Hey Cameron, sorry for your bad luck, got me thinking now. I've got the heads Spin took off my LS2 if you need them, come get 'em or I'll ship them. Heads and valves only, sorry Spin got the Springs. Heads are Free for any friend of the Spin. Let me know here or by PM.
Good luck with the rebuild. Joe

 

this newyork gang is the best Cameron i know you will be up and running faster then ever, if i can help somehow let me now

 

We'll get him back and running. Spin and I had dinner with him last night. He is bummed, but taking it in stride. He went through 3 motors in his Mustang, so he knows where it's at. I think the biggest decision plaguing him is fix? Make better? Wait and get stroker?

We've got parts, Chuck and his guys are working long hours (and right to the margin for him), and last I heard today, he should be back running before the week is out.

 

thats great news Craig

 

Hopefully it will go as well as my buddy's did. He just bent a couple valves and got a free flycut on a couple pistons. The engine runs strong with new chain and valves.

 

This thread just shows what a great community this is.

San

 

sorry to hear about your loss
I have a dumb question do they make a timing gear for the lsx engines?I know pete jackson made them for the older engines wasn't sure about the new ls engines but it would be great if they did.

 

I stated I used the IWIS kitten from Germany. Lingenfelter is one vendor who sells it. Other chains available are rollmaster single and double roller, Cloyes, Comp cams, and SLP.

 

i use the cloyes timing chain, it is a quality piece

 

The IWIS chain can be had for a great price and there does not appear to be any reason not to upgrade to one.

Props for SpinMonster for taking the time to deliver pertinent insight. I am preparing to do a cam swap and it was not until SpinMonster brought it to my attention that I learned the LS2 chain might possibly be a weak link (please excuse the pun!) and as such added an IWIS chain to my list of parts that needed to be ordered.

 

Sorry to hear that.

 

I'm with you....BUT, While I haven't looked at it with a microscope....My first close look at, what appeared to be, the piston with the most damage reveals that it might not be so bad.

The problem with any piston/valve impact goes beyond the obvious impact site and any possible crack or deformation of the piston top.

The most serious consideration (which is not nearly as easy to see) is what happens to the piston skirts.

Piston skirts are the small "tabs" that extend down from the bottom of the piston which serve to stabilize the piston in it's bore... They are not very strong and their job is to keep the short piston from rocking as it goes up and down keeping the piston square in the hole improving longevity and ring seal.


Notice that the skirt or "tab" at the bottom of the piston is rolled under...Without the skirts, or if they get bent from a piston/valve type impact, the pistson could rock in the bore as it goes up and down causing problems with ring seal and might also cause a piston slap or knocking sound. No good.....


The only sure test is to remove the piston and measure it at the skirt to see if it matches the diameter of the body of the piston....

Why don't they make the skirt stronger, thicker, or make the skirt extend all the way around the bottom of the piston???

Well, for a few reasons....

1) WEIGHT. Nobody wants a heavy piston...We do what we can to minimize reciporcating weight and to be sure the engine is ballanced.

2) Interference. As the piston drops in the hole it gets closer to the rotating crank. As the heavy iron counterweight passes by the bottom of the piston, it nearly misses. They must be clearanced for this reason.

3) Oil control. If the piston skirt was lower or extended all the way around the piston...Yes, the piston might last longer, but...Engine oil slung from the rotating crank and expelled from the rod and main bearings might not make it far enough up the sides of the pistons to keep them properly lubricated.

In the next day or so, I'll remove the oil pan of Cameron's engine and remove the piston to measure it....

I'll try to take some pics and post them up to keep everyone aware of what's happening....

Let's cross our fingers for Cameron.
Chuck CoW

 

fingers crossed, toes crossed, eyes crossed, nads crossed (that one hurts )
Hey Chuck how are you?

 

Very good...(very tired) But very good....

Thanks!
Chuck CoW

 

Sorry to hear about this Cameron. I wish you a new and more powerful motor......and quickly!!

 

Thank you all for the kind comments friends and fellow racers !!

I will be back on the road better than ever, thanks to CHUCK COW for being there till 10:30 pm keeping the shop open till I got towed there safely.

He was kind enough to drive me back to Westbury LI (50 miles) at the ungodly hour of 1:30 AM. Honestly, not even close friends of mine would have done such a favor. This was beyond the call of duty.

Anyway, Chuck will keep all posted on the new rebuild. Thanks all for your support.. Does anyone have a IWIS timing chain for sale real cheap?

 

"I am baaaaaaaack"

This rebuild should be fun ..

 

I was able to install a true-roller double roller (JP made in Australia - bought from TSP) chain in my LS2. Yes, I had to install the provided shims behind the oil pump and also had to shim (by using two front cover gaskets) the front voer out a bit too. This was necessary as the Mellings oil pump was rubbing on the bottom of the front cover. Prior to using two front metal gaskets, I tried to grind away the front cover area with a Dremel, but the area become too thin and I eventually created a "thin" spot in the aluminum. Luckily, I had a another front cover and decides to use two gaskets, which worked perfectly. Also, with the metal compsition, I am not concerned about any leakage. I checked all other outside clearances and have had no problems - the balancer is still in perfect alingment with the other pulleys and the cam gear is perfectly in alignment with the crank gear.

Also, most of the noted stretch with the stock chain has been elimated.

 

Ok, well I just fixed the piston skirt pic....Sorry.... I was attending my new, cute, little god daughter's christening party yesterday when I saw this thread....

I had to use my sister's junk laptop and for some reason the piston pic didn't appear AND something changed with my signatue making it larger than life.....(I hate computers).

Anyway....Today, the pan is going to come off Cameron's motor so we can measure the skirt....

With Cameron's permission we're going to start a new tech type thread to show the progress of the rebuild.

Chuck CoW

 

I have to chime in on that...the o-rings did not fail because they were of a cheaper quality. In fact, they failed because they were operated outside of the range of temperatures they were designed for. They failed to seat properly (or more accurately, took longer to seat properly) when the SRBs were lit allowing some blow by hot gases to damage the seal which lead to the catastrophic failure of the Challenger.