[sb72elcamino350]

Hello,
I am trying to decide on which I beam rods I want to get. It all depends on which is the strongest. So which is the strongest the 4130, 4340 or the 5140 I beam rods. I do not want ANYTHNG to break, so what would be the best choice for strongest?

Thanks

[k-star]

Are you talking about an offshore brand ....eagle,scat ect. Or do you just want a good connecting rod??? Remember they are all breakable.....

If you want a good rod with hardly any greif i would use, manley, oliver, or maybe a howards. I have not personally used the howards but have herd good things about them.

Keith

[brainsboy]

Its not the material, more important is the forging process and the design of the rod. Just as bigger is not always better, Stronger is not always better. At first glance this may seem wrong, but if your motor is only putting out 450hp there is no reason to buy 2400$ Carrillo rods that weigh 800grams each, when a scat or eagle 575gram rod may be perfect for your needs. Usually as the strength go's up so does the weight. Im not telling you what to do, just offering a suggestion that matching your components may build more power.

[Rogers Performance]

Keith i have had the howards break in some of the limited sprint cars out your way.Crower manley oliver are all good brands 4340 or m300 is the strongest.




mike

[k-star]

Mike,,, cross howards off the list!!!!

Keith

[sb72elcamino350]

thanks guys!!!!

[406 ss monte]

4340 steel is the strongest, 5140 is not as strong as the 4130, but will take heat treating better & deeper. eagle, cat, & scat are all good rods for the money. people on a budget can't afford the high dollar USA made stuff. it's like everything else made over here, it's over priced.

[TurboS10]

Originally posted by 406 ss monte
4340 steel is the strongest, 5140 is not as strong as the 4130, but will take heat treating better & deeper. eagle, cat, & scat are all good rods for the money. people on a budget can't afford the high dollar USA made stuff. it's like everything else made over here, it's over priced.

I agree. My engine builder uses Eagle Rods in 1000-1500HP Big Blocks without issues. They may be foriegn junk to some, but I think that there is also alot of unwarranted bad press. I am going to push my overseas junk to 800HP in a small block so ask me a year what I think.

Chris

[Rogers Performance]

I,am not saying they are junk i see alot come thru my shop i will not use cat stuff though that stuff is junk.





Mike

[k-star]

I Never said they were junk either. He was asking about I beam rods. I would run the eagle H beams in a motor with out a second thought. But there I beams are another story. Ask your engine builder how many off shore I beam rods he has in 1000 hp motors..... I have a set of big block eagle sir I beam rods in my shop right now. and one has a big casting blemish in it. I won't even put them in a motor because i am scared of them breaking.....Plus something else is a drag motor will survive week parts alot faster then the dirt track motors will. My deal is if a part makes it thru a season of dirt racing you will probably never break it in a drag car......

I am with mike that i would not use a cat rod or crank even in a stock rebuild. Same with wheeler parts..

Funny thing,,, I have a scat cast steel 9000 series crank in my shop that was in a motor that came unglued in the top end. I had it wet magged and there is not one crank or split in it... So they are pretty tough pieces for the money......

Keith

[406 ss monte]

Cat, Scat, Eagle, & AMS are all made in the very same foundry, with the same metal, the only difference is who does the finish work on the pieces. i have Cat rods & an AMS crank in my motor. i did have every thing checked before it was put together. all the finish work was dead on. even on the cheap Cat H beam rods. i don't care who it's made by i would have that done.

[masonmachines]

is that "Cat" as in the bulldozer company?

[406 ss monte]

no, catpep.com

[TurboS10]

The rods I am talking about in the big power drag engines are Eagle 4340 H beams with bolt upgrade. The 5140's obviously will not hold up. I suppose on this thread the cheap parts were not specifically called junk, but this has been hashed out 100 times before and there are always those who will say the foreign stuff is not worth running in any engine. For those of us building projects on a budget that will see drag race time 10 or less times a year, I think that the eagle etc. stuff is a good option. For a competition engine running for money every weekend, the carillo/oliver rods are the right choice for sure. But, most of us are not building engines like that.

Chris

[Rogers Performance]

The original thread was what is the best rod material 4340,4140 or 5140.We can debate all year at what company is made off shore and who used what,My statement on the cat rods is because i just had a 302 ford crank and rods from them the crank looked like it was cast from iron Ore and the surface finish on the journal was no better the 220 grit sand paper the rods were just tossed in the box no separators and no bags the quality of the rod material was real rough also the crank weighed almost 50 lbs.





mike