Mike C

Thanks for the heads up on the zones thing. I HATED the black backgound/white text.

Berrymans is a manufacturer, B12 is the name they gave their carb cleaner. Any full line auto parts store should have it.

The JTR manual covers how to adapt the wiring to a V8 Z and is probably a good source for basic wiring diagram so that you can troubleshoot.

Yup, lose the gas. I would have the tank cleaned at a radiator shop. Flush the fuel lines with Berryman B12. Easiest way is to fill the fuel line up with B12, then block off at tank and top it off. Let it sit for a couple of hours then just flush fresh gas through it. Replace the fuel filter that you removed in order to flush the fuel lines, with a new one. You are going to have to go through the carbs. As in the other forums I saw some posts, buy the book. Buy the book. Buy the book. www.motorbooks.com Drain the oil. Pull the plugs. Liberally douse the cylinder with WD40. Then again after 10 minutes and again 10 minutes later, and allow to sit overnight. Rotate crank bolt with a wrench to make sure rotates freely. Reinstall drain plug. Pull the valve cover, and pour 1/2 quart of oil over the cam, follower, springs, everything you can get to. Reinstall valve cover. Refill crankcase. With the plugs out crank the engine over with the starter until you verify oil pressure on the gauge. You may want to install a mechanical gauge temporarily during this stage. Once you verify oil pressure, go ahead and check for spark. Now is a good time to replace and adjust the points, get a new cap and rotor, and some plug wires if any fail an ohmeter test. Then check for fuel if you've got the carbs back on and the freshly cleaned tank with no more than 2 or 3 gallons of suitably stabilized fuel. Sometimes it takes longer to get things running than we would like and you would hate for the gas to go bad AGAIN before you finished....

Gas is lighter than water, so when water gets in the tank, the gas floats up above the pickup so you may be trying to run on water. If it is a Z, drain the tank and start with fresh fuel. Another option is to disconnect the line at the fuel pump and put a hose in a can of fresh gas. As usual, check for spark as well. Different companies use different additives that sometimes give a color shift. Especially high perf fuels. The apple juice color of above is good, but the ol' nose is as good a tell-tale as any as noted. I SWEAR by fuel stabilizers, and use it in EVERYTHING that I don't use weekly. My Camaro, weedwacker, lawn mower, chainsaw, the jeep, every tank on the jetskis, last tank of the year on the boat...

It also depends on what kind of ignition you are running. The capacitive discharge should be fine with large gaps, but the inductive discharge... I would run 45 and that gives you some "wear" leeway unless you are running true platinum type plugs (on electrode AND ground strap, most cheaper ones are just electrode, ground strap can still erode)in which case .050 should be fine with the MSD. If in doubt, always check with the manufacturer. I would think MSD has a FAQ on this.

Considering somewhere in the neighborhood of 90% of wear comes on startup, letting it run is not a bad thing. Idle has virtually zero load as well. Consider that most police cars after they are retired become taxi cabs, there is no reason to think that its life expectancy is used up. As noted, not all cop cars ARE "Cop Cars" they use cheaper models sometimes. As far as GM motors, the Caprice 350 is the same as the "cop car" 350. The suspension, possibly cooling, and transmissions are usually beefed up.

The TPI never was put in anything production other than a Camaro or Corvette. The LT1 WAS available in the Caprice from 94-96, when the B bodies were killed.

Since when was a Caprice Cruiser a TPI Camaro? The Caprice will be TBI. It isn't really any different than any other TBI 350, but they run sweet. $600 is a fair price for a running car IMO. I have an LT1 from a '96 Caprice that will most likely wind up in my Z in the future.

I think either would be excellent for a high performance Z. Try to get a Camaro camshaft used as you probably (at least I can't) afford an aftermarket one at ~$500-for JUST the cam. Be careful, as there is a 4.8 version of the V8 as well. Although it might make for an excellent daily driver swap. I would be most inclinded to do the 5.3 and it is probably the easiest to find/cheapest to buy. You will be stuck with an automatic however, as the truck manuals are just too big, and IMO, the T56 for an LS1 just too $.

If it were me, (and I know how easy it is to spend your money...) I would run the Isky cam. Get the 1.6 intake and 1.5 exhaust rockers. And buy the Proform version of the cam degree kit, it's only $89, versus the $129-$139 for the comp. Then instead of spending time and money swapping and testing cams, spend all of the money designing a first class exhaust. Here is my version, 1. Patriot coated header with cone for flared pipe. At least I think they will fit... http://www.jegs.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=102154&prmenbr=361 2. A pair of 2 1/2" 90 degree mandrel bends, have flared to adpat to header. (might need some more bends to get the thing tied into...) 3. Flowmaster y-pipe, 2 1/2" into 3" 4. 3" pipe back to diff. This is where it gets interesting, and the exhasut backpressure kit I mentioned in another thread might pay off. Either use the cone reducer, 3" to 2 1/2" and two more mandrel bends and a Dynomax, Magnaflow, etc. muffler or try to go full 3" with the corresponding 3" mandrel bends, which is probably too loud. Definitely won't be able to run 14" rims, but get too big a tire and it'll be hard to turn the pipe into the muffler, which is one area the smaller pipe will really help in. If the 2 1/2" proved to be too restrictive, you would not have to get too out of hand money or labor wise to go to the 3" I was never willing to lose my spare by modifying the well. I think I (spending your money again...) would go 3" and try several different brands of mufflers to maximize both noise control and power output. Feel like I'm giving all of my good ideas away...

Probably have trucks for awhile, but a clean 72 short fleet, especially a Super, is worth more than a roadster ironically. Guy down the street had 3 roadster he sold before moving. Could of had one for $1000 with Panasports on it and no motor. Tried to talk my buddy with the extra Typhoon motor into buying it. But he chickened out.

Too bad more companies don't have the attitude you do Mikelly. Although a firm believer in higher education, to some degree it is the most basic illustration of the "Good ol' boy" network. Their is no substitute for an innate ability to problem solve, and communication is the underlying thread to all endeavors. As a current college student, I tell people IF I complete my UT Engineering degree, it will be in SPITE of the university, and not because of it. Sheesh. If you know of anyone hiring in this area, I have superior communication skills, innovative problem solving solutions, and adequate technical understanding. Not that it matters since even the BOOKSTORES in this town have a hiring freeze...

Do you use the chokes? If not, do. Makes a big difference. Also, reconnect the stock water lines to the carbs if you have not. They speed up the warmup process and reduce the chance of carb icing. (Although I can't say that I have ever heard of that with SUs, they have big venturis compared to displacment.)

Couple of the new hot rod type mags I read have had an exhaust pressure test system. Comes with a drill bit, a tap, bunch of pipe plugs (to fill the holes you drilled...) and a test gauge. Shows how you can test at various points in your system to determine where and how much restriction exists. Seems like a good idea. $50 was the cost. I think the new Chevy High Performance had it for a reference. Email me and I'll try to find it for you if you want.

The 93 and up cars all have the WC trans behind the V6, supposedly. I have heard rumours it is the same as the Ford WC, but cannot verify. The "newer" V6 WC might be an option for use behind V8s, depending on it's input shaft and gear ratio. The lower numerically the first gear, the stronger the trans. The non-WC Ford trans have a 3.27 first gear while the WC units dropped down to the same 2.95 first as the GM. The early V6 tranny's had, I think..., a 3.5 first gear like the Nissan T5. Wish I had access to a BUNCH of salvage yard T5's...

I think it is Street & Peformance who offers a motormount adapter to put a Gen III LS motor onto stock GM mounts. With that setup, you should possibly be able to use the JTR setback plates. S&P makes nice stuff, but nothing cheap, so be forewarned. The John's Cars deal might be better since you know it'll work and he's got exhaust.

Grade 5 should be more than sufficient, but if you must have grade 8, Tractor Supply Co. sells grade 8 bolts by the pound.

It should have come with some self-tapping machine screws. Slightly tapered with a groove on the end. You can mount the regulator with either the flat of the bracket behind it or below it, if that makes sense. Whatever works best for you.

AROSSA, you can go to www.enginemasters.com and see the average numbers for all competitors, but not the breakdown. This months PHR, with the red 70 GTO on the cover has complete breakdown, but heres a snapshot from memory. 365ci 4.030 bore, SCAT 3.625 crank 2.40 (standard large) main journals, 2.00 (small journal) 6" Manley rods flat tops, hand ported AFR 215's (195c raw, but not the 195 head)angle milled to 57cc Isky 108 LSA, 282/282 232/232 .569/.530~ lift. 1.6 rockers on the intake, 1.5 on the exhaust. flat tops 11.4 compression. Super Victor intake, 930 Demon, 1 3/4 out of the box Heddmans. Heads flowed 310cfm on the intake. Peak powere was 604 at 6500 and 528 lb ft at 4800 or so. Real trick stuff is super thin .043 rings, coated piston tops and skirts, coated bearings. Off the shelf oil pan. This is exactly how I would build a street motor except I would go 4.040 with stock stroke crank to keep the price down. Figure you could duplicate this to the tune of 550hp and 475 lb ft for about $6000 with careful parts seletion and assembly.

Unless you are going to run a camshaft with more than 240 degrees of duration at .050, stay with one of the single plane intakes. The Vortec heads are limited to .460 lift without mods, which rules out rpms above 6500 or so anyhow. Get one of the dual planes. Their is nothing wrong with the GMPP intake either. Doesn't the 350 hp motor come with an intake?

There is no way that question can be answered just based on block casting number. As you can see, it was used in 302 (factory rated at 290 gross hp, but most were at least 290 NET hp) 327 rated at 210 hp, and 350ci motors. The 350 was rated at 250, 300, and 360 (370 in the 'vette) in 1970. In 71 the ratings were reduced to reflect lowered compression and in 72 the ratings were flywheel net (with full exhaust and all accessories but still measured-as now- at the flywheel.) "Stock" is relative as compression varied from as little as 8:1 to as much as 11:1. Cylinder heads, intake manifolds, camshafts all have significant variations. Assuming you have a truck motor with iron heads, cast iron intake, and 8.5:1 compression (this is a reasonable assumption I think) You are looking at about 240 gross hp, the same as a new GM targetmaster crate motor. Should put out high 100's at the wheels (180-190, maybe as high as 210)

Worn bushings can cause that. Or crash damage.

Not true. Unfair to compare a street use (or even drag strip) to an offroad use. I've broken more than my fair share of 12 bolts in my Jimmy... But you will have to upgrade some parts. Axles for sure. If you are going to narrow for a Z, get an Eaton 30 spline posi. Pair of axles can be had for less than $300 from Moser or Dutchman. Weight is the biggest killer to the rear axle assembly. The light weight of a powerful Z is much easier on parts than a 3500# Camaro or a 5500# 4x4 for sure. I built an 8.5" 10 bolt for my buddies 68 Firebird. Runs 10.27 at 130 on the motor. Had over 300 passes on the 4.10 that were in it (admittedly, 33 spline spool and axles really toughen things up...) Put 3.73 in it and it did blow up, but that was ancillary. Broken u-joint at the 1/8 mile took it out. Got another friend with a nitrous breathing '76 Trans Am that has several hundred passes on his 10 bolt in the low to mid 10's as well. I built another for my neighbors 93 S-10 with 427 small block. Had his father-in-laws machine shop make us a jig. Still not driving, however. It has been narrowed 3" per side, using an Eaton Posi, 3.73 Motiv geats, and Moser axles. 9" Ford is no stronger than anything else in STOCK configuration. And the location of the pinion and size of the center make it a tough swap in spatially challenged vehicles. I really like the 8.5" 10 bolt for a performance axle. At least in a car... Drewz, Get yourself a semi-floater 14 bolt for your truck (late 80's through early 90's). They came in "light duty" 2500 trucks. ID by their 6 lug axles. I have a full floater rear Dana 60 I'm toying with for the Jimmy, but will require switching to 8 lug setup in the front, which will require new wheels and tires. Ouch. Maybe once I'm working... I'll do the semi-floater 14 bolt in mine if (make that when) the 12 bolt grenades again.

Like John said. I have the "shortest" 2975 Victor Jr., but it is in my Camaro not Z. I turned John onto the Z/28 air cleaner, and nothing else comes close for clearance. John, the GM factory cowl induction air cleaner has an identical base and would be trick if somebody was going to fabricate a fresh air hood. Hmmm. If you run the 3" filter, you could even run a 1" spacer! FWIW, Joe Sherman's EngineMasters winning 365 ci motor made 604 hp (528 lb ft.)with a 3" filter. That motor absolutely ROCKS and should be the model for any hiperf street small block. Pump gas , hydraulic roller (236 @ .050!), WOW!