I have compiled this list from my experience with engine rebuilding and from suggestions from others on TD. Feel free to add on to the list.

Tips for first time engine builders

I seems like a lot of us have made some of the same mistakes while building up our motors. I think if we come up with a list of common mistakes and suggestions we could help save some others from the frustration and expense of making them.

1. Use ziploc bags and label them for nuts, bolts, and brackets. I have also taken pictures of things before I took them apart. It could be a long time between teardown and rebuild. It is hard to remember where everything goes

2. Exhaust manifold studs and intake bolts – use RTV or thread sealer on them and tighten the studs up in the head before putting the manifolds on. Some of them go into coolant and oil passages.

3. Freeze plugs and oil galley plugs. Make sure you use some type of sealant or red locktite on them. Especially the one above the rear main seal

4. Work over a table or bench while assembling the motor. If you drop something it will not fall as far. I cracked a piston because it squirted out of my hands and fell on the floor

5. Make sure you put the bolt back in the side of the head that holds the bracket for the turbo and coolant lines. It goes into an oil galley.

6. Make sure you have all the parts you need before you start a project. Sometimes it takes a while to get parts.

7. Research for several months before you decide on what you want to do. I did a lot of research and I still changed my mind several times during the build. It probably cost me an extra $600 because of my indecisiveness.

8. Don’t start the project until you have plenty of time to complete it. Also double the time you think it will take because it always takes longer.

9. It is easier to take the time and spend the money to do things right once than have to do it more than once.
Budget more money than you think you need because something always breaks, costs more to fix or machine or a jewel caught your eye, lol!
10. Use a paint marker to mark bolts that have been torqued and or loctited, that way there is no question whether it was tightened.

11. When removing/reinstalling the pistons, Use thread protectors to save the crank. (vacuum hose works awesome)

12. Before you remove the pistons, or anything, Number the locations of the main caps, pistons, and rod bearing caps. If you do not have a number stamp set, Use a sharp end, such as a punch, and put marks in them. You MUST reinstall the Rods with the same caps in the same position. I will usually put the number on the side of the rod on the cap and rod. Remember how you numbered. If you install them wrong, your engine may not function. If it does, it may have too much oil clearance, causing No oil pressure, and if it is too small, the bearing will fail due to lack of lubrication. -Detorque the head in sequence.

13.Retorque the head gradually, and in sequence also.

14.Lube everything well with a good assembly grease *I use white lithium*

15.DO NOT Use assembly lube on piston/rings. Your rings need the extra friction with the cylinder to properly seat. Use regular motor oil. This will give it the lube it needs, and also give it a chance to seat.

16. Clean everything Extensively, I use a mineral spirit tank, but other methods will work.

17.Run a cleaning tool through all the oil holes in everything *block, crank, etc.*

-18. When installing a bearing with oil hole in it, run a piece of mechanics wire up in the hole to ensure it is open.

19. Make sure you put the thrust bearing in the right spot.

20.Make sure all bolt holes are FREE of LIQUIDS, If you torque a bolt into a hole with any liquid in it, the liquid will NOT give way to it, something else will.

21.Plasti-gauge all the new bearings, ensure that the clearances are within specs.

22.Do not cut corners. Do all necessary machine work and replace all internal parts. Saving a few dollars now can cost you many dollars later.

23.Cleanliness cannot be over stressed! Again

24.I would also recommend using the most complete engine possible. If you don't have access to a parts car, you'll end up spending a lot of time and money on little stuff like brackets and such. A bare block bought from a shop might be a good bargain, but only if you have everything else you need. I would recommend taking pictures and/or making sketches as well as you disassemble the engine. It sounds stupid, but it just might save your bacon. Get yourself a set of engine brushes, too. Summit sells a set of five for $20 and they fit every hole of every engine.
Another trick I've learned along the way too is to use the disposable paper-towel style rags you can get at the auto parts store when cleaning and assembling everything, they don’t leave lint and crap like the red or blue clothe style rags do.
Things I have seen people learn the hard way: 1) always prime the oil pump if you are installing a new one. No prime=no suction=no oil pressure! 2) Check behind as much of the machine shops work as you possibly can. I got a bad valve job from a "reputable" machinist. The car never would idle right and I chased my tail for a long time before I found the problem. I should have poured some mineral spirits in each combustion chamber to make sure no fluid made it past the valves into the intake/ext. runners before assembly. But I trusted the shop. Big Mistake! Keep a journal, or notes. I try to log as much as I can. It helps when you compile your list of things to order... because you'll always forget something if you don't write it down.

25.I also write notes on my plastic bags of bolts and such. Like "connect the ground wire" on that bag of misc bolts from the harness and head.

25.Try to do all the other stuff you can too. It's a lot easier to fix some things with the motor and tranny out. Now is a good time to fix that P/S steering assembly, or that steering rack, or do those nasty bushings.

27.If you are doing the work with a buddy, be sure you are on the same page. He might not be around one day during reassembly, and you'll need to have the same system to pick up where he left off.

28.Read, read, read! You can find a lot of books for cheap on ebay about engine building. The are full of tips and pictures to diagnose problems you might not know you had! And whenever possible use the FSM for your vehicle and year. I won't touch a motor without one.

29.Nothing beats having the right tool. If you don't have it, take a break and get it. You'll thank yourself later. Half assing it will haunt you!
It is normal to spend as much $$$ on insurance items as it is on parts themselves. Check everything for cracks, make sure the crank's bore is straight, make sure the cam bore is straight, make sure the rods are round. Make sure the head is flat. Make sure the block is square, make sure the cylinder bores are perfect, make sure this, make sure that. If anything is questionable, get a new one.

30.Unless it’s for increased strength or something, stay with dealer parts. Aftermarket stuff is too questionable.

31.Plastiguage works assuming the big ends of the rods and the crankshaft bore is perfectly round. If it’s not round, it will give false readings.

32.When lubricating the head bolts, DO NOT use too much oil. It CAN
hydro-lock the bolt and although it'll feel like its tightening up, its just hydraulic pressure and this pressure HAS been known to crack blocks.

33.Clean clean clean. Someone else mentioned that already. I think it’s the #1 cause for concern.

34.Don't trust machine shops. Let them do the machining, but when they are done, double check it yourself!

35.This worked good for me, but not necessarily for everyone else. I first built an engine on a budget--I used old parts and stuff, cheap this, cheap that. It turned out good because I learned not to trust machine shops and why. I would have nuked a lot more of much more expensive parts if I went all-out the first time. My $420 forged pistons would be of little use, my $1000 S-60 turbo would have been fried by bead blasting media. I destroyed a used oil pump instead of a new one, etc.

36.I strongly believe that engine build would have been successful and would still be running today if it weren't for the poor machining. This build-up did not fail. I learned a SHIPLOAD of stuff to do and not to do.
1. Take your time, no need to get in a rush, it's not a speed contest.
2. Work in a CLEAN room. I know it sounds funny but I had a redneck friend built his chevy motor OUTSIDE on an engine stand in his backyard. Motor lasted about 200 miles. Was it his assembly or was it likely that dirt and crap got into the motor while he was assembling it?
3. It doesn't have to be done overnight. If on an engine stand, or otherwise keep it covered when not working on it,
4. After install, when your first start it up, check for any leaks, issues etc....before you take it for a drive. Chances are they may be one or two small issues like a coolant line not being tight, or the infamous bolt on side of the head that pours out oil if you forget to put in back in, etc....you want to know and fix any issue before it hits the street.
5. Follow break in procedures carefully, and don't be afraid or too cheap to change oil often during the first 2000 miles. I change mine after the first warm up cycle, like after the first 20 minute break in, and I check it for metal debris etc..., then I change it again at 500 miles, 1000 miles and then at 2000 miles I switch to synthetic if desired. Oil is cheap, change it often.
Never break in a motor with synthetic. I usually use straight 30 weight, non detergent oil for breakin.