New Member, Project Underway

Nope. Unneeded. They don't really add any structural integrity to the block anyway. It's mostly a marketing deal about them adding additional "strength" to the block
So, does anyone think I should shell out an extra $400 for a girdle support for the bottom end? Is that necessary for the kind of power I'm looking to make?
 
Another stupid question: I'm assuming I can't reuse my roller tappets?
If they test out fine and aren't stuck/rusty/collapsed etc you can reuse them. Great thing about roller cams/lifters is they'll last a very long time. If you want cheap insurance buy a new set(what's another 100-150$) but they should be fine
 
If they test out fine and aren't stuck/rusty/collapsed etc you can reuse them. Great thing about roller cams/lifters is they'll last a very long time. If you want cheap insurance buy a new set(what's another 100-150$) but they should be fine

They "look" fine and definitely weren't rusted at all.. in fact they fell right out as soon as I pulled the cam... I was told not to reuse them if I'm changing cams, which of course I am. I'm also not sure which order they came out in since a bunch of them literally fell out at the same time.:oops:

Think this set is worth the price over a new set of stockers? http://www.americanmuscle.com/frpp-highperformance-hydrollerlifter-8595.html?source=igodigital
 
K here's the deal on roller lifters vs "reg" hyd lifters. You don't have to change rollers with a cam change. Reg hyd lifters you do. As far as the extra $$ for the "hp" rollers vs regular roller lifters.. I personally don't think they are worth the extra 70$ your engine is going to be a performance street engine turning under 7k rpm. Regular rollers will turn that all day without failure. If you want to use them that's fine but not necessary
 
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Alright, time for yet another stupid question (I did promise I'd have loads). While I've got the bottom end apart, should I opt for a high-flow oil filter? I think this necessitates a different oil pan. If it's a good mod I'll do it, but if it isn't necessary for my build I'll pass and save some $$.
 
Alright, time for yet another stupid question (I did promise I'd have loads). While I've got the bottom end apart, should I opt for a high-flow oil filter? I think this necessitates a different oil pan. If it's a good mod I'll do it, but if it isn't necessary for my build I'll pass and save some $$.
Do you mean high volume pump? If so the answer is no. A regular oil pump is recommended. As far as an oil filter I like fram filters or a good OL Motorcraft
 
Here's the block back from the machine shop, bored to 4.030 and ready to go. I couldn't resist taping it up and painting it good old Ford Blue (the darker version). It looks somewhat lighter in this pic than it actually is...
 

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That rear axle looks good!

Thanks! It used to look like this... I got the rust off with repeated coat of naval jelly then painted it with matte black Rustoleum, pressed the old upper axle bushings out and replaced them with new ones, replaced all the control arms with J&M tubular steel ones, got all new braided, teflon-coated steel hoses, bent all new coated hard lines (wife helped with that), bent the dust shields back flat, sanded them clean and painted them with metallic 1000-degree heat paint, replaced the caliper brackets with new ones (plus pins and boots), cleaned up the calipers and painted them and the brackets with more heat paint (matte black), drained the old gear oil and replaced it with new, and replaced the stock cover with the aluminum finned one from Steeda. I've got polyurethane isolators and bushings ready to go for when I actually get around to the install, plus a new set of speedo gears. I'll reuse the rotors, pads, rear sway bar, and wheel spacers from my current setup.

Hopefully the engine build goes well too. I'm pretty OCD about details in case nobody noticed...:rolleyes:
 

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Well, I guess this restoration is over unless I can pick up another 94/95 car, this time a GT... At least I didn't get hurt.
 

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Road went from just wet to slicker than eel $hit in about 1/10 of a second while I was going uphill. I lost the back end and the front simultaneously and went into the median... best I could do was go between the steel supports instead of straight into them.