[Tim Corcoran]

I have no interest in advertising for Speedmaster just letting people know of some fantastic deals they have going on. Today (Monday) is the last day for their 40% off Black Friday sale. Thay have some pretty good deals going on. Look at these 6.8 BBC I-Beam rods.

https://www.speedmaster79.com/I-Beam...BBC-454?page=1

And these deals on heads you can get them bare or set up in different configurations. These heads out flow E-heads too and the casting and material is just as good if not better than Edelbrock heads.

https://www.speedmaster79.com/engine...ily=Pontiac-V8

These are not just Chinese knock off's, I put them in the same category as Eagle, Scat, Molner etc. Their parts are designed in Austraila, their casting facility is in China which they control the quality, machining and assembly is in California so you can call them on the phone. Anyhow the black Friday deals are hard to beat anywhere.

[mgarblik]

The Speedmaster Black Friday sale has been a real solid deal for several years now. Selling their products direct for about what their dealers have to pay for them, generally causes friction with the dealers, but they seem to make it work. The prices are certainly very attractive, especially for a budget build. Like any part from China, going into an engine, I would carefully measure every single part before installing. As far as the heads, if buying complete assemblies, take the heads completely apart. Check stem to guide clearance, check spring pressure, open, closed, coil bind and rate on every spring, clean out all the chips and debris. Then at the very minimum, dye up the seats and hand lap them in. That way, you know something wasn't skipped or missed. Crankshafts, measure every journal, check for finish and diameter of seal area. If serrated, polish that area. Verify thrust clearance. Even though, IMO, Molnar rods and crankshafts are in a much higher class than the brands listed in the above post, I do the same with their parts as well.

[PONTIAC LARRY]

Beware those rods. I bought the same ones you linked for my 467 stroker build and they appear same as Eagle EXCEPT the cap screw bolts are unmarked cheapo but identical dimensions of the good ARP ones that come on the same spec Eagle rods and when I went to take the caps off to begin assembly I had one bolt head just broke popped right off the shank ! Just on an initial take apart never been torqued assembled before... What a blessing to discover in advance, I went and bought Eagle spec ARP bolts and swapped all when I put together and also removed ALL savings from going with Speedmaster vs Eagle on the rods at least , I ended up spending same or more to buy the bolts and the cheap rods.

[Dragncar]

I called up SM and asked them about their rod bolts I know some rod manufacturers used to sell rods with bolts other than ARP at a lower price but they were still made in the USA. The "tech" guy told me they were Speedmaster brand and made overseas. 200,000 psi and he never heard of any complaints ? We just did.
Thing is, those Crower copy SM 6.8 rods are VERY heavy, 880 grams !
I have some 6.8 Crower mid weights and they are 810 grams. Crower tech told me they are a heavy rod and need a 220,000 psi bolt just for 7500 RPM ! Past that they want that 700$ rod bolt deal.
So, 880 grams with a China bolt, you might want to buy some ARP 2000 bolts and by then you will have over 500$ in those rods.
Might as well drop 700$ on some Molnar rods and be done with it. Heck their 750$ PA rod are in 2000 HP engines !
SM tech guy could not tell me if those I beams were billets machined into shape or forged into shape. Hard to tell from the pics.
My brother bought some of these
https://www.speedmaster79.com/H-Beam...-Chevy-BBC-454
827 grams , lighter than that I beam but if the head snaps off........ looks like he will be buying some ARP bolts !

https://molnarrods.com/bbc-connecting-rods

For the money Scat and Eagle are not in their class and I do not see why people even buy them anymore.

[Tim Corcoran]

Wow, I appreciate the report of the rods, I guess Speedmaster is not as good as I thought.

[grandam1979]

Originally Posted by Dragncar

I called up SM and asked them about their rod bolts I know some rod manufacturers used to sell rods with bolts other than ARP at a lower price but they were still made in the USA. The "tech" guy told me they were Speedmaster brand and made overseas. 200,000 psi and he never heard of any complaints ? We just did.
Thing is, those Crower copy SM 6.8 rods are VERY heavy, 880 grams !
I have some 6.8 Crower mid weights and they are 810 grams. Crower tech told me they are a heavy rod and need a 220,000 psi bolt just for 7500 RPM ! Past that they want that 700$ rod bolt deal.
So, 880 grams with a China bolt, you might want to buy some ARP 2000 bolts and by then you will have over 500$ in those rods.
Might as well drop 700$ on some Molnar rods and be done with it. Heck their 750$ PA rod are in 2000 HP engines !
SM tech guy could not tell me if those I beams were billets machined into shape or forged into shape. Hard to tell from the pics.
My brother bought some of these
https://www.speedmaster79.com/H-Beam...-Chevy-BBC-454
827 grams , lighter than that I beam but if the head snaps off........ looks like he will be buying some ARP bolts !

https://molnarrods.com/bbc-connecting-rods

For the money Scat and Eagle are not in their class and I do not see why people even buy them anymore.

The link you posted shows 821 grams for those rods?

[Dragncar]

https://www.speedmaster79.com/I-Beam...BBC-454?page=1

[PONTIAC LARRY]

White Star Line built fine ships too !