Planning a new 383 build that is now going to be a 400

busterrm · Sep 21, 2015

JimmyDuncan said:
I really like the look! Impressed..

I'm going to steal some of the styling, and look into the parts you used for my build...

The rocker covers and the pulleys you used, are there functionality benefits to them as well as looking good?

Yes, valve covers are Proform, pulleys and brackets are matched set, can't remember the brand, thet are from a eBay store I want say up in Minnesota. Valve covers I watched eBay for till I found them for 195 bux, pulleys and brackets are billet and I waited them out for while to let the price drop to 650 bux. Yes they are very functional, pulleys lined up perfect, no adjustment at all needed. The valve covers are intended to keep valve adjustment from getting messy, but indycars proved splash guard is needed to block the rockers from squirting you in the face!

busterrm · Sep 21, 2015

busterrm said:
Yes, valve covers are Proform, pulleys and brackets are matched set, can't remember the brand, thet are from a eBay store I want say up in Minnesota. Valve covers I watched eBay for till I found them for 195 bux, pulleys and brackets are billet and I waited them out for while to let the price drop to 650 bux. Yes they are very functional, pulleys lined up perfect, adjustment at all needed.

The alt bracket bolts to water pump(long style)and front face of pass side head like stock alt brackets, power steering bracket bolts to old front motor bolt holes at bottom close to oil pan.

Indycars · Sep 22, 2015

Yes you will need a defector, but it's very easy to make. Buy some flat bar 1-1/2 inches
wide a Lowes, cut it to length and drill two holes.

Depending on how much lift you have, you might need a washer on the bottom side to
space the defector higher, giving the rocker more clearance.

.

Grumpy · Sep 22, 2015

thanks for posting that rather interesting oil deflector video, I'm sure it will be a factor in more than a few of those sets of valve covers being sold, simply because of the obvious advantage they provide in adjusting the valves at idle without hacving to deal with 90% of the potential mess that would ocur with standard valve covers.
those valve covers and the simply oil deflector that can easily be fabricated make even the open top valve adjustment valve cover modification that several of my friends have look like a great deal of extra work being done for no real reason.
damn I wish they made similar valve cobers for the BIG BLOCK CHEVY

http://www.speedwaymotors.com/Valve-Cover-Adapter-for-Center-Bolt-Heads,1890.html
there are adapters that allow you to run standard , early perimeter bolt valve covers on the later center bolt heads

WHILE THESE ARE RATHER EXPENSIVE VALVE COVERS THEY HAVE ADVANTAGES THAT I THINK MAKE THEM WORTH THE COST
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/pro-141-913

http://www.speedwaymotors.com/Valve-Cover-Adapter-for-Center-Bolt-Heads,1890.html
there are adapters that allow you to run standard , early perimeter bolt valve covers on the later center bolt heads
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/adjusting-valves.196/

busterrm · Sep 22, 2015

Okay Grumpy how much side clearance do I need on the pushrods? I have a few intake pushrods that are close to the aluminum casting? Remember I have the 1.6 rockers! Do I need to grind a little on the guideplates and move it over? The pushrod doesn't seem to be straight up and down, its leaned towards the casting, is it possible that the guide plates are a little off? There seems to be a massive amount of clearance on the exhaust side on each one.

Grumpy · Sep 22, 2015

look closely at the picture above its rather obvious the push rods appear to be contacting the rocker stud side of the push rod clearance hole so that will need to be elongated with a Louis tool as a guide, it should have at least .010 on both sides of the slot and .060 on both the ends , obviously verify clearance over the full cycle of 720 degree of engine rotation

pictured above you see the last rocker, on the right end of the cylinderhead, is badly out of alignment with the valve center line,
a good example why you need adjustable guide plates, this rocker if left too run off center like this, on the valve stem tip , will quickly destroy the valve guide and rocker

small block chevy adjustable push rod guide plate

BBC ADJUSTABLE PUSH ROD GUIDE PLATE

its rather common to have push rods rub or bind when swapping to the higher ratio 1.6:1 rockers so its mandatory you carefully check EVERY one through its full arc for proper clearance and use a louis tool to extend the push rod guide holes is thats required
this is mostly a matter of carefully checking clearances and verifying valve train
geometry,and use of quality parts rather than selecting the cheapest crap available, in many cases the simple swap of components can be done with few issues ,BUT its rather common for parts too bolt in, but not fit correctly, but LESS-experienced mechanics don,t see the indications of potential trouble,and wonder why parts failed later as a result!
parts that rub or bind and were thought too be correctly functioning only to be found later too be causing rapid wear or even a cam or lifter failure as a result of the parts installer, NOT verifying the correct clearances and geometry, so take your time and read the links and check, never assume a darn thing, fits correctly until you verify the clearances over the full range of movement.
read thru the links and sub links they may open your eyes

youll want too use a .060 clearance too the push rod to cylinder head slot clearance CHECKED CAREFULLY OVER THE FULL ARC OF THE ROCKER TRAVEL FOR A FULL TWO ENGINE ROTATIONS
if you need a LOUIS TOOL to lengthen the slots in the cylinder head I generally lay a section of plastic wrap in the lifter gallery and be sure to place two magnets on the blocks lifter gallery wall, to hold the thin plastic wrap in place firmly, below the cylinder head while drilling to catch the metalic debris the drill will generally produce, between the plastic sheat and the magnets youll generally catch 100% of the trash the drill generates

http://www.magnet4less.com/product_info.php?cPath=3_27&products_id=254

obviously having adjustable push rod guide plates to center the rockers on the valve stems and push rods in the cylinder head slots is almost mandatory.
as is verifying all rocker geometry and valve train clearance issues

http://www.summitracing.com/search/...d-length-checkers?autoview=SKU&ibanner=SREPD5
Proform Pushrod Length Checkers 66789 SBC 3/8" rocker studs

Proform Pushrod Length Checkers 66790 SBC 7/16" rocker studs

Proform Pushrod Length Checkers 66806 BBC 7/16" rocker studs

viewtopic.php?f=52&t=126&hilit=louis+tool

http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/upgrade-choices.11416/#post-52423

viewtopic.php?f=52&t=528&p=45493&hilit=+long+slot#p45493

http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/rocker-push-rod-wear-issues.9815/#post-54088

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-rockers-and-the-pushrods-rub.198/#post-46839

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...all-block-chevy-guide-plates.2839/#post-12739

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-rockers-and-the-pushrods-rub.198/#post-46839

busterrm · Sep 24, 2015

I figured out that a couple of the guide plates were crooked and straightened them up and that got me good clearance on the push-rods. I had to slot a couple guide plates to get the cleareance, I went through and did a cold valve adjustment then ran through the full movement of all the valves to check the push-rod clearance and I am good on all the intakes. The exhaust had a very large amount of clearance already. Once I got all the push-rods cleared okay, I put the intake on permanently.

Indycars · Sep 24, 2015

I would recommend buying some pipe cleaners and running them thru the
inside of the push rods while submerged in solvent. I got a fair amount of
crude from the inside of mine.

busterrm · Sep 24, 2015

oh that was the first thing I did when they got here. I bought the pipe cleaners awhile back, when I bought the solvent. I used about 2 - 3 dozen pipe cleaners to get it done. I put them in a pan and let them soak over night before I cleaned them.

Indycars · Sep 24, 2015

Excellent Becky!!!

Grumpy · Sep 24, 2015

Rick brings up an important point!
its amazing the amount of metallic debris, that can be generated during the manufacturing and shipping processes,
and you might not believe the quantity thats all too frequently left behind on many common engine components.
a couple gallons of solvent ,and an air compressor, hose and nozzle , a few brushes and some idea of the places where fine metallic trash, bits of micro gasket and sealant and burnt oil sludge and similar crap can accumulate inside an engine sure helps, you'll ALWAYS need to clean any component you get back from most machine shops and your almost sure to find micro-metallic trash embedded in your bearings
if you just assume that the machine shop must have cleaned the parts they worked on carefully...

Ive seen cylinder heads returned still coated with valve grinding compound in the ports, and blocks with easily a teaspoon worth of mill chips in the crank case area.

SmCo Samarium Cobalt Disc Magnets
http://www.magnet4less.com/

High Temp Samarium SmCo Cobalt Magnet Discs
572°F Maximum Operating Temperature

MAJOR CAUSES OF PREMATURE BEARING FAILURE
Dirt ......................................... 45.4%
Misassembly .......................... 12.8%
Misalignment .......................... 12.6%
Insufficient Lubrication.............11.4%
Overloading .............................. 8.1%
Corrosion ................................ .3.7%
Improper Journal Finish ............ 3.2%
Other ....................................... .2.8%

busterrm · Sep 25, 2015

I did not count, but I bet I cleaned the block 4 or 5 times, I used pipe cleaners on the crank, Rick that is when I got pipe cleaners I used on the push rods. I used shotgun cleaning kit to clean out the 3 oil galleys behind the timing chain, those were nasty, even after I had pressure washed them. I washed and scrubbed all the internals at last twice.

busterrm · Nov 21, 2015

Been awhile, did some lately on trim parts. I blasted the fan, spacer, and the plate that holds the radiator in the core support. I had seen another thread addressing a issue I am going to have with spark plug installation. I looked at the link at summit with short plug socket, I have a cheap ole plug socket that is extra, so I decided to make it instead of buying one. I am on my phone, I will post pics when my laptop finishes it's updates.

busterrm · Nov 21, 2015

The fan and spacer turned out good I thought, the radiator to has a run in it but oh well. Here are a few pics of them!

busterrm · Nov 21, 2015

As I said above, I looked at the thread about spark plug installation, I didn't see any reason in buying the socket, when I had an old cheapy in my tool box. So I cut it down and ground out the drive end to allow the insulater of the plug to slide through it and then just cinch down the plug with a 3/4 box end or open end wrench. here a some pics.

OH yeah, I forgot to say I burned up my die grinder when I was grinding out the drive of the socket. No problem, it was a cheapo from Tools for Fools(Harbor Freight) that was only 20 bux, I was amazed it lasted this long.

busterrm · Nov 21, 2015

This is my next project, to construct the new shroud from some prefabbed stuff I did before my last day of work. With all my tools from work here at home I should be able to fab up a pretty good replacement for the 40 year old plastic shroud I have been using and I am going to paint the new one with the same as the engine color. What do you guys think, that too much "Red Fire", or should I paint it black?

busterrm · Nov 21, 2015

That shroud is 40 years old on the 28th of this month, the car was built Nov 28th 1975. Gees, still younger than me! I be 55 on the 1st of the month. Old Fugger!
Anyway, its getting brittle and is crumbling in a few spots so I will just use it for a template to build one.

Indycars · Nov 22, 2015

I would pick an accent color, I like silver. Use that to paint trim pieces to make the engine pop.

busterrm · Nov 23, 2015

Had to do some reorganizing in the shop, when I brought home my tools from work I realized I have a lot of duplicated tools. gees I have 7 crescent wrenches, 10 different size hammers, plus 2 no mar hammers. I went ahead and went through my rollaway and did some reorganizing there too. I have more tape measures than any one man should have, 12 being that number. The dang peg board is
almost full now.

Grumpy · Nov 23, 2015

duplicates in tools are no problem, and fabricating that fan shroud from sheet metal will be far simpler if you have access to a MIG welder,
but having done similar fabrication in the past may I suggest you use poster board and tape to test fit a pattern,for use in each section,you need, before cutting and welding the metal

Planning a new 383 build that is now going to be a 400

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The Grumpy Grease Monkey mechanical engineer.

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