Hi,
My forged short block journey started from a need for more power and not wanting to zzb randomly. My build consisted of a built short block and DIY mildly ported head with a goal of 600-650whp DD. I had a phrase in mind "more boost than tire psi" it sounded ridiculous and doable. At this point in time I am self tuned FBO bnrs3 on e35+meth 26PSI minus exhaust manifold. I wanted it to last at 400/400 however I knew it wouldn't especially with the heat where I live AZ (120*+)
Parts: order OEM spec rod bearings and pistons due to my low mileage of 32k 2012 Mazdaspeed 3. I ordered Mahle Clevite bearings OEM spec, 87.5 Platinum series Manley Pistons (2618), Manley H-Beam rods, Crank pulley bolt and 3x friction washers, L19 Headstuds and Cometic MLX head gasket.
As soon as all the parts arrived I started to disassemble everything to remove the head it was easy just took time about 6 hours with breaks by myself. Hardest part was the crank bolt, I had my sister hold the brakes while I cranked the 2ft breaker bar. I was nervous as this would be my first time going this in depth and wouldn't know what to expect to find whether it be scoring in the cylinder, broken pistons causing bad out of round measurements or crank journals were toast because the whole goal was to not do any machine work with a budget, yet all was well from bearings measurements to cylinders to crank journals.
Time for short block assembly; I assembled the connecting rod and piston by matching the new rod and rod bearings to the stock clearances with stock bearings in the stock rods.No hone because the cylinders still had faint but hatching nonetheless and did not want to risk creating out of round issues. It all went smooth I had no hiccups and next thing I know the short block was assembled. I chose to do .020 top and .024. bottom ring due to my research. I made a DIY BSD delete/baffle and drilled out 2 5/8 holes in the stock PCV plate to run to lines VTA to the ground.
Head: I ported and gasket matched the exhaust side no bowl work just get rid of edges to reduce hot spots and slightly ported the intake side. I am not satisfied with it nevertheless will soon turn it into a single runner and install 70lb springs. During the head install I torqued the L19s to 90ftlb in steps 0-35ftlb 4x then in 3 steps to 90ftlb. marked all the cam buckets easily installed and timed it and started to assemble all the accessories for the first start up.
Time for start up. It took 2 tries #1 did not start because fuel needed to be primed #2 it started but with a misfire, at this moment I instantly shit the pantaloons but found out cylinder 2 coil was not fully plugged in. After that it ran smoother than a mf no piston slap or weird sounds other than a cheap JBR 88 TMM I picked up and 2 DIY aluminum blocks in the stock PMM for minimal vibes with slighty better performance feels almost stock even with BSD.
Test drive/breakin, I used supertech 5w30 let it idle till coolant got to 160* and verified no leaks. I drove 20 miles with my 400whp map hitting 22psi within it with lots of engine braking. Came home dumped the oil no metals in the oil, changed with 5w30 supertech again drove it to 150 miles everything was going great feeling stronger than ever. Changed to supertech 20w50. So far the build has gone great I have 500 miles on it.
TOTAL COST & TIME = 1600$ and 2 days for a built motor 600-650hp
Currently sitting at 420/450
0 blow by/oil consumption so far will update with any issues. Future goal 600whp, Any questions PM or comment here
My forged short block journey started from a need for more power and not wanting to zzb randomly. My build consisted of a built short block and DIY mildly ported head with a goal of 600-650whp DD. I had a phrase in mind "more boost than tire psi" it sounded ridiculous and doable. At this point in time I am self tuned FBO bnrs3 on e35+meth 26PSI minus exhaust manifold. I wanted it to last at 400/400 however I knew it wouldn't especially with the heat where I live AZ (120*+)
Parts: order OEM spec rod bearings and pistons due to my low mileage of 32k 2012 Mazdaspeed 3. I ordered Mahle Clevite bearings OEM spec, 87.5 Platinum series Manley Pistons (2618), Manley H-Beam rods, Crank pulley bolt and 3x friction washers, L19 Headstuds and Cometic MLX head gasket.
As soon as all the parts arrived I started to disassemble everything to remove the head it was easy just took time about 6 hours with breaks by myself. Hardest part was the crank bolt, I had my sister hold the brakes while I cranked the 2ft breaker bar. I was nervous as this would be my first time going this in depth and wouldn't know what to expect to find whether it be scoring in the cylinder, broken pistons causing bad out of round measurements or crank journals were toast because the whole goal was to not do any machine work with a budget, yet all was well from bearings measurements to cylinders to crank journals.
Time for short block assembly; I assembled the connecting rod and piston by matching the new rod and rod bearings to the stock clearances with stock bearings in the stock rods.No hone because the cylinders still had faint but hatching nonetheless and did not want to risk creating out of round issues. It all went smooth I had no hiccups and next thing I know the short block was assembled. I chose to do .020 top and .024. bottom ring due to my research. I made a DIY BSD delete/baffle and drilled out 2 5/8 holes in the stock PCV plate to run to lines VTA to the ground.
Head: I ported and gasket matched the exhaust side no bowl work just get rid of edges to reduce hot spots and slightly ported the intake side. I am not satisfied with it nevertheless will soon turn it into a single runner and install 70lb springs. During the head install I torqued the L19s to 90ftlb in steps 0-35ftlb 4x then in 3 steps to 90ftlb. marked all the cam buckets easily installed and timed it and started to assemble all the accessories for the first start up.
Time for start up. It took 2 tries #1 did not start because fuel needed to be primed #2 it started but with a misfire, at this moment I instantly shit the pantaloons but found out cylinder 2 coil was not fully plugged in. After that it ran smoother than a mf no piston slap or weird sounds other than a cheap JBR 88 TMM I picked up and 2 DIY aluminum blocks in the stock PMM for minimal vibes with slighty better performance feels almost stock even with BSD.
Test drive/breakin, I used supertech 5w30 let it idle till coolant got to 160* and verified no leaks. I drove 20 miles with my 400whp map hitting 22psi within it with lots of engine braking. Came home dumped the oil no metals in the oil, changed with 5w30 supertech again drove it to 150 miles everything was going great feeling stronger than ever. Changed to supertech 20w50. So far the build has gone great I have 500 miles on it.
TOTAL COST & TIME = 1600$ and 2 days for a built motor 600-650hp
Currently sitting at 420/450
0 blow by/oil consumption so far will update with any issues. Future goal 600whp, Any questions PM or comment here
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