Opinions?

[NoMope Greg]

I found an ad on Craigslist for some .040 over pistons with pins, 268* Comp cam with lifters and timing gear for $400.  I e-mailed the seller and asked if the parts were new or used and for photos.  This is the response I got back:

ha, greg the parts used, someone build the the motor recently and didn't do the heads and were bad.I rebuild the motor to .060,cam, and lower end. the pistons are flat top forged,the compression to deck height .023,don't know were the cc of the heads. this is a 69 motor,and the cast # of the heads are late 70s so your guess is as good as mine. the parts look in great shape no pin slop, and very lite piston score. the ring gap of .031, and bad heads wes the problem with the motor. let me know what you thinks.
 
thanks for your time,   John

Now, given that it's taken Summit 2 MONTHS to deliver my pistons and I still have no guarantee of delivery by the 13th, per the last postcard, does this sound like a good risk?  The guy did not send photos, so I don't yet know what his definition of light scoring may be.  I also don't know what the compression ration would be at the given deck height and 88cc heads.

I was going to go with a Lunati cam instead of Comp, but the Comp is the size I wanted and it would obviously already be broken in.   I figure I'd save about $100 - $150 with these parts and, just about as important, I'd HAVE them.

Opinions? 

Thanks!

[71chally416]

If I was building a BB motor for the street it would have CAST pistons. Badger used to make some great pistons with the stock type steel thermal limiters if they're still in buisness. Why cast? They don't rattle around in the bores when the motor is cold because they're fitted with less clearance in the bores and don't expand as much when they get hot. (I.E. -no diesel truck knocking sound when the engine is cold) I had some in my old 318 and that motor saw 7,000rpm and nitrous use and they still looked like new when I took it apart. I got them from PAW for like $80 for the set. As for a used cam? I'd pass on that. You can't go wrong with a factory grind. Lots of companies claim they have much better grinds but I'm not convinced. And they never lose lobes like many aftermarket cams I've seen. The "509" hydraulic grind is a great street cam for a 440 if that's what you have(?) I know a few guys that do low 12's with that cam and street compression.

[hemiken]

Hi Greg,

For the money i would buy these................................


http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/KEITH-BLACK-PISTONS-FORGED-MOPAR-440-FT-4-47cc-909_W0QQitemZ230218730853QQihZ013QQcategoryZ33623QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1638Q2em118Q2el1247

Do not risk buying second hand pistons that have scores down the sides of them old mate.

[Chryco Psycho]

without knowning what make or type of piston they are I would pass , the compression would be decent though @ .023 below deck , I would skip the cam entirely , probably throwing away 25-30 hp using a Comp grind