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[V6 Performance]
New GMC 401 Pistons
In the above Picture you can see 2 new 401 pistons & 1 used 351C Piston, the new pistons are a
NOS Badger, a Brand New Piston made by Packard Industries & a used OEM 351C piston. Each of
these pistons has the Four Ring design, with a lower Oil Ring & three Compression Rings. The
upper ring grove in all three pistons has the steel insert for longer wear. This is a review
of the New Piston from Packard Industries. They are manufacturing the pistons for the 401
engines. They copied an original TRW #L173 piston, they have them in std, 020, 030, 040 & 060.
Bill Schreiber the Purchasing Manager at Packard Industries sent me a new standard 401 piston to review.
The New Piston from Packard Industries arrived at Club Headquarters, I opened up the box and examined
the contents. The piston comes with the Pin & snap rings to hold it in place. I had to dig out my
NOS Badger Pistons I got off eBay, I got a set of 6 .030 over pistons for under $200 with shipping.
They also have pins but no snap rings. None of the pistons came with piston rings. I also dug out
some old 351C pistons I found in the back of a truck I dragged home. In the upper picture you see
one of those pistons after I cleaned it up, and in the next photos you see one still with the rod
attached and rings in place. In the inside view you can clearly see the oil ring coming through the
piston skirt. This is how the new pistons are built as well. This allows the oil to be scrapped off
the cylinder wall & drain to the inside of the piston.
The New 401 Piston from Packard Industries is a lot like the New Badger Pistons I have, only difference
is my Pistons are .030 bigger around. They look almost the same, with the cross hatch pattern in the
pin hole area being a tad bit different. Both have the steel insert in the upper ring grove for longer
wear. One other ting I noticed on the 401 pistons over the 351C piston is that the 401 pistons have
oil holes in the pin holes on the pistons. More oil getting to the location would mean longer pin life
as well. Now if you look at the first picture, you can see the included pins. The pin I the center is
the Packard Industries pin, it has a thinker wall than the stock or Badger pins,
this too will prolong pin life.
You can order your New 401 pistons from The Packard Industries engine dept at (973-334-9586 x211) Bob Reovegno
is the Dept Manger. They do show the 401 engine & components in Their Kanter catalog. As a former Automotive
machinist Bill Schreiber is quite familiar with this series of engines {GMC V6}. He had a customer in the
70’s with may of these in vehicles & stationary equipment. These blocks usually reqiure a special fixture to
bore because of the deck angle. Thank you Bill Schreiber for providing us with these new badly needed Pistons
for our GMC Big Block V6 engines.
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Information About GMC Truck Drive Trains
 GMC Big Block V6 |
1960-1966 |
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© 2000-2009 6066 GMC Trucks. Last Updated May 10, 2009.