F22

I was having a bunch of trouble with the '74. The rebuilt engine was running like a dog. Went through it and it was the brand new spark plug wires, that came with the Ebay HEI mech. tach distributor. Replaced the HEI with the MSD and still ran poorly. Nothing wrong with the carb. Sassy was highly unhappy!

Checked compression, running compression, checked the spark on all cylinders. with that nifty little Lisle spark checker tool. Just lay it alongside the plug wires and you can see it. Even pulled each spark plug wire and put a spark plug tester on the boot, to make sure I had good contact. They were all lighting up, individually, so I had to go with the process of elimination and after we installed the MSD back in, the next thing was the spark wires.

And that was it. Brand new, but they were crap! Ran rough, poor RPM, Idle and got worse putting the foot into the gas and shaking too. Then I put the MSD wires in and Champion Spark Plugs that were recommended for the aluminum heads and I knew instantly it was alright!

Revved easy, and when it got warm, started doing burn outs in the industrial center in the back alley. Friggin' awesome, but we'll see what it does on the dyno. Punch it, clutch it and grab a gear! I believe what was wrong were the wires or the plugs, but those were what I had (plugs), so I suspect the new wires.

We also got the second rebuild going on the 'Short & Wide, Chevy C-10 and that did it's little magic out back, laying rubber for a few hundred feet. It's running good!. The owner took the custom and dropped off a nice '55 Chevy hot rod, that's been sitting for about five years. That's what we do. Make them happy!

Pics tomorrow, friggin upload is slow, slow, slow...

76CSRvette

So what dizzy are you running and what engine

doorgunner

Thanks for the update.

F22

I'm running the MSD 8572, Pro Billet that's Corvette specific, with a vac advance and a 6AL box. It's also set up to run a mechanical tach as well. The engine was rebuilt and bored 0.030 over, so that would make it a 355.

F22

Thanks for reading! It was stressful as I wasn't sure It was the builder, so we had to really work at it to figure it out. Usually, all our project vehicles at the shop, start instantly and Sassy wasn't one of those. Reluctant starter, hard restart, backfire, the whole ugly and we're checking everything.

76CSRvette

I was just wondering as I also have that same setup and have a rebuilt hei and not happy with performance at the moment and those part #'s will help me in my journey to getting it going
thanks

F22

It will run strong for sure, but say goodbye to listening to the stereo, as I could never eliminate the noise from the 6AL box. Supposedly, MSD makes ready to drop in dizzys that don't need the very electrically noisy 6AL's. That's the setup she came with and that's what she's happy with.

1969RAY

I think Pauldana could help you with that radio noise. Try giving him a PM.

F22

Thanks, I've actually perused the subject with him, but never followed up. Tried everything. Wiring the MSD 6AL, directly to the battery, using the $45, jumbo MSD Cap, etc and nothing seems to work. I'll give him a call.

AirborneSilva

Glad you got it all figured out, had to be frustrating after spending all that money

F22

Oh yeah!

BKbroiler

Glad you got it figured out. Just FYI, I use cheap Jegs plug wires on mine and a Pertronix HEI distributor. Its all been pretty reliable.
Hey, its October, weren't you organizing a day at the track with some of the other C3 guys?

F22

Indeed I was and I was contemplating with less than 200 miles on the engine, if I should go or not...?

BKbroiler

If you've got no leaks, it's tuned, you've done an oil change and you've made a couple WOT blasts on the street somewhere with no ill effects, take it to the track and run it. Your rings are already seated, that's all you need.

F22

There ya go!

briankeery

Any updates after the first month of cruising?

F22

Thanks for asking and here is an update. The engine builder used the cheapest possible parts for this build (KB Silv-O-Lite 1436 cast aluminum pistons, $80 on Amazon) and while the engine produces considerably more power, the valve train noise is very evident when the engine gets to operating temperature. We are going to swap out the lifters and then sell the engine after inspecting it. The engine also has a 'ragged' feel to it on hard acceleration, like there's a high frequency vibration that shouldn't be there. We already have a client who wants this motor. So it will basically be a 'wash' cost-wise, after sending it back (if we find anything beyond the lifters).

So we're going for "Plan B", which we're using another engine builder, who we have a better feel for. The last guy, should've told me, that the L98 aluminum heads are great for raising compression on an engine like the L48, but there are a lot of SBC heads, that flow way better. This is what the new engine builder guy is telling me and he's right.

Was going to go Vortec, but then saw that Promaxx (formerly Patriot) now has a new series of heads (Maxx Series), that are supposed to be far better than anything they ever offered and designed to compete with Brodix and Dart. Also, the engine guy is associated with the local machine shop as well and one of the employees has a freshly machined SBC roller motor, four bolt main, that he'll sell me for $400 (that's happening today).

This block, is supposed to work with the Gen 1 heads. The nice part is that I don't have to retrofit a Gen1 SBC for roller lifters as this will be equipped with a brand new set of roller lifters from GM. So it will be a full roller motor, from top to bottom. He's recommending a forged GM crank, since I have a four speed.

So that's where we are at. The new engine builder is asking if I want 11's out of it. I'd be happy with 12's, I told him.

SBC Gen 2 Roller Block - $400
SBC Roller Lifters - $232
4340 Forged Crank - $390
Roller Cam - $300
Pistons - Rods - ?
Manifold - ?
Misc Gaskets - $100

Shark Racer

Does the new block have provisions for a fuel pump? Or will you need to go mech?

doorgunner

AAAAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAA..........

thanks for the update---I've learned a lot........




From now on........I'm going to Plan B first!