turbohf

well, figured it is time for me to make a post. was going to do it a while back, but plans where to keep my SBC for a while, build my LS swap slowly... lol **** that. but i will be holding off on the boost for a while.

so you guys want the LS swap part of the story or the whole thing? probably just the short version, dont want to copy/paste the last 9+months... full post on RHMT or SNS if you like below.
http://www.realhomemadeturbo.com/for...c,23104.0.html (full post, full ramblings)
http://www.stevesnovasite.com/forums...d.php?t=513553 (trimmed down, not so much rambling)


ill post the short version to current here, plus some intro:

i am no stranger to building, swapping or even turboing cars. i have had like 22 vehicles over the years. mostly Honda's, a couple VW's, a Mitsubishi (still have that one), a Ford by accident (was cheap truck), etc... i have wanted a Nova for about 15 years or so. and thanks to a buddy of mine, i traded my daily driver Civic (that i wasnt driving) for my Nova
i had also been wanting to step up my projects to a different platform. as i was bored. i wanted a V8, naturally LSX is what i wanted next. and i love to boost things.

oh yes, you heard right... woke up in the morning with:


in the afternoon:

i had this.

its a 1966 Chevy II Nova 400 series 4dr Sedan V8.... originally it was a 283ci car, had a 350ci with a PG behind it when i got her. and those ugly wheels. most all the interior the kid had thrown away cuz it was nasty he said. had a disc brake conversion, rear sway bar, edelbrock carb/intake. probably other stuff im forgetting.
its pretty straight and rust free. its got all the floors, most the trunk. couple bubbles... but hell, i traded a civic for it. its MINT to me. lol


think thats my intro... some copy/paste to fallow shortly...

turbohf

took a ton of pics... looks like some came out dark... ehh...























found an HEI distributor back there.




put the PLX in.

Edelbrock 1406 is tuned pretty nice. 13.5-14.7 idle depending on how she feels. and like solid 14.5 freeway. only did a couple quick pulls, afrs bounced around some but seemed like 11.7. might need some WOT tuning lol.



so it looks like i didnt post any pics of the interior lol, for good reason. most of it isnt there! i shot a walk around video, but it plays pic upload notifications all the way threw it, kind of annoying...

turbohf

ok found some interior pics...










love my cheap *** seat covers. way nicer than that garbage recover crap on there.


my bitchen stereo system



just thinking out loud... actually the turbo for the Galant.

turbohf

sums up the first couple months of ownership. just loving it. mobbing around in a slow *** SBC powered 66 Nova... what else could someone want?


ok. she needed lowered...


then, well. yeah, things got out of hand. stock suspension sucks on these cars. i have plans. lots of them. most are like 5 different builds i could do. and thats a problem. cuz i have to choose one, and do it. so later i can probably change my mind and do another.




so i bought all the MII front clip parts.


got the nova in her nice clean organized garage (had to get rid of the intergra and ALL honda crap, oh and that mitsu 4g63)


small block out... and tucked away to GO BACK IN!.... i thought...


little test fit of new front end parts.


took 2 days on CL to sell this thing. full 350/PG combo. $1000. gone. had 2 people racing to get it. another 2 for the trans.... going into a nice looking 55 Chevy 4dr.



so now i HAVE TO BUY AN LS.....

turbohf

so....

i know i did wrong in buying not a 100% complete swap or at least motor.... but it was cheap?

picture sucks... sure the keen eyes will notice an aluminum LS1 short block up front....

wait... better pics of my mess...





so... inventory:
LS1 short block. looks like fbody pan on it. no cam in it.
LS6 bare block
LS6 crank/rods/pistons
LS1 cam
LS6 cam
LS1 806 heads
LS1 853 heads
Comp 3714R cam
BNIB rings
BNIB valley cover gasket
BNIB headbolts [missing 2 big bolts, and 2 small]
i see 3 sets of lifters, one is probably Comp set
couple sets of push rods
timing chains/gears (3?)
crank pulley (camaro?)
corvette accessory bracket
car water pump (camaro?)
DBW throttle body (ported?)
2 valley covers
set of valve springs
both return and returnless car fuel rails w/regs
2.5" X-pipe with cats?
MAF sensor 3" it looks like
2 sets of stock LS1/LS6 injectors
set of Delphi fat *** 50lbs
01 LS6 exhaust manifolds

i did good? lol... dude was moving, i bought all his ****.

turbohf

i bought a th400. i started cleaning it as it looks like there is a 100k worth of dirt on it and tucked into the corners. usually dont care. but going to give it a once over.

plan to drain it and start taking it apart later today. see whats needed to order.

speaking of which, i dont know much about autos. i need to pick and order a converter. im cheap. so it looks like im going to order a 12" in the $150-200 range. what stall should i be getting? 2200? 2400? 2600?

onebadbowtie86

iTrader: (13)

that thing will make a killer cruiser! I would get as much of a converter as you can for the $150-200.

turbohf

thanks! i liked cruising in it before. this will be SOOO much nicer with the more modern suspension/steering. plus all new components. oh and EFI.

i honestly dont know much of **** about converters or auto trans in general.

i mean i see this cheap bastard on ebay
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2000-2200-St...lSObys&vxp=mtr
im sure its quality...

this one is $150 and listed by speedway so i feel better about it
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1965-91-GM-T...dV20Rp&vxp=mtr

higher stall, and 10"
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2700-3000-10...xWP0T5&vxp=mtr

maybe ill spend some time in the transmission forum...see if anything soaks in...

i just want to cruise around in my Nova, do some burnouts. rip a freeway onramp, etc. doubt it ever makes a pass at the track. fast street car.

turbohf

oh. im sure this might be some other info in my converter search.

this has been hanging around for couple months now...

96'ish Explorer V8 31spline tracloc disc brake rear axle. 3.73 gears... also have a driveshaft flange and another short axle around here somewhere...

rear tires are 245-45-17... also have a pair of 235's... been picking them up when i come across them for damn near free lol. i have 215's on the front... im less than $50 into 6 used tires.

turbohf

so i tore the LS1 all down. it was in very nice condition. so naturally i posted it up forsale and sold it, and kept the LS6 that kinda looked like ****. i will just say im not in the LS6 much money at this point LOL.

so the plan is to run the LS6.
LS6 bottom end. new bearings, probably rings.
853 heads with new seals, upgraded springs/retainers/locks
new stock headbolts??
MLS gaskets??
Comp 3714R cam i found in a box
going to clean and reuse everything else i didnt mention.
PLAN to try and cut/vband the Z06 manifolds i have... when that doesnt work, Schoenfeld 186LS1-3 1 3/4" headers
truck intake/throttle body


still not sure how im going to fuel/fire this thing...

as it stands:
1) MS3 Gold box (1225 & its pnp)
2) GM truck ECU/harness w/HPT (650 + ecu/wiring + lots of wiring)
3) GM ECU flashed with random **** to run/drive. (200ish? + ecu/wiring + lots of wiring)
4) Microsquirt and hope its good enough and better than carb (390 + easy wiring)
5) old school. holley and msd box (cheap and no wiring or fuel system really, so i save 400bucks)

thoughts? still lots of holes in my plans here... lol.

turbohf

so where is me taking apart the trans to inspect. mostly a waste of time it looks like lol.




granted im not a trans builder, but that **** looks mint. first set still has the numbers visible on them.

random pics


that last drum and rear shaft assembly wont come put?!?! i removed the band and clip, along with the bolt under the valve body. its stuck...!? ****.


pile of parts.

i know, not actually a waste. i like taking **** apart. and i like the piece of mind of looking inside. plus im probably doing to do the mods that Jake's Transmission recommends. http://www.jakesperformance.com/TH400_Rebuild_Tech.html

turbohf

ok. so why did a choose the LS6 over the LS1? honestly, the LS1 looked better and easier to sell.


before shot of the LS6 cylinder bores...


after a couple seconds with hone... i knew there was a diamond in the rough as they say.

oh, yeah, guess it is cooler to say i have an LS6 over an LS1 lol... whatever. heads are just standard corvette 853 castings though, i got 'boned' on that deal. even when i was buying the stuff he was still trying to say that his stock Z06 heads where one of the pair.




my motor. still needs some cleaning before i put her back together.

speaking of...couple random shots of parts in waiting...


more on roof...back seat...front seat... under car...etc lol.



actual work taking place. figured i would give the valves a cleaning, and a lap in for piece of mind.

i have some springs/retainers/locks/seals to go in also somewhere around here.

there they are. good to like .600 lift, 135lbs of seat pressure. blah blah. they where cheap, covered the specs of the cam i have with some room to spare. plus they are sold as a complete set. the heads i kept where missing locks/retainers.


think thats all i have for now. going to try to get the heads finished up so i can drop them off to get cleaned and surfaced. clean the block out some more (got some new/more block passage cleaning brushes) and try to get some work on that this weekend. and buy some wheels for my truck...wait, wrong progress...

turbohf

so this seems to be a change.... i actually put something together, might start looking like progress and not a pile of expensive parts...


valves all lapped to little beyond my normal level of giving a ****. new viton seals installed (btw, Alex ships them all the same, so, yeah). then the new springs/retainers/locks.... now just need to do the other head.

ls1nova71

iTrader: (4)

Cool project, I'll be following along! That rear brake line routing is interesting though, must be a bitch to bleed the rear brakes with it being higher than the master cylinder!

turbohf

thanks! thats actually the right front brake line going across the cowl. NOT MY HANDY WORK. just saying. lol. the rear brake line did a equally shady loop thing around the front of the motor.
both are now in the trash....
new setup:

only pic i found. gets you the idea of what im doing i guess. the rear and right lines will go across the back of the engine cross member. both have unions on the drivers side so if i change master cylinder i wont have to redo the hole thing.


hope to keep this post interesting. i have some serious automotive ADD. so things change frequently. lol.

turbohf

DONE! i dropped it off at the shop. he said it would be a week or 2. they are busy.

i called and talked to trans place. think i got my order straight, waiting for him to send an invoice. should be a couple days.


now im gonna go put my new wheels on my truck, hope they fit lol.

turbohf

**** you direct drive drum...or whatever one that is... i win.
i stuck it up on end, supported with 4x4. and have her a couple good whacks with my orange mallet. so with the help of gravity (its always there to help) and hard surface it fell out.





couple shots of each as its hard to picture.
that **** ok? clean, lube, reinsert?


empty block, and empty trans. even at that my hoist seems to be struggling...piece of ****.


front end/suspension crap going together nicely. probably how its going to look for a little bit. need to figure out brakes before the rest gets put together.


maybe put my subframe connectors in tomorrow, and test fit swap...

turbohf

UPDATE...WORK IN PROGRESS...


INSTRUCTIONS! big thing these days with all the china parts that dont include ****....
but no pictures, so i tossed them (ikea ftw) :

if you remember these are "BOLT IN" connectors. instructions and internet say to weld them anyway if you can. and i can. plus nothing more fun than welding under a car, right?




prepped to fuse metal together in about those areas lol.

instructions say to use your 13/32 drill bit... **** i suck at fractions, but i think i found it...





that clamp is just about ****** useless i know. i hit the other side with big hammer, worked mint. this is just a solid test run. not welding in just yet, as i plan to weld my trans crossmember tabs to this. also why i only bothered with just the one front bolt, and the nut on the front of the spring. just needs to hold in place for now.


NOT DONE... i got more...

i measured several times my mounts on my chassis to the firewall. and guesstimated that i need/wanted/guessed that 14" from the bell housing to my mounts would be good. well... there is an oil pan on the bottom of the motor that felt differently lol, by like 1/4".... so did some magic with the mounts (swapped sides) and got like 1".




sure it wont be super fun to pull that drivers head if needed, but it will be doable.

i beat the **** out of the floor/tunnel to clear the TH400, and well im out of shape and took its toll on me quick. i found a better way to mark it i think, so ill give her a couple more hits later. only spot that needed a message is where the tailhousing bolts on. basically the bolts are hitting the floor. also not sure how high i need/want to get her up in the tunnel? i bolted the trans cross in place and was aiming for it to bottom out on the floor boards.

OH, btw...

thats a 01-02 Z06 manifold bolted perfectly fine (no studs on bottom) into the nova..... also notice i have no steering shaft, thats good, cuz it doesnt have a chance of fitting... good thing i didnt pay for them, guess ill post them for sale. and buy some shitty headers that will fit horribly.


to recap. there is an aluminum LS6 bolted into my Nova, its a good day.

ls1nova71

iTrader: (4)

Nope, not much more fun than that......... unless it's really rusty, that makes it more funner.

ls1nova71

iTrader: (4)

I literally laughed out loud at that! Looks like a 13/32 step bit to me!