Hi just spent $2800 on head and block gear box was last year total $7000, $2000 a bit of a dream. Sorry
Cheers shorty 

I should have been a mechanic if you can make that kind of money haha.
If its going to cost that much I can just find a running 998 when the bodywork is done. I have a lead on two running and complete 998 for 600 for one and 800 the other, I also have another lead on mini parts from a guy not far from me but not sure what his got there and if his reasonable, got his number so will give him a ring in the next day or two.
Is 6-7k for a bare bones rebuild or is that with added performance parts?
Thanks

Hi,

If you want someone to rebuild yours, then $6,000-$7,000 as Shorty says is in the ball park.

If you ony have $2000 to spend then concentrate on the Body repairs and keep an eye out on the for sale sites for a complete going engine to drop in to your Moke. It won't be new but you are more likely to find one to suit your budget.

And the name is Graeme Russell at Russell Engineering.

Terry

Well there is bad news and good news.
The bad news is I spent two hours yesterday in the garage trying to find some 3/8 UNF bolts to pull the clutch/flywheel didn't find any. Then I went to supercheap, Bunnings, 1 local auto store which has closed down while I was overseas with none to be found.
Today I went to 3 local hardwares with no luck, the only place almost guaranteed to have them was also closed so hopefully tomorrow they will be open.
The good news is I purchased what the guy said was a 998 block with a few other bits a while back but I never checked it at the time, today I decided to pull out some of the parts I got to create a shopping list for mid January. Turns out unless I'm very much mistaken its a 1098 block and the bores appear to be in excellent condition.

Hi,

if you carefully remove one or two of the bearing caps you might find that your 1098 has done any or much work. The Pistons don't look like they have seen explosions or at least not enough to leave any carbon laying around.

Terry

It looks like your correct on it not having done much work if any. I cleaned up some of the parts today and removed the bearing caps to take a look and it seems to have been rebuilt and never used. Is it normal to have dots put onto the pistons to denote which cylinder it goes into or did the builder put them in for his reference?
I had a problem identifying the blue head as it doesn't have 12G202 on it like the 2nd spare head I have. I was reading up on the CAM4810 markings and apparently as long as it hasn't been changed and it is the later model head (post 89?) using the hardened valves it is already compatible with unleaded fuel? I haven't researched it yet but it is there an easy way to tell if its a pre or post 89 head?

Hi,

the builder or machinist would have marked the pistons to make sure they get put back into the right hole.

The 202 would have come with the 1098 engine and if you look at the valve seat you can normally see if there has been any work done to insert a new seat for unleaded.

Looking at the colour of your fingers and the bearing shells and the grit on the surface I would be dismantling it further and getting it properly cleaned and and if you want this block to last, take it to someone who knows how to assemble them properly. It looks to me yours has been done on the cheap, just replaced the bearings and maybe rings and cleaned the pistions, and if you re-assemble the bearings with the grit I can see in the photo then you are going to wear the engine out fairly quickly.

By taking it to someone reputable who knows what they are looking at it might cost you a few hundred dollars to get it right, but will save you lots by having an engine that will last a lot longer. I am not local to Sydney but I have heard good reports of Greg McLure(?) or you mention Graham Russell earlier,  either way I would advise you get some adult supervision for this part of the rebuild.

Terry

Haha I would never put dirty parts in an engine I like things polished and I'm pretty OCD, that's why I hate sharing a garage with my dad he never puts a tool in the same place.
My dads friend has been building engines/cars for years and also worked as a mechanic for a while, he said when I'm ready he can come and help me build the engine if I need help.
I'm more than happy to pay to get everything checked over and done properly. I'm assuming everyone is shut this time of year as I looked around for 3/8 UNF bolts again today with no luck so it looks like the flywheel is staying on for now unfortunately as I really want to check the condition of the gearbox internals. I will contact those two mechanics you have mentioned in the new year and have a chat to see what can be done.
On a side note i purchased some Evapo-rust rather than molasses to speed up the removal of some rust but its only 5 litres and this stuff is bloody expensive, does anyone know if I can dilute it with water and what ratio would be reasonable if possible?

Its a big job
I wasn't expecting the hours and $$ when i bought mine
Having said that onc ei started it was a one way road to a total resto - I'm so glad it was now !
I put countless hours into my 82 Cali - i was lucky the motor didn't need a rebuild - i just did everything else.
Keep at it mate, its well worth it when its finally on the road
Ben

How long do you want the 3/8unf bolts do you want.

Hey all,

Spent a few days cleaning up the garage as I couldn't find the correct bolts. Today 9am I called the engineering place around the corner and they were open but they only had 3/8 in 2.5inch or 5inch lengths, I purchased both just in case.
For reference 2.5 inch bolts are long enough (at least 10mm threaded) if you keep the size of the pin inserts face made for the crankshaft hole thin (10mm), alternatively if you are in Sydney your welcome to borrow my puller :-)
It literally took 2 seconds with the impact driver to get the flywheel off which really surprised me, although it did take 2-3 hours to make the puller.
I expected the worst in relation to the transmission even though it was full of oil I didn't think it would be in that great shape.
From what I could see it looks pretty good, I still need to check it out properly. What is the best way to clean the gearbox?
I also spent a bit of time cleaning up the original engine that came with the car, the bores aren't terrible but it may need machine work if I decide to use that one instead of the spare.
On a side note does anyone here use an ultrasonic cleaner? I went to a workshop for rebuilding carburettors where he used one to clean the carby before rebuilding and it seemed to work really well, I'm considering getting one to clean parts and such and I was wondering if anyone has any experience with them.

Cheers,
Mus