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

Last engine I had built I told the guy take all the time you need. Granted, he's a one-man band and I wasn't in any big hurry for it. Gave him money when asked; never was a pain in his ass about "is it done yet". Basically "Call me when it's ready". All in, about 5 months total.

The other engine I had built prior was right at 4 months. Same parameters but was at a full-on engine shop with staff.

Both cases were street SBC's.

 

I hope you have all the major hard parts like pistons for you build. If custom pistons are going to be used, the wait times have gone upward of 6 months.

 

Machining an old Hemi engine requires no more change than machining most other engines with a V8 construction. An engine builder can realistically justify that he can't assemble an engine due to things which are beyond his control. If the supply chain doesn't have the part/parts he needs, he must wait and the owner must wait. Simply machining a block and heads does NOT present any major holdup problem to a machine shop other than the shop owner deciding who is his most important customer and what engine gives the biggest profit margin. While I can see that a shop who has regular customers is going to give them preference over a "one time" customer, he also has a responsibility to at least treat the one time customer decently. A year and a half and no progress at all is not reasonable.

I realize that the OP also wants the engine assembled. Does he have all the necessary parts available to the machinist/builder? If he doesn't, maybe thats part of the holdup. If assembly is going to be a problem, then tell him to get the machine work done and find another builder or build it at home. Whats he going to do when his car is complete and still has no engine or idea when he will have one? Myself, I wouldn't put up with excuses any longer...you reach a point where enough is enough. I went thru this same thing with a scammer who had pictures of his Christian affiliation, pictures with his family, and every excuse in the book why he couldn't ship the item.....even though the UPS store was only about 3 miles from his house. He kept promising shipment right up to the day they arrested him. Honest people do the right thing.......its part of their makeup. Liars just keep lying.

 

My last two engine builds (by two different shops) took one month. That included boring blocks, align boring the mains, turning cranks, balancing and blueprinting, plus heads for one, but not the second one.
I've always asked when dropping engines or heads off what the time frame would be, and always been told 2-4 weeks, and they were good for that time frame. But if you don't ask when you drop it off then they have an open time frame and no schedule to meet.

 

This has been a real fun thread to read, makes me happy to do business with the local farmers. Most of my accounts are AG related, they drop the work off, I do it, they pay when they receive their statement. No worries. I still build engines for guys with Hot Rods and classics but you need to be patient, and I will tell you up front. Your Hot Rod/Custom (or other) is a toy, farmers and industrial customers are making a living and feeding America. I am constantly putting people off "give me a call in a couple months and then you can bring it in" I tell them. Some call back, some don't. Once you get your foot in the door and give me a deposit I do my best to get your engine out at least within 6 months. If you are in a hurry for an event, let me know, I'll work with you. When it comes to 350 SBCs or 302 Fords I will most likely show you a Summit catalog, there are some good "crate motors" out there and you can get them quickly. The absolute worst thing to tell me is "take your time, I'm in no hurry" If you're not, I wont be. I've read on here many times about shops that take deposits, stack up jobs then take many years to finish. If at all. I don't want to have any more than six engine projects going at one time. It's not good for me and it's not fair to the customer. After saying all this I can tell you the longest I've had an engine project here at the shop was 11 months, and that was because of a parts availability problem. I do have a couple that have been sitting here for years but that is because of lack of interest from the customer or no deposit. Those people I have told "let me know when you are serious, and I will get on it" It's a tough business to be in, parts quality is down and the price of everything is up (you should see my electric bill) I remember when I first got into the trade you could buy a 350 SBC, 302 SBF or a 318 Mopar long block for $399. Those days are gone! If you want a 350 from me you are looking at $3500, If you want a complete Y-Block you are going to pay a minimum of $5000. I understand why people don't want to pay that, what I don't understand is why more guys don't just learn to do assembly themselves. I can get the basic machine work done much quicker than assembling a complete engine. You get it sooner, you can have more pride in your project and you save a lot of money.

I've rambled on enough, these are just my opinions. I guess the simple answer to the original question "What is a reasonable time?" whatever you and the shop agreed on in the beginning. Always ask how long it will take. When the time is up and nothing has been done, go get it and take it somewhere else.

 

That’s it in nut shell. Assembly is time consuming. Maybe guys should just get machine work done, and ask guys at local car club etc to help with assembly. I do my own assembly work however if and when I get I flat head I’ll need some expert help.
Dan

 

The next project going to my machine shop is also a 292, and I was told a year wait before bringing it in. I do my own assembly work, but do carry the block, crank, and head(s) in for inspection/sizing. That way I can order the parts I need ahead of time. My shop is fine with that, but some aren't. I hope for your buddy they make good on the "trashed" crank if their fault. 292 cranks (especially early) take a little searching to find one, but they are out there.

 

This is exactly what I was getting at, surviving on the odd “hot rod” engine is not going to be a profitable business venture, nor is bumping an industrial customer to work on a small job.