"I'm going to have to spend some coin on a good set of heads, or dump a bunch of money into my heads to make this thing run into the 12's. " Pretty sure you said that..I'm just trying to prove to you, you don't. Go ahead ..Send your heads to Butler...He's a good guy ..or whoever you want..You're the one who said you were on a budget. The rod comment was addressed to someone else on this thread , or at least on every other Pontiac thread that will say that stock rods will break easily. I guess ,while I'm hijacking tonight , I ought to point out to Waddayaknow , that the 62 car had a mostly stock 200 4 R and ran in the 11's with a 455 ..You know, the kinda trans that will fall apart in a light SBC street rod.
Not arguing here either. I have friends that are auto trans rebuilders,and both the 200 R4 and 700 R4 can and will live when built right. Lot's of 9 and 10 second Turbo Buicks running 200 R4's. Honestly,Thanks for the build details and specs on your cars, they are both real nice combo's that obviously work well. Have a good evening.
i like your build and that you are all pontiac engine supporters.heads is the key and for those with a budget as me i got a jim hand book and ported my heads took me 40hours. for both and butler maby take 10hours to port so it there time and experience you pay for. for those scared about rods pontiac rods from factory had alimit on specs 5800 rmm and for the better ones 300rpm more i run 1/8 on 9.5 with my 1963 catalina with an 1966 389 303hp /4 speed.but a new engine is on engine stand.
I also owned a 58 Pontiac with a 389 engine if my memory is correct. It was black with white on the side inserts and a black interior. Cool project and best of luck with it. Jimbo
There are a lot of 13-15 sec. Cars that run at the meltdown. You should have no trouble finding a race, but remember to send a pic of the car and wheels to get your registration number. www.meltdowndrags.com
Well, after doing some internet research, there are bushings available for the control arms, but the single bushing above the third member isn't reproduced, so I took some measurements, and made one at work, and used Urethane rubber. Making my own Urethane bushings for the control arms also. I didn't realize how much of a pain in the ass it is finding parts for 55 year old cars. Called Fab Craft and bought the Safe-T-Track rebuild kit, and boy did this thing need it. Had broken clutch plates,ears missing,etc. Good as new now. Nice 4.30 gear. The guy's at Fab Craft are great,very knowledgeable and helpful. Highly recommend them. A little behind schedule(or at least where I wanted to be by this time), had to keep momma happy and do a house project, only had to paint the whole first floor of the house. Short block is assembled, just need to finish porting the heads, I mean heads are out getting a valve job.
Neat picture John, Thanks. Thanks. The car sat in a barn with a bad roof, so it was subjected to a fair share of moisture, so it has a lot of surface rust. The majority of the rust you see is superficial, with a couple small holes down low. All the bracing and underbody structure is very solid. I've only broken 1 bolt taking it apart. Not bad for a 55 year old car.
62's are a good head if you can find some. Good luck with the build, I hope to make it to meltdown sometime in the future. Also, what year is that engine you currently have? 58-62 rods are decent forgings.
I'm just using what I have for now. It's a complete 67 400 that was a high compression 2bbl with # 143 heads. We'll see what she'll do with this.
A little behind schedule on where I wanted to be with the car. Finished the brakes up today, minus bleeding. Rebuilt the 4.30 Safe-T-Track with parts from Fab Craft, got it back together and wrestled this dump truck wannabe rear back into place. Boxed the lower rear control arms. Engine will be together this week. Just need to order my 57 chevy gas tank, and figure out a radiator that will fit, make an exhaust system, and finish this thing up. I'm getting spring fever, lot's of old iron out today in the nice weather after a LOOOONG Winter that didn't want to let go.
Engine was set into place today. Ordered a radiator from engineered cooling products, nice all aluminum, american made. Had to do a few modifications to the radiator support to make it work, but I think it's going to do the job. Ignore the dorky looking air breather, it's just there to keep anything from getting into the engine. Still need to get the gas tank and figure out the exhaust, but I hope to have it running in the very near future.
Broke the cam in Saturday, threw the fenders and Hood on, and dragged her back home. Still lot's of little stuff to do, but it runs and moves under it's own power, which it hasn't done since the very early 70's, when it was retired.
If anyone knows someone looking for a 58 Pontiac Drag car project,they may want to contact me. The car isn't up for sale, but could be bought, or it can just sit in the corner of my barn for a while until I get back to it. All the hard work is done, it just needs minor tinkering,and the bugs worked out. Could be sold running or rolling, with or without tires/wheels. I'm thinking it's time for me to build a 62-65 Mopar B-body that I've been wanting to do for a while.
Make it a 65 Plymouth two door post car if you would. Any color is fine with me, I'm not really picky.
What master cylinder did you use? I need to change the one I have on my safari and get rid of that obsolete single power setup it has Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app
It was for a 67 Chevelle A-body, the first year they went away from the single reservoir unit. Bolted right up, and the brake pushrod length was fine too.
Look for this in the classified section here on the HAMB. I took this car apart with a 3/8 ratchet, and I only broke 1 bolt, and that was a lower front fender cage nut. The car has lot's of spots of surface rust, but only a few small holes, It's surprisingly solid underneath. The under body braces are all solid. This will make a fun toy, and someone is going to be the first to bring it out in public in nearly 40 years. Needs a front end alignment,brakes adjusted-up,exhaust(if it's going on the street), and minor tinkering with the park lights, brake lights,etc.(I haven't plugged the front harness back in yet, as I was going to take the fenders off again) The car does run and move, I've driven it around my circle drive, and did a couple hole shots.Nice tight POSI.
Please bring it out to Sins of Steel or Midnight Mass....lots of potential buyers walking around and us Michigan folks would like to see it
Put new carpet in yesterday, cleaning up the seats, and making a package tray today. Maybe will try to get the front end alignment and exhaust done this week.
short action clip of the car. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=yWuCt5sTBR8#! Last call, and final price drop in the classifieds here on the HAMB.
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