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TCI flex plate installed but need to get a starter so I can check for proper engagement.
Picked up an aftermarket pan at a local swap meet and finally got around to installing it today. Making some progress on the build and gonna try to get this buttoned up and in the car this week.
Last edited by 01CamaroSSTx; 12-18-2021 at 10:31 AM.
We didn't get drawn for doe permits and could only take a legal buck but this is the first time in over a decade that my wife and I haven't taken a deer.
I hunt on public land from a tree climber and have been hunting from the same tree for over a decade. My wife ground hunts the creek watching the ridges and hills in more of an open area. I've been hunting this area of woods for over thirty years and have taken many bucks and does without ever taking anything that was significant, in fact the first trophy deer to make it to our wall was when my wife wanted to try her hand at deer hunting. I put her on a hill in my area overlooking a ridge that paralleled the creek with hills all around her while I hunt about 500yds down to the bottom of hill then across the creek to another hill. Anyway,
Here's the mount of her 9pt and if you think this one was big wait till you see the one she missed but that is another deer story.
This was taken in 2009 and it was the first deer she ever took. Rightfully so it was going on the wall and she and I have been hunting deer together ever since and we have many deer stories to tell. Keep in mind that I've been trying to take a trophy deer off of public land long before my wife started hunting deer with me.. Many would say that's not a trophy deer but all I say to that is define a trophy. Hunting on public land is more challenging and I cherish my time in the deer woods. There's many rules to follow and one of my favorites along with antler restrictions is that you can't bait.. BTW what sport in hunting is it when you shoot a deer off of some food you threw down to them? No ATV's either, it's pack it in and pack it out. Combine that with the fact that there's other hunters in the area you hunt and when your only allowed to take one buck unless you've been drawn for a doe permit and you'll quickly see how hard it can be to bag a deer on public land where I live.
This was my first 8pt from public land. He was taken in 2013 and I finally got the monkey off my back! The taxidermist that I use did an outstanding job.
Now this is a deer story.
This was in 2014 on a weekday morning when most people were at work so we had the woods pretty much to ourselves. It was around 10AM when I reached out to the Mrs. on the walkie-talkie and I heard her whisper with excitement that there was big buck following a doe and ended the conversation by turning her radio off. Next thing you hear is BOOM as her rifle sounds off and boy I couldn't get down out of my tree fast enough to make it over there to her. I called her on the radio and she finally turned it back on and you could just hear it her voice that the juices were flowing and I told her to sit tight and I'll ease my way over there. When I got there she explained how this buck was coming up from the creek following right behind a doe and that she new it was legal and that it had a lot of points and that anyone who would pass this deer up is spoiled. The deer was within 30yds of her when she shot and she thought that he had went down but wasn't sure. I had her put me at the location where she had shot and I got down on my hands and knees looking for any signs of a hit but nothing. I could see where the deer had took off by the hoof marks and she pointed me in the direction it was headed. I must have walked the woods for two hours looking for her deer but nothing.
As we rehashed everything about what happened she had mentioned to me that the gun was getting heavy from holding it up for too long aiming at the deer and that she felt the gun drop as she shot. I told here that we've been all over this area looking and that I think she may have missed it or wounded it but didn't make a vital hit. Anyhow I guess it must have been 3-4 days later but I was in my tree and it was around 10:30 when this mature buck came running down the hill towards me and off to my left. I swung my gun over lefthanded and let out a MEH hoping to get him to stop but no dice he kept running on down the hill towards a big thicket. I stood up and aimed that way looking for him while trying to control my breathing as he had my juices flowing because that was the biggest buck I'd ever seen on public land. I couldn't see him anywhere and I was thinking to myself that there was a missed opportunity. I sat back down and about an hour and half later a small 6pt came into view and watched as he made his way through. It was about 1:15 when I got a phone call from my son who had a question on a job he was working on when out of the corner of my eye came that buck but only this time he was walking back up the hill. I quickly ended the call and waited for him to put some trees between us so I could switch the gun to my left hand and once he cleared the trees.
I phoned my wife and told her I just took a big deer and she made her way over to me so we can dolly this deer out. When I went to field dress the deer I noticed that the deer had been previously shot and it was evident that somebody had shot low as there was a line under the bucks torso where it had cut a line through the hide and into some fatty tissue. I told my wife that this was the same deer she shot at and this would explain why you felt the gun drop when you shot. Had she taken this deer she would still be holding the bragging rights around here but in all honesty its a shared thing. Here's the 13pt that roughly scores in the 140's and it's about as good as it gets for a free range animal on public land.
Last edited by 01CamaroSSTx; 12-22-2021 at 07:50 AM.
After some more measuring I really don't like that the converter does not mate to the flex plate and I'm not a fan of the spacer that goes between the crank and torque converter either so I'll be sending the converter and that spacer out to have 3/8" removed from it and have it welded to the pilot of the converter.
Decided to keep the TCI spacer and just remove the 0.07 from the removable pilot so the torque converter will sit flush against the flex plate. I have just a little over 3/16" clearance which is fine but will still use a washer to get in between 1/8" and 3/16"
What a PITA it was finding some of these.
Intake, throttle body, fuel rails with injectors installed. I'll install the headers and start wiring up the engine harness tomorrow.
I was not expecting to see the power and ground leads along with the entire under the engine bay harness so I was pretty excited to see this. Now just to disconnect the harness from under the dashboard and I'm pretty sure it will not be a pleasant experience.
Since I'll be keeping the factory gauge cluster I'm going to mod the oil pans oil cooler block off plate in order to run a mechanical oil pressure gauge and install the factory sender behind the intake manifold.
V8 fuse box harness Well there's the bulk connector on the firewall. 1 of 5 2 of 5 3 of 5 4 of 5 with the last one being the blue connector which is on top of the steering column. I will have to drop the column down to get to it but once that's disconnected the V6 fuse block harness can be removed.
Had some time today and I got it removed from the car. Also removed the drive by wire pedal assembly. Now to figure out how to go about getting this converted over to drive by cable. Could use my spare clutch pedal assembly but would rather not.
I ended up removing the gas pedal and bracket from the clutch pedal assembly and I sourced a throttle cable from a local salvage yard. It's a brisk 30° this morning.
V8 harness is in the car and now to install the throttle cable and drill out some holes in order to route mechanical gauges. Won't be too much longer before the engine and transmission is in the car and I can start working on the fuel system and the additional wiring. Still need a radiator, trans cooler, a shifter for the glide along with work on the inside of the car but I'm getting closer and closer to start-up.
Will be doing a remote starter solenoid like shown here on the 01. Gets the power off the starter until you turn the key and also provides an easier place to connect a remote starter switch.
The harness is in good shape with the exception of this coil connector. Don't trust it or the repair so I've ordered a new connector. Chance you take when buying something used.
11-21-2021, 04:12 PM
You'll get the car done. 
