ok guys..i need advice on my first 454 rebuild

[twofiftyeight]

ok guys..u might remember my other thread with the blue hornet II that i bought down here in south florida. Work on the boat has slowed quite a bit but i'm jumping back into it now. I picked up a Gen IV 454 for a good deal along with a bravo drive and i'd like to tear the motor down and freshen it up. Its a stock mercruiser 454 with the peanut port heads, GM hiperformance intake, and a holley 650 double pumper, and stock exhaust. I'd like u guys to give me any info, advice, basically tell me what you would do if you were tearing it down yourself. The boat is going to be mint and i'd like the engine to be also. I'm planning on tearing it down completely and sending it out to a machine shop for cleaning and have the cylinders honed. Any advice on mid-priced rings, bearings, lifters, cams...and things that shud have the extra money spent on them...

Also, what books would be a good resource for this project including bearing clearances and torque specs?. I'm an outboard guy and this is my first time really doing any work on a big block. I'm really starting from scratch so any input would be appreciated...

i'll include pictures as i go...thanks in advance

[The Hedgehog]

The big question: How much power do you want to make?

[BUIZILLA]

where are you in So Fla?

[twofiftyeight]

The big question: How much power do you want to make?

The 2nd biggest question for me is how much can i make on a budget? I'd really like to keep it simple and save the extra money to splurge on the boat itself so i'm not looking to make any huge power right now. If i had ran the boat before hand, i'd probably know how much fatser i'd like to go, but seeing as how that isnt the case, i'd like to just get the motor freshened up and whatever small changes i can make to get a little extra power would be a bonus. I'm sure aluminum heads and an aftermarket exhaust will be in order in the future.

But for right now i'm on the basics. Need help choosing rings, bearings, timing gear and chain set, oil pump, maybe a mild cam, dont know if its worth doing any work on peanut port heads..i doubt it and also an electric fuel pump and whatever else u guys would reccomend replacing.

I'm sure this is second nature to most of you guys, but i'm a big block newbie and would just go on summit and order whatever mid-grade stuff they have but i'd like to ask you gurus first.

Also what books would you reccomend for rebuild specs and engine information?...Torque and bearing clearance specs and what not...I've come across a few but again, i'm sure u guys have your own resources that you swear by.

BUIZILLA the boat is in a warehouse down in miami but is going to be brought up to ft lauderdale in a few weeks to finish getting prepped for paint.

thanks again guys

[BigGrizzly]

If it were me, I would go to about 350 to 390 horse. The peanut ports are fine for that. Use regular gas and have a blast. Thing is if you go on to bigger and better things there is nothing in that engine that is useful you have to start from the bottom again to make a real difference.

[jclark003]

I am not an expert but you may want to make sure you pick out a decent cam and if you have the $, maybe find a pair of standard oval port heads. Put a 420 cam in my oval port engine (with the HP manifold) and the boat (hornet II) came to life. Never had much luck getting a peanut head engine to perform.

You may find some usefull information on OSO that will help you with cam selection. You can also call around to places like lane automotive who can help you with cam setup and also give you a decent price on a rebuild kit.

Pick a machine shop that knows marine engines and has a good reputation (they may be able to help with cam selection as well). I usually let them assemble the long block and do the rest myself. Doesn't cost too much more and if something comes apart you have a shot at getting them to stand behind it.

[VetteLT193]

The 2nd biggest question for me is how much can i make on a budget? I'd really like to keep it simple and save the extra money to splurge on the boat itself so i'm not looking to make any huge power right now. If i had ran the boat before hand, i'd probably know how much fatser i'd like to go, but seeing as how that isnt the case, i'd like to just get the motor freshened up and whatever small changes i can make to get a little extra power would be a bonus. I'm sure aluminum heads and an aftermarket exhaust will be in order in the future.

But for right now i'm on the basics. Need help choosing rings, bearings, timing gear and chain set, oil pump, maybe a mild cam, dont know if its worth doing any work on peanut port heads..i doubt it and also an electric fuel pump and whatever else u guys would reccomend replacing.

I'm sure this is second nature to most of you guys, but i'm a big block newbie and would just go on summit and order whatever mid-grade stuff they have but i'd like to ask you gurus first.

Also what books would you reccomend for rebuild specs and engine information?...Torque and bearing clearance specs and what not...I've come across a few but again, i'm sure u guys have your own resources that you swear by.

BUIZILLA the boat is in a warehouse down in miami but is going to be brought up to ft lauderdale in a few weeks to finish getting prepped for paint.

thanks again guys

What is your budget? My brother has an engine in the classifieds that may be easier to just buy and install and it's got a lot of good parts in it. Under warranty too.

Whatever you do, price everything out before hand. All the little stuff adds up and nothing Big Block is cheap.