dbreese

UPDATE; New cap and rotor installed. I put some blue loctite on the screws that hold the rotor to the shaft and tightened them down. Re-installed the plug wire and fired the car up. Everything is good. Set the timing at 35 degrees( locked out). Now waiting for the weather to clear so I can clean her up and hit the track next weekend. David

Very slick solution Al. It is amazing how resourceful we can get when a problem arises. Good job. David

Check out Alan Grove Components http://www.alangrovecomponents.com Quality stuff that won't break the bank. David

Hey Steve, It was the cap and rotor that came with the distributor when new. Was in the car maybe two years. I'm almost certain it was loose screws in that holds the rotor on the shaft that caused the issue. No excessive endplay in the shaft. Housing is tight. Now if the cap/rotor kit would come in. With the holidays it still not here. Hope it will be in tomorrow. David

Well I ordered a cap and rotor through Orelliy's( they matched Summit and no charge for shipping) Picked the cap up and on the way home noticed the cap had a crack. Must have happened during shipping. Returned it and they ordered another kit. Going to pick it up today. The distributor hold down is tight and the shaft has no excessive end play. As far as motor mounts They are solid. I hope they aren't moving.LOL I will post back later with the results. David

Sorry the proper spelling should be distributor! LOL

Car has not been started since FEB of this year. I have been doing some re-wiring under the dash and taking my time. Finally got it done today and fired the car up with no issues. Backed the car out of the garage and was checking under the hood for fuel leaks/water/vacuum leaks. Then this happened The cap split open. I determined that one of the screws that held the rotor had backed completely out and that the other was loose. The the rotor got cocked inside the cap and the above photo was the end result. No damage to the stator or pickup or shaft. This is an MSD 85551 pro billet unit. Never seen this happen but thought I would post the aftermath and remind y'all to check the tightness of the screws that hold the rotor to the shaft. Gonna order a new cap and rotor and use some blue loctite on the screws. David

Totally understand keeping it on the "Down Low" about him competing here in the states. Hope he does. NHRA should have given the PS team more of a heads up on the big changes, like a year or two earlier, instead of right in the middle of the 2015 season. Lots of R&D on engine/chassis = big dollars being spent by the teams even before the 2016 season begins. PS is by far my favorite pro class. With Tom Compton gone and a new president of NHRA in, I hope they can turn the sanctioning body around. Over the years they (NHRA) have really messed over the sportsman racers. I have a friend that races stock eliminator and because things have gotten so expensive with entry fees and other miscellaneous cost imposed by NHRA he has really had to cut back on the number of events he attends. David

That is going to be a nice 383 build! Torque is what gets our big land yachts rolling. Straub is really a great cam designer and knows his stuff. Should be a real tire fryer. I had a 385 with the old Pro Topline 200 cc iron lighting heads with a dual plain air gap and a Pro System 750 and a custom Cam Motion hydraulic flat tappet. It ran 12.40's and was very dependable. Yours should be way quicker/faster. David

Jimmy Alund seems like a cool guy. I liked watching him race PS on the NHRA series. He is a great wheel guy for sure. Do you know if he has a ride for the 2016 season? Big changes for the PS class. Should be real interesting. Sorry Dennis didn't mean to derail your thread. I don't run an AED but I know people who do and they are great carbs. David

http://www.novaresource.org/speedo.htm This is a good source and formula as to the drive/driven gears you will need. David

Steve's car as absolutely beautiful and hauls the mail!! David

Very nice work. Really like the color!!! David

I might be wrong but I seem to recall that crane offered a spring package a while back that would allow you to run up to .500 lift without the retainers hitting the guides. I don't think there is any machine work needed. Might check out cranes website and call their tech department. Either way the vortec heads are a great performer. David

Hey Zack, Welcome to the FGMC site. Here is a link that will get you going in the pro-touring direction http://umiperformance.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2_254_278&products_id=798 Great company with products made in the USA and have excellent customer service. I have some of their suspension parts on my Monte but it is more of a straight line bruiser but will turn left and right when needed. I'm sure others will chime. Take care, David

I have been toying with the idea of going to a 200-4r. There is a shop in my home town (Tommy Boys Transmissions) that specialize in building this transmission for h/p cars. They are diehard Buick fans and I have seen their cars run at the track. Big ole Skylarks 455 cars on spray and slicks and they hold up really well i.e. nothing broken. They told me that they could build one for the monte for around 1200.00 less the converter. I have invested quite a bit and my th350 along with a great converter and could sell and recoup most of my money. I have a set of 4.30 gears waiting to go in and I think it would be a great gear combo mated to the 200-4r. Just need to figure out the converter as my car idles at 1400 rpm in gear and the engine clears up around 2000 when cruising. 200-4r would get my vote for your needs. David

Great pic's Paul! Nice to see the First Gens being well represented. Man all of those cars freak'in rip!!! David

Hooker Headers part # 2451. Had them on my 72' when it had A/C. David

Hey Don, Glad to see ya back!! If the block and crank/rods check out good you got a good base. Some good aluminum heads/intake and a mild hydraulic roller and your goal would easily be obtained with pump gas and have some stump pulling torque. I'm sure the B/B gurus will chime in and give you some choices on parts that will get ya there. David

Great job Dennis! A lot of attention to detail!! Thanks. David

Before I had my current mill the engine builder and I kicked around the idea of an LS platform with forced induction. Like many, money was the big issue and I just couldn't pull the trigger. There was a really nice 71 Monte that participated in Drag Week 13' with a twin turbo ls setup. Wanna say he was running mid 8's. Oh to dream!! David

This made me laugh!! Funny

That Dakota Digital controller is pretty slick! One day I may get rid of my old antiquated mechanical setup and go electric. LOL David

Yep, have written just a few. Out of curiosity what type relays did you use and what kind of temp control module? TIA. David David

Nice writeup Doug!! Glad you were able figure out the issue. David