Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: All About Chevy’s #492 Cylinder Heads for Small Blocks
What can you tell me about the factory small block Chevy iron cylinder heads with the 492 casting number? I have a set of iron heads with screw-in studs, pushrod […]
Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: How Piston Valve Reliefs Can Affect Combustion Chamber Volume
I am building a 355ci small block Chevy and considering which piston to use. I’m leaning toward a set of stock replacement cast pistons with four valve reliefs. What I […]
Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: Gearing, Engine & EFI Advice for a 350 SBC in a Pro Street Opel GT
My project is a 1973 Opel GT Pro Street car. The engine is a SBC 350 with 4 bolt mains and the heads will be replaced with older 2.02/1.60 style […]
Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: My Freshly Rebuilt Small Block Chevy Doesn’t Build Oil Pressure During the Pre-Lube Process
I just assembled my small-block Chevy 350 engine and also used a drill motor and an old distributor to pressure lube the engine before I fired it up. Unfortunately, it […]
Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: Engine Rebuild Options After Damage from a Broken Piston
I screwed up and over-revved my LS6 motor in my 2000 Camaro and I think I broke a piston. I was lucky and there was only minor damage to the […]
Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: Best Overdrive Transmission Options for a 1978 Chevy 4×4 Truck with a Gen. VII 8.1L Big Block
I installed a 2004 8.1L big block Chevy into my 1978 3/4 ton 4wd pickup. It has the original TH400 three-speed trans. I’m not racing this truck, just a daily […]
Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: Cylinder Head Upgrade Recommendations for a 307 Small Block Chevy
I’m looking at building a 307 small block Chevy. With the cam I want Summit Racing says I have to get the compression up some. I’m currently looking at a […]
Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: How to Determine the Volume of a Piston in the Bore
I’ve been reading about how to figure compression ratio by using a cc burette to measure the combustion chamber volume. But that appears to be only half the battle. What […]
Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: What’s the Best Location, Position & Orientation for an Electric Inline Fuel Pump
I have a 1957 Chevy with a mechanical fuel pump. I would like to change to an electric inline pump but all of the pumps are supposed to be mounted […]
Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: Is the Wrong Oil to Blame for My Premature Lifter Failures?
From 1995 to early 2012, I had a 406 SBC with a Lunati solid roller setup that ran flawlessly. The main bearings finally gave up so I built a 434. […]