Used, Reman, Crate, or LS???

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Schurkey

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Where are you meaning? Cause I've opened up some 350s that are pretty full of gunk in the valley, so I know these engines are pretty forgiving. Do you mean people actually leave dirt and crap in the cylinders??
I mean that machine shops always claim that they clean the dirt, rust, and metal chips out of the parts they machine. They'll maybe even charge you for that "service". And if you don't use HOT water, soap/detergent, white lint-free towels/rags, and an oil-gallery brush to verify EVERY FOOKIN' OIL PASSAGE in the block, and the cylinder bores, the main saddles, the oil drillings in the crank, the hollow pushrods, the spurt hole in the rocker arms...there's particles left behind by the machine shop (or by normal engine wear on other used parts) that will gouge oiled parts once the engine fires and runs and has oil flow.

Sludge in the lifter valley may get wet with oil...but sludge in the lifter valley isn't in the oil pan to be picked-up by the pump and circulated against close-tolerance, finely-machined parts.

The parts--including the "new" parts you buy--pistons, cam, timing set, etc. also need to be cleaned in hot, soapy water. They may have an oily film on them to prevent rust; the oil picks up dust at the manufacturer, or in your shop.

And for those of us that re-use hydraulic lifters, a hydraulic lifter has a decent-sized oil inlet hole--but microscopic clearance for the oil to get back out. Therefore, hydraulic lifters are like 16 tiny oil filters--dirt and sludge get in, but can't get back out. Every re-used lifter has to come apart ONE AT A TIME for cleaning and inspection. DO NOT mix the plunger from one lifter body into a different lifter body. Keep all lifter parts together on the same lifter.

You cannot trust the oil filter to "catch" the debris before it circulates, because the debris is already in the oil passages.

There's likely debris in the coolant passages, too--but nothing in the cooling system has close tolerances like the oiled parts. And the water pump bearings are sealed.

My favorite machine shop left this in my boat 454 when they machined it. I've known the owner since high-school. He's a good guy. But I have learned to check EVERYTHING he does, especially if what his shop does was actually performed by his part-time help.

Passage between main saddle, and cam bearings after machining and cam bearing installation, once I stroked a brush through the oil passage. I bought my own cam-bearing installation tool, I don't let the machine shop do that any more. I don't let them install any oil gallery or cooling system plugs, either. I want all those passages open so that "I" can clean them to my standards.

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Dreck hiding behind oil gallery plugs on the side of the block. The plugs seal the drilling that connects the main oil gallery to the main bearings.

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The Mk IV big-block uses a side-oiler scheme that Ford stole for their 427 Side Oiler. The main oil gallery runs down the lower left side of the block, with various plugs to seal access holes. The little plugs, as above, seal the drillings that supply oil to the main bearings. Nobody removes these little plugs because they're a total pain in the ass--the larger plugs are bad enough. Red line indicates the main oil gallery location--from the front to the rear of the block, but supplied from the oil filter pad with oil moving forward, branching to the front four main bearings, and from there to the cam bearings. Yes, of course, the casting is set up to keep the oil and the coolant separate near that rear core plug.

My photo is marked incorrectly. That's the 454 LEFT side, when installed in a car. In the boat, the engine is flywheel-forward; I got confuseled.

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Schurkey

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Oh, yeah. One more thing.

$1250 for a "used, 175K" Vortec 5.7L? Woof.

The last 5.7L I bought was a TBI. It was sold to me as a "core" engine, not guaranteed to run. I got it, pan to TBI (no air cleaner) and with the accessories on the front. No flywheel.

I think I paid $100.

Before that, I bought a 5.7L Vortec, 4-bolt main, and with the engine-driven fuel pump machining done by GM. Was said to run, but didn't include distributor or intake manifold/injectors, etc. (Long-block).

$400, had to drive nearly 200 miles round-trip to get it.

Holy crap. VOWL-19 has really distorted the used-parts market, I guess.
 

97SWBCHEVY

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Where are you meaning? Cause I've opened up some 350s that are pretty full of gunk in the valley, so I know these engines are pretty forgiving. Do you mean people actually leave dirt and crap in the cylinders??
I’m not positive what Schurkey is referring to, but I’m guessing he’s referring to areas like the internal oil galleys etc…the cylinders have usually been bored or atleast honed and prolly the least of the areas that this would be an issue…
 

stutaeng

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Where are you OP? I always see 5.7 Vortec engines for $500 and under...they are not as common anymore, but in DFW you can find them without a problem, any day. Hint: Better prices are from the Billy Bob or Jose backyard part-out special.

Can't really answer your question about which route to take since you don't mention other variables.

Maybe worthwhile to source a 4 bolt main 5.7 Vortec from an 8 lug truck or SUV, since you have a supercharger, I don't know if it makes a difference...
 

97SWBCHEVY

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Oh, yeah. One more thing.

$1250 for a "used, 175K" Vortec 5.7L? Woof.

The last 5.7L I bought was a TBI. It was sold to me as a "core" engine, not guaranteed to run. I got it, pan to TBI (no air cleaner) and with the accessories on the front. No flywheel.

I think I paid $100.

Before that, I bought a 5.7L Vortec, 4-bolt main, and with the engine-driven fuel pump machining done by GM. Was said to run, but didn't include distributor or intake manifold/injectors, etc. (Long-block).

$400, had to drive nearly 200 miles round-trip to get it.

Holy crap. VOWL-19 has really distorted the used-parts market, I guess.
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Ya, don’t get me wrong they are out there for $750-$800 but I used to sell used auto parts for several years and I was on a hotline with yards from all over Texas and surrounding states, and I did a lot of business with certain yards because they were honest and dependable yards…but there were a lot of yards I wouldn’t buy a steel wheel from…
 

df2x4

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My area is the same way with used parts now. I was searching for a used LQ4 6.0L the other day, you used to be able to get them for less than $1K easily. The cheapest one I saw within 100 miles was $2100.
 

stutaeng

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$2500 or less gets you a LQ4/4L80e 2wd around here, with ECU, harness, TAC and all, which is kinda of a street racer setup. LQ4 alone is around $1600.

4.8/5.3 OTOH are around $500-$700. I picked up a 5.3 complete with harness for $400 last year, just had to pull it myself.


5.7 Vortec are $500 at most, but often I see they lower the price to $300-$400, I'm guessing to motivate buyers...???

@df2x4 , I thought you already had an LQ4 in your garage,?
 
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df2x4

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@df2x4 , I thought you already had an LQ4 in your garage,?

I do. :biggrin:

Unfortunately the LQ4 in my dad's '06 3500 has developed a very strange intermittent noise that we can't seem to pinpoint. I was just doing some research comparing used prices to new. I offered him the one in my garage but he'd prefer something with a warranty, and a GM reman honestly isn't much more expensive than a junkyard engine at this point. He's considering a brand new GM crate LQ4, but that's close to $5K not including the $2K core charge.

I've been trying to talk him into rebuilding what he has and letting me buy HPTuners and mess with the tune for him, but unfortunately he doesn't seem into it... yet...
 
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