pparaska

chevsun, Your email doesn't work (old address?) Please send me your email - interested in those 6089s if you want to sell them. Thanks, Pete

I'm also having a really hard time believing this. It only slips when theres a different speed at each tire. Now if the tires are spinning on the dyno drums, yeah I could see that. But on the street, with the tires turning the same speed there should be no slipping. The gear carrier is spinning at a given rate due to the pinion turning it and the halfshafts will be turning this same speed (assuming no tire slippage), so there'd be no slip. Unless you're going around a corner. I'd want more info before I believe any of this.

(Phil, hope you don't mind, I editted your post so people could click on your photoalbum and see the pics!) I LOVE those tail lights! Looks great!

One thing that kind of bothers me is that if you wreck, anything heavy can get knoced loose, broken, etc. Not sure which I'd mind more - a flying sealed battery box hitting me or a possibly leaking battery and it's acid. I guess the gel helps though.

Sweet - that adapter looks great and not too bad of a thing to have made!

JS, yeah, I think that's the pan - very expensive but it's great insurance if you're winging it around a road coarse AND you want the most clearance.

I have the expensive sealed AL one that Summit Racing sells: http://store.summitracing.com/default.asp?target=%2Fproduct%2Easp%3Fd%3D11%26s%3D14%26p%3D2083%26searchtype%3Decat (I got the smaller unpolished one. Still quite pricey. Actually, my dad bought it as a present!) I wanted something sealed, and this was all I could find that also met NHRA requirements if the battery was in the compartment. Wish I had a TIG and could use it!

Sounds alot like the Canton Racing 6.5" deep 6 quart pan (which I think is better for left and right turns). Problem with many of the V8 Z conversions and these pans is that the block huggers point down at the kick outs, and you need to plan the exhaust around them. My exhaust is done and coated and I don't want to do it over.

How? Well, how about a wife that won't let me forget about it taking over a decade to finish, and me setting a crazy deadline to get it driveable to take it on a 6000 mile journey from Maryland to CA (MSA show) and back in May 2002? BTW, I'm still on target - my engine is coming together and should be back in the car and totally hooked up by Christmas 2001. Can't wait to see those pictures!

grumpyvette, thanks for the help. I'll look for a 3/4" pickup for this pan or adapt another or something. BTW, when I look online at the mwm 15120 pan and 15120K kit, it shows a left hand turn only claimer pan. Also, The vette pan I have is more like 7" deep. Yeah, splitting hairs, but anything to get it up a bit helps with the SBC in the JTR position. Is that pan (15120) really a road race pan and the web site is hosed? I ordered their catalog online. Thanks again!

Al, got any pictures of the progress on your car? Very interested!

Hi grumpyvette - we went through this topic a week or so ago on Chevytalk, huh? You swayed me to looking for a high volume pump. Your theories make sense to me. One thing that makes sense is to do what we can to reduce spark scatter from lots of buildup and poor feedback inside the pump with lots of backpressure. Is this right? For years the idea of making channels in the pump case and cover have been done to provide a feed back channel to reduce/eliminate spark scatter from the oil pump having a drag on the distributor. Now Moroso (others) make a "blueprinted" pump with those grooves, etc. Milodon makes an 18750 that I want to use (high volume, high pressure, accepts a 5/8" pickup). I'm stuck with the 5/8" pickup since the Vette pan I'm using uses a special pickup that's 5/8". Does anyone that anyone knows of make a blueprinted pump with these grooves in a high volume, high pressure format that accepts a 5/8" tube? The HVHP pumps that I can find are blueprinted (Moroso 22112) use a 3/4" input tube. Moroso Wet Sump Oil Pumps I guess I can just pull out the Dremel and do it myself, but I'm getting lazy. I guess that MV55A Z/28 pump (standard volume, high pressure) is for sale now...

Ross and Ara wrote a nice book here, but I'll try to answer a few more questions: Cooking Springs? Probably not a bad idea. Hot oil can be flamable though . I've also heard you should cycle new valve springs about ten times before reading their stiffness, etc. on a spring tester. Tavia makes a cheap spring tested that you can use in a big vise or drill press. It works o.k., but is kind of "sticky". About $60. Maybe not a bad option. I'm not too sure about the kind that you us one the head with a torque wrench, etc. The ones they use in the machine shops are expensive - even used! I agree that you should measure the retainer to spring seat height and compare it to the installed height the springs are speced at. If the valves are sunk much, this dimension might well be larger than the installed height of the springs and the seat and open pressures will be lower than spec. (not sure who'll be reading this, so I'll elaborate a bit) A snap gage and dial cailper is good enough to measure this, but there's a nice tool that goes where a spring would be that measures it directly.

I've also heard that copper reacts with something in the gasoline to cause problems. I'd stay away. I'd go with brake tubing, either steel or stainless steel. http://classictube.com can sell it, and put fittings on it if you like, for example.

Douglas, agreed - right about where Terry (blueovalz) put his Can Am style radiator outlet

Those must not work in some of the newer heads I guess. Showing my age...

Hi Joe, I just read that. Rust in the cylinder isn't a good thing. Hope it can be fixed cheap. Maybe bore a few cylinders and new pistons in those holes? That color - it makes me smile every time I walk into the garage . Thanks!

Dave, thanks I went to my cooling web page and noticed that I had the wrong number for the Top hose (had it the same as the bottom #). If fixed that. Here's some more info: (For use with the Camaro Radiator per JTR and a Stewart water pump): Top Hose: Dayco 70651cs - This hose is very long and had close to a foot of extra length I didn't need. I used a 1-1/2" ID to 1-1/4" ID Hose adapter to connect it to the radiator, NAPA PN 900 "Hose Adapter" Bottom Hose: Dayco 71217 - Perfect fit with my custom low mouted alternator. Looks OE.

quote: Originally posted by Super280z: if all your looking for is 300 or so hp, take a look at Pete Paraska's motor. Well, before some head porting, a bigger cam, and a Vic Jr, I was guessing 325hp or so. The computer for my new combo is more like 375 (computer says 400+, but I'm skeptical).

To check TDC: Get a through-the-sparkplug-hole piston stop and VERY CAREFULLY use it to come to near TDC from both directions. Mark the balancer when the piston stops each direction. Half way between is TRUE TDC. That way you can see if the ring slipped or not. Nice call bubafett!

The sound file is here: (it's 538kb!) http://www.panteraplace.com/Pantera%20sound%20long%20mono.wav Man, that sounds awesome!

Did you use one of those 3 keyway timing sets? It's easy to align the wrong marks that way. I did this once and the car ran like piss. But it should start. Maybe you have an early balancer and a late timing pointer? This changed at some point on the SBC.

OMG, I see an upgrade coming down the pike for my car... Got a Spicer 2-2-899 adapter for the R200 input flange today ($42 at a driveline shop) and man that thing is dinky! Tim, what kind of flange are you using for the pinion of the diff and the mating driveshaft?

Renn, I was going to say that. But maybe he's asking about which degree markings he should line up when setting the ignition timing? Somewhere between 8 and 12 degrees Before Top Dead Center (BTDC), would be my answer.

Sounds like a great setup! Ought to be fun!