Graham’s Corvette Blog and Studebaker bits ‘n’ bobs

I really couldn’t bend 3/8″ pipe to make a nice line from the fuel pump to the carb. So I sprung for a custom pipe ($43). I don’t know what shape of fuel pump that this pipe is supposed to fit, but it doesn’t fit my 350! The lead to the carb is fine, but the lead going to the fuel pump isn’t even close. So more bending needed. Thankfully there is a spring cover which should help me get it bent to fit.

I don’t know what it is about aftermarket parts for Corvettes, but it seems they all sorta just about fit. I had to do some bending and twisting on the 3/8″ line to the carb and the ‘S’ formed hose between the main gas line on the frame and the pump barely fit. It just went on the end of the pump. The nicest fit was the return line using open stock 1/4″ line.

Ran into a bit of a head-scratcher here. For some reason the new nicely painted fan wouldn’t fit inside the shroud. The fan blades were tight against the top of the shroud and I couldn’t get the lower clips in place or the upper support screws. At first I thought that I had mixed up fans with the 305 Caprice unit., but after some thought I did figure it out.

The left engine mount was sitting on top of the frame bracket. The bolt slipped in easily so in the dim light I figured all was OK!

With the engine properly seated the shroud fits nicely and the fan spins freely 🙂

Torque converter bolted to the flex plate and the cover in place. I won’t attach the driveshaft until the engine is successfully broken in. I’ll just put the yoke in the trans rear to keep the oil in.

Trans lines in place. The small 1/2″ crows foot on a 3/8″ drive is perfect for tightening the lines to the trans.

The chrome fitting at the end of the muffler is a 1-1/2″ OD to a 2″ ID adapter. After that is a 20 degree bent 2″ extension to join to the true dual exhaust pipe. Without them there is no way to connect to the muffler. Another case of aftermarket items needing work to fit the car. In this case quite frustrating since I paid $500 for the 4 true dual pipes – a lot of money for something that doesn’t fit out of the box and they aren’t even stainless!

My welding skills are horrible so I opted to use 5 pop rivets to hold the raw steel extension to the chromed adapter.

With the band clamps in place, the exhaust snugged up to the exhaust manifold and the crossmember bracket the whole exhaust line holds nicely in place.

Darn hard to get both mufflers to lie in the same position. In my case the back of the left muffler lies lower than the right. It makes a bit of a difference in the position of the tail pipe, but that shouldn’t be noticeable across the street on a dark night 😉

2″ true duals in place. I figure they provide about 23% more capacity than the original single 2-1/2″ centre pipe. The two band clamps are ahead of the crossmember and the support brackets are at the back of it.

Lastly I torqued the exhaust bracket clamp studs to 25 ‘# Some folks say it should be as high as 60’#. That’s way crazy for a 3/8″ stud and brass nut. If I sense any leakage I can snug them up a bit more if necessary – using new doughnut rings that should not be a problem.

Next: it’s 18 below zero right now and we’re expecting cold temperatures for the next week. I’ll need to have the garage door opened when I start and break in the engine. So I’ll be waiting for a warmer day to do that job.

If I have to do another engine install I’ll put the spark plug shields in place first. The left shield wasn’t too bad, but the right shield was a pain to fit behind the starter. The starter support strap had to be removed which allowed the shield to be squeeeezed in. I thought that I would need to drop the starter which would have been another step backwards.

Connecting up the shift cable. Easy-peeezy. The rubber thingy is my answer to replacing the accordion shaped boot that covers the sliding parts of the cable. To get one you have to buy a whole cable which seems crazy when the original cable is fine. I used a short length of bicycle inner tube and a couple of zip ties. Works just fine.

Putting the original exhaust manifolds in place. I like the exhaust gaskets supplied by Mahle in their engine gasket set. They have ears on each end so the can be slipped over the bolts easily with the manifold just off the head.

Ready to paint the fan blades. I’m going with Chevy orange which should brighten things up a bit and also stand out when the engine is running.

Exhaust and mid pipes test installed. I need to wait for my mufflers to dry before I can continue with the exhaust fitting. So far so good.

Looking a lot better with a coat of Dupli-color semi-gloss black engine enamel.

Hard to see, but I’ve put a thin coat of Permatex sealant around each of the openings in the carb gasket – both sides. This gasket was new when I installed the carb on the 305 engine so not much use. I want to be sure I don’t get air leakage at this point.

Carb in place and trans TV cable attached. I forgot I had to attach the TV cable before its bracket is in place so had to take a step back. The bracket is attached to the back two intake bolts that I have been extended up about 1″ with brass sleeves so that the TV and throttle cables are pulling straight.

A nice coat of Chevy orange engine enamel.

Next: Yet more engine assembly (part III)

Positioning the engine over the engine bay.

There is just enough room between the hoist and the fender to set the engine down in the middle of the bay.

I installed the starter this time and it was a bit of squeeze to get it past the frame’s engine mount.

Moving the engine hoist legs sideways under the car is difficult. This time I decided to try a length of stout wood and an eight pound sledge. Worked well. I only had to use reasonable taps to move the arms slowly sideways.

Engine in place with mounting bolts and trans mount bolts installed. The left side slipped into the frame mount OK and then I had to shift the tail of the trans to the left to get the right mount to slide in place. All done with minimal damage 🙂

Best time to hook up the starter without the exhaust manifold in place. I’ve added an extra 10 gauge wire to the big solenoid connection to run to a power point if I need it later – it’s the line with the yellow connector on the end.

Crank pulley and PS pump connected. The next photos are a bit blurry for some reason?

Alternator bracket in place and getting ready to install the water pump.

Guide pins in place to help the water pump to fit without chancing a shift on the gaskets. Gaskets are treated with Permatex thread sealant and gasket maker. The engine is sitting at TDC. I did this after torquing down the crank pulley bolt. I found TDC by checking the #1 valves then backed the engine just enough to get a long bolt in the #1 plug hole. I then torqued the crank bolt which moved the piston up to where it was stopped by the bolt in the plug hole. When done I backed the crank a bit, removed the bolt in the plug hole and then used the crank bolt to move the engine back to TDC. I need to do this before I can set the distributor in place.

Water pump in place with the upper pulley on loose. I’ve fitted the alternator adjuster arm and the AC pump bracket to the upper two water pump mounting bolts so I won’t have to loosen and re-tighten them later.

Unexpected trouble. When I installed the heads I knew they could be fitted to either side so I didn’t give it much thought. Unfortunately the temperature sender opening that was used previously is on the wrong side. The factory plug is still in place on the left side where the temperature sender should fit. I tried a long handled power bar and ended up twisting the 3/8″ socket. Next I unbolted the engine mount and PS pump, lifted the engine a bit so I could get my impact wrench on the plug. Still no movement. So rather than cause damage to the block I decided to move the temperature sender to the right side.

Yet another problem. The temperature sender opening on these later heads is larger that that on the original ’70 heads. A brass bushing did the trick to get the original sender fitted.

Sender installed with Permatex thread sealant. In my last motor job I used red gasket maker in a lot of places. This time I’m opting for the Permatex thread sealant. Seems to do a good job. With the temperature sender in place I ran the sender lead to the right side. I was able to get the wire fitted inside the factory looms for the most part with a bit of effort. I then used 3M double sided tape and some small plastic wire brackets to run the lead over the heater box and down to a point where the lead goes straight to the sender – that way it should be far enough away from the exhaust manifold.

Next: more installation work

I went under the car to do a bit of a clean-up around the mid-crossmember and realized that there was just too much crud that I couldn’t get at under the car. Fortunately there are only four short and two long bolts to remove so an easy removal – especially since there was plenty of oily residue over them. ( and the parking brake mechanism needed to come off too)

Freshly painted with a coat of Tremclad satin rust paint. I’ll let it dry and give it a final coat of Tremclad gloss black – both are oil based.

While the paint is drying I went back underneath the car to clean off the thick oily crud from the floor pans and trans/driveshaft hump. Messy, but nice to have it cleaned up.

In between times I sandblasted the fan. I have a new fan clutch on the way. I’m puzzling now what colour to paint it – black, Chevy orange, silver???

My adapters arrived to fit the 2″ exhaust to the 2.5″ mufflers. The band clamps came in also so I’m pretty well ready to install the exhaust once the engine is back in.

Got a set of hangars for the C3, but as usual they needed mods for them to work right. Extra holes needed.

Lining everything up so the pipes are held in roughly the centre of the crossmember opening.

Using a scrap piece of 2″ pipe I’ve got the hanger in a nice spot. Now to do the other side.

Crossmember back in place and all is ready for the engine install:-)

Next: Getting the re-built engine in place.

This is supposed to be GM corporate blue. The original colour for this engine. A bit dark, but OK all the same.

Flex plate back on and tightened to 60’# in two stages.

Using the proper tool to put the harmonic dampener back on. I coated the inner seal surface with red engine assembly lube.

Crank bolt in place temporarily until the engine is in and they I can put the pulley’s in place.

Time to get the engine ready for the install.

Trans slipped on nicely once I got the engine in the right position. The trans is a TH250C and is rated for 275 ‘# of torque. This engine with flat top pistons and stage 1 cam should be about the same as a L82 which is rated at about 270’# torque at 3500 rpm. I’m thinking GM was conservative in their ratings for the trans so all should be good. I wouldn’t want to use it if I tended to spin the wheels or put the car on a drag strip.

I should have put the engine mounts and fuel pump on the car when it was on the engine stand – oh well! I like to put the fuel pump on early as it is a bear to get on with the engine in place. Only problem is the engine mount bolt has to come in from the back and spacers are needed to keep it from hitting the fuel pump – not a biggie.

Likewise for the filler tube and TV cable. The cable is also a real pain to install with the trans in place.

I hate the way the mufflers show under the back of the car. I’ve decided to give them a coat of black engine enamel so they don’t stand out so much.

Pipes and mufflers all painted with high temp and engine enamel. The mufflers didn’t come out as dark as I wanted. I mustn’t have shaken the can up enough when I did the two exhaust pipes and I used us most of the black pigment. I’ll leave them for 7-8 days ( paint has to sit that long to cure before painting over) and then give them a coat of semi-gloss black engine paint.

Next: getting the engine in.

In order to get at the back of the pan I had to remove the flexplate – not a biggie.

I’m using small balls of dum-dum to fill the bolt holes to keep paint out of the threads.

All primed up using Tremclad rust primer and regular Duplicolor automotive primer. I’ll need to add another full coat of Duplicolor primer – see problems below.

I went on to paint the seat bodies and hinge covers with doeskin spray paint I ordered in from Corvette Depot. The hinges came out fine, but when I put the paint to the seat bodies it dissolved the primer and wrinkled. It seems the Tremclad primer is not compatible with this vinyl paint. So it’s back to sanding and prepping again. I tested a patch on the inside of the body with regular Duplicolor paint and then the vinyl paint. It works fine. So I’ll have to re-prime the seats with regular automotive primer.

A little spare time so I went on to clean up the exhaust manifolds – they got a good coating of oil when I adjusted the valves and didn’t put the oil clips on the rocker arms! I’m also cleaning up the exhaust pipes and will paint them with VHT high temp black engine paint. For the price of the duals ($500) you’d think they’d be stainless. They’ll rust up very quickly unless I get some paint on them. All the band clamps and regular clamps are stainless.

Next: More painting

The seal went in place fairly easily. I used a couple of pieces of plywood under the upper sides so that I wouldn’t be hammering on a canted cover. I bought a set of seal insert tools, but for some dumb reason I ordered metric. I’m a bit stubborn and am using them anyway – I just turn them over. Not the best, but so far so good…

Plenty of cam startup lubricant on the chain and sprockets before installing the cover.

A messy coat of Permatex aircraft gasket compound before doing the install. The engine will likely leak some so I’m trying to keep it to a minimum.

In place and torqued to 80 “#. I’ve put an old set of valve covers on until I get the engine painted.

Before I put the pan in place I needed to do a distributor shaft check and set it to TDC

I bought a new distributor middle shaft with a metal collar. The seller recommended that the spacing be checked to be sure that there was play in the shaft when the dist. was in place. I found that I had about 1\4″ of play so no fear of binding there.

Next I located the engine’s TDC and then fiddled the oil pump shaft slot until I could get the rotor to point roughly in this location. That gives enough room for the dist. to be turned without the vacuum advance body to hit the intake.

I marked the intake where the rotor was pointing (X on left) and then slowly pulled the dist and marked the intake where it stopped turning to the left. I should be able to get it back in the right spot later. I will need to note the location of the oil pump shaft slot. I will be priming the engine with the oil pump before initial start up which will change the location of the oil pump shaft slot. I need to get it back to the right spot so the dist will slip in as it drops in place.

Time to put the pan on. Poor photo. Just trying to show the two alignment pins. There are two others on the other side. With all the gaskets in place I’m able to set the pan in place without the gaskets and pan moving around.

I missed taking a shot of the pan gaskets getting a coat of Permatex gasket sealant. I usually use red gasket sealant on the ends of the rear main and front pan gaskets. This time I’m trying the Permatex product.

I’ve made dummy gaskets for the fuel pump and the water pump openings so I don’t have to scrape paint off later.

Final block cleaning before priming and paint. Still need to tape off the exhausts, intake, etc.

Next: Taping and painting.

Ready for the heads to be installed.

I’ve given the new Fel-Pro beaded steel gaskets a coat of Permatex thread and gasket sealant.

Heads back on and bolts torqued to 65’# in the circular sequence recommended in the service manual.

Putting in the new lifters with lots of start-up lubrication supplied by the cam maker – Mahle.

I’m putting the push rods back in their original locations and I’ll also do the same with the rockers. At least the rocker-pushrod contact will not need to re-seat. The rocker/valve and pushrod/lifter will still need to re-seat themselves.

Rockers in place and tightened to the basic one turn from zero lash.

Cleaning the old red sealant from the intake and going over the gasket surface with scotch bright type pad.

I’ve modified the restrictor plates to completely block off exhaust gases from under the carb. Today’s fuels boil easily enough without the extra heat. I cut small rectangles of thin tin to sandwich between the two sides of the restrictor plates.

I used some red sealant on the ends of the front and rear gaskets and some around the water ports – on both sides of the gaskets. I tightened the manifold bolts just snug. I’ll torque them down to spec after letting the red sealant set for a day.

Next I’ll get the timing cover and pan in place before prepping the block for painting.

More stuff from Corvette Depot although they actually originated from Corvette Central in the US. All the parts needed to install them from the exhaust manifolds to the mufflers were included: exhaust manifold brackets, inserts and donuts and two muffler clamps. I prefer band clamps so I’ll need to order a couple of those and also find an adapter to join the 2″ tail pipe to the 2.5″ ID mufflers.

Next: More engine prep.

These two gas lines are just in front of the rear wheel. I don’t think they were from the factory. The metal lines must have been damaged and so were replaced. I’ll refit them with ethanol proof lines.

Lines replaced with nice new piping. Hopefully the rest of the lines are in good shape. I only see signs of light surface corrosion and the lines along the frame are nicely coated with some sort of undercoating. I’ve got a new fuel pump to carb line and the special S formed 3/8″ fuel line to feed the carb on order from Corvette Depot.

I just got a notice from Corvette Depot that they have shipped my new 2″ dual exhaust pipes. So time to get the old system off. First to remove is the two Walker quiet tone mufflers. I installed them with band clamps and lots of never-seize aluminum. They came off nice and easy.

I had to use my hand grinder with a zip cut wheel to get the pipes off. There was an inch wide hole at the junction point (red square). The pipes are a mess of sloppy welds and rust-throughs in a couple of other spots. The exhaust pipes are 2″ off the engine into 2.5″ leading to the mufflers. I will need to use a couple of 2″ to 2.5″ adapters to fit the new system into the mufflers. I figure that the increase in exhaust size is about 22%. over the single/split pipe system.

Just got notice that my cans of doeskin vinyl paint have shipped from Corvette Depot. Time to get the seats and hinge covers ready.

One seat primed and I’ll get the other done today.

Next: The new exhaust system has arrived.

The original felt padding on the two upper side panels just behind the seats has deteriorated beyond use. I picked up some nice soft sponge weather stripping (one side sticky) that fits nicely and seems to work fine.

Upper side panels in place and T-tops finished and installed. Time to get at the fuel lines.

The rubber boot around the gas cap is old, hard and dry. It split getting it out so that’ll have to be ordered.

Some minor surface rust. Not too bad overall. the ground connection might be a problem. The two rubber gas line extensions leading to the tank filler connection are what I want to replace with ethanol proof hose. Super tight spot to work in.

I managed to get the short pipes off the tank connectors, but there was no way to get at the inner clips, remove the pipes or hope to get new pipes in place. I did find that if I reached up behind the tank from under the car I could pull the two pipes over just enough to get access.

I measured two short lengths of 1/4″ and 3/8″ ethanol proof pipe and slid them over the exposed pipes and installed the clips. I would have been easier to use gear clamps as there is little room to get pliers in to squeeze the clips. The pipes are actually bent to the rear and I had to over bend them forward to get them to line up with the tank connections.

In the end the ground was so rusted that it broke off. Not a problem. I removed a bolt from the tank filler housing, sand blasted it and connected to it with a new U electrical connector on the bolt. The bolt’s fixed washer needed to fit flush with the housing so I slipped the connector between the bolt head and the washer.

New pipes clipped in place. The emissions system pipe on the left also needed to be replaced. I managed that with a set of curved long nose pliers through the gas filler opening.

An order in from Summit Racing. A Fel-Pro steel beaded gasket (.015 compressed), a few bottles of Lucas Zddp and four AC Delco oil filters.

To be sure of the gasket fit I matched it up to the new gasket – here the old one is on the bottom. All the holes matched up as they should. Soon time to get back to the motor and get the top end back on the block.

Next: Finishing the gas line work and on to the exhaust