I should've posted some of these updates as I went along but I've been busy with work and trying to finish this thing before the baby comes.
Today, I took the driveshaft to the shop and they're shortening and balancing it. I should have it Monday.
Lately, it's been a bunch of little things that have been keeping me busy and getting the engine going. That in itself has brought up some problems. The rear radiator setup wasn't getting water to the engine so the engine ran hot, 205º-230º, a couple of times during break-in. Not having any success using the rear radiator setup, I temporarily set the radiator up front on a bucket just so I could get the engine broken in at a normal operating temperature, 160º-180º.
Here are some of things that have been keeping me busy. These photos are in a random order. Some are self-explanatory.
I finished welding up the other side of the roof and b-pillar.
I had to buy another fuel rail because the one that came with the carb poured gas on the engine. My own fault. I cracked the line tightening it while on the carb.
Got the gas tank filler hose hooked up. If you haven't notice, I also relocated the door to the back.
I also got rid of the 3" lowering blocks in the back because; a, I don't want to take the chance of the auto zone blocks breaking under the torque of the 383, and b, the rear of the car was about an 1" - 1 1/2" lower than the front. Now the car looks a little more balance and I have a little breathing room if I were ever to corner hard I wouldn't have to worry about the tires rubbing.
One of the welded seems in the system was leaking up at the top. Seems they blew through the tubing. I tried welding up the hole, but the water from the tubing, what was left after it all leaked out, was steaming out the hole preventing me from making a good sealing weld. So I had to cut it out and use some radiator hose to fix it. When I was cutting out the section I just so happened to poke a hole in the oil filter. Needless to say I drained all the oil, put in a new filter and filled her up with fresh oil. Which was OK cause I planned to change the oil after the break-in, which is when this happened.
Here's the relocated fuel door all welded up and ground.
Here's my bare bones gauge setup, which I'll keep as is until I finish the car. Later once everything is done I'll upgrade them. Gotta cut back on certain areas. The manual cheap-o gauges will do. I have a tach, oil, and water temp. All I need. I welded the gauges to the dash bar. When I go to paint the car they'll be painted with the interior. You'll also notice a couple switches hanging and a push button starter. I plan to make a simple small panel, which will be below the gauges, to install those in.
I still need to make a support for the filler neck. The original setup point it the other direction.
Here's the gas pedal and brake mocked up. I have plenty of room, but I should've gave myself more leg room by moving the main hope about 6" back. Oh well, it's a race car and not a cross country cruiser.
You can see I cut out part of the metal tubing to fit in a radiator hose so I could put the radiator up front. So I had to buy another radiator hose to reconnect the rear radiator system. Still attempting to get it to work. IT'S GOT TO...
Primed the bare metal surfaces after grinding to keep from rusting.
Drill a hole and welded in a larger 3/8" fuel outlet. I welded up the stock outlet.
I decided to weld on the front shackle mounts. That was a pain reaching now that the body doesn't come off. Here you can see the paint ground away to bare metal and the mounts tacked in.
This is a picture of how I shimmed the leaf springs. The springs I have are a 1/4" narrower than the S10 springs, so I had to shim the front and the back of each side with three grade 8 washers. Worked like a champ.
