383 Engine on eBay??
03-12-2011, 12:12 AM
#1
Burning Brakes
Thread Starter
383 Engine on eBay??
Hey guys i'm looking for your thoughts on this engine I found on ebay. I'm not quite ready yet for an engine as I am doing a frame up restoration. However, I found this set-up to be interesting and I would consider buying it. I have a 71 Convertible, I will be adding a Tremec TKO500, 4:11 gears, vette brakes rack and pinion steering set-up, and more.
I would plan to use for car shows, cruises, and occasional trip down the drag strip. I would want someting that would run on pump gas, with good street manners, but with a little lumpy cam idle. What are your thoughts on this engine? I'm a bit leary on buying an engine on ebay. Any feedback would be appreciated!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/CHEVY...item5642add51f
I would plan to use for car shows, cruises, and occasional trip down the drag strip. I would want someting that would run on pump gas, with good street manners, but with a little lumpy cam idle. What are your thoughts on this engine? I'm a bit leary on buying an engine on ebay. Any feedback would be appreciated!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/CHEVY...item5642add51f
03-12-2011, 09:10 AM
#6
It may be a GM block, but most everything inside will be imported.
I had a set of Pro Comp heads, from this same individual and they were junk ! You could not buy an intake gasket that would fit the heads, and the castings looked worse than the old GM cast iron heads in the runners.
I had a set of Pro Comp heads, from this same individual and they were junk ! You could not buy an intake gasket that would fit the heads, and the castings looked worse than the old GM cast iron heads in the runners.
03-12-2011, 09:34 AM
#7
Le Mans Master
Member Since: Sep 2001
Location: Unreconstructed, South Carolina
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One notable exception is a piece from Year One ... exempted because after several years so many are using it with rare complaint. A +400hp roller-cam pump-gas motor for $3K. Reference YearOne CT350PC1
03-12-2011, 09:43 AM
#8
i find skip white a bit weird and think pro comp is a gamble.
I had a set of Pro Comp heads, from this same individual and they were junk ! You could not buy an intake gasket that would fit the heads, and the castings looked worse than the old GM cast iron heads in the runners.
I just bought a 383 rotating assembly from them for my build.
You don't get to be a top rated E-bay seller for nothing.
If you check ebay, 30184 positive reviews/feedback in the last 12 months and 29 negative (that is 0.096%);
http://feedback.ebay.com/ebaymotors/...=off&items=200
and Skip White got run off this forum for not being a supporting vendor defending his products so he's not very popular here.
Be an educated buyer, check the feedback and see if any of it pertains to his crate motors.
I reckon most of it is the I-ordered-two-received-only-one variety.
Keep in mind, you can get a bad engine anywhere, even from you local "highly recommended" machine shop.
Used to know this guy, most respected engine builder in the county (!) had a motor grenade on him on the second 1/4 mile pass.
Point being, unless it says Toyota or KIA on the grille you never know.
*** Just read the Ebay posting again, he does offer warranty on this engine and it uses the new Bowtie block rather then a refurbished "old" block ****
Go for it.
Last edited by Imo Apita; 03-12-2011 at 01:12 PM.
03-12-2011, 06:39 PM
#11
Drifting
I think Jackson is spot on. It looks like a bunch of poor quality stuff. I personally don't care for the cross hatch in the cylinder walls. Check the rep. with the Pro Comp stuff. For that money I'd not like a scat crank either.
03-12-2011, 07:00 PM
#12
Did you get back to them and try and get the issue resolved?
I just bought a 383 rotating assembly from them for my build.
You don't get to be a top rated E-bay seller for nothing.
If you check ebay, 30184 positive reviews/feedback in the last 12 months and 29 negative (that is 0.096%);
http://feedback.ebay.com/ebaymotors/...=off&items=200
and Skip White got run off this forum for not being a supporting vendor defending his products so he's not very popular here.
Be an educated buyer, check the feedback and see if any of it pertains to his crate motors.
I reckon most of it is the I-ordered-two-received-only-one variety.
Keep in mind, you can get a bad engine anywhere, even from you local "highly recommended" machine shop.
Used to know this guy, most respected engine builder in the county (!) had a motor grenade on him on the second 1/4 mile pass.
Point being, unless it says Toyota or KIA on the grille you never know.
*** Just read the Ebay posting again, he does offer warranty on this engine and it uses the new Bowtie block rather then a refurbished "old" block ****
Go for it.
I just bought a 383 rotating assembly from them for my build.
You don't get to be a top rated E-bay seller for nothing.
If you check ebay, 30184 positive reviews/feedback in the last 12 months and 29 negative (that is 0.096%);
http://feedback.ebay.com/ebaymotors/...=off&items=200
and Skip White got run off this forum for not being a supporting vendor defending his products so he's not very popular here.
Be an educated buyer, check the feedback and see if any of it pertains to his crate motors.
I reckon most of it is the I-ordered-two-received-only-one variety.
Keep in mind, you can get a bad engine anywhere, even from you local "highly recommended" machine shop.
Used to know this guy, most respected engine builder in the county (!) had a motor grenade on him on the second 1/4 mile pass.
Point being, unless it says Toyota or KIA on the grille you never know.
*** Just read the Ebay posting again, he does offer warranty on this engine and it uses the new Bowtie block rather then a refurbished "old" block ****
Go for it.
If you want to support him, that is your choice. As far as I am concerned, my dealing with him was a bad experience.
Most people on Fle Bay leave feedback long befor they get a chance to use something for a few months.
The guy is a hell of a writer, If old Walt Disney was still alive he would hire him in a second.
Last edited by Phil Zell; 03-12-2011 at 07:08 PM.
03-12-2011, 07:05 PM
#13
Drifting
Member Since: Apr 2006
Location: gold coast queensland
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pro comp has improved from when it first appeared so most now are getting more reliable better parts but its still not up to the quality of most other speed parts. Im pretty close to the blokes at my local speed shop and they dont stock much of it any more due to too many returns and complaints.
03-12-2011, 11:21 PM
#15
I would never build a motor using a block that has not been seasoned.
That is such an old-wives tale, but I guess you wouldn't believe me so:
http://www.fordmuscleforums.com/all-...referable.html
http://www.hotrodders.com/forum/seas...new-36589.html
http://forums.corral.net/forums/5-0-...new-block.html
I personally don't care for the cross hatch in the cylinder walls
And you could tell that from a picture?
You couldn't tell that wasn't the final finish?
Last edited by Imo Apita; 03-12-2011 at 11:29 PM.
03-12-2011, 11:22 PM
#16
Burning Brakes
Thread Starter
Hey everyone, thanks for the feedback...just what I was looking for. The photo of the engine in that ebay listing looks great and the guy sure knows how to write, but I guess looks can be decieving huh!! Sounds like I should just find a local engine shop. Maybe i'll just keep my current block and have it machined and use much higher quality parts. That way, I wouldn't get stuck with an ebay engine that was built with crapy foreign internal parts and then try to deal with someone hundreds of miles away when something fails...
03-12-2011, 11:33 PM
#17
then try to deal with someone hundreds of miles away when something fails...
Go ahead call them, talk to them. Don't go by 12 posts on an anonymous forum, mine included. I could be a doctor for all you know....
Last edited by Imo Apita; 03-12-2011 at 11:36 PM.
03-13-2011, 07:33 AM
#19
Drifting
I do cross hatch every day. and a photo can show the cross hatch as I've sent them to customers myself.
Most everything on here is opinion. Some with experience and some speculative.
An internet search will only add to that dilemma. As that is opinion also.
A good rule of thumb though is If it's cheap there is a reason. There is a reason Nascar uses particular brands of parts.
It is a balance of how well you want to build your engine. There is no such engine as a bullet proof engine. Or you would never see one granade on the Sunday races.
The better the parts in the bottom end the stronger and most likely longer it will last. Some of the cranks coming from china, or any of the parts from there, are suspect in quality with regard to the metal content. I do know that when a customer wants one in an engine I'm doing, I have it turned .010 X .010 as I've found them to not be true to center line.
Unless you flow test a head can anyone really know what it flows? Nope. Just reading the advertising from a guy who wants to sell the part.
Just like the advertised MPG you read on some cars. They must take those tests at mile high stadium, with a strong tail wind, a 60 pounds 9 year old driver, and going with the rotation of the earth.
As far as the warranty goes, I've seen customers go through that battle before. By the time you end up trying to prove the questions they have you may end up with just a settlement for a part of the engine.
Ask if they or who is going to cover the R&R on the deal also.
With a local builder, you at least have someone you can get into small claims court or common pleas court for that matter. Won't happen out of state.
Same deal with crate motors. Somebody is building that engone. Is it built by somebody who works an engine from start to finish. Or is it built on an assembly line where the builder does the same thing all day and really doesn't get a feel for how the engine is going together. I don't know. I can tell you, building one from stem to stern you can get a feel sometimes when something just isn't right. That feeling often results in finding an issue, found by taking it back down and inspecting more closely.
Back to the rule of thumb. Really good parts have a cost to produce. Therefore, have a cost that must be met. So nobody I know staying in business, can stay that way, by giving them away.
Cheap parts are cheap for a reason.
Most everything on here is opinion. Some with experience and some speculative.
An internet search will only add to that dilemma. As that is opinion also.
A good rule of thumb though is If it's cheap there is a reason. There is a reason Nascar uses particular brands of parts.
It is a balance of how well you want to build your engine. There is no such engine as a bullet proof engine. Or you would never see one granade on the Sunday races.
The better the parts in the bottom end the stronger and most likely longer it will last. Some of the cranks coming from china, or any of the parts from there, are suspect in quality with regard to the metal content. I do know that when a customer wants one in an engine I'm doing, I have it turned .010 X .010 as I've found them to not be true to center line.
Unless you flow test a head can anyone really know what it flows? Nope. Just reading the advertising from a guy who wants to sell the part.
Just like the advertised MPG you read on some cars. They must take those tests at mile high stadium, with a strong tail wind, a 60 pounds 9 year old driver, and going with the rotation of the earth.
As far as the warranty goes, I've seen customers go through that battle before. By the time you end up trying to prove the questions they have you may end up with just a settlement for a part of the engine.
Ask if they or who is going to cover the R&R on the deal also.
With a local builder, you at least have someone you can get into small claims court or common pleas court for that matter. Won't happen out of state.
Same deal with crate motors. Somebody is building that engone. Is it built by somebody who works an engine from start to finish. Or is it built on an assembly line where the builder does the same thing all day and really doesn't get a feel for how the engine is going together. I don't know. I can tell you, building one from stem to stern you can get a feel sometimes when something just isn't right. That feeling often results in finding an issue, found by taking it back down and inspecting more closely.
Back to the rule of thumb. Really good parts have a cost to produce. Therefore, have a cost that must be met. So nobody I know staying in business, can stay that way, by giving them away.
Cheap parts are cheap for a reason.
03-13-2011, 07:42 AM
#20
Drifting
By the way, looking at their shop, they have good equipment there. If all the blocks are machined and preped like the photos I don't question the block. Just for quality I would buy better parts.
To me, with the block prep they do, I'd ask if you could upgrade and choose your parts yourself. It's done all the time tith things such as the gasket kit. There should be no reason you couldn't request a quote with a crank, rods, pistons, cam and heads of your choice.
My bet is they won't be that flexible
To me, with the block prep they do, I'd ask if you could upgrade and choose your parts yourself. It's done all the time tith things such as the gasket kit. There should be no reason you couldn't request a quote with a crank, rods, pistons, cam and heads of your choice.
My bet is they won't be that flexible