labrat

That was an comp cams Xtreme Roller 270 (270/276 advertised with .496/502 lift) , just figured out it would be a little too much lift for the heads though, now looking at XE 262 which shows about 405ft/lbs@4000. Mebbe just cut the valve guides, though...

That was an comp cams Xtreme Roller 270 (270/276 advertised with .496/502 lift) , just figured out it would be a little too much lift for the heads though, now looking at XE 262 which shows about 405ft/lbs@4000. Mebbe just cut the valve guides, though...

Well, the car is going to be a daily driver, so it's not going to see THAT hard of use. I might get on it a little, but i won't be draggin to hard. Just hurting some ricer feelings here in Austin on the highway... Thanks for the advice, i'm trying to keep fairly cheep on this combo, but I didn't wanna get stupid with it. I thought the low revs would be key in helping out the longevity of the internals, but I wanted to be sure. I'll just be sure to set the rev limiter low (around 5800) just to be on the safe side. Thanks a million, fellows! I love to take advantage of the tremendous amount of experience on this board...

Hey guys, just ran my el-cheapo combo on Dyno2000 and here's what it says... RPM HP (fly) Torque (fly) 2000 152 400 2500 195 410 3000 240 420 3500 289 434 4000 335 439 4500 374 436 5000 396 416 5500 402 385 6000 385 337 I picked this combo because 1.) cheap parts. This is with unmodified vortec heads and flat top pistons. 2.)flat torque curve up to 5000rpm. drops off a little by 5500, and then dies around 6000. My question is, can i run this combo reliably at low to mid rpms with stock internals, or will i need forged pistons, rods, and crank to keep this thing from going grenade on me? I won't be twisting it over 5500, but i don't want to be stupid cheap, either. How long would stock flat tops, rods and crank last in this combo? Just fishing for opinions... thanks Bill

I just borrowed my friends copy of desktop dyno 2000 to plan my upcoming engine rebuild, and I have a question for you DD experts out there. I asked him, but he wasn't sure. First and foremost, what is the bore size and crushed thickness of a standard fel-pro sbc headgasket? I have been using .030 as a guestimate... Anyone have anything more accurate? I've also been using 4.15 for the headgasket bore size. It sounded pretty good to me, but the compression numbers i'm getting seem kinda high, so its probably not quite right. Has anyone done a comparison between the software and actual dyno runs to determine accuracy? I know it's based on standard engine math, but how does it relate to the real world? Do they want to make you "feel good" about buying their software and inflate the numbers, or are they a little on the conservative side? anyway, thanks for listening to me ramble on and any assistance is greatly appreciated! Bill

That makes sense, i thought i reassembled the motor quick enough not to have the oil drain out of the lifters, so i adjusted them accordingly. I guess they were adjusted while they were bled down and then the lifters pumped up when I sarted it. arghhhh... oh well. Learning curve..... That also explains the way it was running, no compression with the valves open... Bill

Well, what I think is crazy about this whole thing, is the head that has the bent pushrods was not changed one little bit from the way it was before when it ran fine, i just cleaned it up. The opposite head went to a machine shop for valves, guides, and springs, but not this one. The cam never came out, timing chain was not removed, basically i only pulled the heads to change headgaskets, but one head had 2 burnt valves with pounded in seats, so i had it worked. Put the whole mess back together, and didn't get 500 miles out it... I did swap the heads side for side (left head now on right bank) but that shouldn't change anything, should it? I will pull the heads probably tonight and inspect the pistons and valves to see if there was any contact..... Thanks! Bill

Well, after rebuilding my carb, sending both heads to the machine shop, and reassembling everything, my car seemed to lose a bunch of power(!?!) and was "popping" gas out the carb when i tried to start it. pulled the intake off, and i now have 4 bent pushrods. Not bent badly (ie. no right angles), but bent enough that they wobble when rotated in place. Now, I never had the timing chain off, and i've never been able to get the motor to run good enough to hit the rpms needed for valve float, so I don't think valves met pistons. What could have caused this? I don't want to repeat my mistake this time. Could really, really "off" ignition timing cause this? I did have the dizzy 180 off the first time i cranked it ( and two plug wires crossed). As always, I bow to the powerhouse of chevy knowledge here on HybridZ, and any help is greatly appreciated! Bill

Maybe, just maybe, you're going at this the wrong way. Instead of looking for a new mount on the engine, can you modify the mounting point for the mount on the chassis side? It looked like there was a long bolt on the mount in the close up picture. I know that 1972 chevy truck motor mounts use a thru hole and mount with one bolt from the bottom (into the center of the mount rather than perpendicular to it). Maybe you can cut/grind the ears off of the chassis side mounts, drill a hole through the framehorn for the mounting bolt to come up through, then use spacers between the truck motor mounts and block to get the geometry just right. It looks like you have the room to do this. This is what i had to do to put a 350 in my 81 ZX (the jtr manual didn't quite cover this part...). I wish I had some pics, but if you look at the mounts i'm talkig about, you'll see what needs to be done. Or, if you're good at welding, you can always relocate the chassis side of that mount 1/2 in outward/upwards. That would seem to be the easiest route of all. Anyway, good luck! Bill

Just checked the crank casting number, and it's a 350 crank... Damn! Oh well, i guess i'm getting a decent block, anyway. I may just find me a 3" stroke crank and build it up... Any ideas where I could find one good and cheap? Another question, since quench height and compression height are so important, how can you just change the stroke in a motor by up to 1/2 in without having a forceful introduction of piston and head? do the wrist pins connect "higher" up on the piston for the longer stroke cranks? They all use the 5.7" rods, right? This confuses me... Bill

mods, please delete this one. Thanks

Well, i would grab it just for the investment, but as this is a friend and he is doing me a favor, i couldn't buy it to just to sell it. He'll give it to me at that price if i put it in my car, but not if i'm gonna resell it. I'm thinking that's what I want to do, though. My plans so far are small chamber heads (prolly darts or canfields) w/girdles, a manifold somewhere between a performer rpm and vic jr., with roller rockers and a solid roller cam. I wanna be able to creep around town without havind drivability problems, but i want it to scream like a banshee in the upper end.

Well, i ran the casting numbers on the block and heads, and it is indeed a DZ302 block, but has stock 350 truck heads and an edelbrock aluminum manifold. I know it has a blown headgasket and was driven "hot" for a while (far enough to get home when it blew), so i know it will need a rebuild, and i will be putting aftermarket heads on it, so i'm adding that to the price equation. I believe the motors came stock with forged pistons, so that's another check in the "for" column. The feedback from here has been positive, so for the price, i think I'll jump on it. Thanks guys! Bill

ok guys, here's the deal. I have a 72 model 350 from a pick up in my 81 280ZX right now, but as it was pretty much a wrecking yard motor I installed without really checking it out, it needs a rebuild. My friend just ran into a good deal, and he's offering me a 302 chevy from a Z28 with a blown headgasket for 300 bux. Now, i know this motor will need a rebuild too, so my question is, is it worth it to go for the high revver? I have the non-turbo ZX with a 3.90 r200, so i'm thinking this might be the way to go. Just kill the low end torque and go for top end balls. I guess the bottom line is, all things being equal, which would you go for? I'm leaning towards the 302, but that's mostly for uniqueness, i guess. Conversely, i'm sure parts will be more expensive. Is this a good price for the motor? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated! Bill

That's about the general concensus between me and my buddy (who also has a hybridZ)... How fast is fast? Do I care about big (or little) numbers, or how the car feels? I saw the movies of darius in his Z, and thought mine would be like that with just a stock 350 thrown in it... Not quite! I don't want to have the fastest car around, i just want a car that feels fast to me. The $20 on the dashboard is probably one of the most important tests my car will ever go through. Numbers mean little to me, it's the huge grin when i bawl third that really counts. Just a stock 350 didn't cut it, so i'm redoing my entire conversion. At least I get to use the same motor mounts:) Going for a new motor, tranny, everything. I'm just balancing income vs. time vs. how bad i want to drive the car. I have loads of respect for those of you who are taking years to convert your rides and restore them at the same time and doing a job that is worthy of a magazine, but i'm trying to be realistic, and actually get my beast out of the garage while i'm still young enough to enjoy it. So how fast is fast? Fast is what my car will be after my next paycheck... eternally. Bill

Well, i crammed a 350 in my 81 280ZX, and the wiring wasn't all that difficult. The hardest part is to keep from burning the unused, taped up wires from the exhaust heat under the hood. The main thing is to wire everything up on relays, don't rely on the stock datsun wiring for anything! My setup is like this: 1 relay to coil (or HEI dizzy, i used points) 1 relay to fan/electric choke (fan wired for constant on) 1 relay for starter (used HD ford starter "solenoid") Other than that, just run 1 big wire from the alternator output to the battery (or batt guage) and jumper the voltage sensing wire back to the output terminal of the alternator. It was really much easier than I expected. Now, if all my crimp on connectors just hold... Bill

Damn, using that formula, i need 72" headers!!! The collectors would be somewhere behind the transmission! Bill

Hey, just to let you guys know, not all women are like that! When I had 2 blown headgaskets in my sbc 280ZX, my girlfriend pulled the heads for me! She's graduating as an engineer in May from the University of Texas, and she really likes figuring out how mechanical stuff works. Of cours, I put it all back together just to make sure, but she sweated a lot over it too! Believe it or not, she actually watches the guages in her Mazda 626, and even knows what they mean. She had a lifter in it ticking like crazy about three weeks ago, and at least she brought it to my attention, and asked me how to fix it. Not to fix it, but HOW to fix it. You gotta love a woman like that! (BTW, the CD2 engine oil detergent additive is like liquid gold!) Bill

Definitely do not use the TH350 from that truck? unless you are going to strictly drag race it. Trust me, i'm kicking myself for not goin overdrive from the start. Now I have exhaust and other stuff in my way when I go to change out the tranny here in a few weeks.

Thanks, I just wanted to make sure... Bill

I have another quick question about flywheel/flexplate mounting. I am about to replace my flywheel (AWFUL starter grind and at least 3 missing teeth), and i don't know which way faces the torque converter. I could just put it on the same way as the old one, but i don't know if that's correct. Do the "bumps" around the converter mounting holes face the converter or the crank? Just wanna make sure, as this is definitely a job I don't want to repeat... Bill

Been looking for more reasons to tear into my car, and as the intake may have to come off anyway, I was thinking about replacing my cam. Mostly because I have no idea what cam is in it;> Here's my setup: 350 bored .040 over 76CC truck heads (can't remember casting number... pretty stock and 1.94 valves) 10cc dished pistons (I think. They're dished, anyway) edelbrock performer manifold (maybe go to vic jr. later) stock iron manifolds with corked up 2" exaust (definitely gonna be rectified soon) Any suggestions for a cam? Can't go over .500 lift, valve springs won't let me. Any input is, as always, greatly appreciated! Bill

You must have been looking at the T-56 auctions on ebay. I saw someone there advertising a T-56 with the skip shift solenoid modification to "eliminate those pesky 1st to 4th shifts". And he wonders why he was getting no bids on the tranny... Bill

Just a quick update, the performer intake with the 1" adaptor/spacer barely fits (but it does fit!) under the hood with a 1" drop base aircleaner and a 2" thick element. This is on my non-JTR mounted 350 in my 280ZX with recirculating ball type power steering. This is a pretty "high" setup for the motor, I have 3 1/4 inches of spacers between my motor mount and block on the driver's side, and 2 1/2 on the passenger side with no setback plates. I really don't like the aircleaner sitting like this, i'm afraid the top of the aircleaner will interfere with my choke opening fully (it's THAT close), and you can imagine what this does for airflow. My $.02, hope it helps someone. Bill

I'm running an edelbrock performer q-jet style with a 1" spacer/adaptor for my holley squarbore, and i don't quite have enough room for my aircleaner to fit on my 81 ZX. The aircleaner is a 1" drop base edelbrock 14" element. I am going to try to get a 2X14 to fit, but the 3" thick one definitely will not. I would get the regular victor junior, and a removable spacer just in case. It's always easier to add a spacer than to remove one that's built in...