3rd vs. 5th Thrust position for STI Subaru EJ22T

Hi all!

I'm super excited to build my first engine, and as such, I am obsessing over the details to make sure I get everything right.

I'm currently going through Andre's engine-building videos and soaking up all the education and information!

Question though:

I have a Subaru engine; its an EJ22T, and some ACL bearings that I bought from a UK company that specializes in Subaru EJ engines.

These ACL bearings come with BOTH 3rd position thrust bearings as well as 5th position thrust bearings.

My question is this: if I do NOT have a local machine shop that is willing or able to do the 3rd-to-5th position thrust bearing conversion, would it be detrimental to simply stick with the 3rd position thrust bearing location, as this would be significantly less machine work?

I guess for specs and context, I have:

EJ22T block with T20 (EJ20 Cylinder heads)

I have both 75mm and 79mm nitrated cranks (can use either one to get my CR dialed in)

*Omega Forged Pistons 97.25mm (stroker pistons)

*Manley STD H tough conrods (standard length)

ACL dual thrust bearings (picture attached) (both 3rd and 5th)

My goals are a conservative 600crank HP, hoping to push no more than 26-28PSI (~1.86Bar, ~186Kpa)

The engine is going in a 2004 Subaru STi (USDM)

***(Not to sound pedantic, but the last time I asked a question, I was asked to list details to better help the community to answer my question)***

So my original question still stands:

Can I simply just stick with the 3rd position Thrust bearing and carry on with the build as specified? Would it be detrimental to my build if I go with a 3rd position thrust bearing?

Thanks!

(Oh!! and I almost forgot: YES, I am aware of the reports with crank walk and crankshaft flexing with clutch modulation...but many of these reports are documented at or after 100K miles, and additionally, I do not plan on running some crazy multi-disc clutch with 1000s ft/lbs clamping force, lol!)

Hi all, I am still hoping to get some advice on this 3rd v. 5th position thrust bearing.

Thanks! ^_^

There are plenty of Ej20 here running that power without the conversion, the forces acting on it really depend on how aggressive your clutch is as that is the main contributing factor to wear.