What to do before heading to the machien shop

[Cvarney]

finally found a decent block to build an engine from. it's a 68 pontiac 400. been sitting under a dirt floor shed for god knows how long. pulled the intake and heads when i got it home. 5 out of the 8 cylinders looks great. got 2 with really light surface rust and 1 that is skewing the others lol.
Regardless my question is two fold
1- what do I need to do to prepare the block before i take it to the machinist
2- what should i have the machinist do. I think i should have it cleaned, "hot tanked" or what ever and magnafluxed to check for stress cracks IIRC. any other servies that are a must from the start?
I dont have a plan set in stone yet for the engine. Just tryign to get the ball rolling on it.
any and all help is greatly appreciated guys. thanks i advance
C

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[NOT A TA]

I'm working part time at a machine shop right now. Being the "new guy" I get to scrape, tank, wire wheel, chase threads, pull press in rocker studs , magnaflux etc.

You don't really have to do anything before dropping it off but it's really nice if people scrape all the really heavy crud off the outside of the engine, no need to degrease it. It's just so much nicer not to have to scrape and wire brush heavy grease before disassembly, especially if it's the first task of the day LOL

You'll need an idea of what you'll be using the engine for (be realistic here) and some idea of what you'd like for power (again be realistic)along with a ballpark idea in your mind of what you're willing to spend. Basic rebuild, performance upgrade with stock heads, stroker engine, power adders ? You should have some idea of what direction you might go because these are all things that will come up during your first conversation with the machine shop. An example would be aluminum heads. If you know you're going that route maybe they'll take your stockers as cores. Having a general plan of what you'd like to achieve when you drop it off will help you in the long run with meeting your expectations for speed of completion, power level, suitability for the type of use it will get, and budget considerations.

[Lowend]

Just do a basic wipe off and let the machine shop do it's job.
Most places won't do an engine without a hot-tank

Spend the money have the block checked for cracks, align hone the mains (use studs) and have them use a torque plate on the motor.
Good machine work makes great engines

[TT302Z28]

As a former Machinist....decide what the hell you are really going to use this for before taking in your stuff. Really and truly figure out based on your tran, gearing and tires where you want the engine to make power.

Everybody wants a screaming high rev'ing engine and then is shocked when it sucks to drive it in traffic.

[Pro Stock]

Where are you located, I know of a couple of Poncho guys that know their stuff, one is John Gaydosh in Maryland and the other is Don Johnson in Ohio, if you need thier ph#s I can get them for you, depending on your budget I also have a friend that has a killer 455 based engine for sale.

Dale

[Cvarney]

Southern WV on the eastern border of KY. I'm planning on "building" the engine myself, as far as assemble. Rebuilt a couple over the years, but i've never had to have one machined. Just dont know what to expect ya know. Thanks for the info guys and I welcome anymore.

[Scott Parkhurst]

You could buy my 601 also...it's dyno'ed and ready to go. 740 hp @ 5,500 rpm.

[Cvarney]

tempting but i doubt i have the cash available for it lol

[6'9"Witha69]

Try knowing which crank? Are you going internal or external balance? If the're going to balance it you nedd crank rods and pistons (or at least a rod and piston for weight calculations).

[MonzaRacer]

Remember Pontiacs are low rpm torque engines. good heads and matched cam are trick, a 68 has a good chance of having high compression heads depending on code on front pass side of block 2 letter code then look it up.
If your going to do it right Edelbrock heads do great if you plan for proper torque motor.
Few others are geared more towards higher power levels.
I prefer to work up 4x or 6x heads with bigger valves.
Pontiacs mostly come with ArmaCast rods so its redline is 5500max.
This means hyperutectic pistons are ok too. If you replace the rods you should rebalance it.
Honestly if it cleans up and passes crack check. the big trick is to swap out the rope seal for rubber , i need to check my old notes if I can find them, I used one from either a 460 ford or a caddy seal.
But good rod bolts, resize the rods, hypertech pistons Aluminum Edelbrock heads if in budget, and reasonable cam, and good intake.
LAst 400 I built had dyno run with Edelbrocks, and a Comp cam I speced out on Desk top dyno made well over 500 ft lbs of torque and we never got over 5000 rpm.
Guy built it for a Trans Am and with 3.73 posi and some aftermarket rear suspension parts would pull 7 flat in 1/8th miles and on road course he had it lifting inside wheel due to torque.
Pontiacs just dont need to be reved for street duty.