454 Tall Deck LS Engine
Adam Wik knew he was a motorhead at an early age. Auto shop was favored over playing sports and attending races ultimately led to him selling his belongings to open up Wiks Racing Engines. Off-road and endurance engines are the shop’s specialty, like this 454 Tall Deck LS engine for the Baja 500. Click to find out the full details.
408 LS Engine
Whether his customers need 300 hp or 2,500 hp, Luke Siebert of Siebert Performance has them covered. His shop specializes in performance engines and carburetor work, and churns out gems like this 408 LS engine for bracket racing. Find out the details of this 740 horsepower engine.
Success On – and Off – the Track for Dayton, Ohio Engine Builder Bobby Jacks
It isn’t often that successful performance on the track and effective engine building skills come from the same individual. But for Ohio resident and Daytonian Bobby Jacks who, after many decades of experience, has proven that one can have considerable talent in both.
Safe Cleaning – Are the Concepts Compatible?
The subject of cleaning is never far from the mind of the modern engine builder or machine shop supervisor. Obviously, parts must be as clean as possible so they can be inspected, repaired if possible and reassembled. The subject of SAFE cleaning is a little less definitive, however.
Kamikaze Chris’ 566 cid Big Block Chevy Engine
Kamikaze Chris of Street Outlaws told Graham Jones of FastTimes Motorworks that his new engine needed to have ‘a bunch of power.’ The rest was up to Jones and his shop. Find out the details that went into making this 566 cid big block Chevy put out 1,000 hp more than the previous engine in the El Camino!
465 Small Block Chevy Engine
Steve Schmidt is a busy guy. He runs Steve Schmidt Racing Engines in Indianapolis, a 28,000 sq.-ft. engine shop capable of producing 700 engines a year, with two full machine shops and a dyno. This 465 small block Chevy is one of those engines. Click to find out the details of this 925-hp build.
Cadillac’s First-Ever Twin-Turbo V8
Cadillac begins a new chapter in its high-performance legacy with the introduction of the brand’s first-ever twin-turbo V8 engine. It is the centerpiece of the new CT6 V-Sport, a sports sedan infused with DNA of Cadillac’s motorsports program.
440 LS Dirt Late-Model Engine
Fans of Jeff Baldwin’s engines have said his power plants rev with a signature sound known by many as the ‘Baldwin sound.’ This 440 LS dirt late-model engine carries that signature roar as well. Find out what went into this unique build heading down under to Australia.
Supercharged 598 Big Block Chevy Engine
Recently, one of Bruce Baker’s customers flipped his boat and got the engine all wet. Not wanting the salt to eat through the big block Chevy, Bruce and his team at Express Engines got to work tearing it down, cleaning it up and rebuilding this supercharged 598 big block Chevy.
747 Big Block Chevy Nitrous Engine
Tired of seeing blower engines in Top Dragster, Bob Reinhardt of MadCap Racing Engines wanted to build a nitrous engine for his customer. The result was a 1,500 hp 747 big block Chevy nitrous engine. Find out what went into the build!
What Makes a Racing Piston?
That clearly is an open-ended question because the answer will single out the uber-sophisticated pistons designed for Formula 1 and World Endurance Challenge (WEC), yet to be completely literal the response must acknowledge hand-modified cast factory pistons used in Hobby Stock racing at the local dirt track.
369 cid LS-Based Bonneville Engine
To break land speed records at the Bonneville Salt Flats, a lot of things need to go your way. Customers Andy Loyd and Gene McFaddin turned to Jim Gray at Venom Racing Engines to build them a Bonneville engine capable of topping 240 mph. Find out why this 369 cid LS engine could be a record setter this summer.
Sprint and Stock Car Engine Market
Building engines for sprint cars and late-model stock cars is a good niche to be in if your local tracks have a strong racing program that is attracting significant numbers of racers and fans. It takes both to maintain a healthy market and a steady demand for engine work.
An In-Depth Look at Crankshafts
In every aspect of an engine, strength is a very critical factor in the life span and performance level that it can achieve. One place in particular where strength is the most important consideration is the crankshaft.
Getting Aboard with Inboard Marine Engines
Marine engine building is a niche market that is much smaller than the automotive market, but it can also be a very lucrative business for those with the know-how and experience.
Why That 5.3L LS Can Be A Parts Nightmare
The combinations of pistons, gaskets, camshafts, lifters, cam bearings, head bolts, timing sets and oil pumps are endless. And though the options don’t seem quite as large, quoting a 6.0L GM without a year and VIN is just about as difficult.
Ultrasonic Cleaning Technology
Ultrasonic cleaning is one of the ways engine builders can choose to clean parts, but what is it and how does it work? Is it the too-good-to-be-true stuff of science fiction or is it the best technique ever for cleaning the dirtiest of engine components? The truth, as they say, lies somewhere in the middle.
Miller’s Machine Shop; 2016 Diesel Engine Builder of the Year
The owner of Miller’s Machine Shop in Lincoln University, PA, the 2016 Diesel Engine Builder of the Year, has been building winning engines since he was 10 years old.
Shop Solutions – October 2017
Some cylinder heads, like small block Mopars, have the intake manifold bolt holes at a slight angle from the manifold flange. This makes it hard to mount on our surfacing machine milling plate because, when you tighten up the mounting studs against the plate, it wants to bend the stud.
Blown 408 Windsor Engine
Tony Guadagni bought a ’67 Mercury Cougar for $300 in 1987. He has since turned it into a race car capable of 9-second quarter mile runs courtesy of a Blown 408 cid Windsor engine.
