yeap if there is no other damage then it would be tough to blame anything else.

Does the engine run fine otherwise?

How long have you had it?

Can you borrow a borescope to look in the cylinders to check them out?

 

The pistons look brand new when my shop turn the motor by hand to show me the nicks. Also they believe the rods look good bc if they were bent on eagle rods u would be able to see it. And yes it was a longblock.

 

The motor ran strong but I never pushed it bc I kept getting oil leaks and rear main seal leaks. I wanted to solve them before pushing it to 15psi. I finally decide to have the shop just pull the motor to find all the oil leaks and what they found was more than I bargained for.

 

man that sucks, this is why im scared to get a built motor. i would be screwed in your situation. save up all this money to have a built motor and BAM!!! no one wants to claim responsibility and your screwed out of a ton of money. This SUCKS!!!!

 

like u stated, no one wants to take the credit unless it's good.

Lesson to everyone.... do it at 1 shop so the only person to blame is that 1 shop.

 

Have your machine shop look at the bottom of the pistons and see if they are correctly installed to clear the squirters. Its pretty easy to tell. Or post up pics of the bottom of the piston and I can tell you.

 

Wait ... wat?!?

He's basically skirting blame for something that could clearly be a build issue and then asking you to be a repeat customer for a second round of butt secks?

Weaksauce.

Send the motor to a 3rd party inspection shop, like a fully qualified builder, to inspect and determine the cause of failure. Get it documented and then contact a lawyer if it is the builder's fault and they don't accept responsibility.

 

custom motors have "custom" clearances,perhaps his idea of enough clearance was incorrect.he should repair the motor for free if the rods are not bent.

 

+1
There probably was a few mil clearance. Way back when, CP sent me my custom CR pistons & they claimed they would clear. I did not trust them, so I had the clearance double checked for more than enough room. I had to see it with my own eyes.

 

I wish it was that simple to make him fix it.

 

Where did the Wisco pistons come from? Did BZM suggest them?

I have nevered used Wiseco pistons, so I can't comment on their oil squirt notch. But on the Arias pistons we make, they are symetrical on all surfaces, to keep the balance of the piston. It also means that they can't be installed backwards. The skirts will never touch the squirters.

As far as bent rods, it's pretty unlikely. The squirter is a very weak cast material, that will snap off with little force. At most, it would put a tiny nick in the skirt.
We went through the whole Arias thing nearly 4 years ago, and it hasnt been an issue since for us since. I know that no piston maker was immune at that time. There were reports of Wiseco, and CP also having the exact same problem with their pistons. And just an FYI, the piston will not contact the squirter during assembly/rotation of the motor. However, if insufficient clearance is present, the piston will hit the squirter as the piston expands.

 

I bought the pistons separately elsewhere. My shop says the rods look fine (supposedly u can tell if they are bent with eagle rods) and they did show me the nicks on the skirt. Is there a way to make sure this wont happen again? Can I ask the machine shop to to take off 1/8 more of the clearance? Also someone mentioned about making the oil squirters with additional clearance? Will that be an option instead of rebalancing everything? The motor seemed strong but I never did go WOT yet.

So sharif, would this be the builders fault bc like u said even if u turn the motor the pistons will not come in contact with the squirters until they expand?

 

That may be where things get sticky

 

Although you supplied the pistons, I think any engine builder owes a duty of care, to make sure there is sufficient piston to squirter clearance. If BZM was a shop, with a service facilty, I think it would be a no brainer to get this resolved. But becuase they just sold you an engine, I think their responsibility ends with fixing the engine for you.

I think Todd/BZM is out of the business of building engines, so I think you might be on your own here.

 

If this is the case, shouldn't BZM offer to have the motor rebuilt by another shop? Maybe offer 3 choice and let the owner choose the one he is most comfortable. I could see if they were out of business completely, but just deciding that they don't do that anymore seems weak.

 

update:

After my shop took the motor apart they found the pistons may have been install incorrect???? The grooves for the skirt were facing the wrong directions causing the oil squirters to break. WTF!?!?!?!??!?!?! I'm stun at this pt and lost for words

I wasn't there when the motor was taken apart. Does anyone know if there actually indents for the passage of the oil squirters?

 

This happened to us a long time ago. When the motor was spun over by hand and checked,it cleared the squirters.On top of that,there was no way to get in there to check the squirter clearances with the bottom-end fully assembled.

We didnt even find out there was a problem till the engine was running in a car and got up to temp.That is when the piston expanded and ran into the squirter.It broke all three within five minutes of start-up and CP pistons was like oh well,too bad and I was like F*uck you, put a stop payment on a check and have never bought from them since.And we ended up eating the engine build anyways even though it was not our fault.

 

so doesnt that mean they will rebuild the motor? isnt that good news that someone can now be blamed?

 

BZM isn't taking responsibility so why am I happy about paying for another motor?

 

Small claims, my friend.... besides, Albuquerque is a nice place to visit... LOL