Tom L

Hello all,
I purchased a set of rods that the seller said were; "ovened, shot blasted,checked for straightness, mating surfaces cut for flatness,big and small ends honed to OEM specs and a set of ARP 190,000psi bolts installed". After examining the rods I found one rod small end that has been or came knurled and did not appear to be honed. I have not seen that before, but the seller claimed they all came from the same engine, 1968 400. They all measured the same, eye to eye and big/small end diameters. Any comments appreciated. Thanks. Tom

ALKYGTO

OP, if you can send those rods back I would do so.

I've learned many lessons the hard way when it comes to engine builds and one of them is knowing what you have and where it came from and not mixing, mish-mashing questionable parts together in a high performance (or really any) engine. Souce as many parts as possible from one supplier (ie all valvetrain components from one supplier) and use ONE machine shop for all your block, rod, crank machining, especially if you are assembling yourself. A competent machine shop will want all the components you are using together at once even if he is'nt assembling the engine.

I honestly don't know why anyone would run reconditioned 40+ year old rods when aftermarket rods that are stronger,lighter and so affordable are available. No offense OP but do some research and talk with a reputable machine shop, I'm sure they'll tell you the same.

If I was doing a stock or slightly hotter than stock rebuild of an existing motor and had all my original rods I would feel better having them rebuilt but buying used rods as you did would leave too many questions for me and I would have a machinist check them out anyway for - cracks, concentricity of both id's, center to center length, proper bolt installation - all of which is going to cost more $$$$$ but to me would be neccasary for piece of mind and could save you $$$$ and heartache down the line. I'd feel better buying the rods that need to be reconditioned and having them done myself that a set that had already been done.

There are NO questionable parts in my engine and if you want to sleep at night I would'nt use them IMO.

BTW, love that black 64 post GTO!

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geeteeohguy

I agree with the above. I'll go a bit further: I wouldn't use Pontiac rods in ANY rebuild from here on out. For the price of a set of forged aftermarket rods ($249-up), running stress-cycled 40-50 year old parts does not make sense. Particularly when the price of reconditioning meets or exceeds the cost of new parts. The factory Pontiac rods are THE weak point of a great engine design, and the installation of forged aftermarket rods has saved many a block from the "hole in the wall" club. I am running factory rods in both of my GTO's, but only because they were rebuilt decades ago. I don't go crazy with the rpms these days, either. Return the reconditioned and questionable rods and buy a set of forged rods. Your engine will thank you.

leeklm

I almost did the same thing with my 455 rebuild, and was going to use the original rods that came with motor. After a little research and sound advice from members on this forum, I came to my senses and purchased a set of H-Beam rods (considered Eagle 2nds) for $350. They are a little heavier than the expensive H beams, but I can now feel at ease when mashing the throttle, and not worry every time the tach approaches or surpasses the 5K redline!

Keep in mind, you have NO idea what those stock rods have been through over the past 40+ years! Worst case is you can maybe resell those rods and take a small loss. You will still be money ahead in the long run!

BearGFR

The only thing they're good for is museum display, regardless of how carefully they've been worked on (and it doesn't sound like that one was all that 'carefully' prepared).

Factory rods have always been, and will always be, the weak link in any Pontiac engine. When you compare the cost of having them reconditioned with the cost of buying a good set of forged H-beams, it's no contest.

Bear

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BearGFR
Garland, TEXAS

Tom L

Thanks for the replys. I wouldn't have any qualms about using seasoned rods but not with mismtched one(s) in the mix. I'll probably put these in the parts bin and forget about them in any case. The new bolts can be used as they show no signs usage even if they were torqued for honing/sizing provided I need them for whatever rod set I do get for the rebuild. Tom

66 Gas Tires Oil

buy new rods. my last two builds were a BB and a SB chevy i used scat bushed rods and they came with ARP bolts. you can't get the old ones refurbed for the price and then you would have old rods. i looked at the scat website and they have them for Pontiacs. i got mine through my machine shop he got them cheaper then summit for me. the 327 revs to 7500 no problem th 496 goes to 6500 rpm no problems. good luck.

Jim

orelog

I purchased a set of forged rods from RPM International in Cerritos, Ca. They have 7/16 ARP bolts. Great looking rods for $232 delivered to your door. They have a web site to check them out.