecting rods be in any way beneficial?

If the factory bottom end is good and you're not going for major power, leave it alone. The factory rods in our trucks are better than the old "pink" rods everybody used to love. Have your machinist recondition your rods and pistons and you're good to go. You can burn up a lot of cash really fast unnecessarily replacing the bottom end parts. If you do replace the rods, you want floating piston pins and pistons that can use them.

I am a fan of replacing the rod bolts with ARP if you plan on any rpm.

I've used EngineTech gasket sets and they've been okay. I have an EngineTech L79 cam in the original engine out of WCJr, but I still haven't fired it up.

I do like getting good name bearings, oil pumps, and timing chains. Clevite bearings, and Melling oil pumps and timing chains aren't too pricey and are quality pieces. I hear a lot of good things about King bearings, but I haven't used them yet.

 

[Ronchiggy]

I have never used any engine tech auto parts but I have had to use some of their Harley parts. Pure,cheap,chinese junk! For pistons I would use TRW for an economy build and Wiseco for anything I want to last a long time and take some abuse. I've never used Keith Black pistons in a car/truck engine but I have seen them wiped out pretty quickly in Harley motors so I wouldn't recommend them. You can spend the money getting your rods reconditioned or spend the same amount on a set of new Eagle rods. For bearings you want Clevite. For gaskets Fel-Pro. A Melling oil pump and not a high volume unless you plan to do a lot of work on the heads and lifter valley to get the oil back down to the bottom. A five qt, pan is always a good idea. You can get all fancy with ARP bolts but personally I've never seen the need for them. I've built race car engines,mud truck engines and boat engines that get hammered on and never had a factory bolt fail. Once you get it all back together fill it up with high zinc oil. I run Valvoline VR1 in everything I own,even my lawnmower.
When searching for cams look for the RPM range that you are going to spend the most time running in. You will need to calculate your gear ratio and tire circumference to find that. No need for a cam that makes power at 4000 when you're only turning 2200 most of the time.
Get away from Crock Auto. Alright to look up parts there but buy them from a local parts store. You get to inspect the part before you give away your money and they need you business!!!

Thanks a lot been spending a while looking for parts, unfortunately I don't have a local parts store nearby, at least not that I know of. As far as the cam goes I mostly just cruise around at 1500-2500 rpm. This is my build list so far let me know if I should change anything or something would be a better value. Also, anything I'm missing Ive been learning a lot the past few days not only about this but I also started school so my brain is kinda fried haha.
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/cle-cb663p8
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/cle-ms909p
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/esp-5700sblw
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/fel-260-1735t
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/mel-10553st
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/slp-h815dcp30
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-121012
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-133-m139-30
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/slp-lr63
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/mel-48500t-9/make/chevrolet

If you can add 2k to your budget, Blueprint has a drop in 383 which they say doesn't even need tuning if you have a 96+. It doesn't get much easier than that.

Vortec Truck & SUV 1996-2000 - GM SB Compatible 383 c.i. Engine - Long Block

BluePrint Engines 50 state legal 383 c.i. small block GM style stroker crate engine kit for 1996 - 2000 Chevy pick ups and SUV's. Includes 30 month / 50,000 warranty & BPE Dyno Promise. Part #: BP38350CT1

blueprintengines.com

I wish I could but since I could rebuild for around 2-2500 I would be paying more than double with shipping.

If the factory bottom end is good and you're not going for major power, leave it alone. The factory rods in our trucks are better than the old "pink" rods everybody used to love. Have your machinist recondition your rods and pistons and you're good to go. You can burn up a lot of cash really fast unnecessarily replacing the bottom end parts. If you do replace the rods, you want floating piston pins and pistons that can use them.

I am a fan of replacing the rod bolts with ARP if you plan on any rpm.

I've used EngineTech gasket sets and they've been okay. I have an EngineTech L79 cam in the original engine out of WCJr, but I still haven't fired it up.

I do like getting good name bearings, oil pumps, and timing chains. Clevite bearings, and Melling oil pumps and timing chains aren't too pricey and are quality pieces. I hear a lot of good things about King bearings, but I haven't used them yet.

I decided to replace the rods because all the machine shops near me were charging around 250 to recondition, resize, and clean rods.

 

[Scooterwrench]

All looks pretty good except the pistons and oil pan.

I've never had good service with hypereutetic pistons. The idea is they have less thermal expansion than cast or forged so you can run tighter piston to cyl. clearance but they are also brittle. KB's are hypereutetic and I've cleaned pieces of those out of the bottom of Harley cases. Unless you plan on hammering on it cast will last a long time but forged are always better. The rings for those are kind of on the thin side for a street engine. Designed for low drag not longevity.
I see those are .030 over pistons. You may want to hold off buying pistons and rings until you have your block checked,you may only need .010 over. No need to bore more than what's needed.

You always want a windage tray in your oil pan and that pan doesn't have one. I would only run that pan with a bolt on windage tray.

 

[Scooterwrench]

This is the cam I'm running in my 355 and I love it.

https://www.jegs.com/i/Lunati/638/1...ahwS5XXURL5b6mQmnEzfFeFwHxbGf8uAaAg-6EALw_wcB

Pulls like a mule and has a little thump at idle with good vacuum.