Big Block aftermarket rods? Good, bad or not needed?

Morning to you all and a Happy New Year, heres hoping your head is not pounding quite as hard as mine

I am just about to pull the BBC on my 56 for a quick freshen up and have been looking at using a set of aftermarket rods.

Now the engine is not a super hi spec race motor by any means but I would like to make it as bullit proof as I can and am looking for comments and advice on if they are a worthwhile investment.

I have quite a heavy right foot and that, along with the manual box, means that I do tend to rev it to 5800/6000rpm where the chip cuts in.

Now, do I keep the standard rods, add ARP rod bolts or go for somethig more exotic like the SCAT Pro Comp I Beam or Eagle ESP H Beam?

Looking forward to hearing your comments.


P.

 

You could go with having them checked and straightened (if needed) and have new rod bolts installed. For aftermarket rods, unless it was for a race motor, the ones straight from the Chevy parts book have always worked for me.

Bob

 

6000 rpm, you can use stockers....having good bolts installed when they are resized would be nice though.

 

Bob,

That was my though but on further investigation the cost of buying new fastners and having the rods checked is not far off what a set of Eagle H Beams is going to cost me.

Squirrel,

Was hoping you would find this thread.

With the relatively low price differance between refurbing stock rods and the aftermarket items is it not cheap insurance or would I be better spending my money else where on bullit proofing the engine?

P.

 

I'll second the stock rods.

Have them magnafluxed and checked for straightness as stated. Then new bolts in stalled and the ends resized.

With your intentions of a low rever, I see no need for aftermarket.

 

...and besides, you won't get crap from the traditional police when they see the non-Crower aftermarket pieces in your mill.

 

I think it comes down to which one you prefer. There isn't going to be $100.00 difference in rebuilding your stock rods or buying good aftermarket ones.
If you like to turn your bigblock 6000, I would suggest a good balance job no matter which rods you pick.
Larry T

 

Larry,

Good point. I had the engine freshened by a professional engine shop last year as it had sat in the car for a number of years without being started.

Wasnt particlularly impressed with the rebuild. Engine made about 500HP on the dyno and 540lbft but breathes quite heavily,plus a few other little niggles so have decided to pull it out and go though it myself.

I have a budget of about a $1000 so a set of rods and a balance would bring me in at about that level with new rings bearings and gaskets.

Squirrel, the idea of making the engine a bit more resiliant to my right foot is so that the tradition police cant see what is inside

P.

 

So, changing the subject slightly then. Are Eagle aftermarket rods any good?

P.

 

Paul,
I bought a set of 6" Eagle SIRs for a small block from my machinist. I told him I figured I'd polish the beams before I used them. He told me to put them in the engine just the way they were. He said he had several sets in 7000+ rpm circle track engines that had run 2 seasons with no problems. ........that's good enough for me.
Physically they're a good rod, politically maybe not so shiney.
Larry T

 

Thanks for that Larry.

Since I started this thread I have been asking around and it would seem that as I am going to have the engine in bits I might as well go for a 1/4 stroker crank kit.

The price of this vs the rods, rings, bearings etc is about $500, over my budget but if I put it off for a month I can get the extra togeather and build a 496 and probably add another 50hp and 50lbft. plus get me a bit closer to what I really want, a bullit proof rip snorting Big Block.

Do any of our alliance vendors sell Eagle products?

P.

 

The aftermarket rods you are wanting are made for a floating pin, are your pistons able to take a lock or are they press fit only?
I actually like the 3/8 stock rods with ARP bolts. If you grind and polish the beams, have them sized and balanced they will handle a lot of power. I ran a set like this in a 461 that made about 650hp and was hitting it regularly with another 350hp of NOS.

 

I've found that a refreshing like your talking about will more than eat up your $1000 budget. You ALWAYS find things that will add a few hundred more to the total.

Frank