View Full Version : a small block chevy in 1956
hey guys,
lets say its 1956, youv got your "mild custom" driver in the garage and you come acrost a new small block chevy out of a wrecked 55 210.
its just barely in your price range, and it would for sure turn your old beater into a killer sleeper
what would it look like??? im not talking like dream set up, im trying to find pix of what it would actualy look like in 56 on a tight budget.
what would the typical mods have ben? would they have put chrome valve covers on it or found corvet covers? or just let it and put a chrome air breather on it?
thanx in advance
tim
burger
10-01-2003, 01:14 PM
I've got a lot of magazines from '57/'58, and almost all of the feature cars were running Corvette valve covers and single or dual 4bbl carbs. What were the budget minded using? I don't know. My engine wears stock chevrolet script covers that I paid $5 for at a swap meet. They probably used the same ones back then for the same reason.
Ed
colorado51
10-01-2003, 01:23 PM
Since the Chevy OHV V8 was pretty new, I wonder how much aftermarket was available in 56? http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif Probably would have to use Vette stuff.
CruZer
10-01-2003, 01:25 PM
All of the older guys I knew could barely afford the motor.No dress up goodies. Fast was what we wanted,not good looks.
zonkola
10-01-2003, 01:27 PM
Maybe like this?
thats kinda what i was thinking, speed not looks.
orange corvette covers, and a 4 barel intake.
leave the intake bare or painted orange?
what about air breathers? big funky stock thing or tiny 4 inch chrome sandwich? what would ahve ben used.
headers or ram horns?
budget wise lets say.....hmmm let say your out of highschool in a mid paying job, just average. not making a killing but getting by alright.
the money for the motor came from lets say saving up forever for some new ride but the motor looked beter. or you just inherited the money. somthing like that
thanx
John Copeland
10-01-2003, 01:42 PM
I was 10 years old in 1956, so I probably wouldn't be a good source to answer this question. In 1965 though, I was out of go carts and mini bikes, and on my way into debt, building cars. I could go to the parts counter at the local Chevrolet garage (Casey Cole Chevrolet, Bradford, Pa.) and purchase a set of Corvette valve covers, with gaskets, for $8.40. There really wasn't much else to choose from.
Shoe
NealinCA
10-01-2003, 01:43 PM
[ QUOTE ]
headers or ram horns?
[/ QUOTE ]
I don't know if Corvettes used ramshorns, but all other 265's used these...
http://i1.ebayimg.com/03/i/00/b2/a0/c8_1.JPG
Neal
Deyomatic
10-01-2003, 02:34 PM
I don't know if they even would have used breathers, were brethers even available, or was it Road Draft Tube all the way.
Tudor
10-01-2003, 02:46 PM
breathers - that is just what I was think ing about - you definetly have to have the oil filler tube breather with the vette valve covers. The filler tube blows oil unless you hook up a mid 60's style pcv valve off the tube- an old guy told me everyone would stuff a sock in the tube to slow the oil down.
John Copeland
10-01-2003, 02:51 PM
I could be wrong, but I didn't think the Rams Horn style exhaust manifold showed up on anything till 1957. Non of the early valve covers had provisions for breathers. The breathers were on the top of the oil filler tube in the intake and a rear vent pipe that vented from the "oil can" in the lifter galley, to the rear vent tube. We used to weld tubes in the stock valve covers for additional vents.
Shoe
Fat Hack
10-01-2003, 02:58 PM
I had a very similar discussion with my brother-in-law along these lines. My premise was "What would the typical BACKYARD hot rodder have been running in 1964?". Magazines of the day show what the high-dollar guys were running on the contemporary rods of the time...but then as now, I don't think the feature cars in HOT ROD give an accurate overview of what Joe Average is/was running.
I figured on a 265 or 283 motor with a cast iron four barrel manifold and a single Carter carb, with stock points distributor, chrome coil, rams horn exhaust manifolds, four blade stock fan, chrome air cleaner, "Chevrolet" script valve covers and backed by a stock Powerglide. Maybe a reground cam and some performance mufflers for good measure.
My bro-in-law argued that a full tilt 327 would be period correct as well. My reasoning was that a backwoods shadetree hot rodder probably couldn't swing a hot new 327 (introduced in 1962 Vettes) and a host of speed parts on a real world budget of the day. I thought that my proposal was more representative of what you'd see in dual purpose hot rod/commuter car back in 1964.
I think the high buck gow jobs in national magazines would run 327s in 64, but you gotta remember that that was the cream of the crop back then...the "goldchainers" of their era, if you will http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif!!
The suggestions so far of sticking to a low frills small block sounds more believable to me than anything much more exotic than that for the home-brewed rods being built and driven back then!
Well although i wasnt born for another 10 years i studied the subject and have collected books on the subject and magazines and even talked to a few old guys who were there at the time at limey shows.It would seem if you could afford a newish v8 from a say year old chevy ,being from a topline car of the time you probably wouldnt dress it up at all.Apart from being cashless after the purchase the generally the engine ws a bloody pretty lump anyway also it would still have it's factory finish on rocker covers although you would probably want to put a remote behive type on the firewall as early sbc didnt have a filter mounted like the later sbc i think also the early engines had a different rocker cover screw arrangement too so on an early v8 even at the time they would be quite rare with no aftermarket parts available just yet and very little dress up parts.I must say though for the time it would be an astoundingly quick rod and the envy ofr the local hoods...............Paul....p.s .....i say hoods because at the time rodders were seen as scummy hooligan thugs .oh how times have changed thank GOD
**DONOTDELETE**
10-01-2003, 03:13 PM
One year earlier, in 1954, the Y block (why bother block) came out... how come you dont see happy teens puting that in their 40 Ford? I know a jackass that thinks those are the shit. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
tommy
10-01-2003, 03:19 PM
http://fototime.com/{8CF64956-A6D8-404A-95BB-73D316353244}/picture.JPG
While this was taken a few years ago, this is what most of the hot rods looked like when I got started. This is a barn fresh 34 p/u hot rod from that era. Notice the workmanship or lack there of. There were plenty of beautiful hot rods but the majority were rather rough by todays standards. I love the time warp. We've come a long way baby.
Think about the differnce between a current (gold chain) magazine car and the average? home grown hot rod. The magazine cars of the day had about the same separation from the home grown hot rods of that day. If you had a torch and a buzz box you were well equiped. IMHO
rickyracer1962
10-01-2003, 03:21 PM
hahaha. fag. they wouldn't have valve covers from speedway, block hugger headers, chrome carb scoops, or flex fans.
[ QUOTE ]
headers or ram horns?
[/ QUOTE ]
If you made your own headers and stick or oxy welded them it would be period for a poor but somewhat talented guy.
thanx for the info guys,
what i was asking when i said air breathers i ment in like an air filter on the carb not on the valve covers
thanx
tim
Tommy any chance of getting a gander at the rest of the car?if you got em plenty of pics please...........Mad Marq
k9racer
10-01-2003, 07:53 PM
about the best do do on a budget was a duntof 097 cam it had the grove on the back journal as a 55 did not have a groved cam bearing a dual point conversion and if you were rich a 3 two intake.and a set of try Y headers from headman or you made your own from old bed steds or ends they had good curves and you cut out your own flange with a torch and use a coat hanger for welding rod. oh yes a truck clutch and 53 dump truck mufflers
tommy
10-01-2003, 08:05 PM
Marq, no that's all I have. It was on a roll back. It was a rough and ready hot rod. I couldn't resist a picture of what they really looked like back in the day.
AHotRod
10-01-2003, 10:27 PM
Tim,
I think it would be painted nice...that's it!
Harrison
10-01-2003, 10:34 PM
Perfect...
Robert
10-02-2003, 12:46 AM
In 1961 I had a 1952 chevy and swapped in a 1956 265 just to make it a little faster. Dropped it in out in the street under a tree that I hung a block and tackle from. I bolted it to the stock 52 transmission with a fenton floorshift and stock rearend. Drove it for less than a year until I raced the wrong guy and got beat. Went down to the chevy dealer and bought a 327 corvette shortblock ($237.50) and used the heads and manifolds off the 265 (about 11:1 compression). Never did put any chrome or corvette valve covers on it. Never let anyone look under the hood either. Loved that car! (and never blew a trans or rearend!)
Elrusto
10-02-2003, 11:07 AM
Love that car man!! Did you use the 62 bellhousing to mate it to the trans? I was thinking about putting a 283 in my 47 Fleetline bt I kinda wondered about what bellhousing to use.
Django
10-03-2003, 03:44 PM
Can I add a little twist to this thread? When did the 289 or 260(?) start showing up in cars? What was the first year? 63? Maybe 62?
Second question: Would it look out of place to have a caddy air cleaner with finned valve covers? I'm going to do it anyway, but just curious...
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
Rocky
10-03-2003, 05:12 PM
In '64 I ran a 53 Merc motor in my 50 crestliner. Had fresh paint and a 4 bbl with chrome nut covers, chrome oil filler cap and a chrome air cleaner. Later, I pulled the merc and stuffed it into my 41 tudor...
Chevy engines were way beyond the means of a 16 year old kid. At 17,I did take the engine outa my hog-mobile 56 Olds 98 and plop it into a cherry $10 dark green 50 ford tudor body.No pretty stuff on it.
zonkola
10-03-2003, 05:13 PM
The first year of the SBF was 1962. You could probably make an argument for an enterprising young hot rodder hanging out at the tow yards looking for wrecked Falcons and Fairlanes if you wanted to be period correct. As far as I can tell, the SBFs were considered kind of exotic in hot rod terms, appearing on show cars with cobra valve covers more than on street cars. That's my impression from the books and magazines, anyway.
As for Tim's air cleaner question, this kind of aircleaner is one of my personal favorites for a four barrel 50's look:
brutus t maximus
10-04-2003, 02:26 AM
hey tommy:
when was that picture taken?
i figure it was taken in about the mid to late 70's, and had the wiring done in the early 70's or so.... i dont think it likely was done much earlier than 71 or so.
the nylon stay straps were something you got at the motorcycle shops back then and they were about a buck a piece.... i remember bike guys using a sharp pic to unlock them so they could reuse them and save the buck!!
looks like he had 20 bucks in straps alone.... that was a lot of mulah to some of us back then... hell i bought whole cars running for that kind of money!!!
bob
tommy
10-04-2003, 10:51 AM
The picture was taken 2 years ago in the flea market at the Nats East. Who knows when it was built. I figured somebody tried to tidy up the wiring by adding the tie wraps later. I see remnants of the black electrical tape that was state of the art for harness making. The generator, fuel pump and carb. all say early sixtys to me. While I've seen current craftsmanship like that, by the 70's we had cleaned up our act conciderably.
I'm figuring 57 up 283/327. With the plug wire heat shields, it looks like the ram horns were factory installed. Anybody recognize the carb. I seem to remember the 327/250 used a WCFB and the 300hp used an AFB.
286merc
10-04-2003, 11:55 AM
By 64 I had already been thru several 57 build ups. Engines were 283 junkyard pulls with trips to the Chevy parts counter for some Vette stuff. Most clubs or groups had somebody who worked behind a Chevy counter so we got stuff cheap.
Nobody with at least a dollar in their pocket wanted a 265 by then.
By 64 the 327 was showing up regularly in junkyards and snagging a cheap wide pattern intake with the AFB wasnt hard from head-on wrecks.
The rich guys were grabbing 4 spds, the rest were scrounging the 3spd OD box and using a 4.56 rear from OD equipped 55-7 wagons.
I cant think of anyone back then who would even think of using a cast iron PG in anything. The Turboglide got a bad reputation right out of the box so that was another no go. My first TH350 swap experience was in 72.
By 67 I had gotten married and sold off the 64 GTO racer to use as a part down payment on my 1st house (a 57 ragtop was the other part of the downpayment) and soon after I began a many year love affair with the 62-4 Impalas. Those were built with 327, 350 and even a 409. By that time 4spds were everywhere for low bucks as well as pedal assemblies to convert from a PG.
It wasnt until 70 that I had a true rod and that was originally a 59A powered 36 5 window, by 72 that had a 327 (needed a p/u Ram iffn I remember)and I had the joy of breaking 39 boxes and banjo rears.
Stayed with SBC's into the mid 80's when I got religion and started a new cycle with early OHV's in anything but Fords and those got flattys. Somewhere in there I discovered the Y Block which I had completely ignored in the earlier years.
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