Old Cars/Trucks Restoration and Modding

[raggie33]

on the exp i had to remove engine crank bolt but a course when i turned bolt egine just turned. so i pried wrench and disconcted distrubter and used the starter to turn engine over while socket wrench held bolt pried lol just held key for a half zecond

 

[raggie33]

but in life most human call me retarded i dont listen any more . at my age i know we all have pros and cons

 

[Poppy]

lol one time i changed a entire engine with no egine hoist just a floor jack. its how i used to feed my self by fixing stuff

My hat's off to you for that one my friend. :thumbsup:

 

[greenpondmike]

Yeah Poppy, Raggie's creative with mechanical things and sounds like instead of giving up he finds a way. Raggie, I hope you don't mind me taking the liberty to say that likewise in your current situation I hope you would also not give up, but find a way to make things work out.

 

[raggie33]

Yeah Poppy, Raggie's creative with mechanical things and sounds like instead of giving up he finds a way. Raggie, I hope you don't mind me taking the liberty to say that likewise in your current situation I hope you would also not give up, but find a way to make things work out.

ty we mst go on

 

[greenpondmike]

My ol chevy has been giving me fits. It was spitting, spuddering, bucking and backfiring. It also started dieing and not cranking again, so I did what seemed (by accident) to work before.

I pulled off the fuel line and had someone who wanted to help me hold it to the side and I turned over the moter. It cranked right up. I replaced the fuel line at the back of the fuel pump with fuel injection hose. The old line looked new, but seemed a little flat in the curves. Another set of used spark plugs were put in except these were a free set that cost my brother in law about $7 something a piece. One had broke on his V8, so he just bought a new set.

It cranked up and had a non metellic slightly scraping knock that seemed to come from the GM HEI distributor we installed a couple of years back. Pulled the cap and all looked good inside. Drove it home like that. I figured the bushing was bad in the dist. and decided to get one from the junk yard.
Today ol truck ran fine and smooth- no knock, but I went and got dist. anyway and it died on me when I almost got to the junkyard. I pulled the fuel line and let some gas out. It cranked and I went on and got the other dist. and drove on to work averaging 70 mph. No problems at all, but engine ran a little hot.

I need to put that new radiator and water pump on, but I wanted to focus on getting it running right first and just using the heater fan for extra cooling. I guess it's coming along.

 

[greenpondmike]

I miss my 71 gold duster. That 225 slant six with a 2 barrel carb was a good engine. Only problem I remember having with it was it developed a dead miss. Found out the adjusting nut on a rocker had come off. I put it back on and it ran fine.

I miss a lot of my past vehicles and wonder what I was thinking getting rid of them. I had 3 different generations of nova's and four mustangs spanning 3 older generations. A 71 ranchero and all kinds of older trucks from Ford, chevy, dodge and datson. Not to mention all the others. I've lost count of all the ones I had that I actually bought a tag for, 80-90+? And I've owned more than that.

I wished I'd finished that 64 falcon two door- all I lacked was brakes, flywheel and a floor shifter because the collar on the column shifter broke. I drove it a little- stopping on one wheel brakes was a trip. It had some rust in the floorboards, but I could live with that.

 

[greenpondmike]

Come to think about it I also miss my 75 cutlass and 67 ltd coupe. I was stupid with my 68 mustang. I got it in 85 or 86 for $600 with a good body and the 2 barrel 289 special ran great. It had a limited slip rear end and a 3 speed stick shift in the floor. Unlike the novas, I could trail ride this thing without worrying about hitting the oil pan. I enjoyed it and it got me liking Fords. I let a fellow I knew and trusted take it for a spin and he overrevved it and it developed a dead miss. I tore it down still warm with the hot bolts burning my figures.
It had cracked three top compression rings and ruint three pistons only. The cylinder walls were barely scarred and would easily disappear with minimal honing.

Well, I wanted to go all out and build a monster, so I got bought a torquer 2 intake with a holly 650 double pumper carb mounted on it and several accesseries. Was going to buy more as I got the money. Had a so called friend rebuild the heads, etc.

Well, the carb and intake shouldn't have been sold to me because the one doing the selling didn't own them and the real owner found out where they were. The fellow that was supposed to rebuild my heads was dragging his feet (later I found out he had sold them), so when a friend offered my a 71 mustang that was running for it I traded. Car didn't have a grill and looked like a catfish, but it had a good body and ran good.

The one that got the 68 just slopped it together- had the timing chain in the dirt and didn't even wash it off- just put it on and it ran just fine again in stock configuration with a cheaper set of heads. It has now had several owners and has been painted back the same medium blue color with white racing stripes on the hood and has the two other magnesium slotted mags I had for it on the front- I only had only mounted the two on the back.

Last time I saw it a young fellow was driving it and it had no front bumper. I guess this was in the mid 90s. It has either been totalled or a collector has it now I guess.

 

[greenpondmike]

Of the Fords I've owned I like their 289, 302, 351 windsor, and their 390 the best. Some engines I don't know about because I've never owned them.

I had a friend that had a 260 v8 and it was alright. The 200 six cyl is a very good motor. I don't like their 250 six cyl. The 300 six is a good motor. I've had some worn out ones, but I've also had a few that were as good as people brag that they are.
Fuel injection helped them because they were too large for that little one barrel the fed the engine from the middle. I'd put that fuel injected 300 up against any big block as far as pulling goes.

That 390 I had in my 67 Ltd had 275 hp and a lot of torque. It got 20 mpg and ran like a scolded dog. The car itself could climb kudzu hill from that bad side (that's saying something) and could trail ride better than most all the ones I've ever owned. I wish I'd also kept it and restored it.

 

[greenpondmike]

As far as chrysler, plymouth and dodge go, the 225 slant six is the best 6cyl engine I've ever seen. Believe me when I say that my friends and I have abused them and I don't know of a time when they have ever failed us. I also like the 318 and although I've never owned the 360 I have a lot of respect for the older ones on up to when they were used in the little red express.
I've seen what the 383 magnum will also do.

A friend that knew and were friends with several of the wealthier folks in the mid 60s to the early 70s told me about the 440. He drove their cars while they partied and if he wasn't going fast enough one of them would put his foot on top of my friend's to make sure the pedal was to the floor. My friend drove all kinds of muscle cars from that era including the 389 gto with 3 duches. He said the one with the most punch he's ever driven was a 1971 coronet with a 440 4 barrel.

 

[greenpondmike]

I've never owned one, but I've heard a lot of amazing things about the pontiac 400. That engine will sure enough go in stock cofiguration if tuned right and if modified with just a good set of heads and a 4 barrel it will scat. I have driven a friend's in a big catalina. It only had a 2 barrel and it had some punch. Several friends had this engine. I've seen 155 in the back seat of a firebird with a 400. There was still more pedal to mash, but that was too much already. The back louvers snapped off.

 

[greenpondmike]

The oldsmobile 350 is a good motor and I've owned 2 of them. I used to think the 250 chevy was alright, but I blew a cylinder on one and now I have this one in my truck and it has me frustrated. The externals are no big deal, but I've had internal trouble with this one.

The truck had 48,000 something on it when I got it and now it has 74,861. There is evidence that this is the true mileage and the odometer hasn't turned over yet. It has been setting up over half of it's life and I don't know why. I don't know how the original owner treated it- all I know was when I first changed the valve cover gaskets the head was spotless underneigh. There is evidence that the exhaust manafold gasket has been changed. It's possible that the head had been taken off and rebuilt at one time- maybe to put in hardened valve seats for the unleaded gas that came out since it was built.

All older original engines need this modification because the older valve seats were softer and depended on the lead in the gas for lubrication and would wear if unleaded gas was used. I have another 250 (79 model) and an early 80s 350 that is in a one ton dump truck that I can put in mine. I'd need 3 or 4 days off and some money saved up before I'd want to attemp a swap though.

I've had some good and bad dealings with the small block chevy v8s. Not really anything to brag about except some would hold up better than others and some would run better and some faster than others. Most of the time- by the time I got a vehicle with one in it, it was done worn out.

A fellow I know said he quit driving his truck (305 v8) to work when it started using a quart every 1000 miles. MAN, if I had ever had a chevy engine that used that little measily amount of oil I'd think I had a new engine lol. That little bit of usage or less is what I have mainly experienced in Ford territory, but some of the other brands did almost as well.

This truck I'm driving uses a gallon of oil every week or two depending on how I drive it. It doesn't smoke that I can tell. Now I need to replace the valve cover gasket again and wash the engine, but it's not leaking that bad. Ol truck ought to be a skeeter killing machine for all the oil it's burning, but like I said....no smoke. I'm starting to wonder if this truck is cursed or jinxed and that is why it has sat up most of its life. How much money shall I throw at this supposed money pit....more, more, more, more........it wants attention, but it doesn't like the attention- reminds me of a dog I once had.....strange dog.

 

[greenpondmike]

In all fairness I can't recall a time when a small block chevy let me down. I don't recall any experience with the big block ones. I think I might of had one that didn't use much oil, but I didn't drive it enough to find out.

That truck looked so good (the center of the grill lenghways was painted red- it set it off) it would almost make a person drool, but it was REALLY cursed/jinxed and I know the one who did it and when she did it. Man......fast acting jinx too. Time my brother in law had driven about 10 miles and got off at an exit (easy driving) we smelled transmission fluid. Cut it off to check and it wouldn't crank back up. Got an new battery and found out alternator was also bad. In one day, batteey, alternator and trans was toast and the trans didn't need the normal build- no, it also needed the pump in the trans.

Got all that fixed and I was driving local adjusting the headlights and the module went out in front of a drug house (I didn't know at the time) and two guys came out and pushed me out of the road and then one of them that helped me was found passed out on the bathroom floor while I was waiting on my brother in law with the rollback. Paramedics were called and when they got there the woman at the house asked me is she should tell the paramedics about the d***s. Wut da????!! I said uh, I guess only if they ask. I was glad to see my brother in law when he got there and he was tripping on the flashing lights. We loaded up and got OUT of there.

It was a red 86 SWB fleetside chevy with a 350 crate engine. It used to have a 305 in it. It had a vibration when I kicked down on it. I wonder if the new torque converter was out of balance. When I first got it, it was two or three of the plug wires bad, so it was running on 5 or 6 cylinders only and the quadrajet was only running on the small frontal barrels. I fixed all that. The carb was factory handicapped so that the back barrels only opened so much- I didn't break off the limiters. It finally would squall a tire so I was happy. I was afraid the engine would fly apart if I let the carb do its full potential. I didn't keep it too long.

 

[greenpondmike]

A friend had a 67 or 68 camero rs that was alright. It was a quick and fast dependable car that also got 15 mpg. His formula was a 350 with double hump (300 hp) heads, a crane blazer midrange cam and a holly 450 economizer carb along with a four speed trans. I'm not sure about the rear end ratio, but that's also important it was low geared though. He blew the 454 that was in it when he got it, but the 350 held up a good while and never failed him. He got a wild hair and wanted to build a monster. He rebuilt it and added a tunnel ram and I don't know what all else he did, but he got to where he didn't believe in "breaking in" an engine. He had a mean mamma jama of a car for what seems like a week or two till a rod started knocking and then he sold it.
Only thing wrong with the setup he had before was when he was taking it apart he discovered that the mechanical fuel pump was about to fall apart. Maybe that fuel pump affected the performance to the point that he though his car was getting weak.

Two other friends had chevelles- the 69 had a hot 350 and the 68 had a stock 327. I sold a set of double hump heads to the fellow with the 327 and it would scat. Both cars did well though. The one with the 327 also believed in having smaller tires in the back and I tried it myself and it seems to lower the gear ratio somewhat. Going from 235 70r 15s to 215 70r 15s made a huge difference in an old 6cyl Ford van I had- it woke it up. I hated to get rid of it, but I was tired of women looking at me like I was going to grab them and throw them into the side door and also someone making negative comments about me.

 

[greenpondmike]

Seems like chevy engines do fine from the factory and also if someone takes the time to build them right. There are a lot of bubba builds though. One fellow who was a mechanic built tons of them, but he would just slop them together and use an impact instead of a torque wrench/ratchet. Now my brother in law's nick name is bubba, but he does precision work.

One fellow had a 1979 Z28 that he got new and it held up a while, but after he blew it and started rebuilding it- the engine would do good to last a couple of months. It would set up a year and he would build it again and he was good for a week to a month and so on and so on.

Chevy parts are cheap as compaired to other makes and you can make more power for a cheaper price. A good set of heads is fundamental to any power build.

I know one fellow who built his engine quality and for power, but he also wented about it differently. He didn't use special heads or cam. He matched the engine, trans, rear end ratio and carb to all work together to make power along with electric fans on the radiator. Together the truck would eat the tires up, but my brother in law pulled the engine out and put it in something else that had a different trans, a different rear end ratio, mechanical fan on the radiator and a different carb. He thought his truck would do something, but it barely squalks the tires.

Folks that want to build for power need a formula that is proven to work instead of just slopping parts on it. If you don't have a good plan with your build it would probably run better in stock configuration.

 

[greenpondmike]

I'm really not down on chevies as much as it seems. I do joke about them and it seems like I have been prone to get the ones that are about worn out even though they sure cost enough.

Fords on the other hand seem to be dependable and low maintenance. Back in 2007 I got my 1980 Ltd coupe for just $100 and that has been a good dependable car that holds up to anything I demand of it. This isn't uncommon. The 67 Ltd I had only cost my friend $200 and I only traded a 73 cutlass for it that I had $173 in.

To get a chevy of the same quality I would have had to pay thousands. Ford parts are more expensive, but as long as you stay away from auto zone and other "budget" part stores and buy quality parts you may only have to fix certain things once for the life of the car. Even if you are a do it yourselfer, your own time is worth something and I'm sure you'd rather be doing something else instead of replacing "lifetime" warrented parts every two or three years.

 

[greenpondmike]

What gets me though is how arrogant chevrolet was when they came out with their new style truck back in 87 or 88. I think they were insinuating they were so good that you'd want to blow up your old style Ford and it showed people blowing up their Ford trucks.

The new chevie trucks improved the frame where the steering box mounted so that the frame wouldn't crack if you had big wide tires on the front. This was on the square body 73-87. I had a square body one that did this.

The newer trucks also had a collaspable steering column, but if you got mad and beat on the steering wheel it would also collapse and you'd have to drive it like that unless you spent some money. I never owned the newer types, but I wouldn't mind having one. I've driven them though and liked them and even worked on them

 

[bykfixer]

I had a 2014 Chevy silverado for work that rode like a luxury car. It was comfy too. Trouble was it started falling apart at 45k miles. By 100k miles it was in need of a third front suspension, had two radiators replaced, axles, differential gears replaced, three water pumps, and at 125 the oil pump failed so the engine broke. It rarely left the pavement. In 4 years the company paid as much in maintenance as the truck cost new.

My 018 Ford work truck isn't much better. But at least the Chevy rode and drove good. The rod knock sound according to Ford is "just the fuel pump don't worry about it". And the rattling valve train, "oh that just means optimum fuel economy". Never mind the 10 speed tranny jumping down to 8th gear out of nowhere (on level pavement) or it lurching from 1st to 5th "wham!" when starting out. "Oh that's the computer striving for better gas mileage" they say. When I'm in a left hand curve it pulls to the right. Right hand curve it pulls to the left and on level surface it just wanders like an old John Deere tractor. They say "that's the soft rubber tires, no issue"……
It's a shame too because the price of these vehicles warrants a helluva a lot better than that.

 

[greenpondmike]

Old Fords from the 60s and 70s had a weakness in their automatic shifters (shift callar on steering collumn) where it would tear loose with age or stiffness. I had two do me that way- one on a 64 falcon and one on a 77 Ford pickup.
You can mash the emergency brake and put them in gear under the hood until you get that fixed or put in a floor shifter. If you put in a floor shifter make sure it has a reverse lockout.

Sometimes they come out of park and sometime the shifter will droop even if it's in park and you will have to lift the shifter to activate the neutral safety switch so it will crank.

Chevies are stronger in that area and so are mopars (chrysler, plymouth and dodge). Chevy trucks up to I guess 87 has a full floating rear end where the bearing is open and is pressed onto the axle housing. The axle slides through that and rides in it. It is lubricated by the gear oil. I don't know about the newer trucks.

Ford has a semi floating rear end like the Datson pickup- where the sealed bearing is pressed onto the axle itself and then it and the axle fits into the axle housing. If the bearing isn't very tight on the axle you could be going down the road and look in the side mirror and see your axle halfway out while you are driving down the road. Just be thankful you caught it in time. If the gear oil gets low the chevy bearing won't have any lubrication, but the Ford bearing will. Pros and cons in all of them.
To my surprise a 79 Ford fairmint futura (tough car) has a full floating rear end.

Never underestimate those old 6cyl unit body cars- they will surprise you. I've seen them pull some amazing stuff. My old fairmont pulled a full sized chevy truck home. Seen a 6cyl duster pull home a Ford elite. Seen a 6cyl nova (subframe) pull another nova.

Unit body cars seem to handle better than ones with a subframe with the exception being the subframed cameros and firebirds which is surpassed by the fox body (later style unit body) mustangs. Even the mid sized V6 Ltds felt like a comfortable extention of my body.

The Ford twin "I" beam suspension really works good offroad, but a chevy truck handles better on the paved road. Chevy has a heavier bed, but on a Ford it is best to leave the tailgate on and up because that stabilizes the sides of the bed so they won't eventually get to wobbling over a period of time and crack the metal where the bedsides meet the floor.
There's you some differences.

 

[greenpondmike]

Hey bykfixer. Sorry I didn't see you sooner.
On what you were saying I was hoping the newer versions of those two would be better because the dodges also give problems.

Bpi has a 3/4 ton dodge ram work truck that the engine went out on at 174,000 something and the replacement sounded choppy to me and come to find out it had a blown head gasket- maybe that choppiness was a dead cyl from that- I don't know. It took a long while to get them to fix it, but I think I was told that they completely rebuilt it this time.

Bykfixer, does your Ford have the 3.5 liter ecoboost in it? On the newer chevies, a friend bought a 2006 silverado when it was almost new and still under warranty. He wasn't even supposed to pull a trailer behind it any larger than I think what a riding lawn mower would fit on. He didn't know this and he pulled a very light load on one- maybe a boat and it ruint the differential gears.

They say that any kind of work except light duty you would have to move up to the 3/4 to one ton. It looks like the newer chevy trucks aren't made as well as their el caminos from the late 70s.
Seems like they all are high priced junk- I bet though the bean counters are to blame. It sounds like the differential gears are made out of aluminum alloy. I wonder if Toyota and Nissan are any better....