2thousand5.4

I have been reading his build thread the past couple of days. Definitely some builder issues lol. Idk if I want to get fox lakes, twisted wedge or just mildly port mine

Jbrew

Things are much different now, shoot back then it was 5 grand for a decent set of heads. Now, with more competition and innovation out there 5 grand can go a little further. Yea, more stage head builders out there for sure and prices have come down a bit.

Just thought that would be interesting read is all, since your thinking of a build.

2thousand5.4

Yeah I don't know which direction Im gonna go on the heads. The trickflows look very tempting, but they are also super expensive. There a few speed shops here so Im gonna make some calls and see how much a mild port on pi heads would be. His build has been a very interesting read, I just got to the part where his rod bearing went out and still have like 20 pages left. I love all the ceramic coating he did, I may look into that

Jbrew

That's the thing though, if you want some serious power NA, you have to fork it out for heads. Then try not to get freaking forked to death before you finish.

2thousand5.4

Yeah that's what really sucks cause of I spend that much of heads then I won't have anything left to boost it :/. I mean I'm definitely gonna get a nice set of cams and probably just a stage 1 or maybe w stage port on stock heads. I think Neil did stage 3. But I just have to price it out because if around 3k to get mine ported Anda valve job then I might as well get the trick flows. I don't see a port job being 3k tho

ZebraFord

I need to start doing some research. I wanna do an engine build but have no idea where to start. My goals for the project are lots of torque, maybe around 450-500ish horsepower. I want this truck to haul ***. Going to lightning swap it so I'm not sure if I'll need to actually build a motor or just give it a refresh?

DrillRig52

Slap a blower setup in till she can't handle it anymore then build the motor. There are a few guys with a lot of miles on just a blower swap. First thing to go will be the tranny.

2thousand5.4

Your gonna at least want forged rods and pistons if you are boosting it. Stock motor will take it for a while but it will eventually go. 450 crank is probably doable on stock heads with a lighting swap, but it will be easier to get there and with less boost with ported heads and a good set of cams. That's about the same amount of power im hoping for. I'm going with a little higher compression than stock and definitely some head work. Just not sure what I'm gonna do with the heads. I would rather run less boost and a little higher compression to get to 450-500 than high boost tho so it all depends on what your after. 450 hp on 8 pounds of boost is gonna feel different than 450 horse power on 12 pounds of boost. I'll probably end up building my trans before I build the motor.

ZebraFord

My motor is ragged out already. Knocks bad when cold and is using a lot of oil. Also smokes quite a bit on start up even on a day like today when it's 95 out.

I need to do a lot more research on this stuff. I knew about the rods, I didn't know that the Pistons would need upgraded. Is it pretty standard to put in Pistons that are 20 thousands bigger?? I wonder if that adds any more power because of the bigger displacement? Just thinking out loud. Have you looked into the cost of the machine shop work and then the rods and Pistons yet??

2thousand5.4

I have seen a few builds where guys don't run forged pistons, but trying to get to 500 house power it definitely would be a good idea. Your over bore just depends on what kinda of shapes tour block is in. It's just to get your cylinders trued up and smooth, it don't add any power. 0.020 over is only like 1 or 2 CCs I think. Haven't looked into the machining yet, I will when I get closer to doing the build, gears come first lol. Forged rods and pistons are gonna run between 1400-2500 depending on the brand and type of rod.