grumpyvette

"Grumpy, the crank stops turning with the pistons about 1/4 inch from TDC," keep in mind your working in three dimensions, while it might take a full .25" in piston height off the dome to clear the chamber wall that probably won,t be off the whole dome and probably wont be, its far more common for an edge to be laid back,or a few thousands too be milled from the side of the dome rather than the top to gain clearance

BTW, ITS A LEARNING PROCESS,EVERYONE SCREWS UP at times, its LEARNING from your mistakes and the mistakes of others that results in SKILLS being perfected OVER TIME, LORD knows Ive done my share of stupid things over the years example WHEN I was 17 years old,I dropped off a set of rare HP heads at a local machine shop for a valve job, was told to come back in 48 hours,they would be ready... but failed to get a receipt, the bas$%%^ RETURNED a totally differant set of junk heads and swore they were MY heads, I was SCREWED and OUT BIG BUCKS, I learned to take MULTIPUL DETAILED PICTURES and get EXTREMELY DETAILED RECEIPTS with every facet of the job listed. priced, and the times and cost specified, yet at times I still get idiots running machine shops,argue about what, when,how much etc

just HOW badly do they interfear and at what point do they contact and by how much? generally a small amount of machine work on the piston dome AND OR the chamber or BOTH will give the clearance . first step is carefull measurement and finding exactly what needs to be done, its comon on BIG BLOCK heads and domed pistons for this to be necessary since theres a huge differance in combustion chamber designs and dome shapes/heights I just built a 13.7:1 cpr BBC where the dome needed to be machined fore a fire slot as the spark plug tip and a bit of the quench area edge contacted the dome, luckly the total depth of all machined aluminum was less than .080 in one area and less than .040 in the other, since the total weight of aluminum removed was next to zip in weight (less than 1.3 grams)we didn,t even bother to reballance

SORRY... YOUR CORRECT I SPOTTED THE PICTURE, IN THE TOP POST, DID A DOUBLE TAKE, and STOPPED READING AND STARTED POSTING EVERYONE MAKES MISTAKES I know IVE made my share, over the years, ITS learning to not repeat them thats the skill! NO ONES PERFECT,(LEAST OF ALL ME!) but thats a great teaching aid!

WHOOOO! take a brake drop the beer and think it thru look VERY closely at the engines short block picture youve installed RIGHT HAND PISTONS in LEFT HAND CYLINDERS, THATS WHY the rods appeared to be wrong,thats why the heads hit some pistons, notice on the rear two cylinders the exhaust is on the out side, on that pair,(correct) but on the front two cylinders they are adjacent (inside)(BAD,BAD) picture on the PG14 EI-IE-EI-IE http://go.mrgasket.com/pdf/Chevrolet.pdf BTW on RODS the BEVELED EDGE FACES OUT on each pair with the flat edge mating EXAMPLE upper rod has inside surface showing,(MATES TO OTHER ROD IN PAIR) lower rod has outside,face showing (FACES CRANK COUNTER WEIGHT)

the 4/7 firing order swap reminds me of the huge rush to use flat 180 degree cranks about 20 somethiong years ago, yeah, theres BOTH advantages and DIS advantages, but BRAAP COVERED IT WELL yes you can in theory gain a few hp, yes it costs more, yeah, it tends to lower the harmonic loads SLIGHTLY 1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2 1-8-7-3-6-5-4-2 think about it, your swapping center cylinders for outer cylinders, in theory spreading the demand on airflow in the plenum and runners but increasing the twist or torsional loads on the crank over a larger length, not much gained IF both are optimized but the 4/7 swap should run smoother as not as much a/f ration harmonics & disruption takes place (in theory)

IM forced to aggree! Ive used TOTAL SEAL ,GAPLESS rings in several engines, benefits were minimal over decent quality moly rings but cost was easily double, but a good quality moly faced ring, it the better value. keep in mind HONEING the cylinder with the correct git and pattern and while use of deck torque plates are in use to simulate the stress of heads torqued into place helps seal

its the total combo that gets results and the cylinder heads are critical to the final numbers(power) but IM ONLY TOO well aware of how budgets restrict choices. those 305 heads will NEVER produce good hp simply because they don,t flow enought air. and they have a small combustion chamber that raises cpr and tends to be a problem with detonation. IM some what confused here, if you have 305 heads why purchase a new(used rebuilt set of 305 heads) the .040 milled surface is just not going to be a huge factor here,IF YOUR STAYING WITH 305 HEADS ,personally ID look around for a decent set of 350 compatable heads, AND NOT EVEN THINK OF USEING THE 305 heads http://www.midwestmotorsportsinc.com/order_part.php?item=PHEAD&line=MWM http://www.midwestmotorsportsinc.com/order_part.php?item=PPHEAD&line=MWM

http://cochise.uia.net/pkelley2/crc.htm http://cochise.uia.net/pkelley2/DynamicCR.html http://hotrodworks.net/hotrodmath/engine.html http://www.victorylibrary.com/mopar/cam-tech.htm http://www.chevytalk.org/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/92966/

One of my friends stopped bye and wanted to show off the recent mods to his BBC powered 1965 tempest, now Ive always loved that car, hes one of those guys that can keep a car in BETTER than new showroom condition, the kind of guy who stays up worring if the carpet gets damp or the cars got dirt on the under side of the frame. anyway, hes had the same combo for years, 4.11 rear gears, M22 four speed trans, 496 BBC, 36 lb steel flywheel,11 dual disk clutch, 11:1 compression, full 3" exhaust, M/T HEADERS, M/T VALVE COVERS, EDELBROCK dual plane intake 850 holley, 9 qt custom aluminum oil pan, ported EDELBROCK rectangle port heads, and a CROWER 01403 cam, http://www.crower.com/misc/cam_spec/cam_finder.php?part_num=01403&x=35&y=9 the car used to run low 12s on street tires in just about any state of tune. had instant throttle responce, and generally broke the tires loose at will in all gears keep in mind this is 99% a street driven car designed for fun and embarrasing mustangs ETC. he went and installed a super vic intake and a crower 01406 http://www.crower.com/misc/cam_spec/cam_finder.php?part_num=01406&x=35&y=9 the car sounds ALOT MEANER, makes noticably better power up in the 4000rpm-6000rpm range but lost a great deal of its instant throttle responce and low rpm tq, and has to be driven HARD to get the power benefits.... after he had me test drive the car he asked me what I thought about the changes.....I asked him "was he looking for the TRUTH?" having known me for years he said...thats why IM here PAUL, I said you probably gained 70 HP, but I think its a move in the wrong dirrection, for what you do with the car... he smiled, and said, he agreed, the car was no longer "FUN to drive" it was faster and sounded meaner, but it had become a P.I.T.A. to drive in traffic, he constantly had to keep the rpms up to smoothly move the car and traction was a problem unless he slipped the clutch, which was a real problem with the dual disk 11 set-up he had... the power brakes didn,t have nearly enought vacuum, ....he totally agreed with me, and asked for advice. I said you know whats caused the problem,we both do!,you need to either swap back to the older roller cam or at least a new one thats much closer to the old cams specs and personally Id swap the old dual plane intake back on, but only after testing with the new milder cam with the new single plane intake first to find out which works better in your application. he grinned and said, " just wanted to here you say it.....I should have listened when you suggested I neither get to radical with the cam or swap to the new intake without testing the old one first!......what are you and your new garage doing this week?........I smiled and said, I imagine, Ill be buying ice, beer and bandaids , getting ready for a certain pontiac owners car to show up, after he talks to the tech boys at crower., buys a few parts and gaskets...I GUESS IM part mind reader now I don,t know anyone whos been in this hobby that hasn,t made similar moves/mistakes and I welcome the company, but research before spending money on changes sure saves time and effort, so think your real GOALS THRU carefully guys, having the FASTEST CAR AROUND might sound impressive but its RARELY your REAL GOAL, HAVING and DRIVING a RELIEABLE and FUN TO DRIVE CAR, usually is if its not a 90% plus race application " IF YOU CAN,T SMOKE THE TIRES FROM A 60 MPH ROLLING START YOUR ENGINE NEEDS MORE WORK!!"

PUBLIX GROCERY STORES its a SUPER MARKETchain in the S.E. USA

nope its on 6 large caster wheels and moves easily with or without an engine on it! but IM SURE most people thought that way! as that model is no longer available and cost almost $700 when it was last sold, (I paid less than 1/2 that amount 12 -14 years ago for it)

the answer to that depends on how hard you press and what wheels your useing,I don,t know if my wheels HAVE NOW or EVER HAD clear coat, on my wheels I barely press down and in 7 years I can,t see any degradation of the surfaces, at all, but then I try to pollish & wax them after cleaning they are stock saw blade design wheels, they look better now than when I bought the car they look like this (not my car but the wheels look the same)

I don,t know about most of you guys/gals but I hate cleaning aluminum wheels, the crud, brake dust, crusted grime, oil, its baked on ground in and it usually takes about 1/2 hour per wheel to look showroom new and you usually need abarsive pollish and lots of elbow grease to get them looking right! Id have taken before/after pics but ID never admit to letting the vettes wheels get into that condition being lazy at times and open for suggestions I stopped at PUBLIX super market and was taking to a fellow, car nut at the magazine rack, the subject came up and he suggested SUPERIOR FORMULA 23 HEAVY DUTY INDUSTRIAL CLEANER & DEGREASER "BLACK BOTTLE/JUG, & YELLOW LETTERING" a scotchbrite pad and hot water in a bucket and a stiff paint brush gets his wheels clean...........HMMMMM??? well I find the stuff in a gallon jug in the cleaner isle and I buy a dozen scotch brite pads thinking this ios going to be anouther 2-3 hour P.I.T.A. but IM willing to try new things...... WOW the brake dust an d caked on crud rubs off with almost no effort at all after I soaked the wheels down several times with strait solvent cleaner ....and worked---BARELY on it with a scotch brite pad and a constant stream of solvent spray...The hose removed about 90% after the first go round, the second time I really soaked the wheels and used a towel, the whole process took about 30-40 minutes and it looks like new! DAMN IM KEEPING SOME IN THE SHOP FROM NOW ON!!!

what your REALLY DEBATING HERE IS IF SPENDING OR SAVING an extra $40- too $60 dollars is worth the savings & gamble/risk VS your BUTT crippled for life or getting killed if the product fails at a very non-convienent time. spend the extra bucks, get the extra safety margin

example total crap (212 lbs) http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200305215_200305215 marginal (228 lbs) http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=46766 marginally better (250lbs) http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=7620 marginally better(278lbs) http://www.southern-tool.com/store/hydraulic_shop_crane.html better http://www.alltiresupply.com/p-HW93808.html

"Originally Posted by MrFancypants The big difference in quality on their hoists, stands, cranes etc. is the quality of the paint. I say who cares about the paint" sorry thats TOTALLY WRONG, its the AMOUNT OF STEEL USED, LOOK AT THE DIFFERANCE IN SHIPPING WEIGHTS Weight: 58 lbs Ship Wt. 77.0 lbs Shipping weight: 118 lbs. BTW that $119 engine crane weights LESS than 1/2 of what mine does at 540lbs and I bought it because IM going to be UNDER that engine at some point....do you really want to trust some chinese made junk thats made strickly to meet and or undercut the competitions prices rather than insure your BUTT doesn,t get crushed??????? there are times to save money but when your LIFES potentially on the line if a product fails ....well,thats just not an option if your playing with a full deck mentally in my opinion. pay a little more and get something that won,t get you killed or crippled, hopefully with a significant safety marging and IDEALL made in AMERICA

if your REALLY tight on cash this will also work ok, http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200305217_200305217 but it won,t fold up to store, it keep in mind the few dollars you might save on the cheaper stands going to look mighty foolish if the cheaper stand tips or fails under load and you get hurt, hospitalized or even just bust a few engine parts.......be smart and have a SIGNIFICANT SAFETY MARGIN

BUY the 2000lb folding engine stand! Ive got three now and a 1250 lb stand, in the shp, they are CHEAP but FAR MORE STABLE than the crappy $40-$60 stands with three legs that can get you seriously hurt if they tip, and THEY WILL TIP while tightening bolts or spining the engine or rolling the stand FAR easier than the 2000lb design

OK GOTTA ASK, WHY did he sell the engine and why did you pull it apart? was it in running condition when your purchase was made? what was the oil pressure at idle? did it burn oil? basically why didn,t you install it as/is how you got it, rather than dis-assemble it first? what are your plans for the engine? you should find this of interest http://www.rustpuppy.org/chp/Welcome.html ID stronggly advise purchasing this http://www.themotorbookstore.com/resmchstvi.html

I bought these, just for grins as a test... http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=40965 now I was fully expecting junk! but I could not believe how crappy these were, they have the words FORGED STEEL CAST into the parts, they fracture (not bend) under pressure and are very obviously cheap cast iron crap the ONLY two products IVE YET found at harbor frieght that are worth the cost, both are low quality but fully servicable tools http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=34924 http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=44718

welcome to the site! let us know your plans & goals

OK first ID strongly suggest shopping more first. this should help ID STRONGLY SUGGEST NOT BUYING A CHINESE BUILT LIFT AND BUYING FROM AN AMERICAN MANUFACTURER saving a few hundred bucks on a lift that could potentially fail and KILLS you or one you can,t get parts for in 5 years is hardly a bargin!! /KEEP IN MIND THAT PARTS AVAILABILITY IN THE FUTURE AN SERVICE IS FAR MORE IMPORTANT THAN SAVING A FEW BUCKS ON THE UP FRONT COST LOOK FOR THIS , MADE IN AMERICA/ ALI certified/validated by ETL PAY BY CREDIT CARD, if they don,t ship you have SOME RECOURSE Auto lifts http://www.autolift.org/ http://www.autolift.org/purchase_considerations.pdf http://www.geminilift.com/ http://www.ben-pearson.com/automotive-lifts.shtml http://www.hunter.com/pub/product/racks/index.htm http://www.challengerlifts.com/products.shtml http://www.directlift.com http://www.backyardbuddy.com http://www.asedeals.com/garage_lift.html http://www.autolifts.com http://www.westernhoist.com/ http://www.stingerlifts.com http://www.doublepark.net http://www.mohawklifts.com http://www.autolifters.com http://www.bendpak.com/ http://www.bendpak.com/product_info.isg?products_id=881 http://www.rotarylift.com/ http://eagleequip.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=LI ok having just gone thru this , Id point out that theres a HUGE differance in the REPLACEMENT PARTS availability and TECH SUPPORT availability and getting the lift installed correctly between the americam made and chinese built lifts, you probably DON,T WANT a 12,000 lb lift unless you excluesively work on larger trucks as the lift arms may not have the necessary clearance to use on low slung cars a 9000 lb lift will handle almost all personal cars/trucks heres what I finally bought and had installed, keep in mind that the higher the lifts weight rateing the larger the arms need to be and the more difficult it will be to use on low groound clearance cars like corvettes/camaros ETC. and youll rarely find personal cars/trucks over 6000lbs in weight with most being well under 4000-4500lbs heres the lift I purchased, I felt it was the best value, HAD THE BEST SERVICE SUPPORT AND BEST ACCESS UNDER THE CAR, ACCESS TO THE WHEELS, TRANSMISSION,EXHAUST, etc. http://www.ben-pearson.com/9000si.shtml OK I WAS ASKED "WHY NOT A 4 post design ?" a PROPERLY set up and built 4 post lift is great, but keep in mind that to work on the brakes,suspension etc. youll need a sliding bridge jack, to access the brakes/wheels while the cars up on that lift, now that adds to the cost. I was originally looking at this lift http://eagleequip.com/page/EE/PROD/LI-EFP/HD-12SS but adding a sliding bridge jack... http://eagleequip.com/Merchant2/merc...roduct_Count=7 pushed the price up significantly, plus I went out and looked at about a dozen shops, most had two post lifts........the reasons given were more useable floor space when it was not in use, easier access to the wheels,and exhaust no long platform in the way under the wheels when working on suspension lower cost all four wheels are easily accessable both doors can be accessed(some 4 post lifts don,t allow the pass door to open) I will eventually get both types of lift in the shop, because the 4 post is better for alignments and welding roll cages,etc. but after WORKING ON BOTH TYPES, and talking extensively with the mechanics at almost a dozen corvette shops, I think your best value is the QUALITY two post BUT ONLY IF THE CONCRETE SLAB YOULL MOUNT IT ON IS THICK ENOUGH AND MADE CORRECTLY WILL A TWO POST LIFT BE A GOOD IDEA, YES YOU CAN MODIFY and STRENGTHEN THE FLOOR IF ITS NOT THICK ENOUGHT

ON A TURBO, exhaust tunning by primairy length, is far less important than clearance,your not useing the vacuum to scavage the cylinders, and access issues,are far more important, build it to gain easy access and clearance,keep in mind heat damage to near by parts,access to bolts, gasket instalation,adjusting valves, valve cover sealing,spark plug access, ignition wire routing, any potential advantage in tuned length will be all but meaningless compared to maintinance and clearance issues think STAINLESS and vibration stress, access, routing and ease of maintinance

an engine can aquire a large amount of condensation over 5 years without running in some conditions...but thats not likely your problem from the description... the guys might be correct about the leaky head gasket or it might be something simple like a leaky intake gasket,especially if the engine was stored,where it freezes at times, yet its easily something more serious, like a cracked block or head, but you won,t know without checking it out, first step is a compression check THEN a LEAKDOWN CHECK if the compression check fails to indicate the source of the leak,a LEAKDOWN CHECK is far more likely to find the source,Id also be looking at the uncapped radiator for bubbles in the coolant,while it idles and changes in the oil level,but running the engine for any thing more than testing for a few minutes untill you locate the source seems counter productive. now to me, it seems like a minor thing to pull and , check it out durring a refresh & regasket the engine weekend......ESPECIALLY if you have a few friends to help (bribe them with sandwiches and BEER)