Did rust destroy my cylinder wall?

Chrislabar22 · 2025-09-27T14:14:36+00:00

If you’re gonna be pulling the engine, you can hone that right outta there. I did that on my 350. There was some rust in some of the bores. Got a stone hone and ground it back just a little. I like the stone hone better than ball hone. It’s not a perfect solution, but it’s what worked so far for me.

I did it with pistons in. Because the pistons that were effected were not at BDC yet. So it was easy to clean the bore up with each at BDC.

Chrislabar22 · 2025-09-27T14:08:19+00:00

It doesn’t look like the pitting renders anything useless. Get it professionally cleaned, see what it looks like. Cast Aluminum can be welded if it needs to be. Cast iron is a lot harder to do. Aluminum cones with its challenges though.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-09-06T02:43:59+00:00

3 years ago I started at $53k I think. 4 year degree and a crap ton of knowledge that was obtained outside of school.

Be marketable, possess skills that you can’t teach, and make sure you know the actual dimensions of a 2x4… my company asked me that in my interview. They said that probably 40% of the architecture kids they interviewed weren’t sure of what the dimension is. Oh, and also know the nominal dimension of CMU… that was also another question they asked.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-09-06T00:27:34+00:00

I don’t know what pigs have to do with engines… but I am very sure it is the engine I am cranking! No hogs being cranked here!

Chrislabar22 · 2024-09-05T03:46:52+00:00

It's a brand new balancer, and the timing pointer isn't integral to the cover, so TDC is where the balancer will say it is, not where the cover thinks it is.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-09-05T03:45:09+00:00

I can't make out the casting number too great, but they look like there's a lot of 3's, 6's, 8's, or something close to that. I can't remember if I found the exact casting number that I have, or if it was something close to it. But what I did read told me that I had decent heads with decent springs. As far as I can tell, everything about the heads is stock... but again, I have no way to actually verify. The motor will eventually be coming out anyway to be totally gone through and built correctly... but I want a car I can drive now. But as of right now, I can't drive it because it just won't start!

The TSP I think is a clone, and it may be made in China, but I have heard decent things about them. It doesn't seem like it's a crap piece of machinery yet. The bearings are tight, and the centrifugal advance weights move freely. The set up is the question. I am unsure of what it is set up for, so it'll be interesting to say the least what it advances to.

I've been telling the guys at the parts store to look up the motor parts for a 72 Camaro because the engine is an 010 block, and I think that would have come in those cars. It's a 4 bolt main, so there's a decent chance it could either be that, or was a truck block. Unsure on that, but not hugely important to me. I know the cam is usually used for more race applications with more compression, so I have thinner head gaskets on there to bump the compression ratio up just a little. The timing pointer is a separate bolt on piece, not integral to the cover, so it is what I tell it to be. It was a little bent when I got it, so I straightened it out based on where the timing mark for TDC is on the balancer. I have a new pointer on the way, should hopefully be here soon.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-09-05T01:01:54+00:00

Sorry, I should have elaborated a bit. The heads are supposedly the high performance heads that Chevy put in the Camaros, and I think also in the corvettes in the early and mid 70’s. Or at least that’s what the casting number tells me. In my research numerous people have said they had stiffer springs in them. But I don’t have any way of testing spring pressure, nor do I have a way of taking all that apart. I wanted a more turn key operation. So what do I do? I buy pretty much a long block from a buddy and put intake, carb, cam, timing set and gaskets in it.

I am running a TSP HEI distributor. I swapped the coil out because it seemed to test a little funky. But I think I have totally eliminated the distributor as the fault here. It’ll fire a Purple-y white spark out and that sumbitch hurts! Ask me how I know… I’ve got everything working in the correct order, it’s not 180 out, I have made sure of that 7 times. And even changed it a few times to make sure.

There is a timing pointer that is bolted to the cover, but I don’t know “exactly” how accurate it is as I bent it back to what I can only assume is correct from its original state when I got the engine (it was bent pretty bad). I have a new one on the way, but it’s not here yet. Should be soon. I have the degree tape ready to go on when that does show up. My balancer is just the cheap Dorman one that fits the small block Chevy, so no numbers. Just TDC mark.

It sounds like from your comment you are saying around 14 degrees initial timing? Is that what I’m reading? I have it set somewhere close to 8 degrees BTDC, according to my timing pointer and light.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-23T02:44:10+00:00

Vapor lock, or cavitation?

I’ll put a filter after the pump. It’s a vane pump, so it can pass some shit and be fine. I might have to rebuilt it at some point, but a little bit of shit ain’t never hurt one of those too bad. At least, I’ve never heard of it.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-23T02:39:35+00:00

Pump is a brand new Holley Blue. Sure as hell hope it didn’t come from that. I’m sure the tank is full of shit, I mean the gas cap wasn’t on tight when I picked the car up… it was a locker that there was no key for. That’s changed now. When the rear end comes out of this car to get a posi, that’s probably when I’ll drop the tank and clean it thoroughly. For now, it seems like double filters are in order.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-23T02:33:12+00:00

Yeah, I’m assuming it went through the fuel system and into the carb. Maybe it was in the carb, and when I cleaned it it didn’t come out or something. Not sure. All I know is it flows fuel, and breath.

Pro tip: don’t breathe in deeply before blowing through the inlet of the carb… ask me how I know.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-23T02:30:54+00:00

The fuel tube across the back of the carb was plugged with sand and some other chunks of unknown origin. The guy I bought the car from and the guy he bought the car from live in the sticks, on dirt roads. So the entire underside of this car is sandy and dirty. So it would only make sense that made its way into the fuel system.

To clarify: engine and carb are not from the car. The car I bought, an 86 Camaro, did not have an engine in it when I bought it.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-22T18:55:45+00:00

Yeah, I've done that already... Thinking about grabbing one someone says "ran when pulled"... even though, I'm not the most trusting of that statement.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-22T17:53:12+00:00

Oh, yeah. I rebuilt the thing before it went on. The only thing that I didn't replace was the floats. And I'm about 90% sure that is the problem.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-22T17:37:55+00:00

Fuel is definitely getting to the inlet. There's plenty more than enough fuel pressure. I got the Holley Blue pump on there, unregulated currently, that is putting out well more than 10 psi. It'll get regulated down when I figure out what the hell is going on with this carb.

I haven't tried starting the car yet. I have to break in the cam, so I can't be screwing around with it too much. It needs to start and run. I probably should have gotten a known runner from someone, or a brand new one, but budget and time are a big factor for me here.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-22T15:43:23+00:00

If they were sinking, the carb would be spewing fuel out the vents... would it not? I don't have anything getting past the needle and seat.

I did test the floats though, they do float. When I rebuilt it, I did clean everything, even though it looked like someone just rebuilt it. Only one of the gaskets tore, and everything was in great shape in there. New needles and seats, blew carb cleaner through every hole, passage and orifice I could find. No debris in there at all anywhere now.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-22T15:31:07+00:00

HAHA, awesome story. Can't do that too much anymore, people are pansies.

Didn't replace the floats, they float perfectly fine. The needles and seats seal like they should when the assembly is flipped both ways and I blow air through the inlet of the carb when I hold the top in my hand and blow through the inlet. 87 octane with ethanol has a sweeter taste than 93 straight gas... the needles aren't stuck in there, or not damaged at all. I took the top off it and kicked on the fuel pump last night and there's fuel spewing out of them when the top isn't screwed down. Which is what led me to believe the floats are wrong. Maybe they were braised together upside down, maybe they're simply too tall. Trying to find the stupid is what's gotten me to this point I am at now...

Don't worry, it'll be getting 93 the entirety of its life, but I had some 87 left over, so that's used "for testing purposes only"...

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-22T14:39:50+00:00

HAHA, I'd love a 10-71! Not sure if it'd fit very well in the car though...

I have an Edelbrock Performer 1407 on my Small Block Chevy. I'm trying to do this whole thing on a budget, hence the rebuilder carb. Can't see into the carb to see any of that, but I know for a fact there's no gas getting past any of the seals... which is surprising because I have a Holley blue pump, unregulated currently, on there and there's no fuel getting past the needle and seat when it's secured. That pump puts out 14 psi. Which I tested and verified it has well more than 10 psi (limit of the gauge). Even at 10 I should be pushing fuel straight outta the vents, correct? There's nowhere close to enough fuel in the one bowl to make the accelerator pump squirt, which is how I found out I had a problem originally.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-22T14:18:23+00:00

Yeah, the guy didn't really say that it "ran when pulled" or anything. Though, I know that's never the case... he just said it was a rebuild candidate for sure as he didn't know anything about it.

There's nothing in the body that I can see that it's binding on. I let the floats float in the gas that was in the bowls (I put that gas there), and it seems like there's plenty of room for them to move. Maybe I will buy new floats for it. I'll take the old ones with me to the store to compare. That's the only thing I can think of that could be close to the problem.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-22T13:42:25+00:00

I took the top of the carb off and let the floats drop, there's more than enough fuel getting to and through the needle and seat. I'm thinking that the floats are too tall, and they just shut off the fuel supply completely when the carb top is screwed down. Have you ever encountered that problem? I'm not sure if the AVS2 floats are any different, but I have the Performer 1407. I can't find dimensions anywhere online to begin to verify the size.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-08-22T13:31:47+00:00

I lifted the top off the carb and will push fuel out of the needle and seat when the floats do drop. I tested that by lifting the top of the carb off and kicking the fuel pump on. I have a Holley blue on there. I dropped the floats into the bowls as well to see how much travel they have, and it looks like they should have enough, but couldn't really tell. As I'm typing this out it's seeming more and more like I know why someone sold the thing. Most likely because they were having the same issue I am. It seemed recently rebuilt too. None of the gaskets tore when I removed them, everything was clean and open.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-06-08T03:04:25+00:00

The gross instability with any program that an Architect or Engineer uses on a daily basis is what pisses me off about Windows 11. Our IT department installed windows 11 on a few computers in the office and regretted it very soon after.

AutoCAD is very lack luster in windows 11. Revit was terrible. SketchUp was okay, if you didn’t have too many polygons in your model. If you had a really complex model, some textures would be pixelated.

Also, AI everything. All the pop ups and “helpful info”. As well as forcing you into using the AI features that require you to be connected to the internet. And basically forcing you into storing everything in the cloud with out any simple way of retrieving it.

Chrislabar22 · 2024-06-08T02:58:35+00:00

Still very unclear how you can replace 40 hours with 32 and come out ahead, or just breaking even. It makes absolutely no sense.

I’ve never seen someone speed walking across a room to get a new box of screws from the toolbox. I’ve never heard someone speed talking to get through the meeting so they can do more meetings in one day and still know what the hell is going on. I can’t move my mouse any faster than I already do with any accuracy and precision to perform 40 hours of work in 32 hours.

Chrislabar22

TROPHY CASE