Little Update:


I Removed the Crash Bar that was tweaked, and installed the Crash Bar off of the Notchback. I painted the Notchback's Crash Bar after taking care of the little rust that was on it. Looks good, and itll last now. I also put the Rear Bumper back on.


Whole interior in the Purple 85' is done. I got home from work at 9 PM on Tuesday, and didnt go inside til around 2 AM when I finished. I pulled all of the old, rank, stained plastics and carpet. I started with the rear and put my old rear plastics from the 86' in with the black carpet from the Notchback. Moved onto the front and pulled up the carpet and plastics. Replaced the carpet and plastics from out of the Notchback, and my old Grey/Black seats out of my 86'. Ill get pics later. The only interior the car needs now is a Headliner and Dash Pad.

Also, I received my Aluminum Brodix Heads & Pro Comp HEI Distributor on Tuesday. They are so freakin light compared to the old cast heads that were on the engine when I bought it.


As of yesterday (Dad & I were off) we pulled the 305 out of the Purple 85', and set it on an old tire. Swapped everything over we needed (Sensors, Vaccum Lines, etc) to the H.O. 305, and began to set it in. On this car Im not worried about looks right now, so I didnt clean up the engine bay or paint the engine. We are just trying to get it running and on the road first.


We are going to keep wiring everything up, and hopefully be ready to try and crank it tonight or tomorrow. We are using the H.O.'s Wiring Harness & ECM, instead of the original Wiring Harness that is butcher'd and its ECM. I still have to tear down the old 305 to bear block to scrap it. Im probably going to keep the Heads and thats it.

I'm glad to see so much you can make so much progress on your car, it's looking good.

as far as the old plastics go, try cleaning them with simple green and a toothbrush, as long as they aren't dry-rotted, they will prob clean up better than you'd expect.

same for the carpet, except use a bigger brush and a carpet shampoo machine or wet-dry vac to suck the simple green out.

Thanks, its a good feeling knowing Im still getting things accomplished on BOTH cars even with the little time I have after I go to school and work.

As for the Carpet & Plastics it was the old interior in the 85' that was rank and stained. It was also the Grey interior which I dont like as much as the Black/Dark Grey that was in the Notchback parts car. The old interior was thrown in a dumpster where it belonged lol. Ill try and get pics up soon, I already plan on getting the H.O. we swapped into the 85' cranking tomorrow after work. Hopefully she fires up!


Now that I have most of my top end bought for my 400 small block thats going in the 86' I can get some stuff done on it. I want to clean the piston tops, and hone the cylinders. I also need to get steam holes drilled in the Heads. Im debating on leaving the Heads bare aluminum, and not painting them gloss black like the rest of the block. What do you think? My engine bay is painted Silver.



Also tonight we got the H.O. set in the rest of the way, and started hooking everything back up. Almost all the Vaccum lines and Sensors are hooked up. We need to alighn the Drivers Exhaust Manifold, and do a handful of other things and we will be ready. I also ran the Wiring Harness into the car, and installed the Notch's ECM and hooked everything back up.

My vote says paint them black, it'll give it more of a sleeper look.

I think your right, and that is the look Im going for. All the weight reduction Im doing is either not able to be seen, or subtle.

Ok here are a few pics for you to see until I get some of the Interior & engine in the 85' and the rear plastics in the 86'.

This is the damage done by the moron tailgating me when we got out of school one day. No damage to the Rear Bumper, just needs repainted and I still have the paint from when I painted the car. I received $430 for the damages.



Here is the Crash Bar I got off of the Notchback. I took care of the rust, and then I painted it with some Rustoluem to protect it. You can see part of the Rear Bumper in the lower half of the pic, and some of the paint thats chipped. The Rear Bumper is now back on the car.

I also forgot to add that while I was swapping out the rear interior plastics I decided to gut the car of the interior to pull up all of the jute padding. All in all I think I removed 15-20 Pounds. All of the interior is back in tho, and doesn't look any different.

I also removed the old V6 Motor mounts, and we started to install the V8 ones I bought. We are going to try our best to install them without dropping the A Arms like your supposed to do.


Ive done so much the last week that I forgot a good bit of what I did lol!

Those engine mounts are a pain no matter how you go about it. The only thing about dropping the A-arms is you can put in poly bushings while you're at it, and the mount bolts are then a breeze. But reinstalling the A-arms will become the new pain.

Yep, i did my poly mounts and had to lower the a arm all the way down, then pop out the spring, then I was able to somewhat reach the holes for the mounts. PITA!!



Looking good so far Stippy! Let me know if you want to shim those springs up. I have a valve spring mic and possibly some shims left over.

Gahh you guys are really making me dread these damn mounts lol. We are going to try our best not to lower the A-Arms when we do them, I guess we'll see how that works out. We have 1 bolt in on the mounts each, which was the easiest to get to. The other 4 are going to be a PITA I already know haha.

As far as the shims hell yea Im interested. Do the Heads have to be set on the block or anything? I still need to hone the cylinders, drill the steam holes, and replace one of the pegs that holds the heads on the block because Im missing 1.

oh no, its actually better that the heads are NOT on the block haha. Put them on the carpet, attach my spring compressor rod, yank down and take the springs out. shim them up or however you'd like.

Are you planning on keeping those springs or going to something else?

Haha ok sounds good. Well the Springs on these Heads are good up to .575 lift, and my cam is a .525 lift. Do you think I should get different springs, or will I be fine with these ones?

Also, are steam holes something I can do or should I get a machine shop to drill them?

i am just concerned what the spring pressures are on those heads. You can shim them up .030 or so and still be ok on lift. .545 will be ok with .525 lift cam. That .030 shim can give you a good 10-15 lbs more pressure for that solid cam

1.470 Hydraulic Roller Valve Spring - CC 987,
125 lb Closed, 325 lb Open,
1.900 Installed Height,
.575 Maximum Lift

Those are the specs i've found. if its a 1.900 installed height, then i assume coil bind is near
1.265 or so assuming 0.060" safety. 125 lbs is not bad for a hyd flat, but i think you'll want more like 140 with that solid cam. To get there, you'll need around 0.040" worth of shim assuming around a 350lb/in spring rate, which means max lift is limited to .535, still ok but cant really get .040" shims i dont think. .030" will give 135 or so, that will be better.

Whatever you think will work for me man. I am clueless when it comes to all of this shimming and spring rates lol.

Any more progress?

Yup, lets see what more Ive done:

V8 Mounts Done in Blue Car
Windshield Swapped from Notchback parts car to Purple Car - $75
Notchback Doors swapped onto Purple Car
GTA Tail Lights from Blue Car given to friend to Nightshade - $40
Hood, Notchback Hatch, Flat Wing Painted Metallic Blue for Blue Car - $85 (Paint & Materials)
Dashpad & Hatch Weatherstripping for Purple Car - $20



I still need to put a window motor in the driver door since it was missing. Ill be using the one that was in the original door. I need to put a locking assembly and handle on the passenger door and Ill be getting it all from the original door on that side. I need to drill for the ground effects too.

Ill get pics as soon as I can, but its hard since I get home when its dark lol. Im gonna call the guy that swapped the good windshield into the Purple Car, because he quoted me about $100 to cut a piece of glass to fit the Notchback Hatch and that is it installed and everything. Hood & Hatch didnt come out perfect, but I am ok with that. I nor my dad are professional painters, and we dont have a paint booth. Its all one color now and Im happy with that. I have years down the road to do a 'better' job on the paint lol.

Next I think Im going to find a machine shop to drill the steam holes I need, and Im working out a deal with someone for a used Art Carr 2800 Stall Speed Converter.

Sounds like alot of progress. Its always nice to have all of the body panels the same color. Seems like a good price for the glass. That will be nicer than plexiglass. Keep up the good work. Gotta have one done by the end of May.

Hey buddy you can drill those steam holes yourself. They are a really basic operation. Not a percise drill process or anything.

Id rather have someone do it for a couple buck then me mess up on just one of the holes and screw up the whole head. Id rather it be on someone else's shoulders thats done it before if you can understand what I mean.





Now I have a few questions that I hope can be answered.

I want to run Synthetic Tranny Fluid in the TH400 Im using, but am confused on what I can use. My options are Dexron, II, or III. Which can I run, and if more than one which would be the best to run?

I figure the Comp Cams Magnum Steel Roller Tip Rockers are a good buy. Should I get 8 1.52 & 8 1.6 Arm Ratios? If so, which 8 are for the Intake and which for the Exhaust?

As far as Oil goes what should I use to break-in the engine, basically what weight would you recommend? I know Ill need a break-in additive to add Zinc to the oil.

As far as Ignition Wires & Plugs go what should I use? Ill be using a Pro Comp HEI Distributor w/ a Pertronix HEI Distributor Cap. What thickness/brand Wires should I use, and what brand/type of plugs should I use? Also, what style mount Looms do you recommend?

Ill have to wait until the Heads are set on the block to measure what size Pushrods Ill need, so Im not worried about buying them yet.



I think thats all for now. Ill try and get some pics of the Hood & Hatch that are in paint tomorrow. I need to replace the Spider Gears in my 85' K10 tomrrow so even tho Im off I dont know if Ill get anything done on the cars. I still need to remove the Steering Column out of the Blue Car, because my Dad's buddy is rebuilding it for free.



Also, Im looking into some Drag Radials for track use because I dont want to use my BF Goodrich 295/50/15s Radials. Ive priced them out, and I can snag 2 BF Goodrich 325/50/15 Drag Radials for about $250 with my discount from NTB. I should be ordering those soon if I can find 2 extra rims to run them on. They call for a 9-12" rim, but I may have to settle for something more like an 8" lol. Itd be nice to get them soon, so I can 'massage' my fenderwells to make them fit in there.

I'd keep it simple and get all of 1 kind. If you do it that way you could run the 1.6 on the intake, since that cam has more exhaust lift anyway from what i recall. I'd probly run 1.6's all around if those heads/springs will handle it.

plug wires, i dont think it really makes a difference, any good 8mm-9mm wire is good. Plugs, whatever the head manufacturer recommends and run a step colder than stock. I ran NGK plugs

break in oil, you can try royal purple break in oil. Has the lubricants to work well with fla tappet cams i guess. Most modern oils are getting rid of the zinc stuff since most cars now are rollers

The Intake/Exhaust on the Cam is the same, .525/.525. Still run 1.6's all the way around? If so Ill put a set of 16 of them in my Cart.

Plug Wires, Ok Im sure I can find a fairly priced set. NGK seems like a good plug to go with, prolly go with them.

So if I buy the Royal Purple Break-In Oil I just buy 7 Qts of it, and I wont need a separate additive?

How about my question with Synthetic Fluid for the tranny?

Dont know about the tranny stuff

That break in oil i'm pretty sure has all the additives you need. Abit pricier than other oils but i do believe it has all the good protection agents in it.

With those heads you got, go 1.6s all around. .560 lift. Just gotta match the springs now

Ok I picked Comp Cams 1.6 Steel Full Roller Rockers. Now will I still need to shim the Heads?




I ordered an A/C Delete Heater Box for $75 shipped and got that a few days ago, and I ordered:

B&M SFI Approved Flexplate
ARP Flexplate Bolts
ARP Torque Converter Bolts
Art Carr 2800 Stall Speed Converter

For $385 shipped, which I should get by Friday. I also bought a 14" Edelbrock Chrome Air Cleaner for $35 that will fit my Speed Demon Carb.


I have a fairly big Summit order to put through, but Im waiting towards the end of the week to send the order in.

Comp Cams 1.6 Full Roller Rockers
Edelbrock Aluminum Tall Valve Covers
NGK Platinum Plugs
Black HEI Distributor Cap
7 Qts Royal Purple Break-In Oil
160 Thermostat
Summit Black 8.5mm Wires
Battery Relocation Kit 1 Gauge Wire
3 Gals TCI Max Shift Tranny Fluid

Everything there comes out to be about $725 so thats a big chunk of what I need.


After all of this is ordered all I have left to get is:

Pushrods
Fuel Line Kit
Electric Fan
Headers & Y-Pipe
Aluminum Radiator
LS1 Driveshaft
Electric Speedo Converter
Shifter
Paint Bumpers
Rerun Fuel Lines
275/50/15 Drag Radials

I thought that once. I screwed up a brand new set of heads. Luckily the machine shop was able to fix them.

There are somethings I am just not meant to do.

I just realized with the TH400 swap, you'll need a different driveshaft. LS1 or stocker wont work apparently, its too long. I plan on getting a Th400 too and using spohn's driveshaft for 360 complete ready to bolt in

I knew the LS1 Driveshaft woulda needed modified and different U-Joints, but Im wondering if buying Spohns like you plan might be cheaper than buying an LS1 Driveshaft and having it shortened. You have a link to Spohns Driveshaft? May or may not save money, but itll def. save time.



On another note I got my Art Carr Converter and B&M Flexplate w/ ARP Bolts in the mail yesterday so thats out of the way now.

Got a quote of $75 to do the steam holes. The shop is very reputable, and one of only a few around me. I will probably drop off the Heads Thursday, since Im off tomorrow and wednesday and they are on my way to work.

Should be ordering my big Summit order tonight or tomorrow too.

Decided to put my order through now before I went to work. Total came to $683.77, woulda been a little more but the Distributor Cap I ordered is on Backorder so they aren't charging me for it yet. Excited to widdle down my Parts Needed list.

Oh and I also sold the Center Console out of the Notchback Parts car I had. Sold it for $90 + $35 S&H on Ebay. Thatll stay in my Paypal account for when Im ready to buy the Rad I want.

A TH400 transmission is shorter than a TH700R-4 transmission, so a TH400 driveshaft would have to be longer than a TH700R-4/LS1 driveshaft.

Alright no biggie. Well Spohns is $360, so on average what does it cost to get a driveshaft custom made?

i've been hearing 200 plus price of yoke which i hear is around 100, so 360 aint bad

Yeah Im thinking Spohns might be the way to go. Little more than I wanted to have into a driveshaft, but I know itll be good quality.

I got all the parts I ordered in the mail next day, so thats all taken care of. I took the Heads to the machine shop Thursday so they should be done within the next few days. Once I get them back I can measure for pushrods so I can order them, and get some things assembled too.

ARP Head Bolts
ARP Intake Bolts
Pushrod Checker

Those Ill probably order tonight, and thatll be about $100.



After that I still need to remove my steering column so I can get that rebuilt, rerun fuel lines, lengthen Y-Pipe where Headers bolt to by an inch to run the Headers I already have for now, but my list of parts needed will be:

Aluminum Rad - $250
Electric Fan/s - $75-150
Pushrods - $125
Odds & Ends - $300
B&M Shifter - $200
Spohn TH400 Driveshaft - $370
Electric Speedo Converter - $50



List is def. getting smaller.

Ordered a few more things today. Still waiting on my Heads to be finished tho.

ARP Black Oxide Head Bolts
ARP Black Oxide Intake Bolts
7.5-8.7 Pushrod Length Checker
B&M Megashifter
Summit Electronic Speedo Converter

All to the tune of $368. List now is:

Aluminum Rad - $250
Dual Electric Fans - $210
Pushrods - $125
Odds & Ends - $300
Spohn TH400 Driveshaft - $370

Not sure you'll need pushords longer than 7.5". I'm pretty sure small blocks are most likely 7-7.5" in length but then again i'm not 100% sure

Doubtful, I forget the factory length for flat tappet pushrods but I think its around 7.5... I know factory roller pushrods are 7.2, on my last engine I had to go with 7.125in pushrods due to machining.

i used 7.35 on my roller cam with small base circe, ls7 lifters and zero deck block with .041 gasket

Only reason I bought the pushrod checker was when I looked up Pushrods for a 400, the lengths ranged from 7.5 and up. If its too big Ill just order the smaller one, only $12 so no big deal there.


I got my Heads back from the machine shop, $75 to drill steam holes in them. I also got my Shifter, Tranny Electric Speedo Converter, ARP Head Bolts, ARP Intake Bolts, & Pushrod Checker.

I ordered my Spohn Driveshaft on Thursday, so that should get here soon too. Now that I have some parts I can get to work on my days off.

sounds like its really coming along
cant wait to see your motor finished
i just got my 383 back with the dyno sheets 680hp

Got my Distributor Cap in the mail today that was on backorder. Im still waiting on the Driveshaft from Spohn, but that should be here sometime this week I hope.

I have my eye on a Champion Radiator, and 12" Dual Electric Fan Combo for $440 shipped.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Alumi...mZ300309219831

Seems like everyone that has bought from him has been satisfied.


I need to get a move on and measure for my Pushrods so I can get them ordered. Its been raining the last fews days and I havent felt up to it. Ill get it done by the end of the week even tho I work the rest of the week.

Pushrods
Belts, Pulleys, Hoses
Misc Items


Thats what Im looking at after I order the Rad & Fans. I also have a list of parts I want, but wont need to get the car back on the road:

Tranny Cooler
275/50/15 Drag Radials
Paint Bumpers
Muffler & Tips (Upgrade)
EdelbrockStrutTower Brace (TBI)

Cutout
Lower Control Arm Relocation Brackets
Grant Steering Wheel
Hidden Ignition Cut-Off
Notchback Glass
Mini Starter



Thats all things I can upgrade while I break the car in.

I got my stock reconditioned rad if you want it. Kept my 383 cool.

By reconditioned what do you mean? Have any details and/or pics of it? How much would you want to get out of it?

Also, with the 1.6 RRs Im sitting at .540/.540. You think I still would want to shim the Heads with my Springs being .575 max lift?

God for all the stupid questions I ask you I should have your number by now lol. I have Joshs from the few times we've met up.

i had it at a radiator shop, they checked it for leaks and i believe replaced some of the cooling fins as well as flushed it out really good and coated it black.

I'd let you have it for free i dont believe i'll need it

I'll pm you my number

I have to look up your spring specs again to see if its neceesary but couldnt hurt

Alright I really cant pass up free on a budget build, if your sure you want to do that for me. Can you get me some pics/dimensions so I can start searching for some fans thatll be a good size?

Cool I got you PM, much appreciated.

Alright let me know if we should still shim them.



On another note I should have my Tail Lights back sometime this weekend from having them cleaned up (Had overspray) and Night Shaded.

stock rad is 31x19 by like 1.5 core, and about 2-2.5 inch tanks on each end. I'll get some pics for you later tonight

LS1 fans or stock L98 dual fans will work well

Not that i'm running the 400(obviously) but my l98 fans work great. Once i put in the lower thermostat and fan switch it stays around 150-160. Even on a hot day sitting in traffic it doesn't go above 200.

Sounds like its coming along nice.

Having a hard time finding L98 Fans, but Ive found a few LS1 fans for sale. If it comes down to it Ill buy aftermarket Im not worried.

Let me know when you have pics and I can give you my email.



Got my Tail Lights back today. Kid stopped by at my work to drop them off. Im satisfied with them, not show quality but they look good enough to me.

Driveshaft was never shipped out. I emailed Spohn today and that is what they told me. My order went through but they never shipped the order. Supposed to ship it out Tuesday, and should be here by Wednesday they said.

Got the Heads set on tonight, and the pistons/cylinder walls are all cleaned up. Hope to torque the heads down tomorrow and measure for pushrods. Set a few other things on the engine to see how it was gonna look and I snapped a pic, Ill post it up tomorrow. I think its gonna look pretty cool. Still not sure if I want to paint the aluminum heads to be stealthy, or leave them alone. What do you guys think??

That sucks. Did they give you a reason why they never shipped it? At least they're taking care of it. Everything else sounds good though.