Michael

Calculators can be very useful for giving an initial baseline, but the mere presence of specific numbers should not be conflated with good accuracy. There are simply too many variables to get much beyond just a rule of thumb. As an example, by most calculators my application seems to call for a 750 cfm carb, but with more specific advice this appears to be a huge underestimate. Off to the dyno in a couple of weeks (maybe...) to verify.

Another consideration is that if you are interested in experimenting with parts' fit - especially with new or speculative combinations - it's much cheaper and easier to use junkyard parts. For example, I confirmed a friend's advice about trying a Gen II Camaro (1970-1982) front rotors on a 240Z, but grabbing the rotors from one such Camaro at the junkyard, and trying them on a Z. It turns out that they fit quite nicely; the only ambiguity is what to do with the grease seal.

Should be a good combo! For new all-aluminum V8's, the LSX crate motor is hard to beat. And for simplicity, the carb is hard to argue with.

... the only problem is, that what reasonable people might consider to be idiotic behavior is not necessarily illegal behavior, and vice versa. But this is straying dangerously close to a political discussion....

It's a Mark IV big block Chevy, originally from a 1978 Suburban, though the only parts retained are the block, rods, crank, alternator and distributor body. 460 cubic inches come from 454 + 0.030" overbore. Like all pre-1990 (or thereabouts) Chevy V8's, the limiting factor for maximal engine setback is the distributor/firewall interference. In my case this problem was "solved" by setting back the firewall itself. BTW there is a fellow on HybridZ with a 460 big block Ford conversion in progress.

Photo album updated with engine install and detail pics. BTW, the strut tower brace is a welded custom job. Should be plenty strong, but makes valve cover removal a most unpleasant experience.

BTW, I would like to thank everyone on HybridZ who's helped me along the way - but especially Denny, whose guidance and mentorship has been invaluable. My Z spent the past 4 months in his garage, with me "commuting" to his place every other week or so, for a day's labor. Had I been alone, it would have been 4 years instead of 4 months - if ever.

I uploaded some photographs into my album – please have a look. http://album.hybridz.org/showphoto.php?photo=7949&cat=673 Drove the thing again today; added a 1/2-quart of ATF to the crankcase, as some folks have advised. Let the engine warm up. Idle was poor while the engine was cold - probably the choke is malfunctioning. After ~30 seconds of operation, idle became stable at around 800 rpm. By the time operating temperature reached 160 F, idle climbed to 1100 rpm. Unfortunately the electric fan would not come on, so I shut the engine down when it reached 210 degrees - hopefully that wasn't drastically too hot. I'm worried about the rings, whose gap might be too small. Also, on further reflection, I probably overfilled the oil sump by 2 quarts, mindlessly dumping two gallon-bottles of Valvoline, not having realized that a "gallon" of oil can actually be 5 quarts, not 4! (it's an 8-quart-sump). That might explain the blue/beige smoke on start-up - a huge, thick cloud, which thankfully dissipates a minute after start-up. What would be the damage from overfilling by 2 quarts? Burnouts it my driveway were entertaining! With my usual half-throttle, 3500 rpm-redline driving style (launch at idle, upshift at 3000-3500) both tires leave 30' marks before hooking. About the same thing happens in 2nd. Once I tried to back up, but ended up in 4th instead of reverse - and forgot about the parking break. Strangely, it took some gas to get going, and there was hesitation. But off it went, before I realized the situation. Anyway, this all happened before hitting 210 deg F. Setting the valve lash (which was earlier set cold) showed that nearly all rockers were about right, though loose by 0.002 or so. One felt more loose. Hopefully the locknut backed out slightly on that one - and not a cam wipe! Another rocker (#7) had a slight discoloration on its roller, where it contacted the valve stem. Is this a sign of oil starvation, or an incorrect lash, or something else? I'm still too paranoid to drain the oil and cut open the filter - maybe tomorrow night. Now more operation of the engine until the oil change, for sure. One would like to think that these “truck” engines with big bearing races, comparatively loose tolerances, large bolts and thick webbings are robust, even brutal. But going through the saga of a blown-up engine, a rebuilding and now the care and feeding of a fledgling engine strikes me how delicate these things really are! In all of this, the overarching lesson has been the difference between theory and practice. I would think that my grasp of the theory is quite solid, but the actual practice of tuning, adjusting and building – well, that’s very much in its infancy. It is all the more remarkable how so many “shade tree mechanics” manage to keep high performance engines running for thousands of miles, with what at least on first blush appears to be rudimentary regard for details such as cleanliness and holding tolerances. Or is the breezy self-confidence deceptive?