Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Nope. I have the pan on, and tightened down. Spun the engine a few times by hand and didn't hear anything hitting. Seems all clear! I'm kinda amazed I didn't need to trim the crank scraper or anything honestly.

Now I just found out that the dipstick and tube I used to have on the 400 SBC ain't gonna work….seems too long for whatever reason. I may end up using one of those flexible Lockar ones, or get the Canton one that goes into the kicked-out top part of the pan…and burn myself every time I go to check the oil!

But if I use the Canton short dipstick, I'll need to tap threads on the block dipstick hole…I guess I can turn the engine upside down when I cut the threads and plug it…and hopefully don't get anything inside.

Thanks!

On another note, I decided to mock-up the headers and Y-pipe just to see if they'll fit..and they actually DO fit! But not perfect of course. It's real close to the pan in a couple of areas…pics to follow...

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Pics...

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

A little mock-up...

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Ok guys...

I went to try and get my old fuel pump pushrod out of my old block, and it wouldn't come out. It was apparently mushroomed out just a tiny bit where it contacts the cam lobe. It's a Comp 4607 pushrod with a bronze tip.

I assumed the bronze tip rides on the cam lobe? That's how I took it out. I had to file it lightly around the edge of the bronze before it finally came out. I decided I'm not reusing this POS....

What's a good one to go with that's compatible with this Comp retro-roller cam?

Procharged GTA

Dad ran the Howards pump pushrod with great success before he switched over to an Aeromotive 340 Stealth in - tank electric on his truck. It is extremley light,doesn't hardly weigh anything, and I believe it's compatible with any camshaft material. Looks like it's coming along nicely!

Here is a link to the pushrod...

http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=l&ai=C...l%20pump%20rod


Brian

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Thanks yet again Brian!

It seems all the guys that were following my build decided to go onto other things…but that's fine. Nothing to see here, move along! If you didn't reply, good chance it'd be days if ever..

I've thought about an electric pump, but really this Edelcrock 110 GPH pump seems to keep up just fine. It's one of the pumps recommended in the blower instructions, so I stuck with that.

EDIT: Just opened up the thread of the one you recommended…a little pricey, but it definitely has to be better than any bronze tipped thing…I don't get where they claim "reduces pump cavitation"?? One pushes on the diaphragm the same as the other right?

This one seems really slick! But the price sure ain't!!
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/cc...make/chevrolet

articwhiteZ

iTrader: (56)

with all the work. your going to use a
mechanical fuel pump?

a block off plate and a good electrical
fuel pump would be a better way to go..

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Been using a mechanical fuel pump with the blower for 5 years so far…not a hiccup. No worries dropping a tank to change it out, or a fuse blowing in the middle of nowhere. "If something works, you stick with it"…it works fine..

90camaro355rs

That's a small blower, the mechanical fuel pump will work.

Nice build you have there!

90camaro355rs

This is my Blower, its in my 72 nova right now, thinking of putting it in my 90 rs camaro

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Nice !! Gotta love Novas....I know I always have!

But something tells me THAT blower ain't fitting under a cowl hood...

And yeah, I have a "blower junior" in comparison...

90camaro355rs

your right it wont fit under any hood for that matter.

I do like your build though, makes me wanna finish my 306 and my 355

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Thanks 90camaro355rs…I try! -Do the 355!!..or stroke it to 383-ish??

If I rewound the clock, I would've held off on building a gen 1 small block and I'd be building a LQ4 408 instead…but too much cash into this I'll never get back, so on it goes...

Just seen one (LQ4) built on one of "those" TV shows, and it cranked out over 550 HP and over 500 TQ on a engine dyno…N/A!! I'm impressed! Of course, it wasn't cheap, but what is nowadays?

Seems like I take 2 steps forward and 3 steps back….now of all things, my dipstick isn't fitting into the block. The stupid hole is too small. You'd think I would have checked that...

-So it looks like I'll need to pull the stupid oil pan back off again and make the hole the right size…anyone know what it should be??

skinny z

Check out my thread regarding my push rod experiences.
I had problems as well athough they make your's appear acceptable in comparison.
https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/tech...fuel-pump.html

I wouldn't go so far as to call the 4607 a POS. It did what it's designed to do and that's wear itself out before the cam lobe gets it. I eventually settled on a Comp lightweight rod with the bronze tip (similar to the one you've removed). My understanding is that it's a wear item and what you've experienced is what's expected. Better the push rod than the cam (as you'll see in my thread).
Don't forget that if you're running a mechanical pump that you'll need an additive in the oil to support the sliding contact surface of the pushrod to the cam lobe. (Long live GM's EOS). This will help ease the amount of wear on the cam and the bronze tip.

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Yes - I may of overreacted calling it a POS…it's not. It's just too worn with the amount of miles I had on that engine…probably under 10K. I didn't expect to see that kind of wear. Guess I'm just glad I thought of putting a bronze tipped push rod on the pump when I went to retro-roller in the first place…it saved my cam lobe, so the bronze did what it was supposed to do I guess..

I looked at the roller type of pushrods too…they look pretty slick, and pricey! I think I'm going with the one Brian recommended…it's self lubricating, made out of some polymer or whatever material. No zinc additive needed, although I always use STP pretty liberally in the oil and on everything else for break-in (it's got zinc in it)..

Did some searching on this dipstick saga I have going…seems to be common on these Little M blocks…oddly enough I listed the same GM part numbers in this thread:
http://www.yellowbullet.com/forum/sh...d.php?t=603406
-Now I just need to find it! May not need to remove the pan at all…

EDIT: Nope, dead end. GM discontinued those parts. Looking further, there's even more issues with this dipstick location on these Dart blocks…ugh. Looks like I'll be calling Canton again to see if they have a dipstick that mounts on the top of the kick out section on the oil pan itself. If so, I'll just plug the hole in the block.

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Here's a couple of admittedly bad pics of the difference between the factory. 400 block and this Dart block. I have only myself to blame for overlooking this.

After doing too much internet research, there are a few tubes mentioned that fit...but they all seem to need either grinding on the block itself to fit, or cutting an inch off the bottom of the tube...some even did some grinding on #4 main bearing cap. One person mentioned a cheap Trans-Dapt tube that might work...but I need to cut 1" off the bottom. I'll try that.

Of course, lots of others say "just plug the hole" and don't bother with a dipstick at all. Not a big issue on a race car, but I plan on driving this on the street...

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Sorry...pics:

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

I never would have guessed in a gazillion years that a simple oil dipstick would have been holding me up from dropping the engine in the car! ....but it has.

Just got another new one in the mail. It's one that's a copy of the GM one Dart recommends in their installation instructions - a Trans-Dapt 9420..for 79-85 cars with PASSENGER side dipstick, that I need to install on the drivers side!
....go figure....but at least the diameter looks right. Now if I can get my shorty headers on with this thing installed... I'll be a winner...if it works at all.

Got a few other things too :

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Well, that oil dipstick actually fit!....but the thing is long as hell. I even went as far as making a little bracket so it won't move around at the press fit, which by the way was a tiny bit looser than I'd like.

It was pretty obvious no one at Dart thought about oil dipstick clearance when they made the block cast. It's literally right against the freeze plug. It was even hard to get the dipstick drove in because the stop shoulder on the tube had to be forced past that plug hole.

I'm tying up a few electrical odds and ends in the engine compartment while I have room to do it. Installing my fleabay bought MSD-6BTM also.

-So now I'll need to sell my old MSD 5462...but minus the remote retard ****. Box still looks almost new.

EDIT: I should have the wiring looking neater and sorted in a day or so…then the engine will be ready to go in! Then all the "fun" stuff starts..

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Well, the engine is finally in the car! No thanks to that silly oil dipstick. I thought in the back of my mind that it seemed to long...and may cause problems. And I should've listened to that little voice.

I had the engine hanging from the hoist and the rear of the engine was tilted down for its "final approach"...that's when I noticed it wasn't going to go in any further because the dipstick tube was lying against the front of my brake booster!...damn.

So I cranked up the air compressor, got my nookie grinder and made a quick "adjustment" lol...

So I need to measure how much I cut off the tube, and cut the same amount off the dipstick and re-mark the high level. Still need to do all the fun stuff...Trans/TQ arm etc. get all the accessories and blower/carb installed. Check the fluids and see if I can bring it to life!!

Procharged GTA

It's lookin fantastic!

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Thanks Procharged! That 455 you're building should be a monster in it's own right! …but I'm a sucker for torque, that "lay you back in your seat and hold on"... type of feeling!

Just got the trans in…funny how I had the hardest time trying to get it fully engaged when the engine was sitting on the hoist, but was easier after the engine was in the car with me lying on my garage floor on my back hoisting it over my head!! I guess the prospect of it smashing my skull gives me more "incentive" to get the thing in on the first try...

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Question......

I was putting my starter in, and the bolts seem to bottom out before they tighten the starter all the way down. It's close, maybe 1/16" from holding it tight.

So if you look closely at starter bolts, they have this " knurled" slightly tapered section between the bolt threads and the head of the bolt. I'm pretty sure what is happening is that I'm running into this knurled section before the starter tightens up. Maybe a stupid question, but since this is a new block...am I suppose to continue to tighten the bolts to get this knurled section to seat in there?? Or do I need to add washers or what??

skinny z

The knurled part is supposed to straddle the split between the starter and the block. That it's bottoming out is probably a result of the aftermarket block as you mentioned.
Perhaps you can try the bolt without the starter and measure the gap between the head and the block. Then you'll know if it's the friction of the knurl or you've bottomed out.
It may be better to take 1/16th off the bolt rather than washers although it probably wouldn't make a measurable difference either way.

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

That's a good point...I know I said they seem to bottom out, but I'm thinking more that the knurled part is beginning to go into the threaded part of the hole...but I guess I'd better verify to be sure!

If in case it is going into the knurled section of the bolt....am I supposed to continue so it's a tight fit? I'm thinking I'll screw up the threads if I do that though...never counted on this...

I guess it's not a huge deal if I need to shorten the bolts slightly either...

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Well, double checked what is going on with these starter bolts this morning.

Looks like the bolt holes weren't drilled deep enough at Dart. But on the good side, the knurled section is going in. I assume it's that way so the bolts fit tight and won't "wallow out" over time. As much as I hate cutting off a few threads that help secure this starter into the block further, looks like I need to cut about an 1/8" off each bolt.

It would've probably been fine if I used a regular starter instead of this power master mini...but if I used a regular starter, I'd be burning them up every other month...been there, got the t-shirt!!

lameberlinetta

Nice to see you on here confuzed. Car looked amazing at automotion last year. Are you going to ready this year?

DIGGLER

iTrader: (1)

well... your block is good to well over 2,000hp and an LQ4 block is good to 1300-1400 tops. you could bolt 3 more superchargers on your engine and be ok.

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Hey thx lameberlinetta!! There were some amazing cars there last year…and quite a few nice Thirdgens! If it's together, I'll try and make it at least for a day.
Yeah, I think I might be OK with the block...

-Cutting the starter bolts worked fine…used a little blue locktite and bolted it up. Also got the headers on…aluminum heads are a pain to put headers on! If you don't start every header bolt perfectly straight, the aluminum is NOT forgiving like iron heads…bolts try to cross-thread instantly. Wish I could use studs, but nut enough room for the nuts to go on with these 1-3/4" primaries...

90camaro355rs

confuzed1, engine is looking great, cant wait to hear it run!

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Thanks 90!!....Nova...Blown 327, 4 speed....nice!! . I love old school!!

90camaro355rs

Thanks ,I am totally old school, down to the old style cragers on the car. wouldn't have it any other way, love the power of the bowers, ever need more power just change pulleys, instant power!

Would love to put it in the Camaro, just cant get myself to cut the hood for it to fit

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Getting close to start-up time despite my screwy work schedule!

articwhiteZ

iTrader: (56)

on my dip stick after trying 4 or 5 other tubes..i gave up. i tapped the hole installed a plug. and sent my oil pan back to canton for them to install one of there dip stick set ups.. and had them also do the oil temp bung...i did the oil return my self as it was easy. its all AN fittings anyway. nothing like over spending on a oilpan..then putting a #8 AN hole in it..

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

The dip stick seems to have worked fine. Ended up getting a passenger side dipstick and installed it on the drivers side. Never knew the passenger side tubes were the right diameter! Had to cut both the tube and the dipstick down however since it was way too long. Luckily, I don't seem to have the issue with the stick running into the #4 main bearing cap when I go to check the oil....must be bent at just the right angle.

If I would have known about the issue with the dipstick when I sent my oil pan to Canton, I would've also had them install one in the pan like you did.....and just plug the hole in the block.

articwhiteZ

iTrader: (56)

at the time they just came out with a new type of screw in dipstick this was about 2 years ago..summit did not have it in yet.. did the pay/drop ship with summit. then canton sent it with the pan..it's braided ss looking like alot of others.. but fits there pans..my milodon pan was on the pass side. this set up is on the drivers side..

if i would have known.. i would have had them make me a pan.. to my needs.
then i would not had to get new decals and new plate on the pan...and would have saved $80 in shipping

was talking to nick at canton about this as a Dart block pan. with dip stick set up. and temp bung installed..if they had a pan with just the dipsticks in place made for strokers (3.875 to 4.0") on the dart blocks this would stream line alot of work... but what do we know..right?

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

A little tip to you other old school engine guys that still have perimeter valve covers....

I haven't had a valve cover gasket leak on my chrome valve covers for at least 20 years. I've re- used my cork gaskets (Fel-Pro 1604's) over and over again.

Most guys use silicone sealer on both sides of the gasket...then when they go to snug them down....the chrome is slick...so the gasket squeezes out of place.

I use gasket shellac on one side of the gasket only on the valve cover side. Apply it thin. Let it dry till it gets super tacky! Place the gasket on the valve cover and tape it in place. Let it sit for about two hours, then install the valve cover...but only 1/2 tighten it. Use spreader bars! Tighten the rest of the way the next morning. Works like a champ!

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Almost break-in time!! Getting anxious, but forcing myself to get things together slow and methodical while taking care of little stuff that I knew could be done differently and better along the way...

xpndbl3

iTrader: (5)

Looks great! New engine coolant bottle and that engine bay is complete!

1991sleeper

iTrader: (-3)

OK so how do I keep center bolts from leaking ! Lol I'm using a one piece felpro rubber gasket with permatex on the valve cover side n they always leak in the bottom corner by firewall ! .... looks good by the way .. should b a beast !

91' bird 305 TBI T-5, trick flow heads, 4.10 gears, full UMI setup, track times coming soon!

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Just ordered!!…agreed…looks like crap.

Never owned a car with the center bolt valve covers….sorry!

xpndbl3

iTrader: (5)

Center bolt covers must be warped

skinny z

That IS looking good.
How do you like your Barry Grant/Demon carb?

skinny z

I found on my centre bolt covers that the bolt would bottom out in the head before there was sufficient clamping force. The original OEM covers with factory bolts were never a problem. Once I went with the Profrom cast covers, I found that their bolts were crap and went so far as to snap one off in the head. Then another. That was the result of the bolt bottoming out. I picked up new bolts (stainless socket head) and cut each one to the proper length. The silicone gaskets were glued to the covers with Permatex Right Stuff and after that set up, the covers were torqued down. No leaks so far. (That it leaks by the firewall is because the engine is up at the front and that's where the oil pools.)

Procharged GTA

Woo Hoo!! Break-in is always the most exciting time! nice work, looks really good. I'm getting excited too! LOL

Procharged GTA

Any updates? Is it up and running?

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Just got it started last night! Sounds different...sounds healthy!

But- as soon as it began to warm up, a ticking sound started. . Pretty sure the header gasket started leaking. I'll try and re tighten all the bolts today and see if it stops.

On a good note, not one single leak!....yet. Still need to set the carb and timing, then hit the road to see how it'll run.

Edit: I would've never guessed it....the ticking wasn't the exhaust, or a lifter.....

IT WAS A LOOSE COIL WIRE! While I was dialing in the timing, I looked over to see a little smoke coming out of the coil wire boot where it goes into the cap. I never seen that before...so it shut it down, and pulled the wire out of the cap, and it was so hot it almost melted! The loud ticking sound was the spark jumping to the terminal in the distributor cap. Put a new wire on, and no ticking at at all!

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Did a little preliminary tuning, and took it out on the road....ran AWESOME! I did need to revert back to my 650 Speed Demon carb however....it appears I have a bad float on the 750 Demon.

Not one oil leak, no leaks whatsoever! Great test run overall. I thought I felt the clutch slip a little on one blast however....I see a need to upgrade in the near future.

Procharged GTA

Fantastic! So good to hear it was just a coil wire! It will definitely love the bigger carb when you get it fixed...what size of blower pulley are you currently running? Also, how do you have the timing curve set up? And how much timing? Just curious

Brian

Confuzed1

iTrader: (4)

Thanks Brian! Yeah, never seen a coil wire tick so loud! Just happened to see wisps of smoke coming from the distributor cap!...weird.

I took the distributor back apart and set it up to begin at 1K and all in by 2200, so the springs are pretty light. I also put a 16 degree bushing in it, so I set my initial at 18 degrees. After the test drive, I think I can probably bump the initial up to 20 for a total of 36....I'll probably try that.

I had my prehistoric boost retard dial set to pull one degree of timing per pound of boost, and all seemed fine. It seems like I can push the timing harder for whatever reason with no detonation, so I'll need to tinker with it.

I did notice I'm only getting around 4 additional degrees out of the vacuum advance when I plug the hose into full manifold vacuum, so I'll need to adjust that....it should be giving me an additional 8-10 degrees I'd think...

The 750 carb not working kinda pisses me off. I went through that entire carb....all new gaskets, needle and seats, power valve, adjustment needles - then the only thing it did was shoot gas out of the bowl vents when I tried to start the car.

But I'm thinking there's a little more power once I get that carb on it maybe. Should give me a few more ponies over a 650??

I forget the exact size of the pulley, I call it my 6 pound pulley....the medium sized one lol.

I have 3...the biggest only gives me 2.5 to 3 pounds, the medium 5.5 to 6 pounds, and the smallest gives me around 7.5 pounds....I tried the 7.5 pound pulley before, but tuning the thing seemed a lot more finicky....and I honestly didn't feel a whole lot more power for the hassle.

Even though most of the setup is pretty identical to my previous one...except for the heads and 1.6 rockers....this engine sounds totally different if that's makes sense. Same exhaust....just seems much healthier. Like smoke my clutch healthier...