Well, this thing cleaned up nicely

"The Swedish Bandit" (swedishbandit) 01/09/2018 at 12:59 • Filed to: JOY, Pontiac

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A couple of years ago I bought an engine:

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

That engine then sat for a very long time before being finally sent off to a machine shop where the block was bored .06" over and the crank and rods was balanced among some other things.

After that I installed some new pistons, put the main caps on and then wraped the whole thing in plastic film and then left it as is for some 3 years due to not having the economy of doing what I wanted to do with it.

Now however! After a couple of trips back and forth to the States packing as many engine parts as possible in my luggage (yes, an aluminum head will clear the TSA) on the way home I have finally accumulated enough parts to start building the engine again, which BTW is a Pontiac 389, or should I say 400 now that it’s .06" over.

I REALLY don’t like the Pontiac baby blue that come on most of these engines...

Heads are going on. I ended up choosing a set of Edelbrock Performers, should be sufficient for my needs.

High pressure oil pump, hydraulic roller cam and chain drive all lined up and in place.

Lifters, pushrods and rockers in place. Hopefully this valvetrain will be much quieter than in my old motor.

And that’s where I am right now. I am currently waiting on my valley pan to clean up a bit while it’s soaked in a bath of diesel. Hopefully that and the intake will go on next weekend and then I’ll only need a couple of more things and I’ll be good to start her up.

DutchieDC2R > The Swedish Bandit 01/09/2018 at 14:54

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You actually went to the USA to get the parts? Where are you from?

The Swedish Bandit > DutchieDC2R 01/09/2018 at 15:19

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Well yes, or no. My job takes me there sometimes so whenever I’m over I try to fill up as many bags as possible. Just shipping one aluminum head over here would cost close to 400 dollars with tax and everything.

You can probably guess where I’m from from my name.

DutchieDC2R > The Swedish Bandit 01/09/2018 at 15:48

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Its been a long day, I figured you were from a country up north. And yeah, youre right about the shipping and taxes, Ive had to cough it up more than once.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 04:21

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This stuff makes me want to rework my chevy engine.
Starting from a 283, swapping in a 350 crate engine would probably be the cheaper and easier thing though

The Swedish Bandit > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 01/10/2018 at 04:27

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Probably. If I’d known what this would have cost when I first started I would probably also have gone the SBC route. Even though such a thing is sacrilege to Pontiacs...

Future next gen S2000 owner > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 11:18

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What part of Sweden are you in? I make regular trips over to Malmo, Stockholm, and Ostersund to visit the in-laws.

HammerheadFistpunch > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 11:35

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She’s a beaut clark. Did you see the latest engine master where the test those roller rockers?

Party-vi > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 11:56

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Noice

The Swedish Bandit > Future next gen S2000 owner 01/10/2018 at 12:00

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Linköping, so right in between Stockholm and Malmö. Let me know if you’re ever close and we could meet up.

The Swedish Bandit > HammerheadFistpunch 01/10/2018 at 12:03

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Yes I did! And now I regret not getting the 1.6's :(

However I do think I read somewhere that one of the parts I used, either the heads or the cam wasn’t compatible with the 1.6's or something.

HammerheadFistpunch > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 12:04

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Now you just need clear cam covers.

The Swedish Bandit > Party-vi 01/10/2018 at 12:05

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Hopefully not too far off. As soon as it’s complete I plan on installing in my subframe and fire her up.

The Swedish Bandit > HammerheadFistpunch 01/10/2018 at 12:13

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Yes! Especially since I just learned that my super fancy Edelbrock aluminum covers won’t clear the roller rockers :/

HammerheadFistpunch > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 12:16

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womp womp

random001 > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 12:18

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Dis is purty Oppo.

The Swedish Bandit > HammerheadFistpunch 01/10/2018 at 12:28

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DANGER DANGER DANGER!

Future next gen S2000 owner > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 15:22

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I am trying to convince the in-laws that I need to take a day trip to Angelholm. Out of the way by a few hours. I’ll let you know next time I fly over.

crowmolly > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 15:27

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Cool!

But I have to ask- are you sure those are the correct head gaskets?

The Swedish Bandit > Future next gen S2000 owner 01/10/2018 at 15:36

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Gonna visit the Koenigsegg factory eh? Cool if that’s the case, never been there myself. Sure let me know next time you’re over here and we’ll see where I’m at.

Future next gen S2000 owner > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 15:41

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I’m gonna try at least. They may not let me in. Haha

The Swedish Bandit > crowmolly 01/10/2018 at 15:44

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Yup, Edelbrock also sells they’re own version of this gasket which is just a re branded FelPro (which is what this is) for about twice the price. What makes you ask BTW?

Now the sad thing is that I originally bought a set of super nice, ultra thin and expensive MLS Cometic head gaskets. However apparently those fit all Pontiac blocks except for the 389 which has “notches” in the cylinder bores in different places than the 400 and up which I learned the hard way... No big loss though as I’d have no problem reselling parts like that to the Pontiac crowd in Sweden.

Die-Trying > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 15:44

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did you know that they make aluminium valve cover spacers? solutions to stupid problems.... they are a bit proud of them though....

The Swedish Bandit > Die-Trying 01/10/2018 at 15:51

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No, but I’m not too surprised that they do either. I’ll probably just sell my current valve covers and buy a set of new ones instead that are slightly bigger. Resorting to spacers always kinda seems like an afterthought solution to something you should have done right in the first place (which I obviously didn’t think through).

crowmolly > The Swedish Bandit 01/10/2018 at 17:53

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Just the spots in red. Looked a little suspect to me.

The Swedish Bandit > crowmolly 01/11/2018 at 01:46

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I see what you’re saying. The reason it is made like that is probably to accommodate as many model years as possible and to be symmetrical. That’s why you see holes for the blocked of oil channels (which are open on the other end of the block.

The other big hole that enters the lifter valley is just being shared with a head bolt hole, shouldn’t really affect the function of the gasket in any way.