72MC

That "Biscey" is cool. I saw a black 61 at a car show one year. It turned everyone's head when in drive in. It was black and gorgeous. Kind-of looked like a mini bat mobile. As far as the Monte, finally started my girl for the first time this year. Runs like a champ. Very happy. - Dave

Finally installed the new(installed but never driven on) SpeedTech Billet Aluminum rear lower control arms I purchased from Dan last October. Also installed QA1 double adjustable rear shocks. That makes QA1 double adjustables at all four corners. Both parts are almost to pretty to install on a car . Sorry Dan, you definitely can't change your mind now . - Dave ps - dbreese, you ready to buy my BMR tubular rear lowers?

Went to start the Monte up saturday for the first of the season and the fuel pump had a blown fuse. New fuse and it didn't want to run. Checked the relay and it was good. Took it off, benched tested it, nothing, took it apart, blew out the dust from the motor, dumped out the little bit of clean fuel, put it back together and now it works. Still need to reinstall and start the old girl up. - Dave

Rod, you raise very valid points about the the joint. The joint may have the same play in the driveshaft. After pressing the joint into the driveshaft, how easy was it to install one of the retaining clips. In my experience, it too should be snug against the U joint cap. If it slipped right into position with "to good to be true" ease, I would use a feeler gauge and check for unwanted clearance between the cap and retainer. New U joints always seem to be a literal hair longer than they should be. When installing NEW joints to a yoke or driveshaft, it seems the caps need that little extra effort to get them to seat properly. It's almost like the seal is pushing the cap outward since it is new. After they have been seated, used, removed, and reused, that over snuggness is gone and they should slip right into the seat. Still a snug fit but not that new snug fit. That being said, I would still get a new yoke. I have replaced a good number of 30 plus year old pinion yokes and though they may appear still "good to go", it's small insurance to just purchase a good quality replacement, JM2C. - Dave

Sometimes the joint is so snug it can be a pain to seat it properly in that pinion yoke. IMHO, I would get a new yoke. - Dave

Here is a shot of my Monte with El Camino springs. The rear wheels are 17" and the tire height is 27.88 inches. It was a very stiff setup but good on cornering. I have since gone back to stock HD springs with 1" inch spacers for better front to back weight transfer. Current setup is now maybe an 1 to 1 1/2" lower. Hope this helps. - Dave

I fixed/welded a pin hole along the original weld line on a new "bump out" pan while the engine was together on an engine stand. I had just put oil in and noticed a small leak days later. Left the pan on the engine, drained it, welded it, touched up the paint, and it was good as new. Granted, the hole was very small so I felt confident that I would not have a problem. - Dave

I'll probably catch a bunch of crap for this but ohwell. I have always found brake cleaner works very well. However, be careful as brake cleaner is not good for your body, internally or externally. Also, it has just about doubled in price the past year. Because of this, I have started to use other degreasers in combination with brake cleaner. I ussually start and finish the cleaning process with brake cleaner. - Dave

Jim, check the trans yoke and output shaft. Make sure your splines look good. Then check for slop in the meshing of the yoke and the output shaft. I have seen a similar thing where the vehicle experienced vibration at 65mph and above(to at least 100mph) but would run smooth below 65mph. Turned out the yoke was not meshing properly on the output shaft. - Dave

That stinks Davey but I guess, like ya said, these things happen when you're gettin after it. Hey, since people always like spending other peoples money I know a great place that sells beautiful, tough rear ends, Mark Williams Enterprises. Here is a pic of one of their modular 4 link GM 12 bolt rears(one of my favs). I believe it is a mere $7500.00 . They do sell normal size, top notch rears as well. Thanks for the cool vid. I'm sure you've got this under control and will be back at in no time. Good luck with the rear repair or new install, whichever occurs. - Dave

WOW Davey, you are killin the numbers. Guess Mike really has some catchin up to do now. So since you keep getting faster, what upgrades on the bar, etc will you need to do? - Dave

Instructions for all return style regulators state the return line be "equal to" or "greater" than the supply line, period. One test that is to be performed after installing the regulator and lines is to run the pump with the regulator set at "zero pressure". This should cause your actual fuel pressure gauge to read no more than 3 psi. If it reads more than that, you have a problem with the return line in your set up. If your readings are in that range, then adjust the regulator to the desired pressure and your good. An electric fuel pump does work better with a return style regulator. - Dave

Ian, they are Nitto NT450 275x50x17 (27.88" tall) in the rear and 255x50x17 (27.00" tall) in front. Car actually sits lower now since my QA1 coil over switch. - Dave

Ian, I used "good" quality acorn style lugs. In using this style, I needed a thin walled 13/16 deep socket to install and remove the lugs. Never have had any issues with torquing them to the proper spec with the thin walled socket. A normal 3/4 socket fill fit the lug hole with no problem. If you get them for your car, I think you'll like them very much. 5 spoke wheels just remain classy looking. - Dave

Ian, I have those rims in 17" inch and and am very happy with them. I have 17x9 in the rear and 17x8 in front. A pic of them is in my siggy. - Dave

Seafoam is great stuff. That is the one thing I do use as a substitute. Still, by the GALLON, which is cheaper. I know the answer, I'll let you do the math . - Dave

I understand the issues with CATS, however, using race fuel the way I stated in my earlier post still stands true. It is a better cleaning agent than off the shelf carb and injector cleaners, period. And, it's cheaper by comparison. The guy that turned me onto to this method has been doing it for years and years to his 2000ish Corvette with no bad effects to the CAT or his computer. I guess it has to do with the amount used. His standard was always no more than 1 gallon mixed into every 3rd fill up. Of course in older vehicles, I don't think there is any issues. That being said, Jacob, I would not recommend using race fuel "only" in an engine that does not need it. I'm only recommending it as I stated above. Now I know some of you will still disagree with me. Not the first time, sure it won't be the last. - Dave

The FelPro one piece gaskets are the best. I use NO sealant, as per instructions. I also start all 4 corners equally with longer bolts. Then as Mike stated, draw the pan tight in a good back and forth sequence in order to keep the pan fitment proper. The one piece gaskets are thicker at the valleys and can appear at first to be the incorrect gasket. Thus drawing the pan to the block is the best way to istall these. And again, like Mike stated, the torque limiters are a very nice aspect. - Dave

Thought about driving her in the 60 degree weather but alas, the dept of trans found it necessary to dump enough salt on the road last week to handle a 1/2 inch snow squaw like it was a 30 inch blizzard. Morons. - Dave

As stated above, you only need 92 or 93 octane in your 9.7 to 1 engine. You could run 1 gallon of 104 or 110 race gas in every 3rd or 4th tank full of gas just to keep things clean as 104 and 110 gas works better as a cleaner than any of the off the shelf carb cleaners, etc. I know it may sound cool to some people that you are using "race fuel", but without the proper engine/race engine, you're wasting money. If you must have it, just remember, store race gas in a good sealing metal container, out of sunlight, in a cool dry place. Plastic containers are crap for storing gas. New "Jerry Cans" work great. Here is their link, http://www.deutscheoptik.com/product_info.php?products_id=1718 - Dave

The El Camino variable rate springs are a bit longer than any of the Monte springs. I had them in my Monte for a while. They have to be "stuffed" into place. You will need to disconnect the lower rear portion of the control arm from the axle housing to get the movement/space needed to insert the spring. You will also need the aid of a floor jack. Usually to lift the opposite end of the axle you are working with. This allows some downward movement on the other end of the axle to get the spring seated. Once everything is in and bolted back up, they work fine. It will stiffen your rear end significantly. Works very well on the street, especially cornering, but not so much for drag racing. Since I wanted a tuneable suspension, I changed my whole setup to QA1s and need the softer springs. You can get the elkie springs from the local NAPA, etc and they fall under "1970-1972 variable rate El Camino springs" Not Chevelle, not Monte Carlo, not Chevy Wagon. And remember, the tighter wound portion of the spring goes to the top of the spring tower. My siggy pic below shows the car with new front stock springs and the rear was outfitted with the Elkie variable rate springs. The front and rear were higher than stock. - Dave p.s. I believe the part number for Moog is CC507

Checked the mouse traps by the tires and the one on the passenger floor board. All empty is a good thing. The little buggers will be looking for shelter, especially since it's 20 degrees, very windy, and dropping fast here on the mountain. - Dave

Mike, I have head studs on my 402 and Patriot 2" full length headers. I had an issue with one head stud being a little higher than the others. I ground down the top of the stud (about a 1/4"inch) to about/almost the top of the nut and that was the ticket. - Dave