Machining my block??

[fordtruckin]

How can you tell if you need to bore your engine out vs. just honing each cylinder? Also what else should I consider when getting my engine block machined, or is it kind of a standard when you take it in to get it cleaned up? I gues what I am saying is what should I ask the Machinest for when I take my block in?
Thanks in advance!

 

[Gene Fiore]

You will want to have the freeze plugs removed, block hot tanked to remove grease, paint and gunk and new freeze plugs installed. The machinest will have to mic the cylinders to see how much beyond standard bore they are from wear and tear. That will determine whether the cylinders need to be bored or not. Also might want to deck the block slightly ( machined ) to make sure the surface is absolutely flat and square. That would be the minimum.

 

[JackFish]

What you should do is buy the Falcon handbook, read it a few times, and highlight the parts you want your machinist to look at. Then give him the book and let him have at it.
That's what I did, and my book came back well-thumbed, and the machine work awesome.

The way to tell if your cylinders need machining is to measure them. Again, your machinist has the experience to tell you if it's within specs or requires work. I bought a cheap set of inside telescoping guages to fiddle around with, but it's the interpretation of the numbers and the accuracy of the measurement that's important.