Jerry Sabatino

i am thinking about building a 540 out off my procharged 500 and i am looking at the kit that ateco offers . the price seems to be low for what you are getting. has anyone had any experiance with one of these kits. mind you i am not trying to say anything negative about ateco or there product i just want to get some feedback before i make a purchase. so any advice i can get from fellow boaters would be great. thanks

Magic Medicine

Contact Brad Zastrow he has done alot of biz with Ateco. I haven't heard anything but good things about them. Keep in mind Eddie Young is in your area.

Jerry Sabatino

yea eddie is doing a motor for a friend of mine as we speak.

Chris Sunkin

Is your question about the kit or about the vendor?

I'd call Young's. Being local, that link to support could be invaluable. I'm sure he'd be cost-competitive and there's always the shipping factor.

As far as the kit- don't know what you're looking at. I helped a pal with this project- we went with Scat kits at Eddie's suggestion but upgraded to the JE piston- well worth the money when you're running boost. From all the information I gathered, the Scat would be the only budget parts I'd consider. It was the only one I didn't hear a bad thing about.

Jerry Sabatino

i dont have a problem with the vendor but i have heard that scat and some of the other vendors have imported parts from overseas and they dont meet the standards we are use to when we purchase a name brand product. i was lead to belive this was done to be price competative and i dont know if there is a way to truely find out other than input from people who have used there product in a boat. money is not the problem i just want to do this one time spring is here.

Young Performance

The Scat crank is an import, however it is the best as far as imports go. It certainly has it's limitations. If you keep the power under about 900, you shouldn't have any problems with it. I would spend the money on the rods, with good rod bolts. You will break a rod before the crank. I would not use I-beams, only H-beams with at least ARP 2000 bolts. As fas as pistons, stick with the JE's. They cost more than virtually everything else, but are a wise investment. I would be glad to work with you. I to have not heard anything but good about Ateco. Parts are parts, no matter who you get them from (as long as you actually get them ) Buy the best that you can afford. Give me a shout if I can help you.

Everyone else, thanks for the referral.
Eddie

Jerry Sabatino

thanks eddie thats what i needed to hear i have decided to go with an eagle crank and rods , j e pistons with floating pins . i think i might be alittle to hard on the outdrive with the 540 so i am going to stay with the 502 for now. cant wait to ride in kenny's after you get it programed!!

Chris Sunkin

You might want to do a search on here about Eagle. Their quality is said to be inconsistent.

If you're staying at 502, I wouldn't do anything other than leave the stock parts in there. In 4" stroke, the GM crank is superior to any of them except the most expensive of the custom forgings. If you beam-grind and polish the stock dimple rods and put the ARP2000 bolts in them, they'll hold up to just about anything you can throw at them. If you change rod bolts, you need to have them rehoned. The JE's are smart.

Don't throw your money away. Instead of wasting it in the bottom end, put it towards a good set of aluminum heads.

mrhorsepower1

Another great option is the Callies CompStar Speed Pack kits, The cranks and rods are higher quality. The finish machining and forgings are nicer. I sell and install many of these kits and have had no issues. With the other 2 companies mentioned, product is good, you have to pay very close attention to journal sizes. I have seen rod journals out of round and vary in size up to .001. It all just needs a good checking by your engine builder that's all. Like Eddie mentioned...do what you can afford, the biggest thing is getting components assembled correctly.

Jerry Sabatino

after i made my choice of eagle i found out the same thing , no eagle for me. i talked to eddie last night and i am going with the 540 he also said he uses scat cranks all the time and has no problems with them. thank you for your responce