Pelican Parts Forums - First rebuild - To split or not to split?

I guess my point was that if one wanted to, one could get away with cracking open the case for fairly cheap. At a bare minimum you would need:

Case gasket kit- this is probably already included in most people's purchase of the complete engine gasket kit. However if you were doing just a top end, you can indeed buy a top end only gasket kit. But in a pinch you could reuse the more expensive of the case seals (crank-flywheel seal, crank nose seal) if they're in good condition and just buy the ones you must replace because they're destroyed or questionable upon case splitting- that being the #8 nose bearing o-ring, case breather cover gasket, case thru-bolt o-rings, oil pump seals and case intermediate shaft cover gasket.
Rod bearings $110
Rod bolts & reuse nuts (if you have stock rod bolts that can't be reused) $115
Intermediate shaft bearings $36 is cheap and you'd be silly not to replace them at that cost.

No need to replace chains and case ramps if they, and the sprocket wheels, look in good condition.

If your engine has been driven fairly tame over it's life, the rod bearings might be in useable condition. However once you've removed the rods, it's good insurance to replace these since they're the most abused bearing in the engine. They're only $110 for the full set and that's good peace of mind IMO.

You can reuse the main bearings and #8 nose bearing if they are still in reasonably good condition, which more often than not they usually are in good shape on a street engine. That saves almost $450 right there.

Done. Clean everything up, assemble crank & rods, layshaft + chains + oil pump and close it up with your $20 tube of Loctite 574 that you needed anyway to do the top end, to seal the cam towers to heads.

You can split the case with minimal disturbance to your pistons (rings) & cylinders by leaving the piston inside the cylinder as you remove the piston pin from the rod. Doing so assures your rings remain where they've recently been residing in the piston & cylinder and no need to buy a new ring set. However, leaving them in place doesn't let you check your ring end gaps or ring land clearance........

It's REALLY easy to get caught up in the while-you're-in-there mindset. But sometimes you can use your judgment on what may still be in serviceable condition. Leakdown and compression testing is a wise thing to do before disassembly, because it gives you an indication of some of the engine's health. This can save yourself some substantial money by avoiding replacement of parts just as a matter of course, and not compromise the reliability of your engine.

These engines are quite expensive to repair but they're also very durable. So not everything needs to be junked and refreshed with new, just because you are working inside the engine. My two cents........