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Bummed that it has been ten years and my 68 is not finished.

Parts showed up today.
Now I may assemble the lower end and check piston to valve clearance.
Still have to find funding for the rockers and push rods.
May have to make my own headers in which case I might just try to do 180's if I can find space for them.
 
Hoorah, some actual progress today.
Rings are on the pistons, pistons are on the rods.
Spark plug relief facing out, big end chamfer to the left.
Triple checked before installing the double spiral locks.
Locks were not hard to do, I had heard horror stories about them but using a sort of smooth spoon shaped tool I have they were actually pretty easy.

This engine has been a bit of a soap opera to build.
First I decided to build a 327, "LS" sounds like some sort of infection to me. 😜
Build is supposed to be somewhat "Day 2" vintage vibe even if it is a "Resto-Mod".
Can never be Pro-Touring as I despise oversize wheels, they just look out of proportion to me.
Back to the engine, I started with a virgin 67 327 small journal.
Then I got a deal* on an Eagle rotating assembly from a member of one of the forums.
Eagle 327 is large journal, so I had the wrong block.
Of course this was after I basically gave away an 010, Std. bore, 4-bolt 350 block.
So then I had to buy another 010 4-bolt 350 block.
Of course I could not find one in standard bore.
Finally got a block and had it machined.
When I checked bores they seemed to not match and also appeared to be a bit oval. 😟
That put my custom JE pistons fit out of whack.
Ended up taking the block to another machine shop in Reno.
These are the guys that do all the Ferrari and Lambo engines.
Not cheap, but they were able to true up my bores.
At their suggestion I wound up applying an APC skirt coating to help with my piston fit.
This is a coating that is popular with forced induction guys. Skirt coating.
So now I may finally assemble my 333" lower end.
With that done I will be able to check valve clearance for the Brownfield (AFR) heads.
Might get lucky and avoid shaft rockers?
But after assembling my truck engine and seeing how Summit/Dart heads do not align every rocker centered on the valve as well as I am sure they should shaft rockers may be a must.

With a little bit of luck I should have the lower assembled tomorrow.
I will try to get some pics along the way if anyone is interested.
 
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Well, NUTS!
Looks like the Brownfield heads have an issue I will not be able to easily overcome.
Intakes are ported a bit too large to work with my Weber intake.
Should have realized this a long time ago.
Heads may be a bit much for this little engine anyway.
So now I need to figure out which heads to replace them with.
Not a big inch engine so do not need the largest possible flow numbers.
DO need the ports to match up with a standard intake gasket.
And I do intend to retain my Beehive springs.
 
Last edited:
Well, NUTS!
Looks like the Brownfield heads have an issue I will not be able to easily overcome.
Intakes are ported a bit too large to work with my Weber intake.
Should have realized this a long time ago.
Heads may be a bit much for this little engine anyway.
So now I need to figure out which heads to replace them with.
Not a big inch engine so do not need the largest possible flow numbers.
DO need the ports to match up with a standard intake gasket.
Ans I do intend to retain my Beehive springs.

Do you have other heads to put on it? I've got 2 small journal 327's ('65 with 291 double hump heads, and a complete '67 out of a wrecked camaro with 30k miles on it) on stands waiting for me to work on, but there always seems to be another project in front of them.
 
Nope, no other heads.
I could still use these if I port match my Victor Jr. intake.
But I want my Webers!
May be able to find a different Weber intake but they tend be expensive too.
 
Crank, pistons & rods are in!
Hoping to complete the lower on Thursday.
Then I have to address the heads i$$ue.

Everybody likes pics.
 

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Having trouble getting the cam timed.
Target is 110º
Strait-up gets me 111.5º
2º advance comes up as 109º
Either way it seems I am 1º off.
Some sources claim 1º either way is close enough.
Only thing I can see to do is go back to strait-up and check it again.
If I get the same result I then have to decide which 1º off I prefer.
 
OK, used a piston stop instead of an indicator on the piston.
TDC is dead-on.
Re-checked centerline three times, it is 109º with the cam 2º advanced.
If I went back to "Strait up" I would be at 111º.
If advance brings in max torque earlier as several sites claim then 109º is probably best.
1º is not supposed to be enough to really matter according to most of the "Experts".
I see no way to make a 1º correction in any case.
Kind of thinking going for the 109º might tend to correct itself just a hair as the timing chain beds in and stretches?
Annoyed this is not coming out exactly right.
 
Figured out that the outer diameter of bob-weights for the Eagle crank is that same as a 350.
Kind of disappointed with that since a smaller diameter would rev faster.
But it does mean the crank scraper for my Kevco Road-Race oil pan will not have to be modified.
 
Todays bit of progress is not directly on the El Camino but is important to completion.
I work by myself, very rural area, and everyone around is my age or older with their own concerns.
So I depend on power tools to be able to get a lot of stuff done.
My forklift is indispensable!
One tool I will really need is the used two post lift I bought about three years ago.
Today I was finally able to set the post upright and nearly into place.
Of course where I had intended to put it is a No Go, not setting it on a cracked slab.
Also best to avoid spanning adjoining slabs.
So I will have to offset it about a foot off shop center.
I am modifying my chassis pretty extensively with Jag IRS and rear disc brakes.
Fiberglass front clip will require some trickery to mount.
Being able to lift the body off and drop it back on by myself is a must.
Intending to assemble the drive-train with the body out of the way.
Of course the lift also needs a bit of restoration too.
 
Todays bit of progress is not directly on the El Camino but is important to completion.
I work by myself, very rural area, and everyone around is my age or older with their own concerns.
So I depend on power tools to be able to get a lot of stuff done.
My forklift is indispensable!
One tool I will really need is the used two post lift I bought about three years ago.
Today I was finally able to set the post upright and nearly into place.
Of course where I had intended to put it is a No Go, not setting it on a cracked slab.
Also best to avoid spanning adjoining slabs.
So I will have to offset it about a foot off shop center.
I am modifying my chassis pretty extensively with Jag IRS and rear disc brakes.
Fiberglass front clip will require some trickery to mount.
Being able to lift the body off and drop it back on by myself is a must.
Intending to assemble the drive-train with the body out of the way.
Of course the lift also needs a bit of restoration too.

I couldn't do 1/2 of what I've done without my lift. Besides making it infinitely easier on myself, there's also that safety factor thing.
 
Got a modified sample set of shaft rockers from Scorpion today.
Been checking them out most of the evening.
Spread at the valves is perfect, Yay!
But the spread at the push-rod end seems strange to me.
Lifter bore spacing in the block seems to be 1.55"
Scorpion push rod pocket spacing measures 1.25" and I have not been able to verify yet if one or the other may be true vertical from the lifter.
My understanding is that we want the pushrods as vertical as possible.

The biggest issue I am running into is that the long ARP studs need to be .175" shorter.
That is just about the depth of the Allen drive cut.
Short studs could lose .400"
Of course I cannot locate a chart of ARP studs by length.
Calling ARP and then Scorpion in the morning.
 
So very tired of DD'ing a C30 Dually!
$4.80 gas and the OD does not do much around town.
Tried to get an idea what I would be able to sell it for.
Not mint condition and my arthritis is telling me to get to work on the cars I really want to drive instead of C30 details.
So actually considering parting the truck out.
It has a fresh 350 that would drop right into the El Camino while I complete the Hot engine.
The NV4500 trans with SBC adapter may be worth more than I might get for the chassis and cab.
If I were to forgo the IRS upgrade for now I would have mostly bodywork to do in order to be on the road.
Of course not getting to finish it as I really want would annoy me a lot.
But I am truly sick of only having an oversize truck to drive.

Sell for too little compared to what I have in it, or part out and keep the engine?
Not an easy decison.
End of vent.
 
So I've begun doing fiberglass repairs on the Loti.
Since I'm already going to itch I may as well fix the minor shipping damage to my El Camino front clip too. ;)

Desperate to get a car together to drive, probably going to be the MG Midget as it needs the least work to be a (Ugly) driver.
But it will not carry much that is larger than a lunch box so I still need a smaller truck.
The Rover missile carrier can take a ton cross-country, but is too slow for long distance.

I've been considering getting a driver-beater later model El Camino, but for the same money I could make significant progress on my '68.
Anyone have an "In" at Scorpion? They are my last Big expense.
With the engine complete* at last I would have nearly all my parts in hand.
Then no excuse to not finish the chassis and body.
Warmer weather cannot be too far off, if I could just work on my projects 24/7 I know I could get a couple done this year!

*Temporarily running a Victor Jr. and some mundane 4V.
 
Sorted out which shaft rockers to get, #3561.
They will cost more than what I originally paid for the car. :rolleyes:
Unfortunate that Scorpion are currently out of the material for the bronze bushings.
These should be the last big ticket item, I hope!
Now configuring the ignition seems appropriate.
I want a crank trigger ignition, no 🤬 distributor!
I have an older Megasquirt I plan to use.
Which brings up another question.
Who makes good coil packs anymore?
I used to buy a lot of MSD products, but the last distributor cap I got from them had cheap aluminum contacts DESPITE clearly stating "Brass Contacts" right on the package. :oops:
So it looks like MSD has Chink'ed out and I no longer trust them.
 
Today I manhandled the El Camino 'Glass clip out of storage and began the minor crack repair.
Now what I need is a good pic of the lower surround at the bottom of the grill , behind the bumper, so I may decide what I can do to reinforce the flimsy flat piece I have.
Somewhere along the line I will have to fabricate a support frame for this front clip.
Intent is that the whole clip will hinge forward or just come off to work on the engine.
But I also want to be able to tilt just the hood forward like a Corvette for routine oil and fluid checks.
This reminds me, I need to source a fiberglass front bumper too.
Plan is to look stock but weigh a lot less.

Anyone have experience with the plastic inner fenders?
My understanding is that they really cannot be made to flip up with the rest of the 'Glass front, but I may be able to make them quick remove and they are lighter than the steel version.
 
I can't see why you couldn't have the plastic wells flip with the front. Glass some tabs and supports to hold it to the fiberglass. Ain't stock so no reason it can't be done and at least be functional.
 
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