I am in the start up phase of my body off resto. and I have a few questions. Naturally I want to start the eng with the body off so that if there are any problems,I can address them without taking the chance of doing damage to the body. This is a rebuilt 350 4 speed,so start up and the ability to keep it running is critical. I know that I will need a good 12v source to turn it over. Will the battery I use to start it also have enough voltage to run it for break in(20-25 mins)? Or do I need to connect the charging system? Best place to get 12v to the dist(points type)and coil? I know I will need to temp. mount the oil press gauge and temp.sender. What am I forgetting???

 

I did this to my Chevelle while I had the body off, and had no problems... A good charged battery should last a while, but I would think that if you aren't running an alternator, then keep a battery charger on the battery at the same time. Also you can just run a straight 12v to the coil while breaking it in (using a jumper wire from the battery), you may cause the points to wear a bit faster, but those are cheap to replace. Having a set of guages hooked up (manual oil pressure, and manual engine temp) and clamped to the frame are the best way to keep tabs on the engine, a tach would be great if you have one handy.
Good luck!

 

A well charged battery will be fine. I used a 12v remote trigger start from Oreillys...I also spliced in a simple 12v switch to the 12v source to the distributor. My tranny wasn't hooked up yet so had to improvise

 

Does the remote trigger go to the two small posts on the starter??? If so I should be all set 'cause I have a two wire pigtail coming off the solonoid,and I should be able to just jump them to get the starter to engage. I hope I am on the right track...

 

Sly,
If I remember, on the trigger, one clip goes on the "S" side small post and the other goes on the large 12v post. I think this was right

 

Yup, that's right... just jump the 's' terminal to the positive lug on the starter and it will crank. This is where the $12 remote starter switch comes in super handy. We've all evolved past the long screwdriver right?

 

Yep, also, the remote starter allows you to stand anywhere within 5 feet of the engine. You can stand on the drivers sise with one hand on the throttle (carb) and one on the trigger...

 

I don't think I will have a problem jumping the starter due to the fact that I installed all the wires on the starter with a disconnect harness so that I dont have to fiddle around with the small nuts on the starter if I decide to remove the engine.
Any more tips???

 

So all you need to do is
1. run a hot lead(large cable) from the battery to the positive lead on the starter.
2. Make sure all grounds are in place
3. Run a small wire from the positve battery post to the positive on the coil.

Questions
I am assuming that the engine just start turning over as soon as you get power to the starter and then to make the engine stop you just pull the coil wire. Am i guessing correctly??

Anything else that needs to be hooked up besides the pulleys and the radiator??

Thanks-i would like to do this soon since my engine will be sitting for another two months.

 

That's why I installed a cheap toggle switch in the hot lead going to the coil...made it easy to turn off once it was running. I highly recommend a cheap $20 trigger starter switch. I also put a fan blowing into the radiator and had a fire extinguisher handy. Didn't need it but it's good insurance

 

By the way I have dual spals. Maybe two batteries in parallel or will a battery and a charger suffice?
Also any additional cooling or timing tips? Or how about what should I check first...timing, air fuel(tough to do if its not at idle), What rpms, how long to break in cam and turn it off? Straight water,with or without t stat, direct 12v source to both spal fans?

 

The break-in really depends on how the engine was put together. I don't use any pre-lube when I build my engines...instead I soak all my parts with oil before installation. My break-in period is just the time required to get it to idle right and make sure that the throttle linkage isn't binding and to inspect for leaks of any kind. That usually takes at most 15 minutes. I then give the engine several short bursts on the throttle to like 3,000 RPMs and then let it idle for another minute while I look around some more and listen to see if the bursts loosened anything. After that I bring it up to 3,000 RPM and let it sit there for about 5 seconds and then let it drop back to idle. Then I shut down and change my oil and filter then close up everything and take it out on the street to see how far I can burn rubber.

However, if you used pre-lube in your engine then you will need to let it idle for a lot longer so that the engine will heat up and melt all of the lube. Some engine builders require some very long break-in periods which I figure is just a warranty issue so that a customer won't use the engine like it was designed to be used (driven like it was stolen) before the warranty expires. Any break-in period more than like 100 miles before full engine RPM is acceptable indicates substandard parts or the hopeful warranty expiration issue that I just mentioned. My opinion of course.