Take14theroad

I have been looking into rebuilding or replacing my rear end, but holding off because of the price. It is a good thing, because a friend from work said his dad has a lot of drag racing parts he is looking to ditch for almost nothing. 2 blocks, a 4 speed, a 3 speed, and a 12 bolt with 373s for about 500. He said if I take the rear I can have it free! the only down side is it is not for a A body, it is for a 69 nova. From that I saw on the web the monte has a rear that is 62.5 and the novas would be 60.25. Is that too much of a difference to use? I have not bought rims yet, so I was thinking that i could just get 1 inch less backspace on each side and be pretty close, but was not sure if that would be a good idea. Would the mounting points and brackets be different? any thoughts? anybody want to trade for a rear end? thanks Joe

Maybe some electric fans in the inlets.... makeshift blower. well, even if it doesn't work for more horse power it will look pretty cool. No such thing as too much chrome under the hood.

Thanks guys I am thinking of doing a very similar setup, but I am pretty sure I want to do 2 hoses. I started planning today, and I don't think through the parking lights will work well- there is no way to get there without cutting the inner fenders. Did you guys notice a difference with the system? I think I am going to try and build it all myself. I think it seems like a pretty easy and fun project. Thanks for the help guys. I'll be sure to throw a picture up once I get it in! Joe

I am starting to plan out a cold air/ram air setup for my car. I was planning to use 4 inch dryer flex tube from the parking light hole in the bumper to the air cleaner. Has anybody made one of these? I have seen kits in super chevy to do this, but I think building my own would be really fun. Would 2 hoses be better than one? Would this setup have an issue if I drove in the rain- I don't want to be pulling water into my engine? thanks Joe

I hope they work out too. I have not heard back from them recently, so I hope they were just sick of emails about the grills. I hope somebody gets one soon! When I check them out on ebay it says that there are 0 items for sale, I do not think that is a good sign.......

That is an option I never considered... If i don't have to pay a garage 500 for labor, I could use all new parts and still save money over a bolt in. I have access to an auto shop at the high school I graduated from. They have dial indicators and all the same tools a commercial shop does. I also have the combined knowledge of hundreds of people through this web page. If I do my research and am careful, Is there any reason my rear end should not go together smoothly?

That is a really good point. It still works fine, but now that I think about it, I can not think of a project that I would do that would use the rear end without getting it rebuilt. Looks like a rebuild for sure than. Thanks guys!

I was all set to rebuild my 12 bolt, but as I am pricing it out the strange does not look much more expensive. I got quoted 1450 for a rebuild on mine today, including everything but axles. I had a leak around my axle recently, which I never really figured out before it went in for paint, so I might need new axles too. If it is going to be cheaper, I will definitely rebuild my 12 bolt. I don't know much about rear ends, but the point that having an overbuilt one will just be harder to move is very good. If it works out to about the same price either way, would it be better to get a new one and have my original 12 bolt to keep with the car or use for a future project? Joe I also just got my old vinyl top off, and there was NO RUST in the channel. Such a good day!

Shipping from strange is about 150, 105 from summit. It comes with a trac-lok for that price. I am really considering this over getting my 12 bolt rebuilt. The man at strange suggested I upgrade to a Truetrac for 299.50. I have a 406 making about 450 horse with a th350. I have never taken my car to the track, and do not plan on doing so often. Is the true truetrac upgrade necessary? Are there any cheap dics kits that would fit with this? They suggested a Wilwood kit that is 700 (slotted/vented with 4 piston floating calipers. I think that is overkill considering I still have stock brakes up front)

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/STR-PRSA05/

That is perfect! I live about 20 minutes north of Albany. If you could ask your friend, that would be a huge help. Thank you Joe

Thank you guys so much. I guess the Fords that I was looking at did not include the third member, that is why they were so cheap. Now the only thing that I have to find is a local place to rebuild it. Does anybody know places in upstate New York? Should I ask around at the local circle track?? Joe

The strange is a little bit more money than I was looking to pay, but reviews of it sound like it is a great product. Thank you very much Kc8oye! I guess this car would be a street/strip. I have not really taken it to the strip because having highway gears in not great for that. I would like to take it once I have it all finished up. I guess I would say it is an overkill street car, but that is what I want out of it. I am sorry, I was not very clear about the cam. It is a lunati with the following specs. Intake at .050 lift- 219 Exhaust at .050 inch- 227 Advertised Duration 262 int./268 exh. Valve Lift(with 1.5 rockers) 0.468 int./0.489 exh. lift - the reason I gave the other numbers is because I am running 1.6:1 roller rockers. Lobe Separation (degrees) 112 I am trying to decided between the rebuild and getting a while new rear end. I know I do not need a new one, that 12 bolt would be really solid for what I need, but was trying to see if it would be worth it for the following reasons: The car is either all original, or modifications that can be swapped back for the stock parts. I feel like it is a waste to take out and rebuild a rear end that is still working (I am not sure of this, does the original rear end carry any value?) The other thing is that a bolt in would come set up for disc brakes. so for a complete rebuild, with posi, axles, labor, and whatever random parts I need would only be 1000-1500? are there new bolt in 12 bolts in that price range? Thank you very much, this is all very helpful! o yea, and with the gas thing, it runs a cool 160 degrees and fine on 87 octane. Joe

Hello, I have been restoring a 70 Monte for about two and a half years. I am starting to pick out what i want to do with the rear end and have NO IDEA what I am doing, so I figured this would be a good place to look for some advice. I know to give accurate advice more information is probably needed. I have a 400 that I rebuilt. IT is bored 30 over, has a aluminum edelbrock heads that give it a compression ration of about 11.5:1. The cam is pretty big 262/268 with int- .499 exh- .521 for the lift. I have a beefy TH350 and a stock drive shaft. So, to my quetion. I currently have a 12 bolt with a worn out posi (it works just like an open rear end) and 2.72 gears. I want to put something like 3.73 or 3.53 gears in the rear end. I want to put disc breaks in the back, so that is making me lean toward a whole new rear end. Should I rebuild my 12 bolt or buy a bolt in rear end? Should I go with a Ford 9 inch? Do you have any suggestions of places to shop for bolt in? (randys? Mouser?) Thank you very much! Joe

Thank you very much. It runs a lot better wih the correct amount of fluid.