Phlebmaster's 1972 Chevy C20 truck project

[I'm BLUE]

Lookin Good :thumbup:

 

try putting Premium in a Diesel :lol:Really Really Fast until your motor blows up in 1 minute or 2 :eek: ( I knew a guy who accidentally did that on his company rig :lol: :poop: )

 

Yes, the 350sbc sleeping beast , looks good ! Hope you replace that water pump and T-Stat too while you doing head work :thumbup: Looks like someone needs a tunnel ram manifold !!!

[Phlebmaster]

Lookin Good :thumbup:

 

try putting Premium in a Diesel :lol:Really Really Fast until your motor blows up in 1 minute or 2 :eek: ( I knew a guy who accidentally did that on his company rig :lol: :poop: )

 

Yes, the 350sbc sleeping beast , looks good ! Hope you replace that water pump and T-Stat too while you doing head work :thumbup: Looks like someone needs a tunnel ram manifold !!!

 

I have a fail safe 160 deg thermostadt and a brand new water pump. :)

[lynchfourtwenty]

you got that thing in a Z yet??? traitor! :lol:

[yello620]

DTP mentioned "Savas Tuning" in milwaukie. I had them rebuild a Quadrajet for me about 14 years ago for my Landcruiser. It was expensive to get done, but that carb has worked absolutely perfectly for 14 years now. It now on its second motor in the Landcruiser.

 

Would gladly spent money with them again.

[73 six twenty]

Hey I'm a new guy here and don't want to step on any toes,but that engine in your pictures has factory flat top pistons with valve reliefs. Almost all Chevy factory 350ci engines came with factory flat top pistons. I've opened up a 1985 350 city 4 bolt main from a dually and it had flat tops in it. I know the 305ci aka the smog motor comes with stock dished pistons. I've owned a 1967,1971,and 1972 Chevy C-10 trucks. Like I said I'm just a new guy here, I don't mean to upset anyone.

[lynchfourtwenty]

Hey I'm a new guy here and don't want to step on any toes,but that engine in your pictures has factory flat top pistons with valve reliefs. Almost all Chevy factory 350ci engines came with factory flat top pistons. I've opened up a 1985 350 city 4 bolt main from a dually and it had flat tops in it. I know the 305ci aka the smog motor comes with stock dished pistons. I've owned a 1967,1971,and 1972 Chevy C-10 trucks. Like I said I'm just a new guy here, I don't mean to upset anyone.

 

now i dont know alot about chevy motors, but after a little research, its easy to see he does have the dished pistons.. the ring around the outside is the give away.. none of the flat tops have them, an all of the dished do have them.. however both flat an dished Both have valve reliefs cut out..

 

not tryin to bust balls.. :D

 

 

dished:

 

flat top:

 

easy to confuse the 2

Edited December 11, 2009 by lynchfourtwenty

[bonvo]

another set of cast iron heads ? what happened to the aluminum ones?

[73 six twenty]

You may be correct? But why would you need valve reliefs on dished pistons? If you search for the 305 pistons I was talking about you will see the difference. I believe the flat tops in your picture are after market pistons, so they will look a little different. Like I said I maybe wrong,but that's my understanding. No problem though I'm married I'm used to admitting I'm wrong.

[73 six twenty]

Either way great project! Nice to see that members are able to talk about their other projects and still get helpful tips from other members. Ratsun is great! Thanks everyone !

[Phlebmaster]

You may be correct? But why would you need valve reliefs on dished pistons? If you search for the 305 pistons I was talking about you will see the difference. I believe the flat tops in your picture are after market pistons, so they will look a little different. Like I said I maybe wrong,but that's my understanding. No problem though I'm married I'm used to admitting I'm wrong.

 

The flat top pistons were used prior to the DEQ age up to the early 70s. They went to dished pistons when the clean air act and DEQ got involved forcing the unleaded age and lower quality fuel for emissions purposes. The lower compression ratio made the lower quality gas more usable and the engines are in turn less likey to have detonation on low octane fuel.

 

The reason I am excited about having them is that I can now run my new small chamber heads with little worry about not being able to run pump gas. I will still be able to run premuim without dangers of detonation from an extreme comp ratio.

 

I hope this clear some stuff up. :)

[hang_510]

But why would you need valve reliefs on dished pistons?

 

valve clearance and maintaing the CR to use pump gas. no major mods req on the head.

at least thats why mine are partially dished.

[I'm BLUE]

Cool !

 

I looked up the Fail Safe T-Stat you mentioned that you have ,I did not know they made those ;) , and will keep that in mind for the next project :thumbup:

 

Give that SBC a little love ;) http://www.automotoroiler.com/

[72240z]

Cool !

 

I looked up the Fail Safe T-Stat you mentioned that you have ,I did not know they made those ;) , and will keep that in mind for the next project :thumbup:

 

Give that SBC a little love ;) http://www.automotoroiler.com/

 

lmao thats some spammy good advice right there lol

[Buzzbomb]

I'll tell you what..That's a nice score for 600 bucks. Do yourself a favor and keep the Holley on there, and also keep the Qjet. Both are better overall carbs than the Edelbrock. If you tune the Qjet right, you can get nearly 20 mpg with that truck. The people that knock Quadrajet don't know anything about them. When tuned right and set up properly, they are one of the best carbs on any engine. I used to knock them, and I like my Holleys, but after learning about and tuning the Qjet I have, it is on my car and the Holleys are in the box for something else that might come along.

 

You need to use a REAL Holley rebuild kit to rebuild Holleys. The non-Holley kits can be kind of bad, especially needle and seat wise. This is a very simple carburetor. If you can tune a Weber like you did on your Datsun truck, you can tune a Holley with ease. After you make sure your fuel pressure is OK, as stated earlier, then make sure your float level is level to the bottom of the bowl or a little low to start. Then you can go ahead and set the fuel level with the engine running...That's a 4150 Holley with externally adjustable floats, so the level needs to be set with teh engine running. It looks real clean to me, so I doubt there is any major malfunction with it. Even if there was, every single part in that carb can be replaced with a new HOLLEY part for less than it would cost you for an Ebrock.

Edited December 12, 2009 by Buzzbomb

[I'm BLUE]

just wait till you get to put that in an S30

 

:love: :thumbsup: , just remember to carry an extra Alternator , and H.E.I module like I do :D , and don't forget to burn your name in the pavement :fu: LOL !

[I'm BLUE]

I'll tell you what..That's a nice score for 600 bucks. Do yourself a favor and keep the Holley on there, and also keep the Qjet. Both are better overall carbs than the Edelbrock. If you tune the Qjet right, you can get nearly 20 mpg with that truck. The people that knock Quadrajet don't know anything about them. When tuned right and set up properly, they are one of the best carbs on any engine. I used to knock them, and I like my Holleys, but after learning about and tuning the Qjet I have, it is on my car and the Holleys are in the box for something else that might come along.

 

You need to use a REAL Holley rebuild kit to rebuild Holleys. The non-Holley kits can be kind of bad, especially needle and seat wise. This is a very simple carburetor. If you can tune a Weber like you did on your Datsun truck, you can tune a Holley with ease. After you make sure your fuel pressure is OK, as stated earlier, then make sure your float level is level to the bottom of the bowl or a little low to start. Then you can go ahead and set the fuel level with the engine running...That's a 4150 Holley with externally adjustable floats, so the level needs to be set with teh engine running. It looks real clean to me, so I doubt there is any major malfunction with it. Even if there was, every single part in that carb can be replaced with a new HOLLEY part for less than it would cost you for an Ebrock.

 

Second That :D

[Phlebmaster]

Progress tonight!

 

I put on the new heads and got them bolted down. I followed the correct torque sequence and procedure for getting them done right.

 

Feels good to make some progress! Now I just need the friggin carb that works. lol

 

 

 

 

[lynchfourtwenty]

smoked me a chevy tonight w/ the 620.. jus thought you ought to know..

 

heheh

[I'm BLUE]

Phleb,

 

Headers or Ban ! ------------:lol::lol::lol: ( J/K )

[Buzzbomb]

If you changed the cam, do yourself a favor. Borrow a known working carb from someone, or "rent" a new one just for the sake of breaking the cam in. If you don't and you are fighting a no start condition with a new flat tappet cam, you could be looking at a wiped out cam when you finally get it running. This is especially true now, as modern oils for vintage SBC's don't have the additives they used to. Taking care of that cam and breaking it in properly is imperative in a SBC nowadays. Otherwise, you'll more than likely be tearing it apart in the not too distant future due to wiped lobes from improper break in. I don't think this oil business is really a factor with our Datsuns, but with a SBC, the pushrod style valvetrain dictates an oil that is more old school in nature. Get it running ASAP- like instantly if possible, use EOS or some sort of additive in a good oil, and keeping it running at a high enough idle speed for 20 minutes. I'm not trying to rain on your parade, but this is a factor that needs to considered with vintage Chevy engines using a flat tappet cam.

 

Oh yea- keep the Qjet and rebuild the Holley with a HOLLEY rebuild kit that includes needles and seats :D . Heck, rebuild the Qjet too. Last time I bought a rebuild kit, it was less than $20 for the Qjet.

Edited December 17, 2009 by Buzzbomb

[Phlebmaster]

Thanks for the input. :)

 

I am going to make sure I get the engine up and running properly prior to swaping the cam...if that makes sense. That way I am not dealing with too many issues at once. Then once I this engine in good running order again I will consider the cam swap, but I want better springs and screw in studs first with this particular cam.

 

I have found the zinc additive at the auto parts store...I will use that in addition to the correct break in lube recommended by Comp Cams.

 

If you changed the cam, do yourself a favor. Borrow a known working carb from someone, or "rent" a new one just for the sake of breaking the cam in. If you don't and you are fighting a no start condition with a new flat tappet cam, you could be looking at a wiped out cam when you finally get it running. This is especially true now, as modern oils for vintage SBC's don't have the additives they used to. Taking care of that cam and breaking it in properly is imperative in a SBC nowadays. Otherwise, you'll more than likely be tearing it apart in the not too distant future due to wiped lobes from improper break in. I don't think this oil business is really a factor with our Datsuns, but with a SBC, the pushrod style valvetrain dictates an oil that is more old school in nature. Get it running ASAP- like instantly if possible, use EOS or some sort of additive in a good oil, and keeping it running at a high enough idle speed for 20 minutes. I'm not trying to rain on your parade, but this is a factor that needs to considered with vintage Chevy engines using a flat tappet cam.

 

Oh yea- keep the Qjet and rebuild the Holley with a HOLLEY rebuild kit that includes needles and seats :D . Heck, rebuild the Qjet too. Last time I bought a rebuild kit, it was less than $20 for the Qjet.

[Buzzbomb]

Thanks for the input. :)

 

I am going to make sure I get the engine up and running properly prior to swaping the cam...if that makes sense. That way I am not dealing with too many issues at once. Then once I this engine in good running order again I will consider the cam swap, but I want better springs and screw in studs first with this particular cam.

 

I have found the zinc additive at the auto parts store...I will use that in addition to the correct break in lube recommended by Comp Cams.

 

That makes total sense..Especially with a SBC. If you were using a roller cam, its not such a big deal. However, with a flat tappet cam, you are just asking for trouble with extended cranking and the possibility of dumping gas into the oil with a fuel leak.

 

BTW- you can use Chevron Delo 15W40 from WalMart for running in your truck. It has just enough ZDDP to keep your valvetrain happy, plus it's cheap to boot. If you do change your cam, do yourself a favor and go down to the GM dealer and get some EOS for the job. It might be expensive, but it is worth it to do it right and do it once. That has all the ZDDP you need for a cam change.

 

That's a nice truck for $600..

Edited December 18, 2009 by Buzzbomb

[Phlebmaster]

That makes total sense..Especially with a SBC. If you were using a roller cam, its not such a big deal. However, with a flat tappet cam, you are just asking for trouble with extended cranking and the possibility of dumping gas into the oil with a fuel leak.

 

BTW- you can use Chevron Delo 15W40 from WalMart for running in your truck. It has just enough ZDDP to keep your valvetrain happy, plus it's cheap to boot. If you do change your cam, do yourself a favor and go down to the GM dealer and get some EOS for the job. It might be expensive, but it is worth it to do it right and do it once. That has all the ZDDP you need for a cam change.

 

That's a nice truck for $600..

 

 

Cool! Thanks for that tidbit. :)

 

I made more progress tonight....

[I'm BLUE]

 

Looks frieken sweet !!! Now all you need is your turbo chargers ( Hair Dryers ) :lol:

[zenndog]

I sell those timing covers all the time. Yellow is right. Its not the seal. Its the gasket flanges you scuff up. The mr gasket and transdapt chrome stuff never fit right to begin with. Its always tweaked somehow.

"You no likey our timing cuvers??, you payback national debt now to us tank you."

Edited December 18, 2009 by zenndog