RB26 bottom end rebuild q's rods/pistons

[BigMicky]

At what point do I need to upgrage the rods in my RB26?

The plan is for 350rwkw standard crank, forgies and unsure of rods.

how will the standard ones hold up?

How good are the eagle rods and what do they retail for here in Aus?

I can get crower rods from the states for US$1100, and carrillo's for US $1200 - $US 1800 (pro A vs pro H). (plus GST, freight customs etc)

Is it worth the bucks to upgrade the rods.

I've done a forum search and had a read and the big HP guys all use aftermarket rods but where do we draw the line?

Pistons.... Arias seem to be the go from what I've read, but always interested in more opinions.

WTB

GTR R33 standard crank in good condition

rods? maybe

new pistons

[doubled]

if you can afford it go the aftermarket rods

i was after the same sort of figure 350rwkw and was told the originals shotpeened would handle that no probs so i went with that.... But in the future when 350 isnt enough...(always looking 4 more) the "upgraded" rods will handle it!!

my 2 cents.

[Shaun]

Im after the same figure. Im using the standard (shotpeaned) rods and Arias pistons. I was told if you keep the same redline, rods arent necessary especially for 350rwkw. Thats what ive been told anyway.

Shaun.

[VSPEC32]

When I built mine, I was aiming for around the same mark. I decided that the wife would divorce me if I spent too much on the rebuild, so the rods stayed standard, but had them cryo treated along with the block, crank and cradle. Made 352rwhp before the exhaust strangled the deal (then I proceeded to write it off 2 hrs later...but that's a completely other story). Be sure to have the engine completed balanced and blueprinted in the rebuilt process.

Cheers

Brendan

[Leewah]

From personal experience, shotpeened stock rods are fine for 350rwkw. We pushed my stock shot peened rods to 446rwkw and then when we did my rebuild, I went with Nismo rods which have held 600+ awkw.

For 350rwkw, all you really need are forged pistons for a bit of detenation security.

[R31Nismoid]

agreed

[pnblight]

From personal experience, shotpeened stock rods are fine for 350rwkw.  We pushed my stock shot peened rods to 446rwkw and then when we did my rebuild,  I went with Nismo rods which have held 600+ awkw.

For 350rwkw, all you really need are forged pistons for a bit of detenation security.

i agreed, i have been running my std internals at 397rwkw for 18months know and know of others running more.

also concide Wiseco pistons ~$1250 good price for a good piston.

[RPMGTR]

Std GTR rods are good at 400- 450kw@wheels and up to 9000rpm.....above that level we usually replace em with something better, but in saying that, we have never broken one either....they are a short, tough little rod....

[Mik]

also concide Wiseco pistons ~$1250 good price for a good piston.

Pete, do Wiseco make a piston with a decent comp ratio now? Last time we checked, they only had 7.8:1 or something like that.

[Leewah]

Pete, do Wiesco make a piston with a decent comp ratio now? Last time we checked, they only had 7.8:1 or something like that.

We're using Wiesco 87mm pistons in my car now and the comp is fine.

[Mik]

We're using Wiesco 87mm pistons in my car now and the comp is fine.

What is it though?

[Leewah]

What is it though?

Bout 8.3-8.4ish I guess with a 1.2mm head gasket.

[GTS-t VSPEC]

Whilst I would agree that GTR rods are tough, I did manage to bend three rods in mine at only 350rwkw, just worth keeping in mind:D

[R31Nismoid]

Std GTR rods are good at 400- 450kw@wheels and up to 9000rpm.....above that level we usually replace em with something better, but in saying that, we have never broken one either....they are a short, tough little rod....

400 for the next car show me thinks

[GTRgeoff]

Whilst I would agree that GTR rods are tough, I did manage to bend three rods in mine at only 350rwkw, just worth keeping in mind:D

Any other causal factors to contemplate there Paul? Gudgeon binding or oilflow problems?

[proengines]

Eagle don't make a rod for the RB26 unfortunately, only SR20 and VG30. The Wiseco pistons are listed at 8.0-8.4 in the catalogue, the last set we used came out at 8.6 by the time everything was machined and using a 1mm head gasket.

[Blitz]

proengines: Do you have any experience with Rev I-Beam conrods for RB26?

[proengines]

We used a set of REV rods in the last 26 we did. They aren't a bad looking rod, pretty similar to an argo in design. I heard they are made in China, but then so are Eagles and they are a fantastic rod for the price. We had a problem with a binding conrod bolt in one of the REV rods but UAS replaced it straight away. It's a pretty common problem if the bolts arent lubed properly when the rods are assembled at the factory. They use ARP bolts and come finished on bottom size on the big and little end tunnels, we had to finish them to size which is a good thing if you have the machine to do it as you can get the clearances spot on. A lot of conrod manufacturers do the same thing as it saves having to close the rod up to get it back to the size you want. For the dollars ($1500ish)they are a nice rod.

One rod I'm really impressed with is the ones PAR make in Sydney. We've got an EJ25 here at the moment that runs 400ish RWKW and the rods look like brand new, the tunnels are still round and even the small end bush isn't hammered out. I think We'll use them from now on as they're Australian made and as good as anything I've seen. A bit more pricey than the REV rods though.

[Blitz]

Thanks Greg, did you discover the rod bolt binding issue with the Rev's prior to assembling the engine?

[proengines]

Yep, it locked in the thread half way out when I was taking the caps off to fit the bearings.