Fillet clearance is finally established now that I understand the whole bearing orientation situation. I'm trying a whole bunch of new (to me) stuff on this build that I know many of you have worked with for years, and sure appreciate the advice.

A few more things to check out yet, and it should be ready to get balanced.

Thanks to those who helped....more to come.

You're going to be getting your junior engine builder badge very soon.

How much rod side clearance did you end up with?

It ended up with over .023 but not quite .024 rod side clearance (loose side of .023).

Before I fixed the fillet contact issue, it was on the tight side of .022.

Now it just "feels right"...finally.

The first 512 low deck stroker motor I built had CAT BB Chevy 6.800 long H beam rods with a Ohio Crankshaft stroker Hemi type crankshaft, the side clearances varied from .053 to .035
Dram insisted that would make the motor use oil, it didn't
The rod bearing clearances determine how much oil comes out of them, correct Looser is way better than to tight, most of the stock OEM Mopar V8 motors I've check all had .030 + on the side clearances, BB, SB and Street Hemi

After reading about BBC connecting rod combos for years, I finally had to try this one.

Chuck Senatore taught me to not worry too much if side clearance was bigger than usual, and your comments just underscored what he said years ago. This one is really consistent from one pair to the next, which is cool to see.

On the first stroker I built I questioned the .050+ side clearance on an Eagle kit I was using. My local engine guy Nick told me not to worry about it so I just let it go and that engine ended up being an overachiever in a 9 second Duster. I used an Eagle crank and K1 rods on my 493 and side clearance was .040 on that build.
I recommend you assemble the the entire reciprocating assembly without rings and check all your clearances but with the Chevy rods I don't thing there will be clearance issues.
Just wait until you drop the hammer on this mill It will put a smile on your face.

Gus

Hi Gus, are you referring to Nick Wilson? I never met him but we did talk on the phone a few times about a parts issue. Just a genuinely nice person....He seemed like one of the good guys. That was 10 years ago but I remember it like it was last week.

Zippy good luck with your build .... Nick was a great guy to deal with I bought my Indy head combo from him and was always helpful when it counts.... BTW I have a Molnar Crank only 3.90 though and just ordered their rods yesterday after seeing your post on how great the machining is .... Thanks for sharing

Yeah Nick was one of a kind and a great friend I could call anytime I had a question or to just talk racing. It's been about 2 years since he passed and I'm still sad when I think about what a good guy he was.

Gus