MisterD

Hey Clint,
Thanks for the response/suggestions. They did not biopsy the nodes. They saw a small dark spot on a PET scan before his first round of chemo back in August. A more recent CT scan showed more darkening than before and some slight growth. The oncologist suggested chemo "indefinitely". That sucked to hear, especially for my dad. I will give you a call next week to touch base and get a little more info.

P.S. I am willing to help with rusty sheetmetal any time, I find it very therapeutic/calming. Just don't expect Foose type of work :-) I CAN'T WAIT to get a millermatic 211 soon so I can start welding this stuff on...

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

Mister D I am glad to see your back on the ol' gal. Great job on the sheet metal work. That's cool your father-in-law is down with body work. It is always nice to have some help. Try to do at least one thing everyday no matter how big or small and before you know it the swap will be complete. I am looking forward to watching your progress.

MisterD

Okay so I got the headers installed and they look and fit great! The step tube design is awesome, ceramic coated stainless steel, and clearance around the steering box is great. I was working with another customer who bought a set of these headers and we were discussing engine angle so this prompted me to double/triple check everything. I found that the tailshaft was about 4.5 degrees negative, ideally I would have about 2-3 degrees from what I have heard. SO...

This started another can of worms. I decided to jack up the trans to achieve the 3 degrees and I found a bolt from the forward shifter plate was hitting the retaining bracket for the original shifter hole (67 only had these reinforcement plates). I was still not getting the desired 3 degrees so I decided to order the shorter frame stands and give those a shot. We installed those and the headers are closer to the steering than I would like but still should clear and are NOT hitting the box. It also did not give me much more of an optimal engine angle with the lower frame stands (dropped about 1/2" up front). However, I can now jack up the back of the trans closer and get around 2-3 degrees at the tailshaft. I am wondering if you all think it is work all the headache to keep the short stands etc. I can achieve 4 degrees down with the tall frame stands and maybe jack up the rear of the trans to get closer to 3 if necessary (just not the 2-3 degrees desired). Please let me know your thoughts on this as I am wasting precious vacation time on this task when I should be cutting/fitting patch panels for the trunk area. Thanks everyone...

Pics:
Angle finder zeroed on front of subframe frame horn


Angle finder on valley cover:



Header clearance is great!





Steering Box Clearance:




Difference in frame stand heights (I kept the short wide motor mounts on the lower Z-28 stands to drop the engine down, you should use tall/narrow with the shorter stands to compensate but my goal was to lower the front of the engine)

Tall stand


Short stand:


I don't have any current shots with the short stands installed to show header to steering box clearance but it is close. I prefer the tall stands but that puts me at 4 degrees down. Do you all think that I can get away with 4 degrees down at the tailshaft? What is your downward angle for those who have swapped LS1/T56 into a first gen? Do you have vibrations? I will be lowering the rear of the car 3 inches and the front 3 inches as well. Any advice would be great.

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

I am between 3-5 degrees down and have not had one issue to date because of it. My opinion is, I think you are ok with the tall stands.

I am digging the headers! Nice tight tuck underneath. I wish my headers were shorter like those.

Did you notch the sub-frame for the alternator? It is not hitting even with the shorter stands?

MisterD

Tony, thanks for your reply. It is good to hear you are at 4-5 degrees with no problems. I will not be able to use the f-body accessories as planned because I have to lower the front of the engine. I will have to switch to Holley set up or search for corvette accessories. Thanks again for your feedback, greatly appreciated. Yes, the headers are VERY nice, pricepoint should be pretty competative considering they are coated stainless. I will let DT throw that out there. I will do another update soon with only the headers so folks can see the quality and thought Jaime at Doug Thorley put into these. I'm definitely psyched.

1961ba427

iTrader: (26)

If that picture of it sitting half way out of the garage doesn't scream Better Off Dead (movie) then nothing does. LOL Now if only a HOT French exchange student would come over and do all the work for/with you.

bczee

iTrader: (12)

+1 on that.. LOL..

MisterD

Lol, can't believe I still have not seen that movie, I am all for the hot French girl to help turn some wrenches though...

1961ba427

iTrader: (26)

For your viewing pleasure:


and

MisterD

Dude! I remember that girl from that 80's movie "last american virgin", no Camaro in that one but still a great flick. Thanks for sharing the clips, more reason to go purchase the DVD...

bczee

iTrader: (12)

There are so many Car flick I have not seen in a while.. wish they would start showing them again on some channel...

1961ba427

iTrader: (26)

I still have not seen Two Lane Blacktop.

bczee

iTrader: (12)

That is a good one.. I always enjoy Hollywood Knights.. brings back a lot of memories of how things were and what we did then ! LOL

too many to list..

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

Not sure how old you guys are but I remember "Corvette Summer" like it was yesterday. That ugly *** gold Corvette will be forever burnt into my brain.

bczee

iTrader: (12)

Yeah.. I watched when it was released LOL.. Old Guys Rule !

Hot Rods Top 40 of Car Movies.. I've see 37 out of the 40 .. Guess I better get a life !
http://www.hotrod.com/thehistoryof/h...s/viewall.html

-TheBandit-

iTrader: (1)

Whoa whoa whoa, slow down there MisterD! You are making a trademark TheBandit move overthinking this whole engine/tranny angle thing. I got a whiff of this in the other thread, but didn't realize how extensive of an issue you were having so I'll go ahead and chime in here with my non-expert opinion. Here it comes.. Go back to where you started!

Use whatever mounting that gave you appropriate header clearance, accessory clearance, tunnel clearance etc. If the angle ends up being 4.5* downward, SO WHAT! That isn't going to make a lick of difference in how your driveshaft performs as long as you adjust the pinion angle appropriately to match (in this example, 4.5* upward minus a couple degrees to compensate for movement under load). Finish this swap, get the car on the ground with the springs settled, then measure both the pinion angle relative to the grund and the transmission output angle relative to the ground. See what the difference is - this is your pinion angle (u-joint operating angle). You want the pinion pointed slightly down relative to the transmission to compensate for it rotating upward under load. The goal is to match the u-joint operating angles in equal and opposite directions to prevent binding. Minor mismatch is not going to hurt anything. The pinion angle can be adjusted by using tapered shims or by cutting and rewelding the spring perches as appropriate.

-TheBandit-

iTrader: (1)

Hopefully further scans show improvement. Indefinite chemo is an awful prospect, though I know several people who have lived many years with periodic treatment to keep things in check. Some are using low grade chemo in the form of pills while others have to get radiation or chemo done periodically for things that can't be eliminated altogether. I am no oncologist, but from people I've met I would not consider it horrible news - just bad news. I am really praying he has a strong recovery.

If you need to practice your welding, come on by. I have a pile of scrap and a MM180 you can play with.

lsx67

iTrader: (5)

Just went through your thread. Love the build. Im sorry to hear about your Pops. I will keep him and your family in my prayers. Staying strong for him and being there makes the biggest impact. Family bonding is just as important as medical therapy. Keep up the good work!!
Best regards
lsx67

kirk69nova

iTrader: (9)

Those headers look great Mister D. They tuck up in there nice and tight.

Back to the car movies. I know it is not a muscle car and it is not about racing but a car and a truck are two of the main characters. Go watch Duel. It is Steven Spielberg's first shot at directing. I remember watching this movie on a Sunday afternoon when I was 10 or 11 and have been hooked ever since. Anyone ever see it?

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

I love duel! One of the greats.