pparaska

Sorry to hear about your head fiasco. Don't buy Canfield heads unless you are sure they are fully assembled and valves done by canfield. A few vendors sell them like that. A few (maybe the Jeg's heads are like this too?) buy the bare castings and then have a shop assemble and do the valve work. I've heard of several people buying Canfields from Comp Products and having them flow tested and being very disappointed. I bought mine fully assembled by Canfield from Thunder Racing Products in Youngstown Ohio (Call Dave at 330-792-2451 and tell him I sent you). My Canfields are beautifully done, and ended up flowing better on the intake side than advertised. The exhaust was a bit lower than advertised, but a quick cleanup in the bowl area brought them up to snuff. Here are the results: http://alteredz.com/data/canf215flow_1.gif

Who says that G-force has a corner on how to build gearsets!!! If I were Paul, I'd do this: 1) Find out who is supplying G-force with their gear sets. Start up a business arrangement to get supplied directly. I'd be REALLY surprised if G-force is making these parts themselves! 2) If that doesn't work, get a G-force gear set, see what's good about the gear geometry, and design a better one (since Paul is tweaking the G-Force sets anyway). Then get a mechanical engineer who's good at this stuff to help with the final design, material selection, heat treatment, etc. Then go find someone willing to work with you on making some gear sets. Sure, this takes startup money. It's just a gear set design, not nuclear physics. BTW, I've heard good things about the Liberty T-5s.

Mike, thanks for the reality check. I for one think they missed a good target in the back seat. To me, there's nothing worse than a person with a vendetta with a pen. One less bleeding heart liberal mouth peace spewing hate and lies. Too bad they missed her. Then she wouldn't have a chance to go spewing her lies about them trying to shoot her because of who she was. A dead lying leftist journalist is better than a live one. Read on... I don't see anyone I care about getting upset over this. Most people see it as "stuff happens", even bad stuff that's unintentional. Too bad the intell guy got killed, seriously. Too bad she had to go on a rampage and say the soldiers know who she was and were trying to kill her. Like I said, the wrong person accidently got whacked and the wrong one accidently DIDN'T get whacked. I wouldn't have felt sorry to hear she died. People like her cause more sorrow, death and hate than a few soldiers ever could. Just a sampling of her lies: http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/070680.php Would everyone but the jihadists be better off if she WAS dead? Too bad they didn't take her out... JMO,

From what I recall, you are talking about doing something similar to what blueovalz did - relocating the bar attachment points. He found something usable for a bar in the JY.

$6200 for a complete engine with ecu and harness that puts out 500+ hp is definitely nothing to sneeze at! What bore and stroke, compression ratio, cam is used?

Mike, Thanks for considering this! BTW, I didn't see the dyno runs in that link to torquecentral. I'd love to see those. As for your questions: 1) "... are willing to spend $750 for headers for a small-block into a Z car"? Yes, I would, IF they had a decent collector on them. The short piece of garbage that some might call a collector that was on the prototype header they first built is a JOKE. The ones they put on the second set didn't look very impressive either. http://www.torquecentral.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=9275 With the length of those collectors, they have room to make them a real merge collector, but didn't bother. I'd problaby want to buy as set without the collectors, and use something decent. I don't understand why a place like Sanderson isn't more up to date with collector designs. They'd also have to be equal length and at least 34" primaries. It looks like it can be done. It might take some doing, but it's been done: (Take a look at the picture near the bottom of the page and the description) http://www.cardomain.com/memberpage/645045/1 I'm not sure if there is extensive mods to the underbody to make room for that or what. I've got enough room with even my blowproof bellhousing and Tremec in a 240Z to have 2.5" duals. Making the collectors take up the volume of the head pipes is doable. Having room for 4 primary tubes past the back of the engine is the hard part! 2) "And are people willing to beat the transmission tunnel wider?" Sure. as long as it doesn't mean the gas pedal doesn't have room anymore! 3) "And are people willing to put up with starter problems caused by the heat?" A good heat shield between the headers (should definitely be coated) and the starter will solve this problem. All you need is a double walled shield with an air gap, like the aftermarket ones sold. http://www.jegs.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=1634&prmenbr=361 But you need to have the shield go beneath the starter as well. I modified one like above to do that on my existing setup.

Awesome! :hail::hail: Is there anything this guy CAN'T screw up?

Hmm. That's the second time in two days I've heard bad things about World Products. Dart has a nice block, I hear. If you go to longer rods, one of the benefits is that the rod/piston gets a good bit lighter, lightening the weight to be balanced by the crank, etc. The 400 crank I have is a SCAT 9000 internal balance 3.75" stroke crank for use with 6" rods. The guy who built the short block was amazed at how little he had to take off the crank cheeks to get the balance right on. That way you can use a 6.25 or 7" balancer (for internal balance engines) and an internal balance style flex plate (yuck) or flywheel.

Joshua, According to Ed, who has been building and testing headers for racers since at least the early 60s, the following maximizes power from a header design: "Maximizing Performance is accomplished through correct selection of a header’s performance design parameters. These are: Tube Size; Tube Length; Collector Size; Collector Length; TRUE Equal Length header tube design; Efficient Collector Shaping; Efficient Port Matching." He doesn't believe in Tri-Ys, as he's always been able to build a better 4 into 1 than a Tri-Y, even as far as low and midrange go. To him, block huggers are WAY too short and uneven length to work on the street, let alone the race track. If you want some really interesting reading/listening, buy his HEADER DESIGN Infopak with the CD: http://headersbyed.com/ordrinfo.htm $22 with shipping. It's a pile of articles, a CD with him talking about header design, catalogs for headers and parts, lots of info with theory and testing info. Lots of advice if you want to build your own headers. An October 98 CHP article showed a 40 hp increase from using the equal length long tube HeadersbyEd set over the blockhugger that has a straight arranged collector. (he includes a reprint of the article, as well as a detailed analysis of it's findings, etc. in the infopak). Ed complains that they switched engine parameters on him, so the headers he sent them weren't an optimum design for the engine they tested. He also complains that they didn't retune the carb/distributor for each header (??? morons!). He believes his headers would have shown improvements if that were done and shows his reasons why. I'm not saying Ed is the authority on header design, but he has a few things going for him. He has a mechanical engineering background, he tests his theories, he's been at it for 4 decades, and he's picky about details, so he probably finds the truth better than others who might try header design. JMO. BTW, his brochure (it's on his website too) about how the novice, with the advice service he has on header design, can build a better header than the big manufacturers, as far as performance and fit. Yeah, his kit for building a set for the V8 is about $500. But it's supposedly quality stuff, including hand build custom collectors. I'm "this close" to ordering a kit, to tell you the truth. If I build a set through him, I'm going to see what it'd cost to send them to him and have him build a jig for them. The way he makes his jigs, he can build a set with larger or smaller primaries if that's needed. Seeing as the JTR setup in the Z with the old school SBC is a pretty static geometry as far as fitting headers goes and with me using the hardest-to-fit Canton oil pan and blowproof bellhousing, the headers I would build should fit any JTR/Gen I SBC Z, except for maybe exhaust port height variations. Believe me, I'm seriously thinking about at least building my own, and then seeing how much or if Ed would be interested in building a jig off my headers.

Why wind a 350 to make the HP that a 400 makes at less rpm? I'll never understand this. Valvetrains are harder to control at higher rpm, thus more expensive and less reliable. Joshua is right about the 2 bolt 400 blocks being stronger. I left mine 2 bolt. With the money it takes to sonic and leak test, and the machining needed to change the 2 bolt to a 4 bolt, the stronger, NEW, purpose made World or Dart 400 blocks make a lot of sense. Plus you can bore them more than the 400 (4.25" on the newer ones), etc., etc. $1800 seems like a lot, but consider what it takes to fully machine a 400 block to get 4 bolts, and the required sonic and leak testing a 400 block needs.

Mike Kelly and I were talking lately about EFI and he mentioned that his buddy Jim went to one of the EFI courses (not sure whose) and they said the same thing Clint is saying - there's much more power to be found in getting the timing dialed in than tweaking the AFR too much. Sure, you don't want it pig rich or lean, but worrying about even tenths of a ratio may be putting the blinders on if the timing isn't optimized. Of course, one probably affects the other (as far as having them both optimized) so it's a round robin approach.

Joshua, Yeah I read that article. I'm no header expert. But Ed Henneman does comment that one of the design considerations for a good header is to have the 4 pipes arranged in a square, the pulses advance around the square as they come down the primaries. In other words, on the left of the SBC, with cylinders 1-3-5-7, which show up in the firing order in the order of 1-3-5-7 (or the right side, with the cylinders firing in the order 8-4-6-2) the pipes would be arranged like this: (1)(3) (7)(5) and (8)(4) (2)(6) So that the pulses come out of the pipes in a circular order as the engine fires. Or something like the above, maybe rotating the numbers for better equal length distribution: (5)(7) (3)(1) or (4)(6) (8)(2) ( Had to disable smilies in this post for the above to work!) Supposedly, the pulse from one tube creates a bit of a vacuum in the adjacent tubes, helping pull the exhaust out of the next one in the firing order. I'd think the straight line type of collector would negate that effect as cylinder 7 fires, then 1, the pulse from the #7 pipe wouldn't be able to affect the #1 tube, since it's at the other end of the straight line. Well, that's all theory to me. Who knows if it'd make a difference on a Z with mufflers, etc.

I always figured that if it looked like I needed the rear bar, I'd figure something out. My first idea is to use a super short link from the bar to the stock control arm location. BTW, I think Terry (blueovalz) did figure out how to put a different rear bar on the Z after doing the 280ZXT CV conversion. Can't find that info now - maybe contact him.

BTW, when you do a search, it's preferred to find a good thread on a topic and if you still have questions about the topic in that thread, please ask the question in that thread. That way the searching will become easier for the next person. I'm going to counter Mikelly's opinion on the engine. Now I agree that the LS1 and LS2 are the new kid on the block. One recent magazine was saying the knowledge base for tuning them are about where we were in 1963 (I was 1 year old) with the Gen I SBC. That means the price, variety and shakeout is not as good as where we are today with the Gen I SBC. Sure, the base LS1 and LS2 are superior designs, as far as the block, heads, valvetrain, induction, etc. But the price on the aftermarket go fast parts is not the same as for the Gen I SBC. $800 for a Fast intake manifold??? $2500 for worked heads, after core charge? I say if you have the money, definitely go with the LS1/LS2. It's potential, with the same displacement is somewhat better and the tunability is there too with the EFI to begin with. But now you can build a completely aftermarket Gen I SBC, that includes upgrades from the 1950s original design. If I were starting another engine today, I'd be building a 454 SBC using the newer block castings that allow a 4.25" bore and 4" stroke using the stock deck height. The rods, pistons, etc. are available and affordable. Throw on some AFR 220 or 227 heads, or Canfield 215 or 220 heads and go for it. Roller cam and lifters, fuel injection, etc. With 454 cubic inches (that's 7.4 liters, folks!) you can build an very mild engine that will pull down 500+ hp and 500+ ft lbs. All without exotics stuff too. Go more wild on the build and 600 hp is there. If you want to go much past 362 CI with the LS2, you need to go to the C5R block. Checked the price on that lately? It doesn't matter what engine you begin with really, if you get a good combination of parts in them, you'll be 1.1 to 1.3 hp/ci, depending on how radical you go. So for Normally Aspirated, displacement always rules. Go as big as you can and tune the drivetrain to use the powerband where it needs to be to use the torque/hp curve. Build it big enough and things like Nitrous Oxide, turbos, blowers won't be needed. That said, a 427 LS1 would be it!!! JMO,

Steve, You've made a great choice in selling the car - now you can focus on something that will hopefully help you make money in the future - school! I remeber being your age and I didn't have any money to do what you did with your project. But like you I was going to college. Years down the road, buying parts for the Z was just a matter of how crazy I wanted to get with the spending, not "will buying this part mean I can't eat for a week?" Great job on the Z! Come by and hang out from time to time! What are you studying?

cygnusx1 - I agree, a bent piece that is a bit wider with 2 holes in each end is all that's needed. But the nice thing about making it out of 2 separate legs and the top pieces is that you have good control over the dimensions of the surface the mount goes against and the holes in the end. But you could do the bending first to get the top level and the legs at the right angles and then drill the bottom holes at the correct place to have the mount in the right place relative to the holes in the end.

I did that years ago : http://alteredz.com/image/recentpics/1999July18/hoodlatchdistribv.jpg I learned it from Henry Costanzo of the GA Z club. That car is beautiful. Then there are things I just don't understand, like speakers pointing up so dirt can collect on the cones, the cheesy cooling fan that uses those through-the-core fasteners, that are a no-no on AL radiators, the ratty looking exhaust, with no h-pipe. That front suspension is interesting.

Nice cars, Hottie, a Great Brain, , likes to wrench, a lot of Heart ... Honk if you know what I'm talking about . Can we maybe clone this person!!!??? I'm not going to mince words on this next topic though Chelle, great point. I don't understand the Ferrari thing about copies. There are a handful of people in the world that would spend $10 Million on a real GTO 250. Why they think they have to go after the kit car builders is beyond me - no it isn't, its an Enzo thing (even though he's dead). Enzo was a real prick to deal with - I could care less how cool his cars were - he was an egotistical a$$ as a person, IMO. Some how his bad attitude has kept going as far as how the company handles the issue of replica Ferrari’s. I have a very similar opinion of Shelby as well. Why can't these people just take the compliment of imitation and be done with it!!!!???? I wouldn't buy a fake NEW Shelby Cobra from Carroll for $500,000 either. Not worth it and I wouldn't want to put any money in his pocket anyway. I'm all for the kit builder companies not ever mentioning the word Shelby, Ferrari, Cobra or GTO250, or anything like that. The cars are beautiful enough to sell the kits on the merit of classic beauty without even mentioning the car or company that it's copied from. Pete - your resident old curmudgeon

Beauuuuutiful!!! Want to trade ?

Hasn't it been determined that MSA's V8 swap headers are just the S&S 5205 headers for 30s-40s Fords with the SBC? Is Motorsport Engineering a part of MSA?

I'm not using the spacer between the engine crossmember and frame rails - I removed them to get a better angle on the transmission output shaft. Leaving them out raises the engine mounts relative to the body, so it makes the output shaft angle a bit more pointed down going front to back, better matching the differential pinion angle (after making adjustments to that too). 1-5/8" long tubes are going to start killing top end power above 400hp, according the the Headers by Ed advice. I want 1-7/8" as well, and will probably end up making a set, next winter if not sooner.

Jody, from what I've seen on Mike Kelly's car, pics here on HybridZ - even a stock height Z will drag those pipes, especially coming off a speed bump, or over a driveway entrance.

Tom, A few racers have said that many times a rear bar is not needed for optimal suspension tuning on the Z for road racing. My Z has the 15/16" 280Z front bar (22 or 23mm, I believe) and no rear bar. It handles quite neutrally until I hammer the go pedal, then oversteers . I'd say don't sweat it and try it without the rear bar - you may have to go to a smaller front bar though.

Thanks, fastzcars! I took the liberty of downloading your drawing and putting it on my site, linked from my "driveline mods" page: http://alteredz.com/drivelinemods.htm#Differential_Front_Mount Here's the link to the B&W .gif file of it: http://alteredz.com/image/drivelinemods/ron_tyler_diff_mount_diag.gif BTW, the GM mount is not an interlocking mount, but the Energy suspensions one is. No worries about it coming apart. Like Dan said, the crossmember would catch it anyway.

If you need really tight mandrel type bends, check out the "donuts" on the last page of the Chassis Shop's (http://chassisshop.com/) Tubing catalog: http://chassisshop.com/pdf/tubing.pdf 3.5" diameter pipe, donut with 3.5" radius (center to center of tubing) is $55. That's Four 90's or Eight 45s! I used the 2.5" donut when making my exhaust.