badddoin

I just took my new 383 SBC for it's maiden voyage this afternoon. Forged Eagle crank and H-beam rods, Mahle flat-top forged pistons. It's supposed to be about 11:1 compression. Ran good on premium gas, with 5 gallons of race gas for insurance on initial start up. I put in a little extra ring end-gap, just in case I have to get to 600HP, VIA a blue bottle.

Started replacing my rusty truck floor pan. I ground out some spot welds,and then I ground out some spot welds, and then I ground . . .

Don't know what part of GA you're in, but Jared Ritchie is near Anderson SC, a couple hours north of Atlanta, and he likely has most of the parts you need.

Yes. And yes. It can be a real PITA sometimes. Couple comments, for what it's worth. Consider using a one-piece, rubber gasket. It's a little easier to work with if you're laying under the car, are and they work better. I also remove the distributor cap before raising the motor to keep it from getting jammed into the firewall.

Didn't one of our members do this, sorta as a money makin' hobby?

I had those on a 4th. gen that i had electric fans on. They eventually killed the radiator, as well.

My 4.10 with 28 inch tire is real close to 50 RPM/MPH. At 3000 RPM I'm going 'bout 59 MPH, according to the GPS. Loves gasoline, too.

I think I had about that much in my posi upgrade, and I did the work myself.

A header gasket leak can come and go like that sometimes. Look at the gaskets real close when you pull the heads.

What Sam and Scott said, from Florida.

Sure it did.

I have those heads on my small block, too. My cheapo Blackjack headers worked, after I persuaded them a little with a ball peen hammer. I don't know the part number; I bought `em over the counter at Advanced Auto Parts.

I just put new metal ones on mine. I'd be surprised if there was a pounds difference in weight. The fit was about as good as one could possibly except from a part made for a different model.

I really like the sound. Plenty of lope at idle. I have a serious lean issue to deal with yet. Probably dink with the squirters and jets the next time I'm home.

I put a 4.10 in mine, and if I was gonna do it again (which I'm NOT), I'd go with less gear. The 4.10 is fun, but at times it's kinda like driving a tractor.

It's back to work for me tomorrow. I didn't get everything done that I would have liked to, but it wasn't a complete bust. A couple before pics of my engine compartment. I removed the motor and all the suspension parts and wire wheeled the frame rails. That's a nasty job! Painted everything with POR15 then rattle-canned everything black. Installed new bushings and ball joints, upper and lower, and new shocks. I also replaced the steering components: tie rod ends and sleeves, center link, and ildler arm. I cut one coil outta my springs and painted 'em groovy red. New alluminum heads thanks to Crazy Davey. New (to me) hood latch thanks to Jared Richie, so I no longer have to open my hood with a piece of wire. New headlight harness, thanks to PapaCoop [img:center]http://i1214.photobucket.com/albums/cc488/badddoin/Short%20block%20swap/013-1.jpg[/img] I still have a little cleanup and paint to do, and some tuning issues, but at least it's back together.

And the cheapest! I'd also, if it were me, start with things that wouldn't be a bad thing to get done anyway - a complete tune-up: New plugs New wires New cap and rotor New points New condenser New fuel filter New air filter While the plugs are out, do a compression test - just in case. If the problem persisted after that, then I'd look to rebuid (or have rebuilt) the carb. My SWAG (scientific wild [censored] guess) is that your needle isn't seating enough to idle properly. Good luck!

I cut mine off and threw it away. No hills in Florida.

I almost did something along these lines instead of buying a shortblock. I'm afraid now I'd be up against the time constraints I have. That 572 is a beast! I'll probably get one of those as soon as my kidneys sell.

GRRRRR!!! Here's an update: I ordered the shortblock on 7/16 from Summit. They said the estimated ship date was 8/16. Fine, it'll give me some time to clean up the engine compartment. The beginning of last week I called Summit CS to see if it had been shipped, and they said there was a note in here saying it was gonna be shipped on 8/23. OK, I guess, what choice do I have now, anyway. My motor is sitting on the groung next to the car. So today, having not heard anything from them, I called CS again. She called ATK while I waited on the line and when she returned she said they were having troule sourcing core blocks, and they were gonna call her back, and she, in turn, would call me back. I had some things I had to do today, so I missed that call, but called them back when I got home (I hate this stuff!). Anywho, now they're saying it's gonna be another 2-3 weeks. I've ordered a skad of junk from Summit in the past couple months - maybe even two skads. I've never had any trouble with them. The junk shipped when they said, and the FedEx dude brought it to my house a few days later. Given the way this transaction has gone, thiugh, I don't have any confidence in it arriving in 2-3 weeks, either. I have got to return to work on 9/23 or I lose my health insurance - and my job. I have a couple of health issues, so I can't really afford to not have insurance right now. Assuming you haven't tired of all my whining, here is the pickle I find myself in. I cancelled the order for the shortblock. I have all the stuff I was gonna use on that motor: Cam and Lifters Rockers Studs Heads Oil Pan Oil Pump Timing Chain and Gears Intake Torque Converter Gasket Set One piece rubber oil pan and valve cover gaskets Head Bolts SS Bolt engine set I guess I'm gonna bolt all this junk on my cast rotating 350 till some later date when I can get some more time off. I really want a forged assembly, just in case I have to spray it. There's really nothing wrong with my bottom end. I've had it apart before, and there's no lip or anything. Didn't smoke or drink oil or anything. Other than the fact that this plan sux, does anyone see anything wrong with it?

Thanks everybody for the input. I guess I'll put it back together the way it was, if Iever get it cleaned up. I've had this car over two years, and I've spent more time in the engine compartment than the drivers seat. The first I noticed it was when I went to take it apart, so apparently it doesn't bother me too much.

So I was cleaning my engine compartment when I figured it'd be easier to clean these frame rails if those pesky control arms weren't in the way. So I ordered some bushings and ball joints and off they came. This is a pic of my upper control arm pivot shafts. I did one of these montes 25 years ago, and I'm thinking both shafts were the same. Obviously, the passenger side shaft has found its way in and out of the blast cabinet. The drivers side is threaded on the inside. Is this right? Thanks.

There's a good shot of it about four minutes in on this . It's an S-10, but it's the same.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding you. The front shocks bolt up to the lower control arm into a couple of slip-over nuts. the bottom shaft (flange) stays below the control arm, I think.

They're suppose to ship my short block tomorrow, so I pulled the motor today. Gonna spend the next few days cleaning that mess of an engine compartment.