The Force Awakens...
in the meantime.
https://youtu.be/aUk9QDUtRHE
The kickouts of the oil pan really get in the way of the rear corner bolts.I think you’re right @PeteZ06 the oil pan gasket didn’t seem to be correctly seated. That being said, I’m too chicken
to reinstall without blobs of RTV. There also seems to be a tiny little bit of RTV left over from the last install. I didn’t get it all off.I did take it out for a short drive. The smoke was annoying and my test drive accordingly short.
For the little drive I took, I’m very pleased with the cam. Good torque that comes on very smoothly.
Knock on wood, the vibration seems to be gone. I hope I’m not speaking too soon and jinxing it.
One small detail, my vacuum reading is not as stable as I’d like. Maybe I need to set the valve lash hot ?
The video doesn’t show it well but in slow motion the vibration is extremely regular.
Last edited by DorianC3; Feb 20, 2021 at 01:32 PM.

The pan is back on with blobs of RTV all over the place. I think I’ll wait a could of days before putting oil back in for the adhesive to fully cure. I really don’t want to do this job again anytime soon.
RTV with blobs and on the rear bolts seems to have improved if not fully solved the oil pan leak.
The T5 conversion is turning out to be a really nice mod. I do like the way the shifter clicks positively and effortlessly through the gears. The hydraulic clutch is heavy, but smooth and I got used to it quickly.
The 400 roller cam conversion with aluminum heads is also exactly what I want: 470 TQ and 420 HP. I think that's a nice homage to the L46 that once was in there.
I'm still getting some kind of vibration but it does not seem to be coming from the rotating assembly or the driveline. It is RPM-related. I think it is the exhaust - some kind of harmonics due to not have hangers at the trans mount. More testing required. Today seems to be a good day
.Let's see, what still needs to be addressed ?
- Paint chips. That needs to be taken care of professionally.
- Steering column: horn (stuck on
), turn signal cancellation (failed again), key buzzer (doesn't work) and distress signal switch (doesn't work either). - Spreader bar
. Why not ? - Power to cigarette lighter socket. Why in the world doesn't it work ??!!
- Door cards are missing the screws. It'll be nice to tighten the gaps up there
- Weather stripping needs to be refreshed
- New tires: ouch !!!
- Tidy up engine bay.
Last edited by DorianC3; Apr 9, 2021 at 06:37 AM.
To recap - this CompCams Extreme Energy retrofit hydraulic roller cam has been a journey.
The main issue was a clacking sound that seemed to be coming from cylinder 3. I do think this is fixed and the engine is operating normally. Don’t get me wrong, it still sounds like a sewing machine. But I do believe that is the nature of this valve train and it’s something I’ll just need to get used to. The clacking is taken care of.
I'm still getting some kind of vibration but it does not seem to be coming from the rotating assembly or the driveline. It is RPM-related. I think it is the exhaust - some kind of harmonics due to not have hangers at the trans mount. More testing required. Today seems to be a good day
....I took the opportunity to go over the car and check in, under and around it. It definitely needs a good cleaning.
The rear seemed to me a bit low, so I adjusted it up.
Hand brake cable tightened as well.
I think my next project (other than cleaning) will be digging into the steering column and adjusting the cold start.
My turning signals do not self cancel. The horn (relay disconnected) is stuck on and the hazard light switch is stuck. Another weird thing I experienced was on a hard brake, the hazard lights flashed momentarily. Hmmm. Maybe next weekend I’ll dig into it.
Last edited by DorianC3; Jan 2, 2022 at 11:53 AM.
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
There are several things bothering me. The most annoying are the excessive play in the tilt steps and the steering wheel play.
Other things not working: horn stuck on, hazard lights not working, turn signal doesn’t cancel correctly and possibly a bad ground.
So it begins:
Hm. That mark probably should be straight down. As it is the steering wheel is off center when tracking straight.
I put a screw in there to prevent telescopic collapse
This cheap tool makes it easy. You still need to be careful though.
And first problem solved, the canceling cam is 180 degrees out.
Stripped as far as I can go with the column in the car. Until now it was a useful way of holding in place while I worked on it.
Out comes the column. This shield needs to come out.
As does this one.
The weird spring for the ignition rack.
Parking pawl.
Spring for tilt. Extremely grimy.
Yanking these out took some nerves and persuasion.
We’re going to have to clean this up.
This explains the loose feel to steering. The set screw was sliding off the edge. My bad I tapped the steering shaft in too far when doing the Borgeson conversion. An easy fix.
Lower bearing. Somewhat grotty. I will be replacing it.
And here is issue with hazard flasher. The plastic tab which it insert into is broken off and preventing from pulling out
And pushing in.
Upper bearings in better shape, but will be replaced too. Everything gets ziplocked.
These are the fellows that should (foreshadowing here) be causing the play in the tilt due to wear.
Tap the retaining pin out and out they come. Chianti ? Yes, we are doing things in style.
The lock shoes will need to be cleaned and inspected, both the teeth and the shaft. They will be replaced with NOS if I can find them.
The seem to have some wear.
I struggled for several hours and finally ordered this of of Amazon. I should have bought this years ago. It took me minutes thereafter.
It turns out most of the play is coming from this loose pin in the housing and not so much the lock shoes. The pivot pin seems to have worked its way loose and backed out of the carrier leading to unwanted play. I tapped it home after a first clean. It seems that most of the play is gone. I think I will have to stake down this pin with some dimples in the housing. I’ll think about it.
The steering column as it is now.
How tight was the main lock nut on the steering wheel hub , that being loose can cause the horn to stay on !
There are , I think 3 dust shields that originally went in the T&T column , very rare to find all 3 these days ! I found them when I had the luck to dig into an unmolested 72 column that had those 4 screws loose I mentioned above .
Last edited by bazza77; Jul 28, 2022 at 05:44 PM.
How tight was the main lock nut on the steering wheel hub , that being loose can cause the horn to stay on !
There are , I think 3 dust shields that originally went in the T&T column , very rare to find all 3 these days ! I found them when I had the luck to dig into an unmolested 72 column that had those 4 screws loose I mentioned above .
Copy on the chisel marks. I thought they were supposed to go straight down

I think you might be onto something with the loose lock nut. The lock washer is missing and it did seem loose.
i have not pulled the base out yet. I’m trying to find a socket that will fit the star heads. Locktite for sure.
Sadly I did not see a third dust shield.
@bazza77 In your experience, where does the grease (non-petroleum based) go ? I read that the tilt ratchet mechanism must be bone dry (it wasn’t) and the plastic sphere should be greased. The shafts were flopping around until I cleaned the plastic sphere. Presumably key rack gets light grease.
every column I have been into has grease smeared on the tilt mechanism and the key rack area as well., I give them a wipe down and reapply some lithium grease , none ever had any problems there so I just left them as is . Bad bearings and loose bolts seem to be the main cause of issues with these things .

Tunn signal switch. Hazard was broken.
Various bearings.
Particularly happy with this find
Same
New sphere joint.
Picked this up while I was at it.
And this
This should also help
And because I’m tired of seeing my tank.
Picked the best parts to make for the tightest fit
More details
No idea what this is… it just showed up in the box.
) but overall - smooth sailing. In fact, I dare say, it was easier than I thought.
The steering column, though not yet mounted in the car, feels very solid. I look forward to experiencing in the car.
One small frustration was the key buzzer switch. That broke. Unwisely I did not order a spare. That will have to be for some other time.
One of my favorite additions was the bumper for telescoping feature. I never did like the was it slammed.












