Forged Engine Build

[Djaniero]

Hey guys,
Due to unforeseeable circumstances, my engine builder hasn’t been able to build my forged 5e engine yet.
I have all the parts here… already been balanced etc ready to build and really tempted to just build it myself . I have rebuilt 2 stroke engines before and always carry out other task on my starlet , just never an engine rebuild.
Would you guys advise to build it up myself ? If so please share your tips and knowledge. I have watched countless 4e rebuilt videos and have an engine manual.

Failing that I can try and find another competent builder ?

Thanks
@dac69er @Jay @SKINY @gorganl2000

 

[dac69er]

It's not too hard if you are methodical and keep things clean as you go.

Measure things to make sure tolerances are within spec. If you have the manual that will help with most bits, but clearances etc on forged stuff will be different. Oil clearances too can be down to the experience of the builder and how you wish to use the car etc.

It's not hard, but there is a lot that can go wrong and if it does, it can be expensive.

 

[Djaniero]

Will I still need a dial bore gauge and micrometer if the block has been rebored and bottom end fully balanced?

I have wossner pistons so I know I will have to work on ring gap on their online calculator.

 

[SKINY]

I'm in the same boat Bud lol
Pulled many a Vauxhall/Ford engine apart and rebuilt them in my youth, scramblers, quads etc anything engine wise I always done myself
BUT with the amount of cash I've currently into the engine with bits I'm gonna pay an expert to build the short block.
Reasons
It's a fucking expensive box of bits
I'd like the engine checked over and properly cleaned etc
Don't have the time currently
And the fear of fucking it up

 

[dac69er]

Will I still need a dial bore gauge and micrometer if the block has been rebored and bottom end fully balanced?

I have wossner pistons so I know I will have to work on ring gap on their online calculator.

Has the block been machined for those pistons specifically?

If so and you trust their work, then you should be fine. You should check your rings gaps, but chances are they have gone in the bigger size of the tolerance anyway.

If you are using the graded Toyota engine bearings then probably worth getting some plastigauge. Otherwise, if you know whether the crank journals are all standard or undersized and you are getting ungraded bearings, then you can still measure them with plastigauge to try and match them up as best you can to the oil clearances, but I will be honest, I've never bothered.

If you have a torque wrench and a feeler guage, you can do most of the assembly no bother. Just take your time and ask questions if unsure.

 

[Djaniero]

I'm in the same boat Bud lol
Pulled many a Vauxhall/Ford engine apart and rebuilt them in my youth, scramblers, quads etc anything engine wise I always done myself
BUT with the amount of cash I've currently into the engine with bits I'm gonna pay an expert to build the short block.
Reasons
It's a fucking expensive box of bits
I'd like the engine checked over and properly cleaned etc
Don't have the time currently
And the fear of fucking it up

Haha that was my worry also… “fucking expensive box of bits lol”

 

[Djaniero]

Has the block been machined for those pistons specifically?

If so and you trust their work, then you should be fine. You should check your rings gaps, but chances are they have gone in the bigger size of the tolerance anyway.

If you are using the graded Toyota engine bearings then probably worth getting some plastigauge. Otherwise, if you know whether the crank journals are all standard or undersized and you are getting ungraded bearings, then you can still measure them with plastigauge to try and match them up as best you can to the oil clearances, but I will be honest, I've never bothered.

If you have a torque wrench and a feeler guage, you can do most of the assembly no bother. Just take your time and ask questions if unsure.

Thanks Ducan.
Yeah machine shop is reputable ( first one messed me about to no end, and work was shoddy ) and they machined the block for the new oversized wossners , cleaned decked it etc.
I have been looking at the ring gap calculator on the wossner site for the forced induction setup and 95% understand what I need to do to check and file them down if necessary.
The machine shop polished and inspected the crank and everything was still within spec. So I bought a set of standard size Taiho Bearings. I was thinking to get some platigauge either way to triple check things .
I have a 1/2 torque wrench already but was thinking to get a smaller one for other nuts and bolts that require less torque?
Just need an engine stand, ring file and piston ring compressor.

 

[SKINY]

Suddenly the 1K I was quoted dosnt sound like a bad idea lol
Our local Legendary tuner Richard Bradley was my plan but he's not taking anything else until next year he's that busy.
Dan Rudd djr uses SSA performance for all his builds, they seem like a reputable company that knows the crack, a bit rare these days

 

[gorganl2000]

i've participated in rebuilding a few 4e/5e engines with my former mechanic (unfortunately he passed away a few years ago), so if i had to do it now, i strongly believe could...would i want to?? probably if i was forced to....i'm not a mechanic by trade, far from, but i'm lucky to have acquired a fair amount of mechanical knowledge since childhood.

if you have mechanical knowledge, manuals, videos and access to the tools you can try it...may be you can rent/borrow some of the tool you don't have,,,as it's likely you'll never need them again

if you do decide to undertake this task yourself, probably its best to take your time and do it in phases.....however, as some others have indicated, if it goes wrong then its a very expensive lesson for you,...that's the risk and only you can make that decision.


now with regards to the forged engine block, i remember my machine shop had each piston and the associated rings labelled for each individual bore so that i could not mix them up...so that's something i'd suggest you double check...the machine shop was responsible for leveling the block deck, bore/hone work and filing the rings to match

 

[Jay]

There's always that worry..

Hard to give you a definite answer but I will say it's a much happier experience when I install a pre-built engine knowing I haven't had a chance to forget something silly. Depends on your options, if you can find a reliable builder I would lean in that direction. If you can't then take the brave pills and go for it.

 

[dac69er]

There's always that worry..

Hard to give you a definite answer but I will say it's a much happier experience when I install a pre-built engine knowing I haven't had a chance to forget something silly. Depends on your options, if you can find a reliable builder I would lean in that direction. If you can't then take the brave pills and go for it.

I'm the other way. I trust no one as I'm never impressed with what I get. I am glad I didn't let the place that did my machining work out the engine together, put it that way.....

 

[gorganl2000]

I'm the other way. I trust no one as I'm never impressed with what I get. I am glad I didn't let the place that did my machining work out the engine together, put it that way.....

i can totally understand that...since my mechanic passed away (he was meticulous), any mechanical work that i can undertake by myself, i do just that
sometimes it's very hard to find reasonably priced competent people/businesses

 

[Djaniero]

Suddenly the 1K I was quoted dosnt sound like a bad idea lol
Our local Legendary tuner Richard Bradley was my plan but he's not taking anything else until next year he's that busy.
Dan Rudd djr uses SSA performance for all his builds, they seem like a reputable company that knows the crack, a bit rare these days

I follow the SSA guys on YouTube and they seem like a reputable bunch of lads for sure. It’s just a mission to get the engine bits there as they are a good few hours away from me.

 

[Djaniero]

i've participated in rebuilding a few 4e/5e engines with my former mechanic (unfortunately he passed away a few years ago), so if i had to do it now, i strongly believe could...would i want to?? probably if i was forced to....i'm not a mechanic by trade, far from, but i'm lucky to have acquired a fair amount of mechanical knowledge since childhood.

if you have mechanical knowledge, manuals, videos and access to the tools you can try it...may be you can rent/borrow some of the tool you don't have,,,as it's likely you'll never need them again

if you do decide to undertake this task yourself, probably its best to take your time and do it in phases.....however, as some others have indicated, if it goes wrong then its a very expensive lesson for you,...that's the risk and only you can make that decision.


now with regards to the forged engine block, i remember my machine shop had each piston and the associated rings labelled for each individual bore so that i could not mix them up...so that's something i'd suggest you double check...the machine shop was responsible for leveling the block deck, bore/hone work and filing the rings to match

Hail Gorgan.
I have a majority of the tools needed already. I just need things like ring file, plasti gauge engine stand and piston ring compressor. I have a few engine manuals and YouTube tutorials which I have ben studying for a while.

I agree . If I do build it, I will take my time and triple check everything as it will be an expensive lesson if it h goes wrong .

As the bottom end has been fully balance my research indicates that I need to weigh the piston rod and pins to ensure they are all within a gram of each other across the 4 bores.

 

[Djaniero]

There's always that worry..

Hard to give you a definite answer but I will say it's a much happier experience when I install a pre-built engine knowing I haven't had a chance to forget something silly. Depends on your options, if you can find a reliable builder I would lean in that direction. If you can't then take the brave pills and go for it.

Reliable builders are rare as hens teeth in my neck of the woods these days. The ones who are, aren’t really interested in building old Toyota engines unfortunately. So I may have to take the brave pills mate. As Duncan said part of me can’t help but feel that no garages will work on your engine as good as you will, mainly due to the time scale most garages are working on these days to get jobs in and out

 

[Djaniero]

I'm the other way. I trust no one as I'm never impressed with what I get. I am glad I didn't let the place that did my machining work out the engine together, put it that way.....

I remember you saying that you weren’t overly impressed with the work the machine shop did