4.6 stroker engine rebuild nightmare story (Cylinder 2 at 35 psi)

Hi. First off I’m sorry you got screwed over on your engine rebuild.
As a mechanic myself, I take it personally when I hear stories like yours.

Stop messing around with the borescope and all the rest. Cut your losses and install a good used engine.
Set your original aside until you can rebuild it yourself or have an actual reputable mechanic do it.
From your description of the “rebuild” that was done by a guy that “ builds engines” it was sloppy sloppy work.
Trust me, not even 10% of what needed to be done got done.
That engine needs to come out and be rebuilt properly. You can be rolling again in less than a week with a used engine. Find another mechanic.
 
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Rings might not have been gapped correctly. Or not clocked correctly...you want the gaps typically 180 out. Or might not even be the right size rings...installed upside down (there is a chamfered edge usually) or the wrong order.

Only way to find out at this point is tear it all down...

-Mac
 
Ironically...the reason I went with this "experienced" guy is 1) to save time and 2) so I wouldn't overlook some minor thing I'm unfamiliar with, like upside down rings or wrong order, and have to pull the engine and start over. That came back to bite me in the butt- would've been faster and no doubt less bad if I had just tried it myself.

I ordered the rings and pistons as part of a rebuild kit so they should be the right ones.
 
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It’s not just rings I’m afraid.
Again from your description of the “rebuild”, there’s no telling what else could be wrong with your engine.
You’ve got a new stroker kit that some idiot cobbled into god knows what. Don’t risk losing those expensive parts. In my opinion you’re wasting time and guessing. At minimum, your engine needs to be disassembled and inspected.
If someone will put a used head on a rebuilt engine and apparently can’t install rings properly, what else is messed up?

Was the block cleaned properly? Were the bearing clearances checked?
Were the rod and main caps torqued properly?
just a few of many questions you should like to see answered.
 
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Richard49 said:
It’s not just rings I’m afraid.
Again from your description of the “rebuild”, there’s no telling what else could be wrong with your engine.
You’ve got a new stroker kit that some idiot cobbled into god knows what. Don’t risk losing those expensive parts. In my opinion you’re wasting time and guessing. At minimum, your engine needs to be disassembled and inspected.
If someone will put a used head on a rebuilt engine and apparently can’t install rings properly, what else is messed up?

Was the block cleaned properly? Were the bearing clearances checked?
Were the rod and main caps torqued properly?
just a few of many questions you should like to see answered.
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Oh yeah I'm starting fresh. I'll just try to reuse crank, pistons, camshaft and timing gear. He was supposed to use the 128k mile used head from MY engine, but used some random used head instead.

I'm just asking this stuff so I know what to look for when I'm tearing it down. I'm going to take this guy to small claims court. It'd be nice if I could identify the specific problems when I do.
 
Carve said:
Oh yeah I'm starting fresh. I'll just try to reuse crank, pistons, camshaft and timing gear. He was supposed to use the 128k mile used head from MY engine, but used some random used head instead.

I'm just asking this stuff so I know what to look for when I'm tearing it down. I'm going to take this guy to small claims court. It'd be nice if I could identify the specific problems when I do.
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Yeah my apologies if went a little overboard there. It just chaps my butt when people claim to be mechanics or engine builders or whatever when they are no more than shade tree hacks.
I would suggest you find someone with experience to help you. If I didn’t live so far away I would offer any help I can give for free.
 
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Richard49 said:
Yeah my apologies if went a little overboard there. It just chaps my butt when people claim to be mechanics or engine builders or whatever when they are no more than shade tree hacks.
I would suggest you find someone with experience to help you. If I didn’t live so far away I would offer any help I can give for free.
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Its almost as bad as some of the hacks working in shops claiming to be mechanics. Its tough to find competent wrench turners these days.
 
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Rickyd said:
Its almost as bad as some of the hacks working in shops claiming to be mechanics. Its tough to find competent wrench turners these days.
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Shops paying flat rate created the shortage. No one wants to work an 8 hour day and only get paid for 4 hours. Or stand around waiting for work without getting paid.
 
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Jezza said:
Shops paying flat rate created the shortage. No one wants to work an 8 hour day and only get paid for 4 hours. Or stand around waiting for work without getting paid.
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And made an atmosphere of gaming the system and customers to get ahead
 
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Jezza said:
Shops paying flat rate created the shortage. No one wants to work an 8 hour day and only get paid for 4 hours. Or stand around waiting for work without getting paid.
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Don’t forget the shop rate being over $120 an hour and only wanting to pay the tech $25 an hour. The last dealer I worked for wanted to compete with quick lubes so they had a rate for “specials” which was $16 an hour for the tech. Oil changes 1/2 hour change oil filter rotate tires that $8. Then the management decided to add to the specials pretty soon , coolant flush, brake jobs, transmission service, key reprogram all were specials. I moved on.
 
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Carve said:
Oh yeah I'm starting fresh. I'll just try to reuse crank, pistons, camshaft and timing gear. He was supposed to use the 128k mile used head from MY engine, but used some random used head instead.

I'm just asking this stuff so I know what to look for when I'm tearing it down. I'm going to take this guy to small claims court. It'd be nice if I could identify the specific problems when I do.
Click to expand...

How is the project going? If you need some moral support or somebody to lend a hand, I live near Albuquerque in Placitas. I have some basic experience building engines.
 
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