200 buck rebuild kits

73notch · Post by **73notch** » Thu Apr 10, 2003 10:05 pm

what do you have to say about those 200 buck stock engine rebuild kits that come with 85.5 p+c, reground crank, reconditioned rods and lifters, rod/cam bearings, pushrod tubes, oil pump, gland nut, oil screen, gasket and main seal. i was just wondering what quality these parts are usually in because it seems alot cheaper to just get this kit than getting my crank reground, and buying all the parts separately. thanks

BenI · Post by **BenI** » Thu Apr 10, 2003 11:10 pm

You get what you pay for...

Glenn · Post by **Glenn** » Fri Apr 11, 2003 5:05 am

Eventually you pay for what you get.

Post by **Marc** » Fri Apr 11, 2003 6:00 am

If there's no brand mentioned, the pistons & cylinders are from Red China. The best you can hope for is Vicsa or Cofap, I wouldn't expect to get Cima/Mahle at that price point. The bearings are at best Metal Leve, OK for a stocker, but I'm picturing plain-white-box parts of undisclosed origin {shudder}. The machine work may also be adequate (I'd check to make sure the lifters are convex and not flat-ground) but don't be surprised if the crank comes with an endplay shim cut or loose dowelpin holes, or has had .005"-.010" ground off the butt making it hard to set endplay normally. Do they promise a minimum journal size? .030" is bad enough, but what if it's .040"/.040"?
I understand the appeal (we've all been low on funds at one time or another) but it's worth paying a little more for peace of mind, even for a low-budget build.

PANEL GOD · Post by **PANEL GOD** » Fri Apr 11, 2003 8:58 am

i have one of these kits it ok but if i had to do it again i would buy separate parts. the pistons are cast kustom 1's are mahle or in a mahle box crank was on third grind(was not happy with that) the rods were good and so were the lifters everything else was as good as you would get at shucks or napa but i put 300 miles on that engine a week and it still runs good i have amost 10,000 mile on it