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  #1  
Old 08-17-2003, 04:08 AM
curtis026 curtis026 is offline
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Default 340 Rebuild

Ok im a complete newb on this. My dad left me a 340 that ran back in the late 80's/early 90's. Its been sitting inside a garage since then and no one has touched it. What will it take to get this thing running again and about how much money. I was told that it could pound some pavement and his old friend said he would guess it had somewhere around 400 hp. Well since my dad is no longer around to assist me, I have to come here and embarass myself. Anyways I wouldnt see why taking the crank out and the pistons off and cleaning the entire thing real well and getting all the carbon off would fix it. Also im guessing its gonna need new rings. And probably a good hone job, which i could do myself right? Ive done this kind of stuff on lawnmowers and quads countless times, but this scares me as I really dont want to mess it up. Also is there anything else i need to do such as have the heads checked along with the block. Basically what im asking is a guide on what to do from the way it is now to get her running again. Im not looking to dump a fortune into it for new pistons and the works. Thanks for anyone who has the time to answer my question and I really appreciate it. I want to get this motor going and then get a car or possibly dakota to put her in. Im a little behind on this though since school is starting in 2 weeks and I have nothing to drive. I dont feel like riding the damn bus again.
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Old 08-17-2003, 01:48 PM
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Since the engine been siting up and you are unsure of it's condition and there is no one to ask I think the first thing is a disassamble and mic every thing to see what needs to be done as far as machine work and part replacement.
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Old 08-18-2003, 01:49 AM
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1972roadrunner 1972roadrunner is offline
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first thing, i'd go to www.pawengineparts.com/ and order a book. you can get things for cheap from PAW (performance automotive warehouse).

second thing, completely disassemble the motor, then take the block, heads, pistons/rods, and camshaft (if it looks worn) to a machine shop. have him/her hot tank everything (clean very well), and mic it. have the rods shot-peened and resized. be sure he checks the valve seats, guides, and make sure it's not warped. it'll probably cost a pretty penny, so wait untill you have sufficient funds (ask a machinest to give you a ballpark estimate).

when i first rebuilt my 340, we put about $5,000 into it. BUT....we had the above done, had it bored/honed, crank was turned, and we bought forged, full floating 12.5:1 compression pistons. we had the heads checked out, and everything was OK (thank god). we got a new cam and set of hyd. lifters, and still used the stock rods. labor is what really bit us, and the pistons....but mainly labor. just check around, you can probably get one rebuilt for under $3,000 depending on what needs done. hopefully your dad left it in good shape

good luck man!
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Old 08-18-2003, 04:40 AM
curtis026 curtis026 is offline
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3,000 seems way high for me. I was thinking I could mic all the stuff myself with the help of my uncle who has access to most of the tools since he used to be a machinist. Who knows, I was just hoping if everything checked out to be ok I could just throw it all back together and fire it up. Of course it would need to go to a professional to do the heads and the rods. Who knows. Im just kind of dissapointed at the moment hearing that. haha. I wouldnt think it would be in to bad of shape since it was fine as far as i know when he pulled it from his truck and still ran.
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Old 08-18-2003, 06:54 AM
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In the best case, all you need is a gasket set.
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  #6  
Old 08-18-2003, 11:48 AM
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This may sound like a PIA, but you could see if anyone around you locally has an engine stand and/or dyno.

Rig it up, put some plugs init, pre-oil it, try and fire it up. Maybe it'll run sufficiently for your purposes.

The first 340 I had in my ride had sat for at least 6 years on a shelf. I put it in my car and away it went. Ran o.k.
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Old 08-18-2003, 11:57 AM
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The first thing you should do is take all the sparkplugs out and the valve covers off.
Pour some oil down into the valley onto the lifters and over the rockers. Let the oil drain down for a few minutes so it goes onto the crank.
Then try to turn it over with a socket on the crankshaft/damper bolt. Watching the valves to see if they all seem to be working ok. If it doesn't want to turn over, don't force it.
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Old 08-18-2003, 01:14 PM
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if you can mic everything yourself, and do MOST of the things yourself, yea, it'll be MUCH cheaper. having a lack of machine work knowledge, and the tools, i can't do it myself so i take stuffs to the machine shop.

i agree with the others. see if it'll fire. if it was running when it was put up, it should be fine now considering things aint rusted up...
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  #9  
Old 08-18-2003, 09:43 PM
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Default AMXAUTO-X is bang on!

Do what he says, and keep the distributor in place. You might have trouble turning it by hand unless you loosen up the cylinder heads. It might need a little "nudge" to get started turning, but don't force it too much. If you get positive results, re-assemble it, put new gaskets on, change the sparkplugs and wires, drop it into a car and start it up.

Once you have the engine running, you can see what colour the exhaust is and do compression tests. From there, you can decide what type of work the engine really needs.

Have fun!
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  #10  
Old 08-18-2003, 11:38 PM
curtis026 curtis026 is offline
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Thanks for all the help, these were the answers I was looking for. Once I get a car or truck I will start looking into that engine and if this thread is still around which it probably wont be I will let you all know how it goes. Thanks again.
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  #11  
Old 08-19-2003, 11:54 AM
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Thats why I mentioned finding someone/shop in your area with a stand that'll allow you to fire it up.

1) no need to buy a vehicle first.
2)Way less work
3) Way less $ on an unknown engine
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  #12  
Old 08-19-2003, 06:08 PM
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not for nuthin, but if the engine was in your family, you should know if it ran good or not. if you know the engine ran well, and didn't burn oil, clean it off good re-paint it and go. i know alot of guys would want to pull a rod and main cap to check the bearings, if you so inclined go for it. if the engine was in a garage and away from the elements, it shouldn't be bad. just an example, years ago my grandfather gave me his 67 nyer, the car sat for 6 yrs in his garage. i begged him for it for years, but it took him a few years to come to the realization that he couldn't drive anymore. any way after 6 yrs, i walked in the garage pumped the shit out of it , and it cranked and started on the 4th or 5th try. i drove that car for another 75,000 miles.
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Old 08-20-2003, 12:15 AM
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Here's my idea!

First see if it stuck as mentioned before. You should be able to trucn it over with a 1/2 drive ratchet and socket on the crank balancer bolt. If it turns over pretty easy, pull all the plugs give them a squirt or 2 of oil somthing light like 30 wt. Hook a starter up to it very simple if the tranny is present and connected. And run a compression check on it. It can tell you the condition of the enigne. If they all look good, say within 10-15 psi of each other, install new plugs and let her rip. This would be the cheap way out.

Or
Pull the pan, intake and valve covers. Look at the bearings, replace if needed. Check the timing chain for stretch. Rotate the engine over and look at the cam lobes for wear. Replace the oil pump. Put new rings into it. Have the heads redone. Basicly replace any worn parts. This would be a cheap rebuild kit like from Summit or PAW as mentioned before. Plastigage and check all clearances. Its not hard and only takes about $5 for them and lots of time reassemble/disassembling. This way you will know whats in the engine and how things work. Take notes and pics on things like how the rocker shafts were one, put every part back were they came from, like all valve train componets, keep all the Connecting rod caps do NOT mismatch anything number them if needed. There is no stupid questions here on dump presumptions. If you dont know ask. We will help you.
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  #14  
Old 08-20-2003, 04:07 AM
curtis026 curtis026 is offline
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moparmotorman, to answer your statement. All i know is that my dad had it in his truck at one time and then switched it out and put in the 440 that I have as well. As far as I know its been sitting ever since and no one in my family pays attention to that kind of stuff like how well it ran, only my dad would know that and he has since passed away. So I really have no way of knowing. Im going over to see my step mom this weekend im gonna see if i can possibly move it out away from the wall and hook a wrench on it. The motor has everything on it still. It looks like my dad just pulled it and left everything on there. Im not sure if the starter is there or not though. But as far as alternator and such all that stuff is on, just has a bent fan which will need to be replaced.
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  #15  
Old 08-20-2003, 08:26 AM
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alright, what ever route you go have fun.
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