If there's a Corvette club in your area , JOIN IT,!
if theres a hotrodders club, JOIN IT,!
you don,t need to like all the members,odds are good that about 30% know far less than you do,or are no help at all, 30% are much more skilled,than you are, but your there to share skills and knowledge, LEARN FROM THEM, and HELP, become familiar with the tools, take the time, and help each other, its a two way street, don,t expect help if your not willing to help others,etc.
ask some of the members for suggestions and help and BE WILLING TO HELP WITH THIER PROBLEMS, ITS A LEARNING PROCESS
your bound to find good contacts that will be helpful and a few total jerks youll want to totally avoid in any group, but don,t let the jerks dis-swade you from getting the benefits and making the contacts you need!
you ABSOLUTELY NEED A SHOP MANUAL FOR YOUR CAR,YEAR,MAKE,MODEL
http://www.helminc.com/helm
thats a valid suggestion.....you may also want to go to the local tracks DRAG RACE AND CIRCLE TRACK carry a large pad and pen and ask for contacts, clubs,suppliers,club info, etc. make friends and ask the faster guys with the better looking cars , what machine shops and garages/mechanics they would suggest, when you get in over your head. in many cases they will know who the scam artists and rip off garages are and who does good dependable work at reasonable rates, but its been my experiance that the best thing you can do is join a local hot rodders or corvette club and between the members contacts and your own resources, YOU will be able to do , and should do,most work your self with some help and knowledge from the guys you make contacts with, in your local clubs, no one but YOU will do QUALITY work and take the time on the details like YOU will on YOUR CORVETTE
keep in mind that theres very few things a decent machine shop and a semi skilled corvette owner with a few friends can,t easily fix, ESPECIALLY if they are willing too take the effort too research the problem , then adjust or replace the parts that are causing the problem, theres nothing mystical or really difficult, but youll need to know what your doing, and what needs testing and or replaceing and that may take research or some investment in tools and learning test procedures, don,t be in awe, theres not a darn thing you can,t learn to do!
youll need basic mechanics tools and having 4 good 12 ton jack stands
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=34924
and a decent floor jack, and some car club friends sure helps, if you have SAFE AND STURDY ,easy access under the car maintenance and repairs are easier to do!
Ill add these tips
(1) do EXTENSIVE research FIRST, before....... buying parts.... or starting a modification, that INCLUDES making a detailed parts list and researching , the sources, cost, manuals etc. IE FIND OUT whats necessary to do the job, and what results youll expect before you start
(2) ITS a HUGE advantage to have the correct tools, things like engine cranes, diagnostic test equipment, welders,lifts, etc. may seem like a big expence thats not dirrectly moving your project forward, but there NECESSARY in some cases and ALWAYS make the project go faster and easier than trying to do without them.
(3) work SAFELY, if you could get hurt doing something, chances are very good that you will eventually find out exactly WHY you should have done it the safe rather than the fast/easy way, if you don,t think it thru and use the correct tools and precautions
(4)ITs almost ALWAYS better to have several friends help, on a project, having two or more guys thinking things thru improves your chances of getting it done correctly and safely,and keep in mind ,its always best to do your projects after helping a more experianced guy do something similar on his car so you have some experiance doing it, thus be ready and available to help your buddies withn thier projects and don,t avoid helping so you won,t get dirty, or have some free time thats used on other guys cars vs yours...in the long run it pays big to help others
(5)ask questions and be sure you understand the answers, KNOWING what your doing before you start is a huge advantage
(6)take pictures, label wireing, put small parts in labeled ziploc bags and take notes, use the manuals, and internet, and if something won,t fit or looks wrong research rather than forcing it with a bigger hammer
now I got asked,
"what do you do, who do you call when your about to tackle a job youve never done before?"
now most guys sub out jobs to the dealer or a corvette shop when they get into areas they may not be familiar with,but I do ALL the work on my corvettes for TWO good reasons, first I could NEVER afford the shop rates and I can NEVER trust the quality of work many shops do, now ILL be the VERY FIRST GUY IN LINE to ADMIT Im in WAY over my head at times! but Ive always been able to research the processes, tools, and skills and do the work, or find someone too teach me the skills eventually, youll NEVER learn new stuff if your not willing to tackle new projects and get in way over your current skill level....besides it USUALLY requires buying LOTS OF new tools and meeting new friends so you can,t hardly lose!
IF you take this advice seriously youll save ALOT of time and money
DO YOURSELF A HUGE FAVOR
buy these books, FIRST it will be the best money you ever spent, read them, and you will be miles ahead of the average guy. youll save thousands of dollars and thousands of hours once youve got a good basic understanding of what your trying to do!
http://www.themotorbookstore.com/resmchstvi.html
how to assemble an engine basics on video
these books
http://www.rehermorrison.com/rmEngineBook.htm
HOW TO BUILD MAX PERFORMANCE CHEVY SMALL BLOCKS ON A BUDGET by DAVID VIZARD
http://www.amazon.com/Build-Perform...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195231793&sr=1-1
JOHN LINGENFELTER on modifying small-block chevy engines
http://www.amazon.com/John-Lingenfe...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195231760&sr=1-1
SMOKEY YUNICK,S POWER SECRETS
http://www.amazon.com/Smokey-Yunick...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195231724&sr=1-1
How to Rebuild Small-Block Chevy Lt1/Lt4 Engines
http://www.amazon.com/Rebuild-Small-Block-Chevy-Engines-Hp1393/dp/1557883939/ref=pd_sim_b
I constantly see guys who get involved in mods to thier cars who either don,t understand that things seldom go as planned or that even understand that even if you know what your doing that the suppliers and machine shops seldom work to your schedual, and guys who buy project cars with zero idea as to the parts they are getting in that car or thier condition,or guys who then acctually think they can use the car as transportation...yet still race the car on a moments notice
your at a distict dis-advantage if you have zero idea what components were used in your engine, theres three routes to go,
(1) if it runs good just drive it and don,t worry about it
(2) you can disassemble the engine and carefully identify what you currently have so you know exactly what you have (see#1) and then if you want to make changes you know what needs changing and what you can keep
(3)find or buy a second engine or at least the major components, assemble it with a well thought thru plan, parts list and goal, while you drive the current combo(see#1) and once you have everything assembled with matched components you spend some long weekend swapping engines and drive train components, (this has the huge advantage that you have a fall back option if the new combo doesn,t meet your expectations as you can always return to the current combo in a single week ends work (see#1) yet you can potentially have a far more aggressive engine combo that kicks butt and takes names, and your not screwed for weeks or months at a time if something breaks if you race the car, and can make changes on your serious engine without truely compromiosing your cars value as transportation, and you can choose to keep or sell the expensive parts seperately from or with the car should you ever seak to sell the vette.
Ive always suggested the THIRD option is the best, having at least two engines is the best route if your into tinkrering and racing your corvette!thats why I currently have six engines I own in the shop, in various configs, I can get the vette to perform as I choose simply by taking my time while I build, modify or test drive the vettes optional engines as I build the test engine and swap it out for a few weeks or months of testing ,I can even rebuild or slightly change the basic transportation engine if I choose too while IM driving one of the other test engines, just remember one engine needs to stay pretty basic and dependable while on the other(S) you can let your imagination and budget run amuck as you see fit
yes theres two basic flaws to that option,
(1) YES ,you need a garage or place to store and work on the spare engine, and it helps tremendesly to have a second car, (a small pick-up trucks ideal so you can transport parts to the machine shop easily, and get to work on days when the promised parts don,t arrive or the machine shop doesn,t get the work done as they assured you they would.)
(2)YES it takes a bit more money up front at first, but in the long run its almost always cheaper and easier on your wallet, and the vette spends more time acctually in drivable condition rather than down waiting for parts or machine work to be done
know! youve never done something and your afraid youll mess it up,
EXAMPLE
the first time I looked over a TPI injection system I was very reluctant to start taking things apart, so as a hedge I took a dozen close up digital photos and labled every connection with masking tape and a majic marker sharpie pen, I had no idea how the injector connectors were released and didn,t realize there was a spring retainer untill Id got four removed, but after about the first dozen, I didn,t even bother looking any longer since things were so familiar.
EXAMPLE
the wifes MERCURY had the power seat control switch in the door go bad, I bought a new one,but I was very reluctant to disassemble the door panel, as I was sure ID screw it up!, but some careful inspection revealed it could easily be accessed and in 10 minutes I was done doing a job ID been hesitant to start for days.
theres a first time for nearly everything and youll be surprised, in many cases youll find you enjoy knowing how to do things better.....think back to how clumsy and hesitant you probably felt when you started dating,but learning new skills has its benefits
we ALL tend to remember better and learn more from our own and others ,SCREW UPS than when things go flawlessly...if your not occasionally screwing something up its obvious your not doing much engine rebuilding or many extensive modifications on a steady basis,
http://www.hioutput.com/tech/343hp/343hp.html
(if your stuck using restrictive heads, follow this build, and use much of the info that can be used as its designed to maximize restrictive heads with a tight LSA)
EXPERT= REQUIRES YOU TO BE EXTENSIVELY EXPERIENCED IN A CERTAIN FIELD OF ENDEAVOR
EXPERIENCE= VIRTUALLY REQUIRES PAST SCREW UPS
BTW,
its a known fact you need (4) 6 point and (4) 12 point sockets in BOTH 3/8"drive and 1/2" drive in BOTH standard and deep versions for every size of every bolt, both metric and SAE and every nut on any car you own just to BEGIN working on them,and altho wrenches and ratchets are a bit harder to loose youll need a good sekllection of those also, because at least 1/3rd of those sockets/wrenches,etc. will have rolled under the car, under a work bench or will either brake or get misplaced durring EVERY project!
remember EVERY PROJECT TAKES LONGER AND COSTS MORE THAN YOU THINK IT WILL.....GET USED TO THE FACT AND COMPENSATE FOR IT!,EXPECT IT!
once the car runs do an inventory of the tools and buy new ones to replace the ones you throw accross the shop, lost, welded accidently, broke or dropped into non-accessable holes in the car, or lost under the benches and behind machinery in the shop, after awhile you understand the necessity of stopping by SEARs, or MAC ,or SNAPON, regularly, and just figure its a NORMAL part of the procedure, as necessary as band-aids,asprin,a pad and pen and beer ,a few soft cuss words and paper towels are to any car project
, (SIMILAR TO THIS)now he has a killer 383 sbc and a 6 speed trans installed and hes working on the interior and paint, hes thrilled with the car!
