Horse Power, Track Shit, Torque, Cubic Inches, Liters, Run What Ya Brung, Auto or Cycle

338008670_739824371007374_4236123354486264295_n.jpeg
 
Miata track car is finally running...

Made a lot of progress over the past 2 weeks...

Wheels on, had to "shave" brake calipers slightly as they hit the wheels. Not uncommon when trying to fit 9.9lbs of shit into a 10lb sack.


Dash bar reinstalled(shaved off all non essential brackets) and built the center stack... Its an old "no parking school zone" sign... called up the local metal supply and told him what I was looking for, 1/8" aluminum, he didnt have aluminum only steel, so I went anyway cause I needed to get this project done, when I arrived he said "oh I found this in the scrap pile if it will work for you". So I used the "back" of the sign as my front, cut to size, painted, riveted on. I left the back unpainted...




Got seats and harness's installed.





Hardtop rear window installed and hard top bolted in place... this will come back apart in a few weeks when I wrap the hard top. I had to put off all the cosmetic shit so I could get the car going to get to a track event on the 22nd to shake the car down.


Rear wing of the aero is installed. Still have to do the front end but I didnt want do the front until I got ride height set because you have to set the splitter height, then when you install the air dam you have to cut the air damn for proper height. So that project will happen early next week.


Took the car yesterday morning to my alignment guy for full alignment and corner weight. Had 195lbs in the driver seat... so car is 2263 wet... I'll add about 20-30lbs to that when I install the front aero. Car has almost 50/50 weight distribution. Will shift slightly more forward with the aero install, but negligible.



 
had a SLR 722 for a while, not a "hotrod" but german rocket lol

for pure straight line speed factory stuff just isn't as fun
That’s awesome. I got to work on a handful when I lived/worked in FL and they are amazing

Yes, factory anything is always lacking in any performance metric. I get it though, the cars have to appeal to the most people possible and be profitable. I just wish all this stuff wasn’t so expensive
 
  • Like
Reactions: JR_77 and brianf
That’s awesome. I got to work on a handful when I lived/worked in FL and they are amazing

Yes, factory anything is always lacking in any performance metric. I get it though, the cars have to appeal to the most people possible and be profitable. I just wish all this stuff wasn’t so expensive
The nose was soooo long I was always afraid of hitting something lol
 
This one's a bit of a time capsule. My dad's 67 Falcon that he bought off the proverbial little old lady that only drove it on Sundays, back in the 70's. He also bought a 427 SOHC from a drag racer, then crammed that in under the stock hood. Ran a top loader with a Hurst shifter, homemade cage, and 33x16.5 slicks with a spool and 5.67 gears, and was able to run the quarter at right around 130mph and 11 flat. He also drove it on the street, minus the slicks. On the slicks and a good track, he says it would carry the front all through first gear. He's got another hood stashed away with a big bulge in it, along with a mechanical fuel injection setup that he never ran. Nothing quite like an old school big block that'll spin past 7500 rpm and make somewhere around 750-800hp. It hasn't been driven for close to 40 years now, but before anyone asks, it's not for sale. Every few months someone finds out hes got it through the grapevine, and gets hold of him to ask. He told me.once it's in his will, so either me or my brother will get to play with it eventually, unless he's planning to be buried in it.
IMG_20200131_152841~2.jpg
IMG_20200131_152914~2.jpg

Kristian
 
This one's a bit of a time capsule. My dad's 67 Falcon that he bought off the proverbial little old lady that only drove it on Sundays, back in the 70's. He also bought a 427 SOHC from a drag racer, then crammed that in under the stock hood. Ran a top loader with a Hurst shifter, homemade cage, and 33x16.5 slicks with a spool and 5.67 gears, and was able to run the quarter at right around 130mph and 11 flat. He also drove it on the street, minus the slicks. On the slicks and a good track, he says it would carry the front all through first gear. He's got another hood stashed away with a big bulge in it, along with a mechanical fuel injection setup that he never ran. Nothing quite like an old school big block that'll spin past 7500 rpm and make somewhere around 750-800hp. It hasn't been driven for close to 40 years now, but before anyone asks, it's not for sale. Every few months someone finds out hes got it through the grapevine, and gets hold of him to ask. He told me.once it's in his will, so either me or my brother will get to play with it eventually, unless he's planning to be buried in it.
View attachment 8119939View attachment 8119946
Kristian
Very cool, hopefully it sees the street or strip again.
 
This one's a bit of a time capsule. My dad's 67 Falcon that he bought off the proverbial little old lady that only drove it on Sundays, back in the 70's. He also bought a 427 SOHC from a drag racer, then crammed that in under the stock hood. Ran a top loader with a Hurst shifter, homemade cage, and 33x16.5 slicks with a spool and 5.67 gears, and was able to run the quarter at right around 130mph and 11 flat. He also drove it on the street, minus the slicks. On the slicks and a good track, he says it would carry the front all through first gear. He's got another hood stashed away with a big bulge in it, along with a mechanical fuel injection setup that he never ran. Nothing quite like an old school big block that'll spin past 7500 rpm and make somewhere around 750-800hp. It hasn't been driven for close to 40 years now, but before anyone asks, it's not for sale. Every few months someone finds out hes got it through the grapevine, and gets hold of him to ask. He told me.once it's in his will, so either me or my brother will get to play with it eventually, unless he's planning to be buried in it.
View attachment 8119939View attachment 8119946
Kristian
like most of us i see he has a pile of wood on top of the shelves...boards are prob from when Ike was president :ROFLMAO:

"you never know when youll need them"
 
This one's a bit of a time capsule. My dad's 67 Falcon that he bought off the proverbial little old lady that only drove it on Sundays, back in the 70's. He also bought a 427 SOHC from a drag racer, then crammed that in under the stock hood. Ran a top loader with a Hurst shifter, homemade cage, and 33x16.5 slicks with a spool and 5.67 gears, and was able to run the quarter at right around 130mph and 11 flat. He also drove it on the street, minus the slicks. On the slicks and a good track, he says it would carry the front all through first gear. He's got another hood stashed away with a big bulge in it, along with a mechanical fuel injection setup that he never ran. Nothing quite like an old school big block that'll spin past 7500 rpm and make somewhere around 750-800hp. It hasn't been driven for close to 40 years now, but before anyone asks, it's not for sale. Every few months someone finds out hes got it through the grapevine, and gets hold of him to ask. He told me.once it's in his will, so either me or my brother will get to play with it eventually, unless he's planning to be buried in it.
View attachment 8119939View attachment 8119946
Kristian

“Dad, my brother and I want to get your car running and recommissioned so you can enjoy it again… that ok with you?”

I mean… why wait?

Sirhr
 
This one's a bit of a time capsule. My dad's 67 Falcon that he bought off the proverbial little old lady that only drove it on Sundays, back in the 70's. He also bought a 427 SOHC from a drag racer, then crammed that in under the stock hood. Ran a top loader with a Hurst shifter, homemade cage, and 33x16.5 slicks with a spool and 5.67 gears, and was able to run the quarter at right around 130mph and 11 flat. He also drove it on the street, minus the slicks. On the slicks and a good track, he says it would carry the front all through first gear. He's got another hood stashed away with a big bulge in it, along with a mechanical fuel injection setup that he never ran. Nothing quite like an old school big block that'll spin past 7500 rpm and make somewhere around 750-800hp. It hasn't been driven for close to 40 years now, but before anyone asks, it's not for sale. Every few months someone finds out hes got it through the grapevine, and gets hold of him to ask. He told me.once it's in his will, so either me or my brother will get to play with it eventually, unless he's planning to be buried in it.
View attachment 8119939View attachment 8119946
Kristian
I just got light-headed

1681484161705.gif
 
  • Love
Reactions: sirhrmechanic
  • Like
Reactions: LeftyJason
“Dad, my brother and I want to get your car running and recommissioned so you can enjoy it again… that ok with you?”

I mean… why wait?

Sirhr

It would be worth seeing your dad's reaction to just seeing the car outside in the sunlight after a quick wash.

We did pull one one of his Norton's out last year and got it running. Here's my mom and dad on the bike, 49 years and 2 days after he showed up on her parents yard on it and they met for the first time. He bought it new in London, cruised around for a couple months or so, then figured he'd go visit a guy he'd met in Canada who was from Norway, my mom's brother. The rest is history as they say. We're ordering up a bunch of parts to get it road worthy again this year for their 50th anniversary meeting. He was grinning like a teenager when he rode it again. 70mph on nearly 50 year old tires maybe wasn't the smartest thing we've ever done, but it sure was fun.
It's a 1973 750 Commando with the hottest engine they sold at the time, and the big interstate tank. He parked it in the early 80's because the gas then wasn't very good and it didn't run very well, even with an extra base gasket to lower the compression. He bought a Suzuki GS1000 instead. There's a photo in an album of all of us on that GS1000, just out for a ride. I would have been about two, and sitting on the tank up front, and my brother around 6 months, squished between my parents. If you tried that now, someone would probably call the government to take the kids away.
Screenshot_20230414_150526.jpg

Kristian
 
Last edited:
We did pull one one of his Norton's out last year and got it running. Here's my mom and dad on the bike, 49 years and 2 days after he showed up on her parents yard on it and they met for the first time. He bought it new in London, cruised around for a couple months or so, then figured he'd go visit a guy he'd met in Canada who was from Norway, my mom's brother. The rest is history as they say. We're ordering up a bunch of parts to get it road worthy again this year for their 50th anniversary meeting. He was grinning like a teenager when he rode it again. 70mph on nearly 50 year old tires maybe wasn't the smartest thing we've ever done, but it sure was fun.
View attachment 8120301
Kristian
Sir:

(and I mean it when I say, Sir)

If that is not the post of the year... I don't know what is!

Totally awesome!

Cheers,

Sirhr
 
like most of us i see he has a pile of wood on top of the shelves...boards are prob from when Ike was president :ROFLMAO:

"you never know when youll need them"
I have lumber that my grandpa cut and planed probably 40 years ago, and I still use bits of it every now and then. Especially when I'm making wooden toys for the kids or something, it's almost like he's still here helping me out. It's his shop and I inherited most of his tools too, so it's pretty cool being able to use wood he cut too. I've got a couple nice pieces of 3/4" live edge birch that I'm saving for some shelves, but I still don't know quite what I want to make with them. Here's a handgun rack I built with some short scrap pieces.
IMG_20180127_175922488_HDR_copy_2672x1503.jpg

And a couple toy trucks about 2' long made of scrap birch and fir. The logs are just sticks cut from a dead tree out back.
IMG_20190323_135820100_HDR_copy_2309x1732.jpg

Kristian
 
One of his Norton’s? Your dads got a hell of a garage.
To be fair, he's only got two, the other is a 67 I think. It's also a 750, but it's pretty much worn out. He's got some engine parts stashed away in the basement, and I think he's got a set of replacement carbs too. Pretty sure that one's got a one piece carb that shares a single float bowl for both cylinders.
Kristian
 
  • Like
Reactions: nikerret
I have lumber that my grandpa cut and planed probably 40 years ago, and I still use bits of it every now and then. Especially when I'm making wooden toys for the kids or something, it's almost like he's still here helping me out. It's his shop and I inherited most of his tools too, so it's pretty cool being able to use wood he cut too. I've got a couple nice pieces of 3/4" live edge birch that I'm saving for some shelves, but I still don't know quite what I want to make with them. Here's a handgun rack I built with some short scrap pieces.
View attachment 8120504
And a couple toy trucks about 2' long made of scrap birch and fir. The logs are just sticks cut from a dead tree out back.
View attachment 8120505
Kristian
Those trucks are great!

I just did the same for a gun rack inside a piece of furniture. I actually used some of “the pile” that I had t touched in years.

All of the rifles I have are just too fat for the regular spacing so I clicked around looking for a gun cabinet but didn’t find what I liked.

Friend told me look on Facebook marketplace. Long story short I picked up a dining room china cabinet.

Glass doors, mirrored back, light etc. like most dining room furniture it looked like it had never been touched but for cleaning.

Added benefit, glass shelves so I put some optics, scope mounts etc up top so they aren’t trying to fall off the regular shit show rack in my basement.

Was laughing as I was pulling pieces down because I was actually using some of it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: turbo_bird
So after getting the miata "finished" and started driving it a bit for break in I came out to the car last Saturday morning to a small bit of oil on the ground. That led to discovering oil all over the lower part of the motor, subframe, etc... in what looked to be dead center on the motor. That led to pulling the front of the motor apart to change the front crank seal...which was dry after I got in there... but im in there, so I put a new one in... still leaking oil under pressure, but with everything clean I can see its seeping out from between the oil pump and block on the passenger side. My buddy says "did you put the o-ring in on the pump outlet between pump and block" and I say "I cant say with certainty". It was a new oem pump and they are supposed to come with one pre-installed... Cant pull oil pump without pulling oil pan without pulling motor out. So my buddy comes down and we got the motor out, torn down, discover no o-ring, clean the shit out of everything, re-assemble, drop motor back in and get it running in 2 days... holy shit was I whipped. Ran motor for about 30-40 minutes last night and didnt see a drop of oil so SUCCESS... Off to the track on Saturday.



to running in like 24 hours.







BUT while we was in there we realized probably why my variable valve timing wasnt working... tore the o-rings when installing the actuator thats built into the head. I probably put it on slightly crooked and sliced them. So new o-rings.


Then my buddy, who REALLY REALLY knows these cars, sets the trans on the face of the bell housing, no big deal thats how you store these trans... It pukes oil out the front seal. He's like "shit were changing that while the trans is out". So the next morning we pull the cover that holds the seal... the seal looks fine, but it wasnt pressed all the way down, had like a .25 gap until it bottomed out. We put a new seal in anyway. Whoever I bought this trans from didnt know how to install the seal.

When pulling the flywheel the pilot bearing was destroyed. I only had put 40 miles on this setup. The outer race was cracked. No real clue how that happened except it was possibly a bad part to start with. He also thought I possibly could have got it in slightly sideways, although I dont think I did, and it bound up and was under an weird load. Oh well, so new pilot bearing thats a better one that one was in there, which was also supposed to be a high quality japanese Nachie bearing. Now have a USA made SKF thats.

My buddy found a few other odds and ends that we fixed up also, nothing major just small things. Overall he was fairly impressed that I did 95% of the work on the car in my garage with basically no help and he thought I did a great job. There are a few suggestions he made as far as some future stuff to do like a floor pan drop kit on the drivers side to allow me to get further back. My seat halo wing hits the cage, but if I can get an inch or 2 lower, I can also go back about 2 more inches. So thats on the plate.
 
A 65 Coronet I picked up recently. It is a retired race car that hasn't been licensed for street use since 1978. Everything mechanically is fresh with zero miles, 440/727/4:10. Gutted interior, I am not sure what I will do with the interior. I am not going to paint the exterior, just going to drive it as is.

 


Question for @sirhrmechanic related to gas. Do you have to do anything special to the gas on the really old engines to get them to run well or anything you're not supposed to do?


Detailed explanation to come when I am near a keyboard… not this infernal phone-like-thing.

Sirhr
 
  • Like
Reactions: LeftyJason


Question for @sirhrmechanic related to gas. Do you have to do anything special to the gas on the really old engines to get them to run well or anything you're not supposed to do?


So a few things related to gas... and this is for pre-war and early post-war engines. That's WW2 for those who think Post War is The Gulf. Applies to some postwar cars too. Take it for what it is...

Almost all gas today has at least 10 percent ethanol in it. This generally does not have an affect on the running of early engines and cars. The issues come when the engines have rubber or polymer fuel line components that ethanol can attack. SU diaphragm fuel pumps are especially vulnerable... at least the old ones. New production/Repro SU Fuel pumps have diaphragms that are immune to ethanol. Repro pumps are very good, and cheaper than trying to rebuild/tune an old one with new parts. At least cheaper than paying someone. If you can do it yourself, no problem.

Other places to find 'parts' that can be attacked... polymer carb parts, fuel lines, fuel pickups/gauges, etc. Most of this came into use post-war. So not much to worry about pre-war. Muscle cars... good luck! Lots of polymer there.

The bigger issue on older cars is that the fuel tanks almost all have a good coating of varnish and crud that builds up over decades. With 'pure' fuel and no ethanol.... that stuff just sticks happily to the side of the tank and fuel system and is no problem. Add ethanol fuel and you are adding a solvent (like gumout) that dissolves the old varnish into your fuel where it goes into solution... until it gets to the carb, intake and valves. And turns into what is best-described as a "Candy Apple" coating. That gums up everything. 100 percent of the cars I work on get the fuel tank pulled and PROFESSIONALLY (aka not by us!) cleaned, repaired, sealed and lined. We send tanks to a great company in Canada that specializes in this. Guaranteed for life. Applicable to most any car. BTW, for lots of muscle cars and older cars... you can buy reproduction tanks. Beware. Lots of these are terrible! Restoring a heavy sheet metal original tank is often a better option. Last, avoid 'home gas tank sealing kits.' You can't clean up a tank at home well enough to get the coating to stick. Requires industrial level process like dipping and heating. You can't do this at home.

Another issue that is cropping up is the lifespan of fuel. Used to be that gas could last a couple of years in a tank and still run your car fine. Today, a few months and the gas is skunky and nasty. This is because the supply chain today is now so 'efficient' that gas is formulated to go from refinery to 'out the tailpipe' in about 2 weeks. Not sit around. Noone at Big Petro cares about your collector car. They are doing all kinds of things to gasoline to make it cleaner... and work in modern engines. That means the formulations have nothing to do with 'longevity.' So cars that aren't driven can have their gas go bad fast. By way of Anecdote, my M151 Mutt (simple, 1960's design Ford 4 cylinder) was not running worth a damn. Gas had sat over one winter as I had not driven it much. It BARELY ran. Changed gas... ran perfectly. Gas wouldn't even run a lawn mower after. That engine was designed to run on goat piss... But wouldn't run on year old gas.

I had a conversation about gas not long ago with a friend who told me something I haven't confirmed but has made sense... which is that modern gas is made, often, from natural gas, tar sands, other 'base' hydrocarbons, etc. These are 'assembled' into carbon chains that differ from 'rock oil' and are less stable. So they break down much faster. One bit of fallout based on this has been that I recommend to folks to leave their gas tanks almost empty for winter or long term storage. Used to say "Fill it up" to minimize evaporation or oxidation. Now... leave as little gas as possible in the tank and then fill fresh in spring or when driving season returns. Not been doing this long enough to know how much it helps... but it seems good advice. We also use/recommend Stabil but it doesn't seem to help much beyond a few months. But it can't hurt and every bit helps.

Last, the issue of tetra-ethyl Lead. Nasty stuff. But it had its value in preventing valve seat erosion (of non-hardened seats and non-stellited valves) and quite a few engines beginning in the late 1930's through the 1980's were designed to run with 'Lead' Fuel. So a lead additive 'may' be right for your car. That said, for pre-war engines, a lead additive may not be needed at all. And when we are talking about valve seat recession or other 'damage' that no-lead fuel does... we are talking about things that take tens or hundreds of thousands of miles. Running Unleaded in your Model T Ford or your pre-1930 Bentley... who cares? The valves will recede. Unless you are doing 20K miles a year, you will never notice anything in your lifetime. That said, lead additives don't hurt... so if you want to add it... add it.

Last... there are places that sell 'no ethanol' or "Aviation gas" over the counter. I really can't comment on those, because I don't use them. The cars I work on all run fine on base grade unleaded. So that's what I put in them. I would 'expect' that the supply chain for av gas is different from "Minivan gas." And better. But I don't know. The stuff with no ethanol... No clue at all. May be just the same ordinary 'goes skunky' gas with no alcohol in it. I just have no idea. It's expensive so may be it's better? I don't know. Maybe boat owners can chip in. I think a lot of them use it.

One more thing I'll mention is engine oil... because ZDDP (which is a zinc additive) is no longer put in most oils. It is in some diesel oils... Like Rotella... but is phasing out of that. ZDDP is especially critical in FLAT TAPPET engines to provide lubrication between the cam and tappets. Running without a Zinc additive (you can buy them) can kill your flat tappet engine in a hurry. Damage can occur in just 'thousands' of miles. Not tens of thousands. Roller tappet engines are not critical. FLAT TAPPET engines are. Jaguar, RR/B B-Series engines, lots of Detroit Muscle engines, lots of Detroit "Cheap" engines all run flat tappets. The way around this is a zinc additive. Or buy an off-road 'racing' oil like Valvoline VR-1. It is not intended for 'road' cars, but has zinc. I cannot speak for what it will do in modern cars, however (last 10 years-ish?). So beware thinking you should use it in your modern car. I believe it is bad for catalytic converter performance... not engine. And engines now are designed to run without ZDDP. But for older cars, it is critical. Also, for those with pre-war engines... Additives must be used in the specified quantities. In high concentrations, ZDDP attacks yellow metals (bronze, brass, copper alloys) and so 'More is not better.' Lots of early engines have bronze bushings, gears, etc. And with vintage/collector cars... change your oil once a year or every 2K miles. For most, that is a whole driving season plus... Oil is cheap. New engines are not. Just change the oil. If you are feeling wasteful, put the old oil in your lawn mower. But don't leave old oil in your engine for a winter. Change once a year. You'll be glad you did!

That's about the only stuff I can really add. Except to say "New gas sucks" but it beats the alternative... And the alternative is that the greenies and fruitbats are doing their best to get rid of all gas. And it sucks to see nice musclecars having their great-sounding motors replaced with Ghey electric motors and speakers for PotatoPotato sounds.

Hope this helps... any additions, corrections, revisions or input appreciated... we are all learning all the time these days as the fuel companies and gas companies simply don't care about 'old' cars. And forces are doing their best to have them all crushed as carbon creators. BTW, my 1914 Model T paid for its carbon footprint decades ago. 108 years and still going strong. How many cars has it outlasted... each of which had a huge carbon footprint to manufacture, run and destroy? Old cars are the greenest thing on the planet. Old car people were THE original recyclers.

Cheers,

Sirhr
 
A 65 Coronet I picked up recently. It is a retired race car that hasn't been licensed for street use since 1978. Everything mechanically is fresh with zero miles, 440/727/4:10. Gutted interior, I am not sure what I will do with the interior. I am not going to paint the exterior, just going to drive it as is.


Dude, drive it just like that.
 
Vacation in Utah after daughter‘s Archery Nationals (#12 10th grade, #19 overall) and came across this gem at a Mexican restaurant in west Torrey.
I asked if they had any plans for it or would entertain selling it.
No plans, won’t sell it, like it just where it is.
 

Attachments

  • DB494702-7DCC-454F-9C22-49373F75AFCB.jpeg
    DB494702-7DCC-454F-9C22-49373F75AFCB.jpeg
    1.1 MB · Views: 41
  • Like
Reactions: roostercogburn98
Not that this has a lot of HP or TQ, but its my new toy. Its probably about 70HP, but it only weighs 1100 LB's. Its a lot faster than I though it would be, lol. I have wanted one for a very long time, my Dad had VW's through my whole youth and got into more traditional (not AC VW's) classic hot rods when I was about 12. We had everything from sand rails, beetles, a Ghia, a type 181 (Thing), a Manx glass body, a type 3, and probably more that I am forgetting about. I still remember sanctioned racing from when I was young, Dad was President of the Detroit Buggy Club.

Plan is to work on this with my 14yo son, let him do most of the wrenching. I think it is a good and simple car to teach intro to vehicle maintenance and modifications on. We will work on getting it street legal, and spend time up at the Silver Lake Dunes, and the many trails we have here in Michigan.

VW 1835 with dual Kadrons, Swing Axle, and front kingpin beam from a pre'65 beetle in what I think is a 4 seat Appletree frame (could be a Whitehill though).
20230423_104022.jpg
 
Last edited:
Had to pull the blower off my ZL1 due to a squeaky bearing, and decided that its tendency to burn a lot of oil might mean it's finally time to install a set of new CNC'd LS9 heads that have been sitting on the shelf for a few years. First, my lead tech had to assemble the heads with better valvesprings to accommodate the bigger cam that was installed a while ago:

PXL_20230514_231852543.jpg


Meanwhile, I got the old blower and heads off to find signs of oil consumption in a few holes and less-than-pristine bores:

PXL_20230526_174526361.jpg
PXL_20230526_173853728.jpg


These engines are known for valve guide wear when operated well in excess of the factory redline for long periods, which is exactly what I do at the track. Expected and understood.

The bores we'll address with a fresh short block at a later date. Got a spare LSA block that will get dropped off at the machine shop for some forged pistons, stronger rods, and a 4" crank.

Meanwhile, we've got a rebuilt ported blower and the new heads installed:

PXL_20230527_180011542.jpg
PXL_20230528_233415219.jpg
PXL_20230530_005112254.jpg


It needs a few more little parts installed and fresh fluids. Hoping to hear it fire off tonight, and then we'll start the tuning process. That gets done twice since it's set up for flex fuel.
 

Attachments

  • PXL_20230429_173309630.jpg
    PXL_20230429_173309630.jpg
    643 KB · Views: 31
The parts for my 502 keep stacking up.
View attachment 8152811
View attachment 8152812
View attachment 8152813
View attachment 8152814
The heads are waiting for me to find the time to port and polish and I need some time to do some relief work on the cylinders for the rod clearance.
I'm hoping to get around 600 hp or better. That ought to get a Monte Carlo down the road.
I think you can easily get 600hp in a 500 inch big Chevy, but why not a roller cam?

For that duration, you could get more lift.

Or, if you want to stay around .600” lift, you could do it with less duration and still have the power via steeper ramps (more duration at max lift) etc. And better road manners….
 
I think you can easily get 600hp in a 500 inch big Chevy, but why not a roller cam?

For that duration, you could get more lift.

Or, if you want to stay around .600” lift, you could do it with less duration and still have the power via steeper ramps (more duration at max lift) etc. And better road manners….

I have done a bunch of different motors. This one was just a " wonder what this combo will do?" The great thing about having a hobby. If you don't like it. Change it. If you ain't working on it. It's time for something else.
 
I have done a bunch of different motors. This one was just a " wonder what this combo will do?" The great thing about having a hobby. If you don't like it. Change it. If you ain't working on it. It's time for something else.

There is a reason that engines are bolted together instead of welded.
 
PXL_20230601_011235719.jpg


Lit 'er off for a few seconds this morning AND IT'S WAY LOUDER THAN I REMEMBER. It was at this point I realized that the header intermediate pipe clamps weren't installed :cautious:

The next step will be the multi-day process of filling and bleeding the intercooler loop. It's probably time to get a proper reservoir because this game of tricking in a few ounces into that stupid T-fitting is no fun.

I also found that the coolant overflow bottle developed a crack. Spent a few minutes trying to figure out what hose clamp got overlooked before realizing the source.