Customs 57 Chevy Budget 4 door build

Have to ask again, Did you already get the distributor in correctly? rotary button turned to #1 plug wire position with #1 piston to top dead center on compression stroke?

 

That's Awesome. It's not everyone that can follow and understand them.

 

It looks like your carb has a vacuum port on the rear that needs to be plugged. You can just put in a bolt in a longer rubber hose for a temporary fix. The port is for a power brake booster, later you can put a pipe plug in the carb to tidy it up a little. Pipe threads are tapered so they get bigger as they go in, be careful not to overtighten it. It would be best if you use a thread sealant and snug it up a little.

 

Looking at the picture again the vacuum tree right behind the carb also needs to be plugged with some smaller hose and a bolt or screw, or buy a cap plug kit from your local auto parts store. The engine may start but will not run at idle with any vacuum leaks making air/fuel and timing adjustments impossible. I looked back in the thread but didn't see a recent engine pic, disregard if you have gotten past this point. Good luck with your project, you are doing some impressive work.

 

Also directly behind the vacuum tree the vacuum advance on the distributer isn't connected. This should go to a ported connection on the Carb not connected to the tree.

 

100 years ago i could wire up the tri-5's dang near blindfolded
not no more...lol
I can't even (twist) myself into a pretzel to get under there....Ouch...

 

Yeah i got the distributor in right, i had it 180 off the first time but i pulled it out and got it on tdc and dropped it in and it’s perfect now. Thank you for the heads up on the vacuum ports, i’ll plug the unused ones and get my vacuum advance put together


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Since this is a 283 and it’s got a pcv valve on the back of the block, can i leave that unplugged? The breather holes in the valve covers should be good enough for ventilation but i’m not sure if i should run a line from the pcv to the base of the carb or not


What’cha got in there, kid?
More than you can handle!

 

You do not have to have the PVC connected just to get it running. You can do that later today.

 

Battery is still charging so hopefully i’ll get to it before the day is over, it’s the warmest it’s been for 2 weeks here today


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Funny you say that. I hate working under the dash these day's myself.

 

What kind of battery charger did you buy out of curiosity? I have an older Montgomery Wards (that should tell how old it is! I inherited it from my father in 1987 ) 10 amp charger that will charge batteries when I am working on these old cars in pretty quick order. It's just a regular old 6/12 volt battery charger. If you started charging it last night I would think it would be more than charged by now, depending on what kind of charger it is.

 

It’s a trickle charger and maintainer, says it takes around 16 hours to charge a dead battery


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Ahhh.....well just remember, a battery that is weak and barely turning an engine over isn't a dead battery. You may be OK to try to start the engine by now if that is all you are waiting on. We need a video of the engine running! Go Pineapple Go!

 

Oh it wasn’t turning anything, by the time i got the distributor in there was nothing left, starter just hummed.


What’cha got in there, kid?
More than you can handle!

 

That is where you should wire an electric choke [to keep it from the ignition circuit]
Aussie XF Falcons with a Bosch Alt had a wire from the Alt to the carb

 

I think the battery might be toast. It’s still not charged and my battery tender is red and occasionally flashes green, looked it up online and people are saying that might mean the battery is dead. This battery has been ran down a couple times


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Just go grab a cheapy for $80.00 and throw it in.

Sent from my XT1585 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Damn, i dont think i was getting a good ground for the charger is what was happening. I moved the ground cable from the tarnished rams horn to an engine mount bolt, doesn’t seem to be flashing anymore


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

A car battery can be "ran done" more than just a couple of times before it "goes bad". Why aren't you using the clamps from the trickle charger directly to the battery posts?

 

A charger should be connected directly to the battery for best results......
I would drag it backwards a little and try to jump start it off the truck if I were this close.
and like I have said before I like starting fluid for starting one verses pouring too much gas in the carb and taking a chance on flooding it or starting a fire.
Got good points and set?
A real low battery sometime will cause the the starter gear to stick in the flywheel too causing it to only hum so like I have said before on the six, you may want to rotate the crank back and fourth to make sure the gear isnt stuck engaged.

 

The instructions for the charger say to put the ground cable on a clean part of the frame away from the battery, or a long ground cable end if out of the car. Yeah i did get the starter wedged, had to take out one of the starter bolts and wiggle it. I’ve been using starting spray when i want to try to start it

 

On those little battery tenders, when the RED light is on indicates power, the GREEN light indicates that it's charging. Also I would hook it directly to the battery and bring the battery in the house where it's warm.

 

Instructions today are written to protect manufactures from liabilities that may be placed against them even if it's the consumers fault. They just don't want a spark to happen at or near the battery that could cause an explosion.

 

I honestly dont know much about tenders,actually thought they were only to maintain a battery that was sitting over a period of time. Dragging it out and trying to jump start it may just be getting in a hurry, having it charged correctly would be better but thats probably what I would still try if I were close or......

I remember a while back I got everything together on a 55 I had, but didnt have a battery on hand so I stole the little battery off my riding mower and clamped the cable ends to it with vice grips and whataya know It worked fine and I got er fired up with it

 

Agree. The most popular one we've all seen advertised and sold had this to say in it's instruction's. "Not intended for charging dead batteries"

 

... I'm thinkin' it might take a month of Sunday's trying to charge your battery with that charger/tender ... I suspect even if you did get it charged enough to turn it over ... you would probably run out of juice in a hurry if you didn't have that engine set up near perfect to fire on the first try ... Too bad you can't find someone willing to give you a jump so can at least see if it wants to start ...

 

here ya go.


What’cha got in there, kid?
More than you can handle!

 

Again just grab a cheapy battery from NAPA or O'Reilly s drop it in and go. You have way more patience than me waiting on a battery charger let alone a tender. For 2 days, if your battery ends up being good in the end, just return the battery to said store.

Sent from my XT1585 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

A cheapy battery for 80 bucks unfortunately that may be reality but 80 bucks obviously is more money to some of us than others.....I saw some generic brand ones recently at wally world for around 45.