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I'm not sure I understand what you're saying here...it seems to contradict the theory of operation as I understand it. Can you edit it using the terms "center gears"( the 2 big ones) and "side gears"(the 12 little scroll looking ones) please? And I don't think that any load is introduced to the springs under accel, only on decel....am I wrong?

Yeah, its been stated that the washers suck...but I don't see how they can be 2 or 3 times as shitty as the washers that Quaife uses. They're made of steel, which is not meant to be a bearing surface. Better steel will only prolong the agony...but not too much. Think about it, you have a sharp edge of the ID or OD of the washer contacting the same edge on the next washer...If I lift off the throttle at 130mph, there is an enormous load on that square nanometer of contact area between the two little washers. If I lift quick, I can get the tires to chirp. If I can overcome the available friction between 315/35/17 R compound tires, I cannot even imagine what those stupid little washers are going through. Another option may be to replace most of the washer stack with clutches and steels, and retain only 1 or 2 bellville washers. The preload probably won't change the LSD function under acceleration, but it will work as a 1.5 way or 2 way and maintain considerable LSD function under off throttle or braking. The only downside would be wear. The 2 options in my previous post would cause almost no wear to the diff unit, while adding the clutches (especially as small as the would have to be) would introduce a wearable part to the diff, and require maintenance and occasional replacement....I'm a set-it-and-forget-it kind of guy.

Ok, I got it all tore apart and here's what I found. The washers are toast...one of them is gone, the others are paper thin with pieces broken off. I had them organized (())(()). I have less than 20 miles on the diff, all of which have been in our parking lot at work. Since the washers were gone, there was nothing keeping the two center gears (is that the right term for them?) preloaded against the outside of the case, so every time I'd transition the throttle, the gears would either slam together or slam apart against the case. Now, I'm wondering if I'll have the same problems with new washers. My understanding of the Quaife type diff is as follows: When power is applied, The ring gear spins the case, and consequently the scroll gears,which drive the center gears apart from each other against the case...The scroll gears on the left side of the diff are forced towards the right side and the scroll gears on the right side are forced towards the left side of the diff. Under deceleration, everything is the opposite, and the two center gears are pushed towards each other, compressing the bellville washers. If there is any differential in center gear speed under decel, the loaded bellville washers are acting as clutches, and unless they're made out of kryptonite, will wear pretty fast. Additionally, if you install the bellville washers in a manner as to preload the sun gears against the case, ANY wheel speed differential, even under accel, will make the washer rotate against each other. Since the washers aren't designed to act as bearing surfaces, this means that if ANY differential rotation occurs within the washer stack, the washers will wear considerably. Here are the options as I see them: 1: reduce the bellville washer stack from 8 washers to 6 or 4, and install a torrington bearing assembly between them to assume the differential rotation load and relieve the washers from rotating against each other. This should allow the diff to function properly under accel, even if I should happen to lift a rear wheel (which I can't see happening, and if it does, diff function will undoubtedly be the least of my problems), as the sun gears will still be preloaded against the case, The downside to this is that I will probably loose all function of an LSD under braking or off throttle conditions....which I'm not really sure if I need anyway, or what good it does. 2: Replace the bellville washer stack with a stack of precision ground flat washers and shim stock, allowing only oil clearance between them. There will be no preload, but if the surface finish is good enough on the washers and oil clearance is adequate, it should still function properly, and be much more wear resistant than the bellville setup. Since the washer stack will generate friction when compressed, I will still maintain off throttle LSD function. The downside to this is that I will lose ALL LSD function if I lift a wheel, because there is no preload. What should I do? I think that a stack of bellville washers, without any proper bearing surfaces, makes no sense and is failure prone, and I don't understand how the hell quaife gets away with it.

For the 1/8" NPT senders, I usually just drill another hole and tap it. Every tap set I've ever seen comes with an 1/8" npt tap. If you're quick...you can do it without loosing to much coolant. You need two drill motors though...one to drill the hole, and one to run the tap in and out, then thread in the sensor.

I'm in SoCal, and I've got a Chevy t-5 WC trans that I've been trying to get rid of. $350 + shipping takes it if you're interested.

me too. What other diff out there can reliably handle 500ft/lbs in a road race car?.....I really dont' want to cough up 1500 cocos for a quaife. Can the powerbrute handle it without constant rebuilds?

As for the grinding noise, go pickup an automotive stethescope at autozone. It will help you pin down where the noise is coming from. I had a fresh engine make a bunch of racket from the timing chain area...turned out the new timing chain was 1/16" too thick and hit the timing cover.

Well, I opted to not chance blowing it up. I'll tear it down tomorrow and see what the problem is.

I searched and didn't find much on this. I was planning on taking the car out for its first track day tomorrow, and giving it quick once-over today. I took it for a spin and noticed a little clunk in the driveline somewhere. With the rear wheels on the ground, I can get about 30° of driveshaft rotation....WITHOUT THE REAR WHEELS TURNING!!. I must be missing something. It did the same thing (clunk) with my old gears, now with the new ones aswell. Its not pinion/ring backlash. I set that at about .005-.010 on both gear sets, and when I disassembled the last one, the backlash was good. The only thing I can think of is that the OBX diff is either coming apart or that this is Standard operating procedure for the OBX...like the helicals moving around in the center section. I don't have time to tear the diff out and apart before tomorrow morning, so I'd figured the wiser choice would be to ask for advice before I say screw it and load it up on the trailer. I have another (4.64) gearset that should be arriving next week, and I have plenty of cases. So, if the OBX is already cooked, I might as well finish cooking it and have some fun at the track, then get a powerbrute or proper quaife for next time. What does HybridZ think I should do?

Back from the dead...here's my list, and I'm sure there's plenty missing from it. Car3500 used brodix heads1000 350 core (1st one)200 forged crank390 Rods400 Pistons780 pushrods120 roller rockers250 roller lifters300 Head machine work500 Block machine work900 Solid roller cam300 Plug wires80 Plugs30 Water pump80 Oil pan195 Oil Pump50 Valve covers150 Holley 850hp750 Fuel Pump140 Fuel Cell600 AN lines800 MSD distributor280 MSD 6AL200 MSD timing control139 AEM wideband250 Timing set100 Bearings150 Gaskets150 intake manifold235 Headers300 Radiator200 Elec. Fan50 Rad hoses35 Belts35 TKO 600 trans1980 Flywheel135 Centerforce clutch240 ARP hardware300 Wheels600 Kumho V700 tires1025 OBX diff375 R200 diff50 4.64 gears300 3.90 gears150 Front Brakes400 Rear brakes200 Cage tubing460 Autometer gauges240 B Master cylinder80 C master cylinder40 C Slave cylinder60 Motor/trans mounts100 G machine bushings200 Air cleaner30 Kirkey seat179 Simpson harness120 Oil cooler130 Catch can 60 Tokico Illuminas250 Coilover sleeves120 EMI camber plates600 driveshaft300 Electrical components150 Nickel and Dime1500 GRAND TOTAL...at least $25366

A chevy trans would be cheaper than the adapter, if you could find the adapter.

Yeah but, the wiring for a carb motor is: 1 for the alternator....and 1 for the coil. Also, to the OP... if you want to see what happens to lots of people that think they can do this but don't have the proper dedication, search the classifieds on this site and other classifieds for "project cars"....all those guys sank all the money and time they had into the cars before running out of both, and now selling it for 20-30% of their monetary investment after putting in all their time for free. Its happened to all of us at one point or another....

It sounds as if you lack a lot of understanding concerning what you are about to take on. First I'd like to make a few points: Any crate motor worth its salt is gonna cost you at least $3500, and the carb/distributor/all the rest of the pieces to make it run will probably end up being about another $750-1500. There goes your budget, and you don't even have the car yet. After you do your research and decide which transmission you'd like to use....you should be able to find a used one for under $500, unless it's a T56, then double or triple that number. Most people getting into this think that to do an engine swap, all you need is the engine and transmission....this is what kills most projects. You will also need to buy a new/different: radiator, driveshaft, fuel line, fuel pump, clutch, flywheel, fan, belts, hoses, plug wires, plugs, brackets, headers, exhaust, mounts, wiring, nuts, bolts, other little widgets, etc... which generally amount to several thousand dollars in the end. In order to properly budget for this project, browse classifieds, catalogs, and whatever else to price out whatever you KNOW you will need to do the project, then add 10% to that number to cover shipping on everything, then double it and add $1000 for good measure. Thats what it will cost you. Now for the time budget. If you think it will take you a week, budget 2 months. If you think it will take you 2 months, budget 4 months, etc... I managed to do mine in 2 weeks, working 18 hour days on the weekends and until 1 or 2 in the morning during the week after work. Keep in mind that all I've done for the past 10 years is build and work on cars...I've done this stuff before, and still came across plenty of problems that I hadn't expected. That being said, the swap is possible with your budget, but not with your level of knowledge at your budget. If I had $5000, this would be my course of action. Find a 3 or 4 used 350 engines for $200 or less. Pull a cylinder head, main cap, and rod cap before you hand over the cash to check for cylinder wear and bearing wear. Take the best one you find out of all that you looked at. For under $500, you can do what I call a quick and dirty rebuild (rings, bearings, gaskets, cam and lifters, oil pump, lap the valves....just the cheap stuff). Now you've got a servicable longblock capable of about 250-280hp, for less than $700....which is more than enough for a 17 yo kid. Browse the classifieds and find the rest of the goodies....an aluminum intake, a holley carb, go to ebay and buy a $50 HEI distributor. All the OE brackets/engine sheet metal can found a the local junkyard for cheap. You should be able to assemble a ready to run complete engine for under $1000...if you take your time and search for the best deals...they are out there. Pretty much everything you need to do the swap can be found used, and at great prices if you are not in a hurry to get them. Research, learn, and get an understanding of exactly what you will need to make the thing run, then make a list. Every night, spend an hour or so browsing craigslist, the recycler, ebay, and other classifieds looking for everything on your list. Get an idea of going prices for all of the parts, so you know when you've found a deal. When you're not searching the classifieds, find a car and work on it....or find a friend who has a project car and go help them. The best way to learn this kind of stuff is by hand-on experience, and it can't be learned overnight. The more experience you get working on cars, the better your chance of success doing the swap.

When you are running a car and coolant is circulating...the heads and block are always hotter than the coolant circulating through it. When you shut it down, the coolant will gain up to 40°. In an hour, this should cool off and be lower. If you are reading 3/4 on the gauge and you can put your hand on the engine...something is wired wrong.

I use a Stant or whatever the parts house has in stock. Any 54mm 165° or 175° thermostat should work fine.

If its the TPI motor, HP/Tq is 190/285 If its the carb motor, HP/Tq is 165/250 I'll bet with iron heads, it probably weighs 300lb or so more than the VG30. Having personally driven carbed and TPI 305s, I think these numbers are a little on the "wishful" side. To me, driving a 305 equiped car is akin to driving an Automatic Tercel, without the gas mileage. I just pulled a carbed 305 out of a '67 camaro (dunno who put it there in the first place) and it was shockingly slow. I couldn't make one tire spin around a corner. I spend 4 hours trying to figure out whats wrong with it before yanking it for the swap, just cuz I figured that yeah, its a 305, but it can't possibly be this bad...but it was. On the bright side, you won't have to worry about breaking anything.

With small blocks, I generally just fill it at the intake manifold before I put the thermostat in. Once the intake manifold is topped off, put the thermostat and housing on and top up the radiator and overflow bottle. Fire it up and run it around a bit till its hot and then shut it off and let it cool. As it cools, it will suck water out of the bottle until the system is full. I've never had any problems doing it like this.

I would strongly urge you to use something other than a 305. They're slow, amazingly slow. A 350 can be had for about the same price, and aside from making quite a bit more power stock, has much more potential for performace than the 305.

Its really not that complicated....you guys are trying to make some kind of science out of it. First off, you have do determine exactly where TDC is and mark it on your balancer/pointer, so you have an accurate reference point. Grumpy discussed this in another post. After you know where TDC is, it doesn't matter where the distributor is, or if its a tooth off, a timing light will give you an accurate number. If the gear is a tooth off, you can spin the distributor to compensate for it, walk the plug wires around the cap 1 spot, or put it in right, it doesn't matter because your soul objective is to get it timed correctly, which involves ONLY the relationship between the time that the #1 plug fires and your mark on the crank pulley. I saw where you stated that you had confirmed the mark on your pulley and its correspondence with the pointer to indicate a true TDC. If this is true, and your timing light indicates 50 degrees of advance, then you have 50 degrees of ignition advance, no questions asked. If it starts and runs, and you've still got some room to turn the distributor a bit in both directions, you're within 30 degrees of where you need to be, which means you're on the right tooth. If your cam timing is off, 50 degrees may be required to compensate for it. I would double check your cam timing....which can be done without pulling the timing cover and oil pan, if you have the cam card and a degree wheel. Put the degree wheel on the crank and an indicator on the pushrod...and make sure all the opening, lobe centerline, and closing points match the card. If they do, then your cam is in correctly. If they don't, tear the cover off and fix it. I've had engines that wouldn't run unless the mark on the balancer was straight up or off to the right with a timing light....I dunno what the problem was, but thats where they like to be, so thats where I left them. I suspect the balancer was spun or something...who knows. Make sure that the idle mixture screws are adjusted according to the carb manufacturer's specs(usually you play with them until the highest manifold vacuum is achieved) and then increase the idle speed using the throttle stop screws. Increase it enough to where you can pull the timing down to 16 degrees BTC static and it will still idle. If you have a mechanical secondary carb, open up the secondaries a little bit. The carb manufacturer has a spec on MAX idle speed screw adjustment so that you don't get into the transition circuit on idle. if the plates have to be opened up too much in order to make it idle with the timing set properly, then it may be necessary to drill small holes in the plates, so that you can close them more to get out of the transition circuit, but still maintain enough airflow through the carb to idle at the appropriate timing.

I recently bought a Demon 850 to replace my holley 650hp, which I thought was too small to do what I needed it to do. The 850 runs better, but I dislike the design. Jet changes are a bitch due to the allen head bolts that are countersunk into the casting. With the holley, I crack the bolts loose and spin them out with my fingers....the demon requires a tool to be used to remove the bolts all the way. Does anyone know if holley bowls will work on a demon carb? I suppose I could just get longer bolts and make some spacers, but I've got a bunch of holley carbs laying around. I don't see why they won't work...but I haven't tried it yet. Maybe someone else has? The only things I'm worried about are the accel pump circuits and linkages.

For drag racing, why not just weld it.....for free.

Here's the list I take with me to the parts house whenever I have a fresh motor/engine swap going on..... Oil Oil Filter Coolant Trans fluid Vacuum line Fuel Line Thermostat Radiator hoses Heater hoses (if applicable) Hose clamps Gasket Set (every used motor gets the head(s), pan, timing cover, 2 rod caps and 2 main caps removed for inspection before putting it in the car...and all new gaskets) Water pump Fuel Pump (if using the stock pump) Carb Kit (if using the stock carb) Air cleaner element motor mounts trans mount Belts Silicone Gaskacinch Pipe plugs for intake/heads/block Freeze plugs Vacuum brake booster fitting (if your carb doesn't have one) Cap & Rotor Spark Plugs Plug wires Most of the simple stuff I keep in stock in bulk in the garage, but the appication specific stuff, I buy per job. Take this list with you to the store, and get everything on it. If you do, and you get the correct parts...you shouldn't have any stupid failures for a while.

I stopped reading when I read the part about how much time he had invested into the headers....80+ hours. Thanks, but no thanks. I'll do without the extra 30 hp, buy a nitrous system to cover it, and spend the other 79 hours driving the car or sitting on my ass drinking beer.

Yeah....but..... OK, the first time I got my foot in it, it was fun. Now I'm bored. I put some gears in it on Saturday....got rid of the 3.54s and went to 3.90s....and then the first time I put my foot in it, it was fun...but now....I'm bored again. Need.....more.....power. Or maybe I should just get rid of the 315/35/17 race rubber and then it'll feel faster. I dunno, its still kinda slowish....or atleast it could be faster. If I can get traction in 3rd, I need more ponies. I have a 13:1 383 on the stand right now...I hope that satisfies me for more than 2 passes.

Hey Turbo, have you ever thought of running that thing on alcohol.... For some reason Alcohol gives me a hard on....something about being able to run a 13:1+ C/R with tons of boost.... I'm almost bored with the 500ft/lb I'm putting down n/a...and I haven't even had it on the track yet. Maybe a turbo setup is in my future....with alcohol.