When I was searching around for a machine shop last year to rebuild the original engine in my 67 roadster, I consistently heard the best things about this shop:
S & S Automotive
14127 Washington Ave
San Leandro CA 94578
(510) 357-9041
A feature of the shop that really attracted me is that it is a family operation. George Santos is the boss and has been rebuilding Chevy engines for more than FIFTY years, the other three machinists are his sons, and his wife runs the front office. How common is that?
So, I had my 327 redone at S&S in early 2009. After the first couple of oil changes I noticed that there were still a lot of metal filings in the oil. There was no obvious source, so George said just to run the engine until something became more obvious. The engine ran and performed fine, including in many autocrosses. Last month I decided to change the cam to one with more low-end torque for autocrossing. This is what the cam looked like when it came out:
Notice anything missing?
WHY the fuel-pump lobe got worn down to a circle is a real puzzler. S&S has never seen anything like it in 50+ years of making Chevy motors run better. A second puzzler is why my 67 was even running with the fuel-pump lobe gone.
George said to pull the engine and they would look it over for me. They discovered that all the main, cam and rod bearings were toast, as was the oil pump, and they had to give the cylinder walls a honing. Even after they took my engine apart it still wasn't clear why the problem even happened. It sure was not obvious that they had done anything wrong when they originally put the motor together. Now here's is the point of my story: The cost to me to disassemble the engine, hot tank the block, then put in new main, rod and cam bearings, hone the cylinders, and reassemble the engine was Zero, Zilch, Nada!!! They could have charged me for half of the two days it took to redo my engine … or the full two days, for that matter … but they didn't. George said they weren't sure what caused the failure so he didn't feel right charging me anything. He said he would just call it "customer relations" and let me get away for free. Wow, I was amazed. Not only are they a first-rate machine shop that has been around for over half a century WITH THE SAME OWNER, but they have old-fashioned integrity; they stand behind their work and don't automatically get into an argument and blame the customer if something doesn't turn out right.
I know for a fact that several well-known shops/mechanics in the Bay Area send their machine work to S&S, so their shop has a solid reputation, as well as the latest CNC machines.
So this is a hearty plug for S&S. Consider them whenever you need any engine machining. You can just stop by to see their shop and meet George and the boys, like I did while I was evaluating shops. They will actually drop what they are doing and chat about your project.
Tell them Lou sent you.
S & S Automotive
14127 Washington Ave
San Leandro CA 94578
(510) 357-9041
A feature of the shop that really attracted me is that it is a family operation. George Santos is the boss and has been rebuilding Chevy engines for more than FIFTY years, the other three machinists are his sons, and his wife runs the front office. How common is that?
So, I had my 327 redone at S&S in early 2009. After the first couple of oil changes I noticed that there were still a lot of metal filings in the oil. There was no obvious source, so George said just to run the engine until something became more obvious. The engine ran and performed fine, including in many autocrosses. Last month I decided to change the cam to one with more low-end torque for autocrossing. This is what the cam looked like when it came out:
Notice anything missing?
WHY the fuel-pump lobe got worn down to a circle is a real puzzler. S&S has never seen anything like it in 50+ years of making Chevy motors run better. A second puzzler is why my 67 was even running with the fuel-pump lobe gone.
George said to pull the engine and they would look it over for me. They discovered that all the main, cam and rod bearings were toast, as was the oil pump, and they had to give the cylinder walls a honing. Even after they took my engine apart it still wasn't clear why the problem even happened. It sure was not obvious that they had done anything wrong when they originally put the motor together. Now here's is the point of my story: The cost to me to disassemble the engine, hot tank the block, then put in new main, rod and cam bearings, hone the cylinders, and reassemble the engine was Zero, Zilch, Nada!!! They could have charged me for half of the two days it took to redo my engine … or the full two days, for that matter … but they didn't. George said they weren't sure what caused the failure so he didn't feel right charging me anything. He said he would just call it "customer relations" and let me get away for free. Wow, I was amazed. Not only are they a first-rate machine shop that has been around for over half a century WITH THE SAME OWNER, but they have old-fashioned integrity; they stand behind their work and don't automatically get into an argument and blame the customer if something doesn't turn out right.
I know for a fact that several well-known shops/mechanics in the Bay Area send their machine work to S&S, so their shop has a solid reputation, as well as the latest CNC machines.
So this is a hearty plug for S&S. Consider them whenever you need any engine machining. You can just stop by to see their shop and meet George and the boys, like I did while I was evaluating shops. They will actually drop what they are doing and chat about your project.
Tell them Lou sent you.
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