[ZLRob]

Originally Posted by race24x

OK sorry guys need to bring this back to the top as I am going to tackle the job myself. Just wondering if besides waterpump gaskets, RTV gasket sealant, new harmonic balancer bolt if there is anything else I can or should get ahead of time to make sure job goes smoothly? Looks like 3 weeks until my foot is healed enough to be out there walking on it and working on the concrete. I have a lift and I have one of those engine stands that sits on the top of the fender seams and holds the engine up. I am hoping that will allow me to drop the cradle far enough to get to the oil pump without having to drop entire motor.

Just like Janetty previously stated, it's a not advisable to do this in vehicle especially if you're going through on a DOD delete setup as well as a cam. There's too many moving parts and too much to try and do with the vehicle body interfering amongst it all. At the end of all this you're going to need to reseal the oil pan gasket and the timing chain cover as well and it's SUPER difficult trying to work with all that as there is oil dripping down. Additionally there is an integrated sensor into the front cover which is difficult to work with because of the slack that it allows or lack thereof should I really say.

All main gaskets, is what I would recommend, cam bolt, DOD delete kit, lifters of your choosing, cam of your choosing (I stuck with an LT1 cam stock profile with an oversized fuel lobe), a Katech oil pump, and an LME billet solid tensioner. As the stock tensioners are a contributor to oil pump failure.

As for RTV, I either recommend you use GM's super tacky RTV or Hondabond, which is super tacky as well and works amazing in forming a very durable, solid RTV barrier when applied correctly on surfaces.

Don't forget to bring patience to the job! I did this at home myself with the hand of some of old co workers to do the heavy lifting for me, and from start to finish it took about a month due to waiting on items to arrive (BMR engine mounts) and waiting for them to get some time off to come help with it. Make sure once you are in the reinstall process that you apply some anti seize to all of the studs and nuts that hold down the exhaust that way you aren't fighting that stuff in the future.

After you have installed critical item parts like the cam or are reinstalling the HPFP and running a larger lobe than OEM always give that engine a few turn overs by hand to ensure nothing is binding or seizing. I know you said you were a GM tech in the 90's so some of this stuff you will know already, but the amount of tech they put into these vs. the 90's engines can be a little intimidating on the surface if you aren't familiar with DI or VVT on these pushrod engines. I have owned this car since 2022 and did the engine build a year later without not being super well informed about DI, and it was intimidating at first because I wasn't familiar with all of it but as it came apart I found it was not as bad as I made it out to be in my head. Hope this helps!