Because i know what im talking about. My engine builder tested TI rods for Omniman, and has done a ton of work with aluminum rods, A beams, H Beams, I Beams, etc.
If you were to take a motor making 240whp with EAGLE RODS ($300) and were to do nothing except CHANGE the rods out to TITANIUM ($1500 rods) the only gain you would see is from about 8500+ and it would be 3-5whp.
I dont know how to say this any simpler, but this thread is about KEEPING IT SIMPLE. That means most bang for the buck. If you can justify to a street car to buy rods that cost $1500 for 3-5whp of PEAK POWER, and also sacrificing reliability, then go for it. I wont.
Show me results from lighter pistons vs off the shelf CP pistons. Show me results from knife edged cranks vs stock. Heavy rods vs light. etc.
increasing compression is only ne benefit of welding the combustion chamber. you will reduce significant piston weight from running a shorter dome. i am pretty sure you will free up significant amount of horse power to the wheel when the weight saving are combined with with a lighten crank, lighter rods, lighten flywheel, lighten wheels, 3 pucks clutch disc (more chatter but lighter than 6 or 4 pucks), behive spring (use a smaller retainer), narrow skirt pistons. you will have a better quench pad surface too which you can add a little more timing to pick up a little more power.
The WHOLE POINT IF THIS THREAD is about KEEPING IT SIMPLE. Using off the shelf parts to make good RELIABLE power.
95% of all engine builds out there are fine with EAGLE Rods
95% of all engine builds out there are fine with off the shelf pistons
Most of these guys are on BUDGETS, they dont have $10,000 to spend on an NA Engine. most people have $2000-3000 tops.
Again you are trying to compare some all out race engine to a STREET ENGINE.
you are right. this thread is about keeping it simple. get everything done while the motor is out. spend a little extra money and have all the good bottom end and head mods. basically anything that require pulling the motor should be done ahead of time. this is important when you are paying someone to do the work for you because the money you pay for multiple shop visits can be use to buy the parts you needed to begin with. the complication is having to go back and explaining to your homeboy why you got dusted.
The methods you are recommending cost a ton more money with little better results. If they follow my methods they will made good power, be reliable, and if "they get dusted by their homeboy" so be it. Theres always someone faster.
You talk like 200-220whp isnt a lot. I cant name 1 person that has cracked 220whp with a B Series in the last 2 years NA. Where are all your builds that make tons of power?
My 200whp 1.8L CRX LOST to guys making 210-220whp out of 2.0 K Series or 2.2l H Series, and it didnt lose by much. It was a simple setup in a nice car.
The truth is more people have fun with a well rounded setup, than spending tons of money on parts that dont matter. That was the WHOLE POINT of this thread. Telling people you dont have to spend the most money, or buy the most trick parts, etc. Its about choosing the RIGHT parts.vteckidd. i know you are the all motor expert. i know you know a lot about all motor setups. tell these forks on here the truth and not what they want to hear. 200hp is not enough to hang anymore. tell them they need to spend money to go fast. tell them this is 2010 and there are only 5 b series in the 300hp range because they only want to spend money on some off the shelf pistons and eagle rods.
If someone wants to try an build some crazy 300whp engine then obviously they arent on this site looking at this thread for advice.
200whp IS ENOUGH nowadays. Its perfectly fine. You arent going to beat 400-500whp cars, but if you are NA you already know that. Out of the 20 cars that dynoed at mainstreams dyno day yesterday, 1 cracked 200whp, there was about 10 in the 190whp range.
That says something.
Tbone on Honda-tech TRIED to build a 300whp NA B Series engine with about $20,000 he made 276whp. That was dry sumped, $1500 rods, $1000 custom pistons, Custom Cams, $2000 head work, $2500 ITBs, tons more trick stuff. I dont know about you, but who on here has that kind of money?