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Should have all the parts to put together the front and real seals and covers tis week. The rear cover prepped for install.
My From Start to Finish 6.0L Build
- Thread starter RAMurphy
- Start date
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Changed the oil last night in my Tahoe. Goal is for that to be the last oil change for that engine.
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My oil pump, timing cover, gasket and seal were delivered yesterday (a day early). My rear seal and gasket are scheduled to deliver today. The windage tray is scheduled to be delivered tomorrow along with the correct hardware to install both the oil pump and timing cover.
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Painted my timing gear cover tonight. Looks great. Will "cure" it tomorrow. I'll post a picture once it's cured or maybe when it is installed. All parts that were scheduled to be delivered today were on my front porch when I got home from work.
iamdub
Full Access Member
That rear cover reminds me- I recommend the billet O-ring barbell. It's probably overkill, but it's safe overkill. Speaking of covers and seals, I like to smear a thin coat of RTV on the front crank seal before pressing it into place. Just extra insurance.
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@iamdub I did read about the billet o-ring barbell. My only concern is where I purchase it from - a need a reputable source, I've read some of the "cheapies" or "knock offs" don't use a reliable o-ring. Do you have a good source? My engine block came with the "plastic" barbell. The original 5.3L was also plastic. Good idea on the RTV suggestion. Thanks for the input.
Tonyrodz
Resident Resident
LS Billet Barbell Oil Diverter GM Gen III IV LS Engines LS1-2-3-6-7-9-LQ4-LQ9-4.8L-5.3L-6.0L-6.2L & More! https://a.co/d/20gaH1T
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Awesome. Thank you for the response and suggestion. I carved out a little time from my schedule and did some additional research and ended purchasing a barbell (Improved Racing) from Amazon. It received great reviews and the o-rings were also the right material. Made in USA. We'll see when it gets delivered on Friday.
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Set up my curing station for my timing gear cover. Ended up using a heat gun, didn't want to stick this in our oven (my wife would not be happy) due to off gassing. With this setup I was able to maintain 200 degrees F for over two hours. Final product turned out great. Can't wait to get this installed. I also received my windage tray today - actually received two, not sure why. I will be verifying tonight if it was my mistake or theirs.
Looks great. What brand of paint are you using?
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The paint I'm using is VHT (Very High Temperature). I've used this paint before on other projects. Variety of colors and types. Easy to use and holds up very well.
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After looking over my order for the windage tray, I ordered one, paid for one and they shipped two. Will call them today and see if they want the second one back - otherwise I will end having a spare (not that I need one). As my wife said - just add to the rest of my "spares".
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I appreciate you for bringing it up in the first place. I was going to just use the one that came with my block. Your suggestion prompted me to make the time and do some additional research. Plenty of builds out there and data that suggests going this route if you already have things opened up. I was looking at @Tonyrodz pick before he provided the link, in fact I looked at several. So, I decided to reach out to the machine shop I've used in the past and he suggested the one I bought. So, back to data collecting and based on a few pieces of information, pulled the trigger on this one. The support I get from this forum is great and I appreciate all the comments and suggestions.
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iamdub
Full Access Member
Yup! It's not something to tear into an engine to do exclusively. But definitely another "may as well while I'm here" things. I almost suggested porting that new oil pump, but it's NOT necessary and more of a "bored and wanna be cool" thing.
Don't worry- there are plenty here to help you spend your money!
I’ve used their crinkle paint on a few of the cast aluminum parts like rocker covers, brackets etc. It holds up well and the crinkle effect covers the cast blemishes so I wasn’t tempted to try to sand them smooth which would have been nuts. I even painted my transfer case with it when I had it out. That one I wasn’t able to heat cure it but it held up pretty well anyway.
Edit: forgot to mention their website states “ the inherent heat of engine operation will also accomplish curing” but I doubt my transfer case accomplished high enough temp.
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This is the one I have. Hopefully it holds up for some time.
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Found time to work on the egine today. Oil pump, windage tray and pickup tube installed.
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Also installed the Timing gear cover. Still waiting on the barbell - should be delivered sometime today. Will need to take the engine off the stand to get better access to the rear section of the engine.
Coming together nicely.
