From what I have gathered from the HAMB and other sources I know what I need to do except for a couple of questions. I was thinking of backing the 64 Corvette 327 with a Saginaw 4 speed, because a Muncie costs more and I am not going to drag the car. Has any one put a Saginaw in a 53/54 Chevy, and if so, are there any problems with the shifter hitting the stock bench seat or trans tunnel? I heard somewhere that Speedway sells engine mounts specifically for a SBC in a 54, if so do you know the part number? Is there any other company that makes an engine mount kit for this?? What are the homebrewed mounts people have used?? What kind of radiator should I run to keep the 327 cool? I don't think the little ass stock radiator will keep it cool, but I may be wrong. I see that National Chevy Assoc. has a radiator for a V8, but $355 seems a little too pricey. If it drops right in will the cost be worth not having the head-ache from adapting another radiator into the 54? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Geno
Man buy the mounts from somebody, Speedway would be a good start. The stock Radiator works just fine, And the Saginaw should be a pretty quick conversion. Just make sure you get the shifter for a 55 chevy as the seat and placement are very similar. The shifter starts out flat and has a big sweep to clear the seat. Tim
Stock Rad works fine. Chassis Engineering has the mount kits. You need to remove the 2 Verticle ribs from the firewall for the V8 to fit. I used rear dump exhaust manifolds. If you havent done already, use an ECI master cylider brkt. Convert to a dual MC. Mine has a Turbo 400, I dont know where a manual shifter will fall? If you caould get me a back of block-shifter location, I could measre mine for you, I have a stock seat.
yeah,my radiator is stock (but the guy said it was "modified" to be like a newer radiator??looks stock to me!) AND it's coolin a 327..works fine goin down the high way..drove to indiana and back to ohio twice with that radiator creepy
Thanks for the help. You guys running the stock Radiator, do you still have the stock 7 pound cap, or did you go larger? Also did you fab up some sort of shroud, or do they cool good enough in traffic? Thanks again, Geno
AntiChrysler dropped a Saginaw 4 spd into a '54. He said it was fairly simple and straight forward...you could probably pm him for details.
I used a saginaw 4 speed in my 50 delivery with a 406 sbc. I used a 3 speed hurst shifter with an extra shift handle welded directly to the reverse lever of the tranny. I used buckets but the placement of both handles appeared to be compatible with a bench seat... I pirated clutch linkage from a jumk 75 ford pickup and modified the equalizer bar [or "Z" bar] by shortening it and changing the phazing of the arms to suit my needs. The local swap meet yielded an aftermarket 55-59 chevy pickup 4 core radiator for cheep. I had to cut deeply into the original radiator core support to make the tall radiator sit low enough in the car to get the hood closed and it was tight! Maybe 1/8th inch from radiator cap to inside of the hood. In fact, I had to use a piece of 2X4 sat on the filler neck and give it a gentle whallop with a hammer to shorten it for hood clearance. I was able to use an 18 lb cap. I was cheap and dumb enough to use and modify the stock 216 mount stands to interface with my sbc mounts. I wouldn't do it again tho. For manifolds, I used a straight rams-horn on the right side and a 67-72 chevy pickup left manifold...has a twist to it pointing back. I had to do some creative grinding on the flange of the manifold and on my pitman arm to get them to clear each other on a hard left turn. Even then, the two components would sometimes touch, sending a pleasant vibration up the steering shaft and into my hands... Fan/radiator clearance was never an issue and I used a 7 blade clutch fan with the long water pump...never got around to installing a shroud. My engine would begin to heat in traffic on hot [85 degrees or more]days but a simple shroud would have fixed that problem.
What rear end are ya'll using in these swaps? It seems to me that the majority of the work involved would be getting the rear end in there and solid. Or is there someway to use the torque tube rear with a later 4 speed?
I am runnin a 55 Chevy rear end. Swapped right in, but the costs of bearings is incredible. I think I would go with a later 10 bolt out of a Firebird/Chevelle or Nova. I think these rear ends are the correct width, bearings are cheaper, and they should be stronger. I ditched the torque tube because 2nd gear in my tranny was shot, as is normal, or so I hear. And I don't know of any way to run a good tranny with the torque tube. Geno
Walton fabrication makes motor mounts specific to '49 to '54 with SBCs. I bought a set and never installed tham, but they were great looking parts and super easy install. They use existing hole to locate them, so no guessing. They also use the factory style rubber mounts. I also had a '55 chevy V8 radiator that I was going to use. It looked like a fairly easy install. you would have to make two adapter with angle iron and that's about it.
The best I`ve used so far for a 54 is a 10 bolt out of a 62-67 Nova rear @ 58 inches hub to hub. You will have to relocate the saddles, but fits great.
I put a few years ago a SBC into my ´53. There are also aluminium-PG and 10-bolt rear end from ´65 Chevelle. I made mounting blocks myself, the radiator is new but it has been made to fit into a ´66 Tempest. It´s a bit wider than the original, but I agree that original radiator is just enough. I put my engine so rear and so low that I could, so I had to change the fire wall.
It was pretty tight because of that original steering box. "Goat´s horn" (as we call that exhaust manifold, I don´t know is that same in english...) was the only one that fit.
Here is one sketch of the change of the firewall, but I had to remove the whole brace afterwards to make that engine fit. Well, I don´t know if I answered to your questions but I hope these pictures could help somebody at least.
[ QUOTE ] "Goat´s horn" (as we call that exhaust manifold, I don´t know is that same in english...) [/ QUOTE ] Close, we call 'em "Rams Horns"
[ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] "Goat´s horn" [/ QUOTE ] Close, we call 'em "Rams Horns" [/ QUOTE ] I love this "international athmosphere" of H.A.M.B. I´ve learned so much useful stuff.
I wouldn't recommend using a higher pressure radiator cap than was recommended for that radiator. The first time you overheat it could split the seams. It did mine.
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