How awesome is Marty at MTS / 500cid.com

[mgbeda]

This won't be a surprise to anyone to has dealt with them I'm sure, but I have to share.

First they found me a good used water outlet (at the rear of the head) to replace my very rusty one.  And sold it at a good price and shipped quickly.

But this past weekend I was getting ready to install my oil pump.  You've probably heard about the problems with the Melling oil pumps, how the bypass valve piston can get stuck and lead to no oil pressure.  (No one else makes new oil pumps for the 500's, but MTS sells Melling pumps where  they individually go through and fix these machining problems.  All this I learned on the forum.) Well my engine rebuilder went ahead and got that oil pump anyway.  I figured since I already had one I'd check myself for a smooth bore and piston in the bypass valve, and maybe polish it up, and maybe I'd be lucky.  But when I did check I found a big gouge near the top of the piston bore, too big to polish out.

So I wrote Marty to ask if I could send them this pump and have them remachine it, or trade it in on one of theirs, or throw it out and buy one of theirs.  I sent him a picture showing the flaw.

And he wrote back, same day, telling me not to worry because it's in an area beyond the piston travel.  So think about that.  Here I am offering to pay them for a service, or buy a new part from them, and he tells me I'm good to go as is.  For free.  That is a Mensch. 

I wish I had sourced more parts from them (I did get their high flow water pump).  I'm impressed and grateful that I get to find people like that through this hobby.  Give them all the business you can.

-mB

[35-709]

I have 2 472s, one rebuilt locally with several MTS parts in Big Red, and one built by MTS in the Caribou.  Both are mostly stock and are super engines.

[blue68deville]

I agree, Marty is super helpful and won't try to sell you anything you don't need. He's also a great source for used parts and doesn't charge a ton for them.

[Thule]

i really want to get a cam and intake manifold from them

[35-709]

I'm using an MTS #5 cam, close to stock but a little better. 

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

I am running the #5 from Marty, but I went for bigger valves, double springs and am very pleased with it.

I installed a #3 in a '71 engine, and the owner is very pleased with that one as well.   He wanted economy, but it also gave more lower end power than it had before.

Bruce.

[TJ Hopland]

I'm with everyone else with MTS's quality and service.   They have radical hot rod stuff and fairly stock.   They also have some inexpensive 'import' stuff like say valve covers.  Unlike if you order something on line and don't know if they are going to be made of tin foil or not MTS gets decent quality cheap stuff.

When I did my last rebuild I let the machine shop get some stuff, I got other stuff other places, and I got a few things like the cam from MTS.  Big mistake.   About 1000 miles later after a bad new oil pump I had it out and apart again and had to buy a bunch of new parts from MTS.   This time it all works plus I think I got better stuff.   

I have had the same experience with used parts as everyone else too.   Since a lot of his customers are 'hot rod' people they often are buying his new billet aluminum stuff so he has used stock stuff like valve covers, water outlets and such laying around. 

For a while they had a supply of the hard to find temp sensors for the 75-80 Cadillac EFI system.

I have not ordered a whole engine from him but have heard they are competitively priced on the engine and shipping with other vendors that don't specialize in those engines.   

I got the #5 MTS.  I did it with my engine rebuild so the power gain is not a real fair comparison since I was going from wore out to new.  It does not have a rough idle, it seems to run smooth like a Cadillac should.