Vg30dett rebuild. Much needed advice from the experienced

[TTkickedin]

Hey guys. Finally taking some time this weekend to put some well overdue work in on my 2 years too long engine rebuild. YAY. Please review the problems/questions I have, and please provide any advice you can give me. I'm on a tight budget and under the assumption i wont have to buy much else. if no other option available, I can buy things if necessary.

• What I have/current state:
  1. my original engine/early model: Disassembled, heads are uninstalled. The heads are rebuilt, unsure if the camshaft caps were installed correctly. see problem #1 for more info.
  • 1a. My block. Has new used pistons and chrome rings. I honed the block with a rotary drill hone, not sure if i did it correctly, so see number 2 in this list.
  
  2. automatic vg30dett long block/early model. Had bad compression in cylinder 1, problem seems to be a bad piston, and connecting rod. I have extras to use. The plenum is removed from this engine, and I believe one of the head bolts stripped, no biggie, got the tools to remove. I want to use this block if my original block is bad, so i gotta get the heads off. I refuse to use the automatic heads on my engine.
  3. Essentially 3 sets of heads.
  • 3a. One set from my engine, camshaft caps may be incorrect.
    3b. One Manual set, hasn't been touched, recently removed, bought from reputable member TT.net Barry E. Cohen, potentially usable in it's condition. Unsure, could somebody refer him to this thread, possibly?
    3c. One automatic set. Low mileage vg30dett early automatic heads. I believe they're still 40p, or they might be different because they're auto. havent been touched yet. still installed on the auto block.
  4. Turbos. I have 2 sets
  • 4a. My original turbos. Manual set, definitely needs rebuilds, will not use.
    4b. refurbished manual set. WIll use these. bought them from a member here, seem in good condition, very clean and no shaft play, but they're tight, maybe too tight? how can i tell? Can I fix this by retorquing the center shaft if it's a problem? the right turbo has a dent in the wastegate body, not arm. it's a small dent, could probably get away with it, but I might replace it with a wastegate from my old turbos I will post a picture in this thread.
  5. Injectors. I believe my stock old set is fine, but I might look into getting them cleaned around the area. I only have this set and I'm praying they're going to be fine.
  6. Harness. I never had an issue with it except for the fan thermoswitch on the intake hard pipe, I'm good with electrics, and i do have another thermoswitch from the automatic vg30dett engine.
  7. Sensors. i have all of them. I believe I have the det sensor on both engines. I might need the sub harness for it.
  8. PTU, have the new style one, so I should be fine here.
  9. Timing belt. I have a new one, should be fine here unless the one I bought from autozone isn't worth installing.
  10. Clutch/flywheel. I have a Stage II clutch, no flywheel. I was going to get a flywheel, but I'm going to resurf my sotck one to use with this clutch instead. How to tell if a throwout bearing is bad? I have two to choose from.
  11. Head bolts. Ordered new from Nissan dealer. have not installed them on any engine yet.
  12. Liquids/oil/filter. Not worried, i have 10w30 or 10w40 synthetic ready to go in with a Mobil 1 filter, will change my diff fluid with royal purple or Lucas.

Problem #1. The camshaft cap problem I created a thread for a while ago has been possibly remedied. My dad lost the caps a while ago, I was afraid they wouldn't be in the same order as when they were taken off if he found them, so I bought new heads. A short while after, my dad found the campshaft caps, refused to reimburse me for the heads I bought, so my dad and I rebuilt the old heads, and was able to reinstall the caps, giving him the benefit of the doubt that he wouldn't f*** up the order of them. .

If I still have any doubts after I give them another once over, I will install the new heads instead, either way. If I have the untouched OEM TT heads (3b) next to the rebuilt ones (3a)? how easy would it be to tell if the caps are installed incorrectly? Are they marked in any way? Number, grooves, anything showing proper direction at least?


Problem #2 So anyway, I got this full engine gasket set. 1 year warranty, but unsure about the head gasket, if it's even worth it to install. If not, who has a part number on a better alternative? (Keep in mind, I can't afford a racing head gasket. looking for OEM quality or better on a budget.)
[link]http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/detai ... S6030.html
[/link]

Problem #3 I have rebuilt turbos, the guy I bought them from claims they were rebuilt. There was a dent on the wastegate cylinder, (the drum looking thing, unsure if theres a name for it.) I'm not familiar with the inner workings of the wastegate, but would it be fine to just put one of my older wastegates on there from my stock set of turbos? I'm pretty sure my turbo's need a rebuild (4a), but is there a way to tell if the wastegates are good on the (4a) set to be moved over to the (4b) set?

Problem #4 Head gasket. Not sure if the DNJ head gaskets are even worth installing. Should I use them?


Possible solution:

Remove heads from automatic block. Remove pistons and crankshaft.
Remove good pistons and crankshaft from my old engine.
Install pistons and crankshaft in the automatic block.
Put on the rebuilt set of heads if the campshaft caps are in correct order. If not, the ones i bought from Barry off tt.net.
Resurface the flywheel, install flywheel, install clutch, install transmission.
Dress the engine with new timing belt, and components and all gaskets. Clean exhaust manifolds, light porting job might be done to them. Install turbos
Install engine with vac lines and etc etc.

[TTkickedin]

Nothing guys? really need help before saturday!

[300ZXttZMAN]

First and foremost whats your available budget?

[Z-owned]

I would take the block you honed yourself and have it spec'd to make sure it's good. Also oem head gaskets are more than fine and personally i wouldnt even use anything else, I believe Greg D. runs oem on his 9sec car as well just to give you an idea of what they can handle.That said ever since your belief of a rb swap for 3-6k i have had a hard time taking your post serious lol.

[DCaff300ZX]

I have had a hard time taking your post serious lol.

+1
You do a lot of talking and go to a lot of effort, but both are all over the map and in the end I'm not sure that you know what you're doing any more than I do...
IMO you need to have a solid plan with what you have to work with, and then go about it in a step-by-step method where the experienced guys here will be able to see what is going on clearly and from a organized scenario.

[TTkickedin]

I would take the block you honed yourself and have it spec'd to make sure it's good. Also oem head gaskets are more than fine and personally i wouldnt even use anything else, I believe Greg D. runs oem on his 9sec car as well just to give you an idea of what they can handle.That said ever since your belief of a rb swap for 3-6k i have had a hard time taking your post serious lol.

Off topic, but, How much different would a RB swap be from a s14 chassis to a z32? Don't you need to so the same amount of custom work to get it done on either chassis? wouldn't it be easier to mount a rb engine on a z32 transmission and have the transmission line up in the OEM location anyway, rather than on the S chassis having to fab mounts for that, for instance? Meaning no custom driveshaft?

I personally know a few people that have done RB swaps with no 'kit' for around that price range. IDK why it would be any more for a z32 chassis than a s chassis, that's where that figure comes from. So, don't take me serious if you wish, but I was very serious about what I wrote, for good reason. It's not a ridiculously expensive swap, it gets expensive when you don't keep the RB stock, or you choose a rb26 for some reason.

___
Budget: let's say It would be best if i didn't spend anything. Can barely afford to support myself. I will spend if i absolutely have to, but 'nice' and 'the best' aren't to be used in my vocabulary at this point in time unless they accompany the word cheap. hard to get that, but reasonably possible.

I know my way around an engine, i've rebuilt a subaru engine before.. I could rebuild this engine myself, but I simply don't have my own shop, and tools anymore, so I can't. I've enlisted the help of others for this, simply due to time constraints, my dad's now losing his shop. I'll have to rent a garage or spot somewhere to get this work done, part of the reason my budget is close to zero.

Dcaff - "IMO you need to have a solid plan with what you have to work with, and then go about it in a step-by-step method where the experienced guys here will be able to see what is going on clearly and from a organized scenario."

I have all the intentions in the world to have a plan to get this done. That's what I'm doing right now. I need to know a few things before I really dive into it though, which is why I post here.

I do post alot, I use this forum as a place to bounce ideas off of. An extension of my thoughts so to speak, so while I may seem disorganized and unmethodical reviewing threads I post in or create, there indeed is a method to my madness.

[DCaff300ZX]

Dcaff - "IMO you need to have a solid plan with what you have to work with, and then go about it in a step-by-step method where the experienced guys here will be able to see what is going on clearly and from a organized scenario."

I have all the intentions in the world to have a plan to get this done. That's what I'm doing right now. I need to know a few things before I really dive into it though, which is why I post here.
I do post alot, I use this forum as a place to bounce ideas off of. An extension of my thoughts so to speak, so while I may seem disorganized and unmethodical reviewing threads I post in or create, there indeed is a method to my madness.

That's cool bro, here's hoping you get there!