LB7 motor build mainly for towing

[KEVINL]

Truck is 2001 Yukon XL 2500 LB7 swapped

current mods
WC fab S475 over stock IHI twin kit
LBZ pump
ARP2000 head studs
Duramax Tuner tuning
air dog 150 lift pump
llml driver manifold
ppe up pipes


so I cracked a piston and I am in the planning stages of a built motor here is what I am thinking I don’t plan on going over 750 hp because that’s what the turbo set up is capable of but going to leave it around 600hp for time being I usually tow on tune 3 because it’s plenty of power

stock LB7 Block
Stock LB7 Crank
Calles stage 1 alt fire cam
Calles compstar rods
Mahle motorsports cast pistons delipped and coated
mahle h series bearings
2020+ L5P oil cooler
wagler pinned oil pump
stock damper &flex plate

other things I am considering

new lifters
rebuilt or new valley turbo?
larger injectors ? Already has new injectors with less than 10,000 miles on them
calles crank but have heard of thrust bearing issues?

 

[ikeG]

01 thru 16 dmax lifters are just about bullet proof. Clean them up and inspect each one and reuse them.

Sent from my SM-G990U2 using Tapatalk

 

[1FastBrick]

That's basically the same package I just put together for my LBZ build. Except I used a regular firing order stage 1 cam from wagler, the 2017-2019 oil cooler, a Fluidamper balancer, and a Goerend flexplate to use with the OE flywheel.

It's almost finished.
I did upgrade the Valve Springs to XDP/Manton Valve spring kit.

 

[Bdsankey]

Truck is 2001 Yukon XL 2500 LB7 swapped

current mods
WC fab S475 over stock IHI twin kit
LBZ pump
ARP2000 head studs
Duramax Tuner tuning
air dog 150 lift pump
llml driver manifold
ppe up pipes


so I cracked a piston and I am in the planning stages of a built motor here is what I am thinking I don’t plan on going over 750 hp because that’s what the turbo set up is capable of but going to leave it around 600hp for time being I usually tow on tune 3 because it’s plenty of power

stock LB7 Block
Stock LB7 Crank
Calles stage 1 alt fire cam
Calles compstar rods
Mahle motorsports cast pistons delipped and coated
mahle h series bearings
2020+ L5P oil cooler
wagler pinned oil pump
stock damper &flex plate

other things I am considering

new lifters
rebuilt or new valley turbo?
larger injectors ? Already has new injectors with less than 10,000 miles on them
calles crank but have heard of thrust bearing issues?

I think you're off to a great start. Personally I don't like using an AF cam on a used crank but that is my preference as I feel the crank has already had millions of cycles to strain the crank that direction and I do not like the risk associated with changing that pattern. As material gets used in the same pattern over and over again it builds up a work hardness. If you can swing it, a callie's crank is a great investment!

The motorsport pistons already come "delipped". They have a different bowl geometry than the OEM reentrant style bowls. The motorsport bowl has a vertical wall to the piston bowl as well as a very generous fillet on the lip. Coating is one of those things that guys either like it or don't. Personally, I don't have much experience with piston coatings so I decided to coat my personal engine's pistons which is a ~800-1000whp truck (link).

I personally am a fan of DHD's pinned/shimmed pump simply because I am not a Wagler fan overall. DHD's customer service and quality control blows Wagler out of the water.

Mahle H bearings are awesome. You'll need P bearings for the cam location and a normal thrust bearing set.

Please please please do not reuse the OEM flexplate and damper. The OEM flexplate is paper thin to begin with, I would highly recommend an option from Goerend/DHD/BD. As for the damper, I personally prefer Fluidampr as I believe they do really help extend bearing life and really do smooth out engine harmonics.

The lifters are fine, simply inspect for damage.

If you don't plan to make more than 750whp area I would recommend you port and polish the OEM unit. You will see major flow improvements and more importantly it will respond better overall.

Larger injectors are always a great idea but there absolutely is a point where you end up with diminishing returns. Personally for that goal I would run something in the 60-100% range to keep pulsewidth nice and low. Much over a 100% and I feel that there is too large of an economy hit and I don't think it is worth the loss in economy. I know of a few companies you can send your injectors into so they can be tested and enlarged.

I would also highly recommend looking into better valvetrain. I am a big fan of Manton (and all the private label versions like XDP and Industrial Injection etc). Their conical springs and 7/16" pushrods are hard to beat! SoCal springs and pushrods are another great option. Whatever option you choose, I would avoid a dual spring arrangement. The dual spring packages advertise greater seat pressure (which they do actually have) but they also must have increased pressure to compensate for the added mass over a conical spring. With dual springs you have more moving spring itself as well as a larger overall retainer so in my opinion they're inferior to a high quality conical spring.



If you have any questions PLEASE do not hesitate to reach out to me. I am a supporting vendor here and my #1 job is to make sure all your goals/wants are met in the best way possible.

 

[1FastBrick]

And FWIW I did purchase my parts through Bdsankey. He is a stand up seller and easy to deal with.

 

[TheBac]

Yep, Brad is a huge asset to have for all of us.

Kev, your list is a very good one. Are you planning on refreshing the heads while you're at it? Going to add screw-in cups or go with the Fleece cupless heads instead?

 

[KEVINL]

I already had the heads refreshed when I did the build less than 2 years ago so they should still be good to go.

However the cupless heads are intriguing its easy to spend a ton on a build like this I'm trying to stay around $15k or less all in so that might be something I may be able to entertain

 

[Bdsankey]

I already had the heads refreshed when I did the build less than 2 years ago so they should still be good to go.

However the cupless heads are intriguing its easy to spend a ton on a build like this I'm trying to stay around $15k or less all in so that might be something I may be able to entertain

Without machine work that's easy to stay sub 15k. My typical 1k and down engine package is right around ~$10k-$11k in parts and includes the below parts. Things can be changed as desired of course. For example, I typically have Gator or ARP head studs on the invoice, I don't here due to you having studs. If someone wants a 1000-1500whp engine I change the motorsport pistons for oval bowls and I change the callies rods for SoCal or Carrillo rods etc.

1) Mahle 0.020 motorsport pistons (non-coated, non-relieved)
2) Callies rods
3) Callies durastar crankshaft w/o gear
4) ARP flexplate bolt kit
5) 8x H rod bearing sets
6) 1x H series main bearing set
7) Cam bearing set
8) Thrust washer set
9) Manton/XDP 125# conical springs
10) Manton/XDP 7/16" pushrods
11) SoCal 3388AF cam
12) Goerend flexplate
13) ARP main stud kit
14) Fluidampr
15) Left HG
16) Right HG
17) Mahle engine gasket set
18) GM front main
19) GM rear main
20) 8x GM glow plugs
21) ARP balancer washer
22) ARP balancer bolt
23) DHD pinned/shimmed oil pump
24) DHD water pump kit (01-05)
25) Merchant rocker shaft bolts
26) GM piston cooling nozzle check valves
27) GM oil pressure relief (front cover)
28) DHD zinc front cover bolt kit
29) DHD zinc lower oil pan hdw kit
30) DHD zinc upper oil pan hdw kit
31) DHD zinc 12pt valve cover bolt kit
32) 17-19 L5P oil cooler
33) 2x M8x100mm bolts for oil cooler
34) 3x M8x40mm bolts for oil cooler
35) ACDelco oil filer
36) Cam gear bolt (single use)

 

[1FastBrick]

1 thing I would like to point out is that when I got my Fluidamper balancer it came with a special washer that is a smaller OD specific to that balancer.
So you should only need the ARP balancer Bolt.

Also the Engine Gasket kit I received did not come with the Oil Pump to Engine block O-ring. It was dealer only Item and my dealer didn't have any so they brought them in from another location for me.

 

[1FastBrick]

1 more thing. If your doing the assembly yourself, you need oil galley plugs. These should be removed to clean the block properly.

Depending on your block's condition and cleaning method you may also need to replace the coolant plugs as well.

 

[Bdsankey]

1 thing I would like to point out is that when I got my Fluidamper balancer it came with a special washer that is a smaller OD specific to that balancer.
So you should only need the ARP balancer Bolt.

Doh, 100% correct. Last one I did was an ATI at customer request.

Good catch, he'd end up with a washer he doesn't need.

Also the Engine Gasket kit I received did not come with the Oil Pump to Engine block O-ring. It was dealer only Item and my dealer didn't have any so they brought them in from another location for me.

I send oil pump seals in with the oil pumps because of this.

1 more thing. If your doing the assembly yourself, you need oil galley plugs. These should be removed to clean the block properly.

I usually have all our blocks machined for threaded plugs. Overkill but stops them from blowing out due to pressure.

Depending on your block's condition and cleaning method you may also need to replace the coolant plugs as well.

Most machine shops (at least here) replace them regardless as they descale/bake every block. With the plugs installed it's a pain to wash out all the cleaning detergent/shot.

 

[1FastBrick]

Doh, 100% correct. Last one I did was an ATI at customer request.

Good catch, he'd end up with a washer he doesn't need.

I send oil pump seals in with the oil pumps because of this.


I usually have all our blocks machined for threaded plugs. Overkill but stops them from blowing out due to pressure.


Most machine shops (at least here) replace them regardless as they descale/bake every block. With the plugs installed it's a pain to wash out all the cleaning detergent/shoshot

I also have an extra washer...

Wasnt sure on other person's build so I thought I would mention the galley plugs. My block was actually nice for a change, so we didn't bake this one. I would have like to have machined mine but I only learned about it after the fact. I used sleeve retaining compound any ways on mine.

I always pop the coolant plugs regardless. I may never need it but I replaced the cooling heater element too.

I unfortunately had to make my own version of the DHD oil pump at the time. Hopefully they are back in stock now.

I was not aware of the cam bolt though. Now I am scared.... I did put some blue locktite though. If that's not good enough, I would much rather tear the front cover off now before I get the pan on.

 

[Bdsankey]

I also have an extra washer...

Wasnt sure on other person's build so I thought I would mention the galley plugs. My block was actually nice for a change, so we didn't bake this one. I would have like to have machined mine but I only learned about it after the fact. I used sleeve retaining compound any ways on mine.

I always pop the coolant plugs regardless. I may never need it but I replaced the cooling heater element too.

I unfortunately had to make my own version of the DHD oil pump at the time. Hopefully they are back in stock now.

I was not aware of the cam bolt though. Now I am scared.... I did put some blue locktite though. If that's not good enough, I would much rather tear the front cover off now before I get the pan on.

I imagine people have reused them. I've always replaced them as that's what the book calls for.

Off the cuff people reuse damper bolts and flexplate bolts all the time so I doubt you'll have an issue.

 

[KEVINL]

Looks like a good list is there a benefit of a Socal 3388 vs a Calles Stage 1 its about double the price but i Know socal makes good stuff

I have heard the GM headgaskets are no longer very good and i have heard Mahle gaskets are much better

 

[Bdsankey]

Looks like a good list is there a benefit of a Socal 3388 vs a Calles Stage 1 its about double the price but i Know socal makes good stuff

I have heard the GM headgaskets are no longer very good and i have heard Mahle gaskets are much better

For what you want either is fine. I've usually used SoCal cams as I'm more familiar with them.

Skip GM gold head gaskets, they're hot garbage. Always have been.