Sleeving a block

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Brambles

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So here's the story.

Been looking for 340's for a few weeks and have found a crapload of them for sale but not within my budget.

So I got a tip the other day that a guy had a couple, he use to own an autowrecker and kept the good stuff for himself. He's not a dodge guy but knows the 340 stuff is getting rare so he holds on to it.

I make a deal to buy the 1970 .030 12.5:1 motor that was all apart, after getting that motor home I find it has a pot mark in the cylinder, gonna have to fix that some how.

So I go back and ask if I can buy the other one too and we come to an agreement but its mostly together and the conditon is unknown, lay your money down and take your chances I guess.. I knew it was siezed cause I couldn't turn it by hand but I was hoping it was just frozen rings.......

Well It didn't work out for me very well, that motor which is a date code late 68, production year 69 has a definite cracked cylinder. All sorts of powdery fluffy stuff filling that cylinder and some bad pitting to boot. It also is .030 and one or two of the pistons look erroded, guessing someone didnt hear the pinging........

Whats the cost in sleeving a cylinder? I hate to think these blocks are garbage after .030 or even a cracked cylinder. Gonna probably have to pound the 69 apart, gonna soak it with goop for a while and try to be gental but that cracked one is going to be a pain.

What do you guys think? How bad does a motor have to be before you give up and make it a boat anchor?

Thanks
 
Sleeving is no big deal if done right.

Your other issue is it's already .030. Only thing you can do is get it apart. molasass works good as a penetrant too... Oil of wintergreen is another.
Get the block sonic checked for wall thickness. If you are lucky, the block will clean up at .040 and you're good to go.
 
I have used a block with 8 sleeves. You'll have to deck the block when done because of the distortion of putting 8 sleeves in. also had it square decked and aligned bored. But wound up with a standard bore engine. Cost me 600.00.
 
SGBARRACUDA said:
I have used a block with 8 sleeves. You'll have to deck the block when done because of the distortion of putting 8 sleeves in. also had it square decked and aligned bored. But wound up with a standard bore engine. Cost me 600.00.
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That seems reasonable for that amount of work, definitly worth it to save a 340 I think.

Now to see if I can get someone in Canada to do this work for a reasonable cost.
 
Update

Well it wasn't a crack, apparently the guy who built the motor forgot to put in the wrist pin retaining clips on two of the pistons, instead of two per piston he only used one. So those two pistons have WICKED scores in the cylinders, and I mean WICKED from when the wrist pin walked over and said HI to the cylinder bore....... a third piston has bad scoring from the rings I gather.

Numerous broken rings, a couple rings are siezed in the grooves, took me a while to even locate the end gap they were jammed in so tight.

Took about 4 hours to get it all apart, 5 pistons came out without too much protest, 2 bitched and moaned a bit and 1 was a real pain in the arse.

So it looks like I"m looking for a good machinist to put in numerous sleeves!!!! any recommendations in Washington or Northern Idaho?
 
Before you sleeve it have it hot tanked and magnafluxed to make sure it isn't cracked.
 
i had a sleeve put into a 440 around 4 years back and i was charged $75.00 including the sleeve.
 
Brambles said:
the prices in canada seem to be $125 labour and $40 for the sleeve per hole.....
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The shop that did mine cut the price for doing all 8 because like he explained once he had the block set up to cut one it was not as much trouble to cut all 8. Plus i've done business with him for years. You might get a simular deal if he has to do 3 or 4.
 
SGBARRACUDA said:
The shop that did mine cut the price for doing all 8 because like he explained once he had the block set up to cut one it was not as much trouble to cut all 8. Plus i've done business with him for years. You might get a simular deal if he has to do 3 or 4.
Click to expand...

That was the deal, it was more money for only one or two cylinders.


The highest price I was quoted in B.C. was $189 + Sleeve.

I live 30 minutes from the Washington State border and Spokane is only 3 hours away. I have emailed some compaines in Spokane to see what the pricing is there.
 
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