Customs 57 Chevy Budget 4 door build

Thanks for checking in. It's appreciated. School must come first as the end product of that education is going to be your livelihood. You need to give the six a little more time. Everything you learn here about it will apply to the V8 once you try to get it started. With what you learn from this experience will never be forgotten or gone to waste.

 

I doubt you have a stuck valve but if you do, I believe a fully charged battery and a good starter would overpower and simply bend the pushrod to that valve so you need to remove the rocker cover and watch the movement as the engine is cranked, looking for a rocker slightly or most probable not moving at all. A compression test will do it too. Good luck Ralphie.

 

^^^ What he said. Push rods are plentiful and cheap.

 

Well, if the engine will turn over (and a stuck valve will not stop that on your 235) just pull the valve cover and see if everything is going up and down...if a rocker arm is sitting nice and happy not moving...neither is the valve. If you still have my pm with my number, call me when you are in front of the car and ready to figure some things out.

I'm really surprised no local HAMB'rs are wiling to lend this young man a hand....

 

someone else mentioned it could have jumped timing, any easy way to check that? Is that where my points and distributor come into play? In the manual it talks about putting a timing light on the spark plug wire and checking timing that way, but if i cant even get the engine to turn, i can't do it that way.

 

I mentioned a while back in your thread about the possibility of a time jump. If it is, then you have a valve or more hitting the top of a piston keeping the crank from turning any more . I had mentioned also that you can take the pressure from the valve springs off and then see if it will turn. But bear with me and try this before you loosen anything. Take off your valve cover and look at your valve train. Some will be closed, some open and some in between. Take out your spark plugs , all of them and stick a small piece of stiff wire in each cyl [one at a time,] to see if you can feel the piston top. On to the next and so on. Remember you do not want to feel your piston at the top on any cyl with a valve that is not in a seated position. If you have the piston colliding with an open valve, then it will lock you up. If it passes this test, the you have something else going on and it wont cost you a dime to try.

 

alright, yeah i'll give that a try. Hopefully the problem is something that's been mentioned so i can just reference these posts to fix it.

 

So, I've been thinking a lot about this because i really want to get this engine to at least pop this weekend, The parking brake wouldn't stop the engine, right? If i had the clutch held down and the wheels off the ground, even if the parking brake was stuck engaged, I should be able to get the engine to turn if i'm not mistaken. Which would mean that either i jumped timing, or the flywheel is jammed up on something. I think with these tri fives you can get to the flywheel from inside under the dash, and just move it with a big screwdriver. I can try to do that and if the flywheel moves, i'll know for sure it's an engine problem and not a trans problem. If the flywheel won't move even with the clutch in, then i could be stuck in drive with a broken clutch, or something else.

 

Oh and here's a pic of what the balancer looks like on 1957 235s. It has 2 holes where you can put bolts and then put a breaker bar in between.

 

Ok your last post shows some confusion. Try this, as all the posts above give some very good ideas.
1. Drop your driveshaft. At least the end at the rear end. This will determine if the e-brake has you locked or the rear end itself.
2.If you are still locked after that, Check to see if your starter is locked and engaged to your flywheel.
3.If its good and you are still locked after that check, Try turning your engine backwards, in case a dropped bolt or something has you locked
4. If that doesn't help remove your valve cover and look for the issues stated above about stuck valves and timing jump.
5.The last resort and it is a possibility. Remove your transmission. Even though you have determined it is in neutral, there could be internal problems causing the issue.
6. If you are still locked at this point, you have not spent any money troubleshooting and you will have then seen by now, if the problem is the rear end, the tranny, or the motor. That is the proper way to trouble shoot any problem. You divide the components and go from there. Good luck and this process wont take but half of Saturday so we look forward to your progress.

 

I just can't see the point in wasting so much time on the 6 cyl. You can have a 350/350 combo bolted in the car for at or under $1000.00

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That’s what i’ve been thinking all along, and as it gets closer to winter the more i want to just yank the 6 out. Plus it would be a perfect engine for a first rebuild. I’m thinking of just getting a 200r4 and a 283 and throwing that in, i could probably do it for $700, and then all i’d need to do is replace some brake parts and put some tires on it and i’d be cruising before winter starts and i have to fix the heater

 

Heaters and Wipers are Overrated. My heater core was bad on my 55 so I blocked it off and have no electric wiper motor so they really didn't work after the v8 swap with a cam vs the 6 cyl. Been looking for a factory electric wiper motor with no luck. So I have been cruising with No heat or wipers for 3 years now. It gets a bit tricky in the fall right now with temps dropping down to 40's in the mornings with no wipers or defrost in the morning.

 

Well i can't say i haven't been looking for parts for my swap, i almost got that 3 speed tranny from the 65 truck, i can't decide if i want an auto or stick though.

 

Something like this: $650 and i can hear/see it run.

https://stlouis.craigslist.org/pts/d/chev-350-with-2sp-power-glide/6318191423.html

 

I wouldn't do a powerglide though, you'll regret it later. Best bet would be to just look at a 96-99 Vortec 350 Engine from a 2wd Pickup. You will have a nice powerful and reliable engine package and the best transmission you can get. We buy these for $600.00-$800.00 running and driving. Then you need to just get a controller for the transmission for $200-$500.

 

I'd go for one of those but I like the old head style with the 4 bolt valve covers better

 

They make adapters to put the old valve covers on the center bolt heads.

 

Something to keep in mind if you decide to swap in a V8.......Since it already is a stick shift, it would be easier to keep it a stick shift rather than change to an automatic. Much less work is involved and fewer new parts are needed.

Unless an original 55 - 57 Power-Glide is used, any automatic swap will involve changing to side motor mounts, along with a rear cross-member and tail shaft motor mount. This will just complicate the engine / trans changeover. Bellhousing mount kits are available for newer automatics, but would add to the cost.....And a tail shaft mount / cross member would still be advisable.

If it stays a stick shift, the original 3 speed will bolt right up to any small block Chevy V8, from 265 to 400. However, a 55 - 57 V8 bellhousing will have to be used......Either an original Chevy, or an aftermarket scattershield, such as a Lakewood. All of the 6 cylinder / 3 speed clutch linkage, (as well as the 3 speed trans itself), is the same as the stock V8 3 speed parts. Even the original column shift, shift linkage is the same, for V8's and sixes. However, a good Hurst 3 speed shifter would be a vast improvement over the stock column shifter. Good Hurst Syncro-Lock shifters, mounting kits and linkage aren't too tough to find and are generally not very expensive.

In addition, the original 3 speed is the same length as a Muncie 4 speed, Saginaw 4 speed, or a T-10 4 speed. As a result any of these 4 speeds are basically a bolt in for a 57 Chevy. If it was later decided to change to a 4 speed, this would be a simple swap.

 

Thanks! So i think if i do end up swapping the engine any time soon, i’m sticking with the 3 speed, and i don’t plan on running anything real hot, just a 283 with a cam, or a stock 350, nothing wild so my 3 speed should be able to handle it


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Engine swaps always cost a lot more than you expect. One of the problems with being an account is I always calculate the total cost of things.

I picked up a 292 y block to replace the 239 y block in my '54 wagon.
After buying a starter, carb kit, gasket kit, engine mounts, air cleaner, degreaser, paint, bolts, exhaust and beer and pizza for my buddy's that helped me swap the engine, I've spent well over $1,000 on top of buying the new engine. And we discovered too late that the fan on the new engine was too close to the rad so now I'm buying a rad on top of it all.

Not trying to discourage you from an engine swap, just pointing out the hidden costs.



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So here is the deal. Lots are telling you to buy a V8 and to swap the 6 out of there. How many are standing around saying"c'mon boys! Let's get 'er bolted in and go for a spin!"? Most that are telling you that have engine hoists and tools out the ass and lots of years doing this. Just keep all that in mind is all I'm saying. Good luck with whatever direction you go. I'll post a video of the first drive in 24 years of the
235 I've been working on the past month or so.

 

Well, pretty much this weekend is the end of the line for the 235, i decided if i can't get it turning over and firing in 2 days, I'll be on the hunt for an engine. Might take me a while because i have to find a new daily driver first, but yeah, if i'm still stuck how i am now on monday afternoon, the 6 is coming out before the snow falls.

 

What exactly did you try today???

 

I'm not working on the car yet, i get home tomorrow morning.

 

Ordinarily, I'd say that's a bad move. But sbcs are so easy.
That's the thing about beating your head against the wall. It feels good when you stop.

 

When running a 57 Chevy 3 speed trans, a good top quality floor shifter is a BIG plus. Unfortunately, they aren't made for these transmissions anymore. Most "New" 3 speed shifters will be a general, "universal" type of shifter.

However, in the past there were high quality shifters made for 3 speeds. You may of seen posts that mention shifters such as Foxcraft, Ansen, or other various brand names. Most of these were varying levels of crap. Just pass any of those shifters by. Manual transmissions just aren't much fun, when the shifter doesn't work very well.

One of the best, (if not the best), 3 speed shifters ever, was the Hurst Dual Pattern / Syncro Loc. This is the one to look for.

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/hurst-dual-pattern-with-synchro-lock.428340/

The photos of the mounting plate and shift rods in post #5, (of the linked thread), look like the ones for a 55 - 57 Chevy, with a 3 speed.

The reason for the importance of a high quality shifter is in the basic design of the Chevy 3 speed. Reverse and first, are a single slider gear, (#8 in the photos below). Due to the weight of this gear, it tended to keep moving when the transmission was speed shifted from first to second. When this happened, the trans would end up in both reverse and second gear at the same time......Thus locking up the transmission. The end result was a blown up trans.

The slop in the factory column shifter, and poor quality of many floor shifter kits greatly aggravated this problem. However, a top quality floor shift, (in good condition), goes a long way to eliminating the possibility of shifting into two gears at once.

Another cause of this problem, was with the shifter forks. As these transmission aged, the forks would wear out and get sloppy. This also allowed the reverse / first slider gear to move past neutral, (and back into reverse), when shifting into second......With the same end result of a blown up trans.

By the way, the first photo posted below should look familiar. It's the same exploded view that is in your shop manual.

 

Heres the answer if the back end is froze up or not. I shoved a 2x4 on the clutch and pulled it out of the garage with my pickup. So i guess it’s either a motor or tranny problem, not the parking break


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It's not the engine...well, it may still have an issue, but even if the engine was a melted blob of cast iron, the car would still roll UNLESS the transmission was stuck, whether the clutch was engaged or dis-engaged.