Projects 56 Chevy 210 Hardtop Build

Old wolf is right...There's a reason tech inspectors want to see no more than 12" total of rubber line on the car,especially with the way that ethanol turns it to mush.
Find a buddy who's real good at bending tubing,and he will let you practice with his benders,and coach you through it.
It is very frustrating at first,but once you get good at it,you'll be making up fuel and brake lines like its nothing.
Just remember to always keep the stationary side of the benders to the left,the hinged part that does the bending to the right,and work from left to right like reading a book.

Now hurry up and do all the mechanical shit so we can see that cool paint scheme you came up with!

Scott

 

Upon thinking about it, the car does have a metal line run all the way from the tank to the fuel pump, so really it won't be much work to make something to go from the pump to the carb. Maybe I can use a piece of braided fuel line? It will be much easier to fabricate something with the motor out as it is now, as I'm sure there's plenty I can do while waiting springs, retainers, and keepers to get here for my heads.

 

the motor getting ready to be hoisted out (you can see metal line to fuel pump from the tank between the starter and the fuel pump)


Kevin, Dad, and Alec using the new (to us) 12 ton engine hoist we paid $100 for

Motor and trans are out!

Intake is off, discovered that burnt looking substance in the valley. Almost like burnt paint (lead to believe it is because whoever painted this motor pained the entire thing orange down to the distributer and the plugs...) or some sort of substance. It was crisp like overdone bacon.


I now have the heads off and discovered 3 white (which I think means burnt) exhaust valves on each of the 993 heads. The piston and cylinders look good however and don't have any marks leading me to believe there isn't any damage. Cylinders could probably be honed .30 with new pistons but it isn't in the budget at the moment. I eventually dropped the pan after finding that burnt stuff only to find very little in the very bottom of the pan. Plan on using a deeper pan anyways. More to come soon!

 

That burnt stuff is oil that has been cooked from coming into contact with the heat crossover passage in the intake. There is supposed to be a metal shield to prevent the oil from making contact. white color on the exhaust valves simply means they are white. The cyl is burning good & hot. White color doesnt indicate burned valves. Its impossible to hone a cyl even .030. that is thirty thousands the only way to remove that amount of metal is a machine shop boring machine. .30 is 3hundred thousands and you would strike water jackets if you bored it that amount.

 

So did you cut the radiator support to remove the engine or was that done when you got it? A very popular thing to do back in the good old days when you were removing and replacing the engines in race cars all the time.

 

Thanks for the clarification on the burnt substance. Also meant .030 over, plus I also was under the impression that boring and honing were the same thing. You know how the saying goes...

I actually just removed the top bar that runs from fender well to fender well, 8 easy to access bolts, nothing difficult. I think thats what you're talking about. Also the radiator mounts in front of the support bar.

 

Its nice to see young folks working on a old tri five. they are learning on a very good type of car to begin with. I never remove the radiator support. I remove the entire front clip. Its not really that hard. And it makes access so much easier. and you can really clean up and paint the frame and front suspension. No need to remove the hood. Pictured is my 56 4door minus the front clip.

 

I assumed you meant .030. A hone is used to scuff the glaze on the cyls. You hone the cyls when doing a ring job without boring the bloc oversize. If you radiator is in front of the support that's what is referred to as the 6 cyl position. That's what you want if you ever install a big block engine. Ask any questions you want. Im 64 and been nmessing with tri fives for fifty years. and I still learn new things all the time.

 

Well today I took a little bit of time to mess with my Muncie M20. I mounted the Hurst Competition Plus and came up with a few old pieces of linkage and crafted something out of what I had. Once I had everything assembled I shifted through just to see if everything would work the way it's supposed to and I couldn't get the trans into 4th. I popped the side cover off and found that one of the "rooster combs" has a small hang up on the neutral position before the 4th gear position. I assume I should be alright to file it down.

 

Looking Good stay after it

 

Hey I'll be at the meltdowns this year and I will expect to see you there! From an 18 year old that is taking a similar walk in life as you, I say good luck and I can't wait to watch this build.

 

I just completely ate the spider gears out of an open differential 3.73 3rd member in my 62. Just A loped up 283 in a cruiser and sure enough it self destructed lol. These rear ends aren't made for much beating!

 

Get used to it LOL. Breaking rear ends is part of hot Rodding. If you never break one you are down on power or driving it too slow.

 

Glad to see you're registered for the Meltdown!
Now you need to start slingin' some shit over there about who you wanna race,who you're gonna beat,etc!
We all love that shit.Its a great time!lol!
Welcome to the sideshow Brother!

Scott

 

Well, I'll be sure to bring extra rear end parts with me when I do go the meltdowns. Extra gears, extra posi unit, and whatever else I can come up with.

What I'm currently looking at, is how to get some weight out of the car. With a somewhat mild engine build fro now, I figure my best way to go faster, is to go lighter. I'd like to get the car down to around about 3000 with a driver of 135lbs. I have always wanted to do fiberglass on the car, but I am unsure of things such as when things like pin on trunk lids and hoods came out. I think that fiberglass fenders would definitely be a cool addition to the build, but I'm also into the one piece tilt front end. I also probably will remove the rear seat for when I am at the track, and I'll see if I can come up with some red lexan. Anyone know where to find any, or what other ways I could lighten this thing up?

 

I'll just be glad to have the car go down the track! I'd be glad to go up against anyone! Maybe Koop's Orange 55 with stock suspension up front and that 301 Chevy, if that's actually what's under the hood.

 

Yeah,Koop's a hardcore 283/301/327 guy!

Don't mess with that Gold Car though....Its mean as a rattlesnake!

For taking weight out,I would start by removing anything non-essential from the car,such as the back seat you mentioned.
I also pulled the heater box,core,hoses,and all cables and control mechanism,plus the radio,speakers,and all associated wiring.
Here's a list of some things that can be done to lighten it up a bit:

-pull radio,speakers etc
-pull heater & associated parts
-pull all sound deadener and insulation from under carpet and firewall
-scrape off tar undercoating and paint black
-lean instead of glass (pricey,but it's something to think about for later maybe?)
-glass front end (later)
-remove stock front bumper and all brackets and hardware (I believe you're already there)
-aluminum intake instead of cast iron
-headers instead of manifolds
-leave the exhaust at home (free)

 

Also,if you are bored some day,take out the rear bumper bolts,fender bolts,etc and drill them so the threaded portion is hollow.It will take forever,but it's free weight for the obsessive compulsive in you.
Super stock and stock eliminator guys have been using aluminum fasteners for years

 

Okay, I'm looking into getting a set of pistons and I am having a hard time deciding between the Flat Tops and the Domes. If I didn't plan to drive this car on the street as frequently, I would no doubt choose the domed. My issue is using the iron 2.02/1.60 Double Humps. I've heard to not go over 10.5:1 compression with iron heads on 93 octane. Flat tops would give me about 10.25:1 and domed would be 11.25:1.

Where I run into problems is with my camshaft.
Here is the cam card: http://www.compcams.com/Company/CC/cam-specs/Details.aspx?csid=82&sb=0

My cam is actually .555/.555 lift as it is an early grind of this camshaft. I also wonder how much compression I can bleed off?

Anyone have any ideas or recommendations?

 

go with the flat top pistons.

 

That's a pretty awesome cam for your first motor!
A guy around here used to run the solid lifter version of that in a 355" motor in a 2nd gen Z28 camaro with a set of 4:10 gears,and it was one hell of a strong runner.
While the pistons and rods are out,get a set of ARP rod bolts for it,cause it's gonna love to rev like crazy!
As for the compression,I was able to get away with 10.5:1 honest compression in my iron headed 302" motor with a lot less cam than you're gonna be running.
My car is a fair bit lighter than yours,which helps,but you can kinda simulate a lighter car to some extent by running a deeper gear (like a 4.56 or a 4.88 instead of a 3.42 or a 3.55).
You should have no problem running around town on 92 octane with iron heads and that cam....I think 10.25-10.5:1 compression would work pretty good for you,and be reliable (meaning not pinging all the time).
Honestly,it might be able to use a bit more compression,but at a little over 10:1,you should be enjoying a pretty strong,trouble free setup.

Just my $0.02 worth,but I would say run whatever decent aluminum intake you can find on Craig's list or at the swap meet for a decent price (I would say a single plane would make that cam happiest,but if you find a performer rpm or an old Z/28 intake for a great deal do it!)
I would run a 750 Holley if I had my choice,and make sure the distributor is in good shape with no slop in the shaft,and put some light springs in it to get the advance to come in quick.
Have a graybeard help you out with getting the advance curve right.It will really make a difference in the way the engine runs
If you can get somebody competent to show you a little bit about basic porting,you will be able to get some free power out of those heads while they're already off the motor.You don't have to get crazy,just clean things up a bit,and you will be really impressed with the results,and have bragging rights: "Who ported your heads?" ....."Oh,I did."

Basically,decent stuff on the intake side (carb that works good,decent intake,and decent heads),light the fire efficiently (good distributor set up well),and get the bad air out (decent headers and exhaust.Take whatever you can get that fits the car,but bigger is probably going to be better with that cam.)

It doesn't all have to be brand new,cutting edge stuff (carb and intake are a good example),and there are millions of guys with good running abc motors out there,so it's relatively easy to find deals on parts.
The only areas you REALLY need to spend the extra bucks on are:
-Quality machine work (a bad shop will not only waste your time and money,you will have to have the work re-done by a good shop,doubling the expense.)
-Valvetrain parts: Good valve springs,locks,and retainers will make the difference between your engine living a long,happy life,or eating itself the first time you try to run it out past 6000rpm.

Man,I can't wait to see this car and say hello at the Meltdown!

Scott

 

I actually have an aluminum Edelbrock Victor Jr that I will be using and I am currently looking for a 750 Holley to use. The headers I have are 1 3/4" tubes with a 3" exit. I also just ordered brand new springs, retainers, & keepers through my machinist. He's a one man show that's very reasonable and has a ton of experience.

Anyways, it sounds like I'll be going with the flat tops, and maybe a set of deeper gears. Right now I've only got a set of 3.55 and 4.11s.

 

That sounds like as close to perfect as you can get!

 

Glad to see you guys out in the shop wrenching. Investing in a stronger rear end will be money ahead for you down the road. You'll bust up all the stock stuff as soon as the slicks hook up. Been there. Good luck with your build.

 

Well, today I went to the Midwest Speed Expo and picked up a set of .060 over flat top pistons with the wrist pins for a whopping $40. Funny thing, my machinist was at the show set up in the booth directly across from the pistons. So, I just ran them over to him and asked his opinion. He said I ought to have no problems with .060 over with the 1972 block. These will end up turning the 350 into a 360, nothing wrong with 10 more cubes I suppose. Oh and you can't forget the higher compression while maintaining streetability!

 

I'm pumped for this build man. I love watching you build this being a young guy like me. You know your stuff man!

 

Those pistons are a cast, a rebuilder type piston, that will be down .020 more in the bore than stock pistons, plus they have steel support struts; not a racing piston by any means. Compression killers for sure. I'm not critisizing, just stating facts. I gave away 2 sets of cast, domed pistons for a 350 a few years back, as door prizes at the end of year, racers banguet for Bremerton Raceway. I have a set of forged, flat top, single valve trough pistons/rods I would donate to you for the shipping, if you're interested. I'd have to check, but they're either standard or .030 over. Better than what you have, but still not a high enough compression unless you use small chamber heads. They are not a rebuilder piston, and will offer the most compression you can get for the design (2 eyebrows would be best for flat tops) Some of the "claimer" type engine parts catalog people offer fairly cheap, cast, domed pistons also. I also have a set of NEW, 5.57, 55-64 Chevrolet gears (I believe that's the ratio, I'd have to check), same deal for shipping only. You'd need a ring gear spacer, or 3-4 series carrier; a Positraction (Dana Arma Steel) would offer a big increase in strength with a 4 pinion spider setup over an open rear ends 2 (and the Eaton style Posi). I'm doing some cleaning out of my shop, and there may be other things you could use. P.M. if interested. I am Butch/56sedandelivery.

 

Take him up on this!!!!^^^^^^

 

56sedandelivery,that is a very cool thing you're doing.
I totally could have used that kind of help when I was a young guy getting started.
Your "Karma Stock" is through the roof Brother!

Scott

 

I gladly will take you up on this Butch! I'll see if I can send you a direct message! You have no idea how much this helps!