Hot Rods How long is it reasonable to wait for an engine build?

I'm waiting over a year and a half now for an engine to be built. Is that typical these days? I'm a very patient guy but it's getting frustrating, I have to admit. Am I being unreasonable? I've kept in contact monthly, I'm told that it's coming, etc. No real definitive deadlines can be met. If this is typical then I'll just have to buckle in and wait.
The builder, who I don't want to call out here because that would seem counterproductive to getting the engine built, is responsive when I contact him, he's not ignoring me. But it's always "it's coming" with no real time given of when that might be.

 

I made persistent attempts to buy parts from a well respected builder, even going as far as giving credit card info. I was never charged, I obviously did not get parts either. After about 6 phone calls over a several month period, I gave up. It’s been almost 6 months since then and have not heard a peep. I wish I was that well off…

 

What is the engine in question?

 

Hey- You've been patient enough. I had the same deal happen to me, and this was a friend of 40+ years, but I was just a customer, and treated things as such...... Time went by with all the reasons/excuses.....Come by next week, etc, etc.... One day, I said F THIS! I went there and said= If you can't do what I asked, I have to pick up my stuff and take it elsewhere, because it obviously isn't getting done. Tough to call out a friend, but biz is biz..... And I was serious.....
Within 2 weeks, my engine was done, and home.....
Point being= Don't be afraid to call BS. If it isn't happening, there is someone who will make it happen. Your time. Your money....... Either two things will happen.... 1, here you go with your stuff, or 2, "holy shit", I better get this done before I get blasted....... If people cared about their reputations, then it's a make or brake...... Up to you to decide what happens now........... Good luck.

 

This is good advice. I once waited 9 months for a pair of heads- it was more than just a valve job but there was really no excuse. I lost momentum on the project and I’m just getting back into it 10 years later! The machinist has since passed and despite the wait he was very good and knew a lot of the forgotten old school techniques. Sadly there are very few left in the industry like that…

I have been struggling lately just to find someone honest. It’s amazing how many complaints online you find about shops substituting customer supplied parts with crap they had lying around…

 

We always seemed to bump up against a six to ten week lead time for machine work. The machine shops we used were just that busy and we would have to get in line.
But that was for common stuff. I know of some really high end engine builds that were over a year and longer in the works. When you start doing exotic stuff with precise blueprinting the timeline gets stupid.

 

I know you’ve called, but have to stopped in to take a look at it, have the shop show you what’s left, etc?

 

Locally the engine builds will get faster this time of year as race season is ending and also irrigation season is done. There's about a 4 month window for fast builds of street engines. Flatheads sometimes take a little longer. I was looking at a Blue Print SBC that wasn't in stock and it had an estimated ship time after the first of the year.

 

My engine builder is too busy to even take my parts in.

 

This like all from the check-writing point of view? Hope we hear from some guys doing the work.

 

1. Normal build, mild HP, full on race engine, esoteric engine and parts?
2. Was any estimated time given, was this a 'when time allows'?
3. Have reasonable reasons been given (parts not received, work backed up, shop issues) or is it as you say 'it's coming' with no real answers to your concern?

 

At 18 months plus down the track none of your points are reasonable, especially if the builder has had the engine in his possession all that time. It is a total lack of respect. It is always best to be honest in what you promise a customer.

 

All reasons why I’m happy I can machine and assemble my own.

 

Took a year and a half for my flathead short block. My build was consistently pushed “back” because of commercial customers. I had visited multiple times in person in between. What got him going (single guy who worked there, but shop was owned by Car Quest with store up front), was when I told him I was taking it all back home right then and there. He started right then and there. Lol! I had paid for all the parts on my own and was of course beyond being pissed. Fast forward 6 yrs, and I get another flathead. That shop had closed (I wonder why?), and same machinist moved to another machine shop. Dropped off that block in May of this year just to have the cam/valves/lifters removed and block cleaned. Same thing. Owner kept giving excuse after excuse. So, showed up in person a couple times. Place was harder to get to being it was south of town, but finally got the block back in August. Same thing, commercial customers always took priority, which was a constant flow. If I ever get to having this second one done, will likely bring it to Montreal where I would hope there would be plenty of machine shops. Only a handful in Ottawa area and fewer and fewer as the years go by.

 

Sounds to me like engines should go to the machine shop at about the same time as the body goes to paint such that it all comes together about the same time!

Chris

 

13 month for basic machine work on a 426 hemi. No assembly. The 454 I had machined before that in a different shop, 6 months. We have a serious shortage of engine machine shops here in Atlanta.

 

I would think in a year and a half you could recast and build a complete new engine. I agree, 30, maybe 60 days would be it for me.

 

It took 8 months to get the machine work done on my Nailhead motor, although to be fair they told me it would be 6 months when I brought it in. Their current backlog is longer.

 

The last time I had an engine in a machine shop was for just boring the cylinders, took 2 days.

 

Unfortunately, engine machine shops are becoming a lost art. Very few auto repair shops will even entertain the idea of rebuilding an engine anymore and this has hurt the machine shop side. By the time most cars today need major engine repair, the car value isn’t worth the price of the work. There is only one place in St. Louis that does machine work (that I know of) and their quality is barely acceptable. However, they are the only game in town. The last 6 cylinder head they rebuilt for us took over a month. In my industry, that is unacceptable. You can’t tell a customer his truck will be down for a month with no revenue generated. We now just buy heads from the dealer when we perform overhauls. They cost more, but I can have the truck on the road in 1 week vs 1 month.

 

My 355 Chevy, 3 months with Lee over at LAB. I learned years ago that you need to keep in contact with the builder, show up at the shop weekly, maybe 2, even for a few minutes helps.

I also had hard engine parts sent directly to the shop. I always followed that up with a visit.

I turned a buddy onto the shop and he dropped off an OT engine and took his time checking up on it. Lee called him up and told him to take his engine out of there, since it was weeks without hearing from him. We managed to get things smoothed over and he got his engine.

 

Did you try Will's Machine Shop? They do not do assembly (that I know of), just machine work/inspection. He did my Pontiac 316 in 3 months years ago and recently a set of early olds heads in 6 weeks and honed some king pin bushings in a few days. Mark (Will's son who now owns the shop) likes early motors.

 

How about going there and having him show you which ones are in line in front of yours? Then stop back in a week and do the same. See if he is telling you the truth.

 

Seems that you could have got an apprenticeship at the shop and ended up doing the work on it yourself in less than that much time. Yeah, I did that trick 20+ years ago, it worked out pretty well. I can still go back and do some of my own work at the shop, today.

 

Why don't people get a contract for the work, with a penalty clause for not performing as per the contract ? I understand the reason that the shop wants to take care of his regular commercial customers, but business is business. If they can't perform as quoted, go somewhere else. Yes, I know that there are less engine shops now than there used to be. Why not get recommendations from people that you know and trust ? You may have to pay more to get the work done as quoted, but be thankful that it is getting done.

 

Or just buy a , GASP, crate engine!

Ben

 

Every machine shop I've ever been around has had priorities, not first in first out.

Fleet accounts, racers, service departments/indy shops, high volume performance shops all come before the guy building a car in his garage.

I'd go in the shop and tell them they have sixty days to get it done or you're pulling it out of there. That only works once, so you better be prepared to do it.

 

I recommended an engine builder to a customer of mine. When the builder shot him straight on how long it was going to be so he went and bought a crate.

A. He had it in like a week so it wasn't the hold up on his project. B. He knew exactly how much it was going to cost him.

I kind of hate crates, but there are reasons they sell a bunch of them.

 

I just got a pair of heads back from the machinist I've been using for the last 40 plus years. When I took them in he said it would be a couple of weeks, we were on vacation so I called him just after three weeks and he'd gotten them done a few days prior. He is retiring, working shorter hours, does no full rebuilds, not sure what I will do when he sells his equipment so I can't bug him to do my work
I have another blacksmith machine shop do axle shortening/straight axle stuff and when I was paying the bill the "book keeper" said, never tell Steve to "get to it when you can", so now I set a time He does good work, I like him but now I know what I need to do in order that my expectations be met.
I'm trying to get a cement pad for a garage and it's been like pushing rope uphill, we have a shortage of people in the "trades", I guess I've done a poor job with my kids/grandkids because none even consider a job in the trades