Forged Crank

[charged92]

Can anyone tell me if my car or how to tell if my car is one of the SC's that came with the forged steel crankshaft?

[fast Ed]

The only SC motors that did not have a steel crank were some of the early production 1989 model year cars. They had a "Duracast" crank that could be troublesome for the SC application.



cheers
Ed N.

[charged92]

Thanks Ed. Can you or anyone else suggest any upgrades to strengthen the bottom end or is it neccessary?

[sabbySC]

how much power do you plan on making? That will dictate what has to be done to the bottom end.

[fast Ed]

Well, his sig. says 300+ :)

So I'd suggest a good prep on the crank, and a set of aftermarket con. rods ... do it once, do it right. ;)



cheers
Ed N.

[sabbySC]

for 300+ hp I wouldn't even think you would need aftermarket rods, just aftermarket pistons and have the crank/rods magnafluxed.

I would say at around 400hp you would want aftermarket rods. These are crank numbers not rwhp. Personally I would suggest haveing the crank knife edged, use your stock rods and have them balanced, and get afermarket forged pistons. Unless you have a big bag of money than go ahead and get eagle rods, and maybe some nice custom pistons., than get it all balanced and blueprinted.

[T1Bird]

Sabby,

Could you explain your reasoning behind your suggestion of getting the crank knife edged?.. I had thought about it, and brought it up to two gentleman, one from Active Engine builders, and the other from Mississauga Engine builders, they both disagreed going this route, they had said for the power that you would pick up vs $$$ to get it done, you could put your money into many other routes, picking up more substantial horsepower.. they claimed knive edging only seems to be used on turboed cars that run high rpms in thier powerband.. now i havent shot down this idea, just would like to hear some reasoning behind it

[charged92]

Originally posted by sabbySC
how much power do you plan on making? That will dictate what has to be done to the bottom end.

Well my sig says 300+. My goal is 350hp anything more is a bonus. Like Ed said I want to do it right the first time and build a reliable strong motor for my SC. I'm not a rich guy but I do have some connections in the right places and it doesn't neccesarily have to be done for next season. If it takes a year or a year and a half thats no problem. I'm looking for ideas from the guys on this board to help reach my goal because this is where the knowledge to do it is.:)

[sabbySC]

I personally think all performance motors should have thier crank knife edged and balanced. Doing so will make slightly more power at moderate to high rpms, also it will result in a smoother running engine. Personally I would suggest it for any buildup where the engine in question will be stressed and put through its paces. I guess you could neglet this if you want to keep the buildup cheap, but in the end you always get what you pay for, and in the long run you can't very easily go back and change your bottom end configuration without spending a pile of cash.

I have personally seen a gain of 27hp at high rpms from a knife edged crank, granted this was on a oval track 350 that runs in the range of 6-7grand all race, but still it is worth the money.