+1 Torker and send it. BTW, lovin this build
+1 Torker and send it. BTW, lovin this build
In reply to Indy-Guy :
Thanks!
unfortunately the votes, though unanimous, are going to be overridden. The good local machine shop said two day turnaround and $80 get the heads both decked. Compression is our friend. Porting the stock stuff (mildly, I'm no expert at this) and more compression should be worth at least as much as either other manifold choice for power.
Dad sent me this from before we dragged the car home.
how far we've come.
Trans out.
pro tip: if you think your transmission is difficult to remove, simply remove the firewall first for extra clearance.
So we found a guy who wants to make his manual truck automatic and we're swapping next week. Should be fun trying to figure out a clutch pedal/linkage for a car that was never offered with a manual trans.
Anyway, some good progress today I think. The b-pillars require more cutting and grinding and there is a strict no grinding rule in the shop, and since the engine needs extra support until the new trans is in the car is stationary. So I decided to start trying to figure out how to mount our radiator. That conversation led to trying to hang the fenders so we can get some measurements which led to talking about mounting the grill which led to me holding the hood up which led to me deciding to chop the fenders today instead of any of the other things I meant to do today.
Here we see the right side fender hung and roughly aligned. Hard to see the problem from that angle.
So much extra length. Length made of steel. Ounces and pounds and such and out comes the death wheel.
One of these things is not like the other.
12.5".
See, the grill assembly/headlight assembly/front part is plastic and mounts to the fenders. Only to the fenders. So those had to be done first.
Bolt on the finished side.
And the pretty side
Then we could sling the grill well enough to glimpse glory.
*edit. check the fender overhang. Those are sn95 wheels wearing 245s. With bigger wheels we could fit all the rubber. #dreams
Weather turned sour and I have to go help get kiddos in bed so I didn't finish the other yet. Then I have to trim the hood. How long is the hood of a 1979 Thunderbird you ask?
It is nearly 1 barefootskater long.
In reply to barefootskater :
Wow, you're full of surprises. looks good shortened.
In reply to Indy-Guy :
Thanks. I'm pleasantly surprised by the looks this far. Mostly it's a battle of wanting to chop all the things but how to not make it look funky. Bumper areas are still under debate and I think I can squeeze 4-5" out of the lowering dept.
All this talk of manifold and the other thread on heads and all for naught.
just made a deal for some 062 vortec heads. I'll have to drill them and buy another manifold but it should be real power.
Transmission day. Kinda.
couple months ago an ad pops up on cl saying mid 60s Chevy truck, 4 speed, wants to trade for th350. So we call the guy, explain we have a short snout 350 of unknown history. Guy comes over, looks at our trans, then pulls his ad down.
Well today was the day. We pull up to his place with an automatic in the back of the van and he has this veritable cornucopia of greasy speed laid out:
so now we get to play "does the driveshaft fit?" And "how do we fit a clutch pedal in a thunderbird?"
should be good.
Never let it be said that I don't get the most out of my abrasives.
And I think I'm getting better at welding body panels.
And on the car
barefootskater said:
So.......
When are you going to shorten the rear trunk/quarter panels ?
In reply to Indy-Guy :
If he fills the quarters with lead, he could have the first challenge wheelstander!!!
In reply to Indy-Guy :
The wide angle makes the trunk look huge. I mean, it is huge, but it doesn't look out of proportion IRL.
As for wheel stands, it would probably be possible with enough rear gearing and big slicks. As it is I think we'll be very short on traction.
Todays offerings.
Hood
And back on the car for the first time in almost a year
it's a little flimsy with all the ribs cut out, but I have a plan.
I did a thing today. Our flywheel showed up so I cleaned the old clutch and pressure plate up and used my favorite sawzall to notch the floor a little. Then I made this.
the seat isn't staying. The clutch fork wants to occupy the same space as our gas pedal. Gonna have to fabricate a clutch pedal assembly. No idea where the hydraulics will get mounted. We probably gave up some speed in the 1/4.
I don't care.
Look at it.
This is by far my favorite picture in this thread so far. And the mount fits perfectly and I couldn't have tried for better shifter placement (it'll actually be about an inch higher, floor needs some persuading still)
That's fantastic!!!
Butt buckets arrived.
But in an effort to be a halfway decent husband I have the kids out of the house today so the mrs has an entire free day to do whatever she wants. So anyway I won't be installing these seats today.
And now the transmission guy (not really a mechanic, never messed with a trans before) says the th350 we traded him won't go into gear. He sourced the new converter, and put 7 quarts in (no idea how much was still in the trans) and the dipstick says the thing is full. Situation sucks.
Local yard had a "should be good" vortec donor with 062 heads so we snagged it. First I asked about the price of just the heads, $150, but then dad decided he wanted a 4 bolt, roller cam, one piece seal short block so we got the whole thing for $250. Forked it into the pipe wagon:
then removed the converter, flex plate and water pump and put it on the stand to be dissected later.
Plans are to strip the heads and clean them, possibly thread them for rocker studs, paint, then bolt them to our 400. Still need the special intake and to decide on a cam after I get some measurements for compression. Still, progress.
What's the plan with the auto tranny guy?? That situation does suck.... he knew it was an unknown quantity but the fact he even called you about it sounds like he wants you to do something.
In reply to jfryjfry :
I'm heading up to his place Saturday. We think this may be a th350c since it has a wire coming out on one side and the new converter we put in (that he bought) would then be wrong. So he got one for a lockup trans and we're going to put that in and see. I'm a little nervous about the deal but he seems cool and I don't want to leave him high and dry since we got such a sweet deal on that trade.
barefootskater said:Forgive my lack of photoshop skills. But I did just create a visual to help.
This is a printout front page 3 of this thread. This is the car as it was in 1979:
This is what I did with scissors and what our plan is to create:
Apparently it’s just an overgrown pinto.
Ok I'm still reading through the whirlwind that is the start of this thread, but the paper-and-scissors photoshop is brilliant. This thread delivers. I can't wait to see what else I've been missing.
Good news!
Transmission guy called to say he had positively id'd the trans we traded him as a th350c and was able to install the correct converter without needing to drop the trans (the part which requires helping hands). So hopefully that deal is over and it works well for him. Why he replaced the converter in the first place I do not know. I'm pretty confident the one that came with the trans was ok in the first place... Either way, it means I get to work on my car tomorrow which is good because somehow October is only a few months away and I work slow.
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