will stock ls rods suffice in my build? im going to mate them with p73's. also, this might seem dumb, but what rod bearing should i get? ls or gsr? im going to upgrade the bolts to arp. after all that's said above, what else can i do to make this a reliable build?

 

GSR rods would work, too, but you need to mill the ends some and have them shot-peened to regain strength

Use LS bearings, also.

 

You can get away with your LS rods. Just need to get the ARP rod bolts. As for the bearrings you can get away with your LS one. I have done it but I'm in the middle of rebuilding my bottom end. I'm trying to find GSR or ITR bearing caps.

You also want to think about your Griddle and Bearing bridge that locks your bearing cap in place.

If you putting P73 piston in. You better get the block check out because sometime the piston walls can form a egg shape. If this is the case you might need a bore.

You want to also think about balancing your crankshaft as well.

 

Yes, if your mixing parts this is always a good idea.

 

I'm in the middle of doing this as well. What I found is that for the LS crank you need to use the ls rods. Center to center length is different as well as the big end width. There would be a little rod walk on your crank. I ended up getting some ARP rod bolts for my LS rods. I have some R rods that I wanted to use but don't want to lose my stroke by a getting a GSR crank.