A buffalo’s first bowtie

On its way downstairs



I had to pull the exhaust manifolds when I sent the trans to Eric. The mating surfaces where the risers bolt on were very pitted. Looks like I didn't quite get there as I didn't have a water problem before.



Port...



Starboard...



This motor was rusted tight when I got it. I'm guessing it could be worse.



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This isn't in my book; it references a chain. I may need a better book!

Is that a 6.0?

Looks like six is where your water is coming in the steam is cleaning the intake valve. The gear to gear setup is how chevy was running a standard rotation cam in a reverse rotation engine. In fords both the crankshaft and cam shaft go opposite automotive, in the chevy just the crank. 800 is in the ball park depending on exactly what he is including. You boring out and replacing pistons?

Looks like a fun project tear her down and keep the pics coming .

Thanks Joe! I know I ask a lot of questions, but generally I only have to be told once. This kind of info is priceless to me!

Yes, I was thinking of new pistons and the cylinders need to be honed or bored to the next size. I was also thinking of converting to roller lifters and rockers...thoughts?

Does what you said about the cam gear mean that I can use a standard rotation cam in this system? Like you said, at #1 TDC the crank gear has a '0' at the top and the cam gear has the '0' at the top as well. That sure would save some cash!

In the end, my goal is to have it ready for another 20 years, and I'd like to update anything that is cost effective.

Thanks again!

eric lavine wrote: who the hell built the wood stand for you, he should get the Geppetto award, it really doesnt look in to bad of shape its very clean. how are the bores? can you get away with re-ringiing? it is acceptable if you run a bore gauge down and its in spec. hes good on the price. btw that is the holy grail of engines,

I made the stand so I wouldn't scratch my transmission on the grade behind the house ...and you're gonna love this; a good portion of the wood and all of the screws are from the crate you sent my trans back in! LOL

On the re-ringing, I don't think so. The cam is rusty in places and the water passages are full of rust nuggets and impeller pieces. A bunch of the smaller passages were plugged up. I'll never skimp on an impeller again, but I think these have been there longer than I've had the boat.
I want to do this thing right and then take care of it properly.

What's the scoop on this being the 'holy grail' of engines?

eric lavine wrote: when building I always concentrate on the heads, you can hog some beef out of them to really liven them up....no air....no power

I was going to take the heads to the shop monday. What should I ask for?

LMAO   and no worries...I'll just walk in a say that I need both of my heads fixed?!!?


Thanks for the info Eric. I'll ask at the machine shop and see what else I can find till then.

I'm right with you on your above post Eric. I don't want to hot rod it, but I do want to make the upgrades that make sense. This boat has always been a workhorse, and I just want it ready for another 20. I think I want to do the roller cam for the effiency and because it side-steps the big oil discussions I've read here. I'll do the unleaded valve conversion too if needed. Beyond that, I'm taking suggestions!

FWIW...I'm the builder

your local machinist can take a nice clean-up cut on the manifold, unless you were looking for new

call me on my cell, i gotta go make the doughnuts in 20 minutes 330-322-8817

Eric, thanks for checking. FWIW guys, Eric gets my vote for nice guy of the year...he answered a couple of questions for me while driving to work in the snow!

I'm going to do the roller conversion, but I need to get the factory cam specs. I didn't see those in the reference section, but I'll dig 'em up. Amy found a ridge reamer so the pistons are out, and yes...she's a keeper!

What's the preferred way to pull the cam gear?

Pics to follow...

BuffaloBFN wrote: Thanks Joe! I know I ask a lot of questions, but generally I only have to be told once. This kind of info is priceless to me! Yes, I was thinking of new pistons and the cylinders need to be honed or bored to the next size. I was also thinking of converting to roller lifters and rockers...thoughts? Does what you said about the cam gear mean that I can use a standard rotation cam in this system? Like you said, at #1 TDC the crank gear has a '0' at the top and the cam gear has the '0' at the top as well. That sure would save some cash! In the end, my goal is to have it ready for another 20 years, and I'd like to update anything that is cost effective. Thanks again!

BFN, I didn't see your cam question answered in this thread so here goes. The answer unfortunately is no. You cannot use the standard rotation cam in this engine. The reason is, although the gear setup turns your cam in the standard direction, the firing order is still different than the standard rotation engine because the rotating assembly spins backwards. Your firing order is 1-2-7-5-6-3-4-8.....That is unless PCM has a different way of numbering the cylinders than Chevy does.

As for the roller cam,...that would be a good upgrade. The only problem is your block is not cast to be used with the Chevy production roller cam type setup. Therefore you will have to go with a retro-fit setup which requires special roller lifters. These are linked together with tie bar that prevents them from rotating in the lifter bore (and keeps the rollers aligned to the cam lobes.

Finding a roller cam the meets your requirements may be challenging and probably will be pricy as well. There are a few grinders though that will grind one special for you like Comp Cams. Hope this helps some. Brian

I have some specs for small block Chevy cams. The stock Chevy roller marine cam specs are: 197/207 @ .050 and lift is 0.430/0.450 (In/Ex). The lobe separation is 109 deg. That is a bone stock very smooth idling cam. The cam I ran in my old woody Chris Craft was a 268H Comp Cams. It had 218/218 and 454/454 lift with 110 lobe separation. This cam had a little rumble to it but was still farely smooth. It pulled very strong and not bad on gas.

Of course with the big block your lift will be higher and you can go a little more on the duration before noticing it's not stock. Here's a Crane profile that I like for the BB: 139001 214/222 and 0.553/0.576 w/110 lobe separation. RPM range is 2000 to 5200. You won't be able to use that particular cam but you can take the specs and call Comp Cams (or Crane) and have them grind that for you for your firing order.

According to Dennis Moore (Author of Small Block Marine Performance) when selecting a cam there are 4 general rules to follow:
1) Choose a cam with faster opening and closing rates than stock (roller profile will accomplish this)
2) Choose a cam that has a lobe separation between 109 and 112 deg
3) Choose a cam that has 6 t0 10 degrees more ex duration than intake
4) Install the cam with the lobe center between 108 and 110 degrees

79nautique wrote: boy you are getting way over your head then you want to listen to well who ever. Everyting looks normal, end play? only one place to see that on the crank/bearings/thrust so realy don't understand your numbers and yes the guy's not going to be scared of a reverse rotation motor when he has never done one so do you really wont to let him practice on yours? But malibu boy will lead you down a path right wrong well let's see.... some all ready know. but it's your money, motor, boat.......................... 02

I'm guessing that the first 4 numbers he mentioned (when describing end play) are actually the rod side clearances while still bolted to the journels, right BFN?

And what path are you refering to Chris? By the way how many engines have you put together over the span of your lifetime? Not counting the ones your dad put together..... but you. BFN's engine is a Chevy. I've been through many of these so unless you know who your talking about you should probably keep your comments to yourself.

This is the description from crane on that part #. I realize I can't use this exact cam, but this summary sounds like what I need.

"Excellent low end torque and HP, good idle, daily usage, off road, towing, performance and fuel efficiency, 2600-3000 cruise RPM, marine applications: primarily used in 454 cu.in. near-stock engines for mild performance applications with free-flowing above water exhaust systems. 8.75 to 10.5 compression ratio advised."

Does a barefoot qualify as free-flowing above water exhaust? They're under water at idle. And how about the compression ratio; our reference section has my motor at 8.12:1?
Thanks again!