When I purchase engines from anyone in the private sector, I use a cheap bore scope that hooks to my phone. It will tell you if a engine has flat tops, you can easily look at the valve train, you can check to see the bottom end, or see if a engine has four bolt mains (if that's the claim). It's quick and easy, and if the seller doesn't want to let you investigate well that tells the whole story anyway. Another great video Nick thanks.
From the moment nick said flat tapped cam, that's a big problem out the gate, plus rust that's literally blocking air too go into the rectangular ports, another problem,then them pistons 😳,if you planning on drag racing with that current set up your losing every last race ,period‼ even against some one on a skateboard
Whoever built that motor just threw it together for a quick flip.Knowing they would have no trouble selling a BBC if it looked the part.They never expected anyone to put it on a dyno before they installed it.
@@terryschnereger8531 I would be going back to who I got that motor from and giving them two options either 1) giving me all my money back and they keep the motor . Or 2) give me back at least half if not more of the money I paid and I keep the motor. Then you tell everyone you know not to do business with them. I'm a Mopar guy but this is the kind of stuff we all need to watch each others back and expose the scumbags who try to screw us over. No matter what you drive.
@@whitelightining7125 agreed. Nick should tear it down and do a full race rebuild if the owner expects to get 600 HP out of the big block. Those heads are excellent,but who installed the pistons 180• wrong ? Needs a better cam,too.
These insights into your shop are a valuable source of knowledge as well as great entertainment for us Tubers. Thank you for being so free with your experience and showing how working life can be a gas with the right attitude. Like others say, take care of yourselves and work safely. You would be missed by many if you were injured. Good to see Vacily wearing gloves when handing oily parts.
THANK YOU NICK, I HAVE LEARNED SO MUCH FROM YOU, YOU WILL NEVER KNOW, I WAS TAUGHT BY MY FATHER, KNOW I KNOW HE DID A MICKEY MOUSE REPAIR, BUT WATCHING YOU, HAS BEEN A LEARNING EXPERIENCE, AGAIN, "THANK YOU".
iguess they figured it was half way there, lol. well some smaller chambers or reverse dome pistons would do the trick along with a bigger cam and 175 to 190 ish psi. oh and port matching and head work. etc. etc. the list goes on and on don't it.
@Jason Davis As a young man I had a friend who was a retired Air Force engineer who was in on the testing of F-4 phantom engines for the Black bird project,he said the standard phantom engine produced 30,000 horse power with different fuel they could achieve 175,000 hp. Now the fuel he told me was good for extremely high altitude flight,the three key components: first was a thing I think he was mumbling to protect secrecy it sounded stupid furfall alcohol,second hydrazine, third aniline oil to control burn-rate,he was retired and had 2 hobbies fishing and flying his P-51 Mustang,he was a great man loved to listen to his stories.
I did a 454 for a farmer's truck one time, it came in with a very slight rod ticking. So o tore it down resized the rods at machine shop. When installing them one piston was on rod backwards. Had to take it back to be pressed off and turned around. If I wouldn't have caught it . It probably wouldn't make 100 miles without ruining crank and who knows what else. You have to stay focused. Not everyone can throw it together. Good job Nick.
I guess this shows that it’s really hard to not make some power with a BBC. Low compression, tiny cam, big rectangle port open chamber heads, and a single plane and it still made 366hp. It literally had everything working against it. A set of closed chamber oval ports and dual plane and it’d be a nice torquey motor. Dome pistons and a bigger cam and it’d be a fire breather. Either way and perform way better than when it arrived.
At least it was actually rebuilt... could have been an old motorhome engine with 100K on it and the only thing keeping the rods from knocking is the 10 pounds of sludge in the crankcase.
That was my thought too. A set of dome pistons should bring that engine to life. Annoying to have to tear down the engine again but not a huge deal with it being out of the car when bought.
@TheMEXICANBEEF Avoid the hassle set the timing 42 btdc buy some MOROSO octane booster if you can still find it if not go to your chemical supply house and get some aniline oil just don't get it on you,you'll get dizzy fall down and die of respiratory arrest,mix that one quart to 10 gallons of 93 octane,hell throw a gallon of toluene with that too,you may even want to try different mixes with e-85 get that virtual compression ratio up and then you'll have a rompin stompin wamma jamma untill it goes bye bye,poof!
Glad to hear you didn't get hurt too bad Nick - everyone would really miss your videos. Good thing us old time hot rod guys are tough! Keep the faith and keep building good lumps!!!
There is always a reason an engine is sitting. If it was healthy and made big power it would be in a car. People don't let too many high-performance engines sit around guys. Great video Nick!
I disagree. Most budget builders will do their builds in stages. They either build the engine first or build the car. Life happens, things change, health fails. This is even more so for people on a strict budget. That window gets bigger because vudgets are smaller and is more prone to life disruptions. Mistakes are made from ignorance and not doing homework and desperation to complete the job. A flipper sellsa fresh engine with cheap parts. Not an engine just sitting for awhile.
I love watching videos like these. They're mesmerizing because I don't understand one thing Nick is trying to explain but just the same, "oddly satisfying".
It's like my electronics instructor told us at the beginning. "You will spend more time fixing what others have messed up than fixing the original problem". After 40 years in automotive maintenance he was proven right over and over. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
Can't stand when someone monkeyed with float level because it's not running right , and you end up finding the real problem , and then have to fix the float level. Keep the paws off the float level!
Gear drives on a bbc is a no no. There only good to 6000rpm, a double roller chain or belt drive is much better ! Check the cam also , some people have no clue about engines or BBC. A 427 L-88 revved easily to 7200 and had 7/16 pushrods not 3/8. And GM bbc square port heads can build 600 hp very easy. A Edelbrock dual plane rpm intake works well. 850 cfm holley is also a good choice. Try using a first design L-88 solid lifter cam. Get compression up to atleast 11.0 valve springs need updated also.most of this and good machine work should wake the dead out of it, but you are the man Nick. Love your channel Nick
You guys are a joy to watch. To the point and simple language. A lot of these videos are more talk than do. Glad I found you guys. Keep up the great show.....
V is for valiant, the way you approach life! A is for accountable, someone to be counted on S is for serene, your calm time. I is for inventor, how many things will you create? L is for little, the little things you do. L is for laughter, you spread wherever you go. E is for enthusiasm, in even the most dire circumstances
A 427 chev. My dad had a 65 Strata Chief. That was the name I recall. 4 sp. Some fella bought it new and drag-raced at a local track in New Brunswick. Dad redid the engine and a decal remove. When done, it never looked like the tiger it was. The 3 pedals and the Hurst button for the brakes was the only give-away. Cheers! and Thank You.
We used to have a standard rotating engine and a counter rotating engine in boats. The screws have to turn outboard of each other or the boat will run terrible. Chrysler got out of Marine. GM and Ford stopped building counter turning engines. Marine gear builders picked up the counter turning screw in the gear. Chris Craft used gear to gear with their counter turning chevys. The lobes on the cam were ground to provide 12756348 firing order. The pistons in small blocks were put on the rods backwards to compensate for the outboard piston skirt beating on the walls. Big blocks could not do that because the valves hit the pistons. Closed chamber heads were used. Breathing is not the thing in Marine. Long stroke low rpm is. Other differences included reverse ribbing on front and rear main seals. Standard ribbing on a reverse engine will suck the oil right out. Chrysler used slashes on the rear seal surface for the cranks. That had to be machines backwards too. Starter drives engaged backwards. Their drive teeth were machined backwards. Fields wound to spin backwards. I was there, that’s how it was, that’s what I got to say about that.
If I remember correctly the base 427 in 1967 was 390 hp. This was a mild street able engine used in Impalas, Corvettes etc. it used hi test leaded gas. Using the flat top Pistons would allow today's regular pump gas. I think the geared cam may also be ground to turn the other way unless it has idlers like the old Jackson setup. This engine is a mess of incompatible parts.
Take the little stainless rectangular cap off the door and or trunk lock and you will see the spring loaded brass pins that are different lengths. These are what the key pushes up to make the lock able to turn. I had extra Mopar locks from junkers and swapped around the pins so I had a one key Fury.
And they were all "Corvette LT1's" with a rock-crusher M22 🙄 glad the LS has taken over. It's crazy what power guys are making on junkyard 4.8s with a turbo lol
This is how it is in Germany. Dude drives a pos 1980 Parisienne Wagon with high jackers and a 350HP 350 - I mean, it has a Holley carb and cherry bombs! smh
While it was a 454. It still had the factory heads with hand port job. Motor was rebuilt by DRE with his custom hydraulic roller, flat top piston with 10.1 cp and made 606hp on pumped gas with no timing really in it. Soft tune. You can make power when it's built correctly. This video shows what happens when people don't have a clue. I mean really. The pistons installed upside down is just ridiculous.
Couple decades ago, I bought a Mopar 383 engine that had been bored .040 and stroked with a 440 crank that had its mains turned down to 383 size. Made it 434 cubic inches. Complete engine, supposedly ready to go. I put it in my car and fired it up. Ran OK at first. Added coolant to the radiator, then had to again, and had to again, then the engine seized. Suspicious of having to add so much coolant, I pulled the oil pan drain plug. Bunch of coolant ran out. OK, pulled the motor, took it completely apart. Found out that the 440 crank's counterweights (bigger than 383 counterweights) had hit the block and the builder (who shall remain nameless) had ground the block for clearance and gone into the water jacket, then tried to plug the leak. Obviously he didn't pressure check the attempted repair. Fortunately the seller (he wasn't the engine builder) agreed to pay for the machine work on an extra 383 block and 440 crank I had in my parts stash (the proper way to make it fit was to cut the 440 counterweights to 383 size). Then I assembled the motor myself. Still running today after almost 20 years.
Back in the day I've turned some 4 valve relief 302 pistons backwards. Since most don't know if it has an offset wristpin instead of centered it will pull the piston further and hang at tdc longer. Worked flawlessly for years! This was not the case for this 454!!!! The 302 had 200lbs compression and made around 400hp with junky iron heads lol!!!!
Back when I was in the Air force I ran into a similar deal. A man had a 396 SS chevelle. He rebuild it and it would not turn completely over. He thought about towing it and decided to ask my opinion. Well I went to his home and we removed the heads. The pistons were 12.5 to 1 and were installed wrong and we also found a rag left in under the intake. He reinstalled the pistons correctly and removed the rag put it all back together and it run fine. No one is perfect and hast makes waste. When the work is hard and the wages are low take you time and go quite slow. Lol.
I'm from a little town in United States called Taft, California. I love watching your videos. Please keep your videos coming and I will continue to watch them. Have a nice day. Nick
So good to see that you're training the next generation of classic muscle car mechanics like Vassily. I'd also love an update on Vassily's girlfriend's race car performances.
If you want to know the truth bring it to Nick's garage. If you want it to run right and make the right horsepower bring it to Nick He's the man. when it comes old school Great job, Nick, and that's a beautiful Road Runner. I can't. Going down the road. Be safe.
One of the biggest electrical issues with classic Mopars is the ignition power wires, to and from the switch, are very long. The wires increases in resistance over time , the connections get old and develop resistance and the contacts in the switch wear and increase in resistance. This can cause a drop in voltage to the ignition system and throughout the ignition system.
A friend of mine had a BB Chevy custom built for his street racer '70 Camaro. Took the engine straight to a dyno man like Nick's customer did and it too didn't make horsepower. Turns out the engine builder was doing two BBs at the same time. The other one was for a truck to haul the customer's boat requiring a completely different engine. In the build process some parts got mixed and neither guy got what he wanted. The builder made things right on his dime so everything turned out OK in the end. As President Reagan used to say, "Trust but verify."
What amazed me was, hearing that seeing the pistons were installed 180* off! It’s a wonder the valves made it through the combustion process without major damage! WOW 😳
Was just noticing that! The focus is incredible, if you look close he doesn't even blink while watching the run up! Those eyes have seen everything lol
I Love how you say fix it right. I Repair tachographs.....and i always have to repair other people's fixes before i can actually repair the original faults that caused the instrument to fail .
Besides the fact that the pistons were installed wrong, did you check deck height? Luckily the cam is small and the intake valve apparently didn't hit the piston. Clearly the engine needs to come apart, check everything, and make some changes if the customer wants to make some power. Good thing it got checked before putting it in the car.
Always fascinating to see a master of his craft at work. The Experience really shows. To often today people never seek to achieve that level of Awesome.
Those heads are made for a radical cam, high lift rockers and 12 to 1 compression with a short block capable of turning at least 7500 rpm. This is not for a stock BB short block with those tight main bearing clearances. Cheapest is to put some good cleaned up stock oval port heads with a good valve job, a good aftermarket chain and sprocket and a more realistic manifold that will give more low lift flow.
Not too worry. Here at Nick's Garage /GYM. He will get this BBENGINE pumping out the horse power.again. Good luck thanks for the videos. Watching from Wyoming.
Just found this channel! So glad I did, this is excellent content that is much appreciated! I will like every video I see without a doubt. Great tear down and keep the details and length it is thorough and awesome 👌
Very informative and exciting for me to watch, there are so many car guys out there that think they know what they're doing, till something goes wrong, Love these videos, Thanks Nick :-)
One place I worked the boss had a TOP NOTCH ENGINE BUILDER assemble his marine 454 Chevy's. The top notch tech the boss's friend was putting the rod caps on backwards.
Used engines are like a box of chocolates, you just don't know what your're going to get. Great episode and take care. Didn't forget the cannoli and espresso.
Oh well. I had a man who bought an engine. He got a good deal on it. Triple springs and roller cam , pop up pistons with openchamber rectangular port heads, dual plane manifold . Poor combinations of parts can make a mess of things. Just put a Big shot of Nitrous on it and watch it take off.
I love 1970 RR>X they are the most beautiful cars Plymouth ever made. The trunk wing is a distraction to the beauty of the Hemi Bird. My friend has a 2001 Prowler with a 2005 LS3 it is the sleeper from Hell. Beautiful also.
its been a while, but i built a few of these that made 600hp and change with the small 2.19/1.78 valves and a solid flat tappet., we did have some good compression numbers from those 12.5 pistons right out of GMs racing bible of 1980 !!
Its details like the same coded cylinders that people either overlook, or dont care. On some cars ive had, or other people, they got a wad of keys because the ign., trunk, and doors all have seperate keys.
Honestly how hard is itbbto put pistons in the proper way round im, no expet but have put a few donksbtogether all i do isvread and follow all the instructions properlyand thisnnwas b4u tubeb or watever
I used to make a killing fixing screw ups like this. Many people don't have an understanding of how the parts must work together and compliment each other. The usual thing was a huge Holley with a adapter on a stock manifold...or the big honking cam with 8.1 compression and 2.73 gears...the single plane intake and stock exhaust system..
Just Re-Tumble The Ignition To Match The Door Locks! As Far As The Chevy 427-I'm HOPING For 600HP With Mine And I'm Running ZL-1 .030 Repl Pistons(12.5-1), 074 ZL-1 Heads(Milled .020) W/2.25+1.88 Valves. GM 069 Intake And 850 Holley DP. Cam Set TBD. Think It's Got The Potential!
Mark. The ignition key did not work with either door. Bought a new ignition cylinder because it did not want to go into accessory position. After that, coded both door locks to the new ignition cylinder.
@@nickpanaritis4122 Understand What You Had To Do-However Just As Door Locks Can Be Re-Tumbled-So Can The Ignition Switch. Did It On My Chevelle. Found Unused GM Keys That Fit Door/Trunk Cylndrs, But Not Ignition Cyl. Now Have Orig 1968 Keys To My Car!
used to be a mod to stop power valve issues. you gave a passage seat a mark with a phillips screwdriver to put a cross mark in it, then you put a small bearing in over it. apparently if a back fire happens, the ball gets pushed into the seat, but the X mark you made keeps it from sticking in place?
Good thing that was a small cam with the intake reliefs on the wrong side of the cylinder. Bad juju when pistons kiss valves. Hopefully the 427 owner wants to pony up and have Nick build that 427 right. Be awesome to put those heads to work!
Well the good news is that all it should take is a new set of pistons and a new cam to get where he wants (and better valve springs, etc. to support a higher lift cam because the ones that are in there obviously can't support the lift of that small cam). Seems pretty obvious that whomever put that engine together didn't do the math up front to get the right components to get their compression ratio where it needed to be. I'll bet they didn't even measure the combustion chamber volume of those heads. Which, seeing how the pistons were put in backwards, doesn't surprise me.
@@theravedaddy apparently u didnt watch the video or have lack of knowledge about pistons u and the 3 others who like the comment those are flat tops not Dome!
Looks like that big block Chevrolet needs a PROPER fresh rebuild by Nick and crew from the bottom up. I know you guys can make that engine really sing if the customer asks you to do it. I think 550 horse is a more realistic goal for horsepower on just pump gas, but I’m not an expert. Take care of that bruise above your eye Nick, a couple extra breaks with a nice Chocolate drink should do the trick! Thanks for another great video! Love that beautiful orange Road Runner!
a .030 flat top with 119 cc merlin heads then you are lucky to get 8.00:1 with a thick Composite gasket adding 9 or more cc's, Just switch cam to mechanical roller 220 @ 50 , AND .675 Lift with 106 degrees LSA and advance it !!
Heh heh, engines like this 454 crack me up! I had a customer back in the mid-80's that bought a pretty nice looking '66 Fairlane with a supposedly 'built' 302. Poor guy couldn't seem to get it past 4200 without breaking up, and after changing out the coil, spark plugs, new carburetor, etc., he finally brought it to me to see what was going on. It sounded great at idle. Nice lumpy cam, roller rockers hiding under pretty chrome valve covers... *on top of stock worn out Ford valve springs and retainers!* It had *maybe* 100 lbs. of compression across the board, and I notified the owner, and he said to pull the engine and see how bad off the rest was. The cam and lifters were probably the best part of the whole engine, along with an antiquated Mallory dual-point distributor, and an almost brand-new set of Hedman Headers. The rest of the engine was essentially bone stock, with typical small port 302 heads, and stock pistons. We ended up using it for a core and got a 347c.i. long-block (stroker crate motor), equipped it with late model ECC IV electronic ignition and a high output coil, and turned that sickly Fairlane into a 370 hp. tire melter that still got fairly decent gas mileage. Not too bad for around $2500 back in the day.😉
The fact is, it's such an easy thing to build as engine properly. Careful attention to detail is what it's all about even before a torque wrench comes into play!
It will be interesting to see what those pistons are. They look like either truck pistons which would make it a tall block and would be totally useless in a performance application or Icon flat tops which with an open chamber head would give it something like 8:1 compression if even that...
Hey Nick put a blower on top of that motor and make WAY over 600 HP. At 120 per cylinder thats right at somewhere around 8.5 to one. Ideal compression ratio for a blower putting out sub 25 psi on street premium gas. My last performance motor was a 355 SBC with a 144 B&M blower that made close to 450 without the NOS that boosted it to over 600HP. That was out of a 355 SBC. A 434 big block with a 6/71 or paxton setup should be close to 800 if not more without NOS. That is if the pistons are good forged ones, rods are good aftermarket, 4 bolt main block and a steel crank. Otherwise you are making a BIG grenade. Would make for a great RUclips video of dyno disaster segment however if cheap parts are used.
When I purchase engines from anyone in the private sector, I use a cheap bore scope that hooks to my phone. It will tell you if a engine has flat tops, you can easily look at the valve train, you can check to see the bottom end, or see if a engine has four bolt mains (if that's the claim). It's quick and easy, and if the seller doesn't want to let you investigate well that tells the whole story anyway. Another great video Nick thanks.
You can get one for under $20 and I agree with you 100%.
@@michaelwilkening8542 👍
What motor are you using?',; calling yoself the LS killer???????
What motor is you using calling yoself a LS killer',?; lol another GM Hater man smh The kings of HP still running things lol
From the moment nick said flat tapped cam, that's a big problem out the gate, plus rust that's literally blocking air too go into the rectangular ports, another problem,then them pistons 😳,if you planning on drag racing with that current set up your losing every last race ,period‼ even against some one on a skateboard
I love seeing badly built engines tested, taken apart and the mistakes explained. There's always that factor of surprise.
Feel badly for the customer though...
I call that educational process when they don’t pay attention to the how to build engines in the manual
me to
Whoever built that motor just threw it together for a quick flip.Knowing they would have no trouble selling a BBC if it looked the part.They never expected anyone to put it on a dyno before they installed it.
yup.
We need to call these guys out!!
@@terryschnereger8531 I would be going back to who I got that motor from and giving them two options either 1) giving me all my money back and they keep the motor . Or 2) give me back at least half if not more of the money I paid and I keep the motor. Then you tell everyone you know not to do business with them.
I'm a Mopar guy but this is the kind of stuff we all need to watch each others back and expose the scumbags who try to screw us over. No matter what you drive.
@@whitelightining7125 agreed. Nick should tear it down and do a full race rebuild if the owner expects to get 600 HP out of the big block. Those heads are excellent,but who installed the pistons 180• wrong ? Needs a better cam,too.
You’d be crazy not to, paying big block dollars for an engine that’s claimed to be 600 hp,forget it.too many shysters out there
These insights into your shop are a valuable source of knowledge as well as great entertainment for us Tubers. Thank you for being so free with your experience and showing how working life can be a gas with the right attitude. Like others say, take care of yourselves and work safely. You would be missed by many if you were injured. Good to see Vacily wearing gloves when handing oily parts.
It is a 600hp* BBC. The seller just forgot to tell the buyer that it requires a 300 shot of NOS ( not included )
😂😂😂😂
"600 hp capable..."
THANK YOU NICK, I HAVE LEARNED SO MUCH FROM YOU, YOU WILL NEVER KNOW, I WAS TAUGHT BY MY FATHER, KNOW I KNOW HE DID A MICKEY MOUSE REPAIR, BUT WATCHING YOU, HAS BEEN A LEARNING EXPERIENCE, AGAIN, "THANK YOU".
ahh I love "those engine builders", the ones that calculate hp based on adding up the box tops...
iguess they figured it was half way there, lol. well some smaller chambers or reverse dome pistons would do the trick along with a bigger cam and 175 to 190 ish psi. oh and port matching and head work. etc. etc. the list goes on and on don't it.
That's why I put stickers on my cars ... +5 hp per sticker.
@Jason Davis why?
@Jason Davis As a young man I had a friend who was a retired Air Force engineer who was in on the testing of F-4 phantom engines for the Black bird project,he said the standard phantom engine produced 30,000 horse power with different fuel they could achieve 175,000 hp. Now the fuel he told me was good for extremely high altitude flight,the three key components: first was a thing I think he was mumbling to protect secrecy it sounded stupid furfall alcohol,second hydrazine, third aniline oil to control burn-rate,he was retired and had 2 hobbies fishing and flying his P-51 Mustang,he was a great man loved to listen to his stories.
One thing I left out the whatever alcohol and hydrazine would detonate when in contact with each other so the need for the aniline oil.
I did a 454 for a farmer's truck one time, it came in with a very slight rod ticking. So o tore it down resized the rods at machine shop. When installing them one piston was on rod backwards. Had to take it back to be pressed off and turned around. If I wouldn't have caught it . It probably wouldn't make 100 miles without ruining crank and who knows what else. You have to stay focused. Not everyone can throw it together. Good job Nick.
I guess this shows that it’s really hard to not make some power with a BBC. Low compression, tiny cam, big rectangle port open chamber heads, and a single plane and it still made 366hp. It literally had everything working against it.
A set of closed chamber oval ports and dual plane and it’d be a nice torquey motor. Dome pistons and a bigger cam and it’d be a fire breather. Either way and perform way better than when it arrived.
Thanks Nick and of course George the Super Camera Guy...WOW how good is he..... For the...update video...!
At least it was actually rebuilt... could have been an old motorhome engine with 100K on it and the only thing keeping the rods from knocking is the 10 pounds of sludge in the crankcase.
That was my thought too. A set of dome pistons should bring that engine to life. Annoying to have to tear down the engine again but not a huge deal with it being out of the car when bought.
@TheMEXICANBEEF Avoid the hassle set the timing 42 btdc buy some MOROSO octane booster if you can still find it if not go to your chemical supply house and get some aniline oil just don't get it on you,you'll get dizzy fall down and die of respiratory arrest,mix that one quart to 10 gallons of 93 octane,hell throw a gallon of toluene with that too,you may even want to try different mixes with e-85 get that virtual compression ratio up and then you'll have a rompin stompin wamma jamma untill it goes bye bye,poof!
At least it wasn't a krylon rebuild with it paint it ship it lol
I prefer the 454's out of motorhomes. I build them for demolition derbies. Even the hated peanut port heads work great for a torque build.
Nick is a great example of a guy who loves what he does so work is enjoyable. Thank you sir for the great content.
I became a mechanic in 1998. This man is living my dream.
Glad to hear you didn't get hurt too bad Nick - everyone would really miss your videos. Good thing us old time hot rod guys are tough! Keep the faith and keep building good lumps!!!
There is always a reason an engine is sitting. If it was healthy and made big power it would be in a car. People don't let too many high-performance engines sit around guys. Great video Nick!
I disagree. Most budget builders will do their builds in stages. They either build the engine first or build the car. Life happens, things change, health fails. This is even more so for people on a strict budget. That window gets bigger because vudgets are smaller and is more prone to life disruptions. Mistakes are made from ignorance and not doing homework and desperation to complete the job. A flipper sellsa fresh engine with cheap parts. Not an engine just sitting for awhile.
That's not always the case I have a new Ls 7 454 still in crate that I bought in the 70s to install in my Ls 5 corvette still have both 55k on vette
@@caclark7600 Damn you don't go to the garage and just day dream about what that thing sounds like?
obviously he had the engine laying next to the car for so long, all the horses ran away
Runes. LOL.
Con job,the car community is ate up with it . Do your own work If you can
Good one!!!!
Lol
That happened to me once
I love watching videos like these. They're mesmerizing because I don't understand one thing Nick is trying to explain but just the same, "oddly satisfying".
Love it..You are a model for all shops...No B.S. Down to earth facts....No large Ego that I can see! just know your business! Wish you were closer!
It's like my electronics instructor told us at the beginning. "You will spend more time fixing what others have messed up than fixing the original problem". After 40 years in automotive maintenance he was proven right over and over. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
Can't stand when someone monkeyed with float level because it's not running right , and you end up finding the real problem , and then have to fix the float level.
Keep the paws off the float level!
Right. He come fix this job some fawked. Up. Ok. That gonna cost you double. I have to undo someone else fawk up and do over again.
Gear drives on a bbc is a no no. There only good to 6000rpm, a double roller chain or belt drive is much better !
Check the cam also , some people have no clue about engines or BBC.
A 427 L-88 revved easily to 7200 and had 7/16 pushrods not 3/8. And GM bbc square port heads can build 600 hp very easy. A Edelbrock dual plane rpm intake works well. 850 cfm holley is also a good choice. Try using a first design L-88 solid lifter cam. Get compression up to atleast 11.0 valve springs need updated also.most of this and good machine work should wake the dead out of it, but you are the man Nick.
Love your channel Nick
"Headers, High rise intake, 4 barrel Carb, a new mild cam, one see through distributor cap and new plugs..""
"6 new parts × 100hp = 600hp"" 👏😕😂
Anyone who knows anything knows the clear caps are junk....thats the sign of a noob
8.0:1 CR lol
Notime ForFakeNews don’t forget 4 bolts main you have to add it by that
@@ToxicMisfitsYt + 400 = 1000hp 😮 😄😂
@@andrewjenkins879. Probably not even 8:1. I was guessing low 7s compression.
love watching people who know what they are doing....
What I like about Nick is that he works on everything. Ford, Chevy or Chrysler all cool muscle Cars.
Right on!
They got my sub!! Definitely seem like awesome people.
You guys are a joy to watch. To the point and simple language. A lot of these videos are more talk than do. Glad I found you guys. Keep up the great show.....
Mr. Thank you.
That 70 Road Runner brings back a lot of memories. I bought one when I returned from Southeast Asia in 1970.
Nick's garage.........episode uploaded Monday has 109,880 views, great job to Nick and George. .....CONGRATS
V is for valiant, the way you approach life!
A is for accountable, someone to be counted on
S is for serene, your calm time.
I is for inventor, how many things will you create?
L is for little, the little things you do.
L is for laughter, you spread wherever you go.
E is for enthusiasm, in even the most dire circumstances
A 427 chev. My dad had a 65 Strata Chief. That was the name I recall. 4 sp. Some fella bought it new and drag-raced at a local track in New Brunswick. Dad redid the engine and a decal remove. When done, it never looked like the tiger it was. The 3 pedals and the Hurst button for the brakes was the only give-away. Cheers! and Thank You.
We used to have a standard rotating engine and a counter rotating engine in boats. The screws have to turn outboard of each other or the boat will run terrible. Chrysler got out of Marine. GM and Ford stopped building counter turning engines. Marine gear builders picked up the counter turning screw in the gear. Chris Craft used gear to gear with their counter turning chevys.
The lobes on the cam were ground to provide 12756348 firing order. The pistons in small blocks were put on the rods backwards to compensate for the outboard piston skirt beating on the walls. Big blocks could not do that because the valves hit the pistons. Closed chamber heads were used. Breathing is not the thing in Marine. Long stroke low rpm is. Other differences included reverse ribbing on front and rear main seals. Standard ribbing on a reverse engine will suck the oil right out. Chrysler used slashes on the rear seal surface for the cranks. That had to be machines backwards too. Starter drives engaged backwards. Their drive teeth were machined backwards. Fields wound to spin backwards. I was there, that’s how it was, that’s what I got to say about that.
Mike. So one of two marine engines is all backwards. Interesting. Thanks for the info Mike.
105 psi compression? I've had farts with more pressure than that
badcactus72 taco Bell helps get you to 120psi
@@spankthemonkey3437 lmao! I'll take that under advisement, but I'm scared to blow out an o-ring!
badcactus72 yea that rear main seal is important you don't want to slip and fall
I’ve had coffee give me a higher compression than that.
use a jalepeno spray injector to get to 170psi with them tacos
If I remember correctly the base 427 in 1967 was 390 hp. This was a mild street able engine used in Impalas, Corvettes etc. it used hi test leaded gas. Using the flat top Pistons would allow today's regular pump gas. I think the geared cam may also be ground to turn the other way unless it has idlers like the old Jackson setup. This engine is a mess of incompatible parts.
Nice work nick on that orange bird
I never fail to learn something important with every episode. Cheers, Nick!
Take the little stainless rectangular cap off the door and or trunk lock and you will see the spring loaded brass pins that are different lengths. These are what the key pushes up to make the lock able to turn. I had extra Mopar locks from junkers and swapped around the pins so I had a one key Fury.
Reminiscent of the 1980s.Every 350 chevy made 400 horse even when it was a 305 from a 1978 Caprice.
And they were all "Corvette LT1's" with a rock-crusher M22 🙄 glad the LS has taken over. It's crazy what power guys are making on junkyard 4.8s with a turbo lol
The typical backyard Chevy boy from the 90s.
This is how it is in Germany. Dude drives a pos 1980 Parisienne Wagon with high jackers and a 350HP 350 - I mean, it has a Holley carb and cherry bombs! smh
Lmao
Was not 1 400 factory hp 350. in early 80s not 1
Being such a perfectionist Nick is why your cars come out so Brilliantly. You and your team turn out perfect product. Little Aussie Follower ....
While it was a 454. It still had the factory heads with hand port job. Motor was rebuilt by DRE with his custom hydraulic roller, flat top piston with 10.1 cp and made 606hp on pumped gas with no timing really in it. Soft tune. You can make power when it's built correctly. This video shows what happens when people don't have a clue. I mean really. The pistons installed upside down is just ridiculous.
Couple decades ago, I bought a Mopar 383 engine that had been bored .040 and stroked with a 440 crank that had its mains turned down to 383 size. Made it 434 cubic inches. Complete engine, supposedly ready to go. I put it in my car and fired it up. Ran OK at first. Added coolant to the radiator, then had to again, and had to again, then the engine seized. Suspicious of having to add so much coolant, I pulled the oil pan drain plug. Bunch of coolant ran out. OK, pulled the motor, took it completely apart. Found out that the 440 crank's counterweights (bigger than 383 counterweights) had hit the block and the builder (who shall remain nameless) had ground the block for clearance and gone into the water jacket, then tried to plug the leak. Obviously he didn't pressure check the attempted repair. Fortunately the seller (he wasn't the engine builder) agreed to pay for the machine work on an extra 383 block and 440 crank I had in my parts stash (the proper way to make it fit was to cut the 440 counterweights to 383 size). Then I assembled the motor myself. Still running today after almost 20 years.
herman. That is the way to do it.
Back in the day I've turned some 4 valve relief 302 pistons backwards. Since most don't know if it has an offset wristpin instead of centered it will pull the piston further and hang at tdc longer. Worked flawlessly for years! This was not the case for this 454!!!! The 302 had 200lbs compression and made around 400hp with junky iron heads lol!!!!
Dodge engines like the piston flip too
That guy got ripped off! Man I like that roadrunner
Back when I was in the Air force I ran into a similar deal. A man had a 396 SS chevelle. He rebuild it and it would not turn completely over. He thought about towing it and decided to ask my opinion. Well I went to his home and we removed the heads. The pistons were 12.5 to 1 and were installed wrong and we also found a rag left in under the intake. He reinstalled the pistons correctly and removed the rag put it all back together and it run fine. No one is perfect and hast makes waste. When the work is hard and the wages are low take you time and go quite slow. Lol.
I'm from a little town in United States called Taft, California. I love watching your videos. Please keep your videos coming and I will continue to watch them. Have a nice day. Nick
I got plowed by CHP there. Plowed with a ticket for vroom vroom.
So good to see that you're training the next generation of classic muscle car mechanics like Vassily. I'd also love an update on Vassily's girlfriend's race car performances.
Hi Nick and to all! 12.15 am here in Melbourne Australia and the coffee’s hot.....enjoying your channel!
Good morning! Thanks Mario.
Good morning sir. Hope you have a good day!
Thank you for addressing my question from your first live stream in this video. 70 roadrunner only runner up to my favorite the 71.
Great to listen to Nick, very knowledgable and fascinating to watch,. An education...
Hope your eye heals quickly! Another great Monday Morning with Nick's garage.
I look forward to these videos every Monday morning. Thank-you very much guys!
If you want to know the truth bring it to Nick's garage. If you want it to run right and make the right horsepower bring it to Nick He's the man. when it comes old school Great job, Nick, and that's a beautiful Road Runner. I can't. Going down the road. Be safe.
One of the biggest electrical issues with classic Mopars is the ignition power wires, to and from the switch, are very long. The wires increases in resistance over time , the connections get old and develop resistance and the contacts in the switch wear and increase in resistance. This can cause a drop in voltage to the ignition system and throughout the ignition system.
Thanks Jim. Sounds like you have spent some time in the wires.
You get that with old motorcycle to, see it a lot.
Thank you for making the keys right. It drives me nuts when the keys do not match like they should.
A friend of mine had a BB Chevy custom built for his street racer '70 Camaro. Took the engine straight to a dyno man like Nick's customer did and it too didn't make horsepower. Turns out the engine builder was doing two BBs at the same time. The other one was for a truck to haul the customer's boat requiring a completely different engine. In the build process some parts got mixed and neither guy got what he wanted. The builder made things right on his dime so everything turned out OK in the end. As President Reagan used to say, "Trust but verify."
didnt happen...
What amazed me was, hearing that seeing the pistons were installed 180* off! It’s a wonder the valves made it through the combustion process without major damage! WOW 😳
you have excellent reflexes, very impressed how quick you killed the throttle
Was just noticing that! The focus is incredible, if you look close he doesn't even blink while watching the run up! Those eyes have seen everything lol
I Love how you say fix it right. I Repair tachographs.....and i always have to repair other people's fixes before i can actually repair the original faults that caused the instrument to fail .
Besides the fact that the pistons were installed wrong, did you check deck height? Luckily the cam is small and the intake valve apparently didn't hit the piston. Clearly the engine needs to come apart, check everything, and make some changes if the customer wants to make some power. Good thing it got checked before putting it in the car.
Always fascinating to see a master of his craft at work. The Experience really shows.
To often today people never seek to achieve that level of Awesome.
Those heads are made for a radical cam, high lift rockers and 12 to 1 compression with a short block capable of turning at least 7500 rpm.
This is not for a stock BB short block with those tight main bearing clearances.
Cheapest is to put some good cleaned up stock oval port heads with a good valve job, a good aftermarket chain and sprocket and a more realistic manifold that will give more low lift flow.
Thanks Nick! Good video on the Missing HP.
Not too worry. Here at Nick's Garage /GYM. He will get this BBENGINE pumping out the horse power.again.
Good luck thanks for the videos.
Watching from Wyoming.
Your a good man nick
“And see the truth”
Realty always bats last.
This is good stuff,thanks.
Thumbs up! A true professional.
Just found this channel! So glad I did, this is excellent content that is much appreciated! I will like every video I see without a doubt. Great tear down and keep the details and length it is thorough and awesome 👌
Working Class. Thanks for enjoying our channel.
Nick and garage are the best!!!
Nick shall bring the power forth. Nick bumped his head and made the flux capacitor.
But not with those pistons, maybe not the cam either. I dunno, this engine build looks more like lipstick on a pig rather than a serious build.
Very informative and exciting for me to watch, there are so many car guys out there that think they know what they're doing, till something goes wrong, Love these videos, Thanks Nick :-)
One place I worked the boss had a TOP NOTCH ENGINE BUILDER assemble his marine 454 Chevy's. The top notch tech the boss's friend was putting the rod caps on backwards.
I’m seriously in lust with that Road Runner!❤️❤️❤️
always enjoyable to share some time with nick
Thanks nick, always nice to see your expertise in action. Amazing what thieves are out there. Keep up the good work!
Used engines are like a box of chocolates, you just don't know what your're going to get. Great episode and take care. Didn't forget the cannoli and espresso.
And remember ... I don't want to see Pauley anymore either! 😉😀
One espresso and cannoli for me, please
@@wallacegrommet9343 No problem Sir! I will even throw in a Toscano cigar with a single malt. If you are ever in the Great White North!
I remember testing the compression on my 1969 BelAir 427, 425HP in early 1970. It blew up my compression tester.
Oh well. I had a man who bought an engine. He got a good deal on it. Triple springs and roller cam , pop up pistons with openchamber rectangular port heads, dual plane manifold . Poor combinations of parts can make a mess of things. Just put a Big shot of Nitrous on it and watch it take off.
I love 1970 RR>X they are the most beautiful cars Plymouth ever made. The trunk wing is a distraction to the beauty of the Hemi Bird. My friend has a 2001 Prowler with a 2005 LS3 it is the sleeper from Hell. Beautiful also.
outstanding!!!
looking forward to the rebuild
It's nice to see people caring about what they do! I subscribed instantly. Keep up the good work. -Glen
its been a while, but i built a few of these that made 600hp and change with the small 2.19/1.78 valves and a solid flat tappet., we did have some good compression numbers from those 12.5 pistons right out of GMs racing bible of 1980 !!
Its details like the same coded cylinders that people either overlook, or dont care. On some cars ive had, or other people, they got a wad of keys because the ign., trunk, and doors all have seperate keys.
The phrase "sold a bill of goods" comes to mind with that 427. Can't wait to see what you guys do with it!
The small valve springs was a give a way, but the installing the Pistons with the mark "backwards" is a tell tale sign of a unexercised build.
The Road Runner is gorgeous!
Honestly how hard is itbbto put pistons in the proper way round im, no expet but have put a few donksbtogether all i do isvread and follow all the instructions properlyand thisnnwas b4u tubeb or watever
Same as my 69 340 Swinger.
1 key for the ignition.
1 Key for the doors.
And a key for the trunk.
Someday I will get to it, maybe...
Great job, Nick
I used to make a killing fixing screw ups like this. Many people don't have an understanding of how the parts must work together and compliment each other. The usual thing was a huge Holley with a adapter on a stock manifold...or the big honking cam with 8.1 compression and 2.73 gears...the single plane intake and stock exhaust system..
Just Re-Tumble The Ignition To Match The Door Locks! As Far As The Chevy 427-I'm HOPING For 600HP With Mine And I'm Running ZL-1 .030 Repl Pistons(12.5-1), 074 ZL-1 Heads(Milled .020) W/2.25+1.88 Valves. GM 069 Intake And 850 Holley DP. Cam Set TBD. Think It's Got The Potential!
Mark. The ignition key did not work with either door. Bought a new ignition cylinder because it did not want to go into accessory position. After that, coded both door locks to the new ignition cylinder.
@@nickpanaritis4122 Understand What You Had To Do-However Just As Door Locks Can Be Re-Tumbled-So Can The Ignition Switch. Did It On My Chevelle. Found Unused GM Keys That Fit Door/Trunk Cylndrs, But Not Ignition Cyl. Now Have Orig 1968 Keys To My Car!
@@markpalio4411 . I know.
used to be a mod to stop power valve issues. you gave a passage seat a mark with a phillips screwdriver to put a cross mark in it, then you put a small bearing in over it. apparently if a back fire happens, the ball gets pushed into the seat, but the X mark you made keeps it from sticking in place?
Good thing that was a small cam with the intake reliefs on the wrong side of the cylinder. Bad juju when pistons kiss valves.
Hopefully the 427 owner wants to pony up and have Nick build that 427 right. Be awesome to put those heads to work!
Well the good news is that all it should take is a new set of pistons and a new cam to get where he wants (and better valve springs, etc. to support a higher lift cam because the ones that are in there obviously can't support the lift of that small cam). Seems pretty obvious that whomever put that engine together didn't do the math up front to get the right components to get their compression ratio where it needed to be. I'll bet they didn't even measure the combustion chamber volume of those heads. Which, seeing how the pistons were put in backwards, doesn't surprise me.
That engine needs domed pistons and a nice solid roller cam to get anywhere close to 600 hp. I'd say at least 11:1 compression. 427s love to rev.
The pistons in it now are doomed.
@@theravedaddy apparently u didnt watch the video or have lack of knowledge about pistons u and the 3 others who like the comment those are flat tops not Dome!
@@BigUnk85 .... If you can't see the joke, you are doomed!
@@paulcopeland9035 you trolls are doomed
@@BigUnk85 ...So, how am I a troll?
Looks like that big block Chevrolet needs a PROPER fresh rebuild by Nick and crew from the bottom up. I know you guys can make that engine really sing if the customer asks you to do it. I think 550 horse is a more realistic goal for horsepower on just pump gas, but I’m not an expert.
Take care of that bruise above your eye Nick, a couple extra breaks with a nice Chocolate drink should do the trick! Thanks for another great video! Love that beautiful orange Road Runner!
a .030 flat top with 119 cc merlin heads then you are lucky to get 8.00:1 with a thick Composite gasket adding 9 or more cc's, Just switch cam to mechanical roller 220 @ 50 , AND .675 Lift with 106 degrees LSA and advance it !!
Nick is the Colombo detective of muscle cars. Go Nick!
Heh heh, engines like this 454 crack me up! I had a customer back in the mid-80's that bought a pretty nice looking '66 Fairlane with a supposedly 'built' 302. Poor guy couldn't seem to get it past 4200 without breaking up, and after changing out the coil, spark plugs, new carburetor, etc., he finally brought it to me to see what was going on. It sounded great at idle. Nice lumpy cam, roller rockers hiding under pretty chrome valve covers... *on top of stock worn out Ford valve springs and retainers!* It had *maybe* 100 lbs. of compression across the board, and I notified the owner, and he said to pull the engine and see how bad off the rest was. The cam and lifters were probably the best part of the whole engine, along with an antiquated Mallory dual-point distributor, and an almost brand-new set of Hedman Headers. The rest of the engine was essentially bone stock, with typical small port 302 heads, and stock pistons. We ended up using it for a core and got a 347c.i. long-block (stroker crate motor), equipped it with late model ECC IV electronic ignition and a high output coil, and turned that sickly Fairlane into a 370 hp. tire melter that still got fairly decent gas mileage. Not too bad for around $2500 back in the day.😉
@Paradoxical Nightmare LOL, no doubt!😁
The fact is, it's such an easy thing to build as engine properly. Careful attention to detail is what it's all about even before a torque wrench comes into play!
Love the background music video is awesome keep up the good work!
Love seeing the cars in the garage!
It will be interesting to see what those pistons are. They look like either truck pistons which would make it a tall block and would be totally useless in a performance application or Icon flat tops which with an open chamber head would give it something like 8:1 compression if even that...
Nikce video Nick, I hope the client lets you build it right!!
Hey Nick put a blower on top of that motor and make WAY over 600 HP. At 120 per cylinder thats right at somewhere around 8.5 to one. Ideal compression ratio for a blower putting out sub 25 psi on street premium gas. My last performance motor was a 355 SBC with a 144 B&M blower that made close to 450 without the NOS that boosted it to over 600HP. That was out of a 355 SBC. A 434 big block with a 6/71 or paxton setup should be close to 800 if not more without NOS. That is if the pistons are good forged ones, rods are good aftermarket, 4 bolt main block and a steel crank. Otherwise you are making a BIG grenade. Would make for a great RUclips video of dyno disaster segment however if cheap parts are used.