This place is awesome...!

JimmyDuncan

JimmyDuncan

Well-Known Member
Hi All,

My name is Jimmy. I'm a Kiwi (New Zealander) living in Melbourne, Australia, working as a prison psychologist and filling my spare time playing with my two kids, training for ironman triathlons and tinkering with my 66 Impala 4 door hard top.

I want to say that this forum is an awesome place to spend time trying to teach my self how to build a new engine for the Impala. I get lost for hours..

The chev currently has a tired 307 from who knows where and a 2 spd powerglide.... it cruises and that's about it... It's in need of love... I recently bought a running late 70s/early 80s 350 and a TH350 trans for a decent price (which is not anywhere as cheap as in America...) and the plan is to do a full rebuild over winter. I'm really excited for the experience. I want to give the Impala some get up and go, mainly to cruise around with the kids, but also, do a few skids and go to the drags on rare occasions just for fun.. My dad in NZ has a 66 Belair 2 door with a 427 bbc and manual trans that runs low 13s, so I 'd like to give him a run for his money one day... Which may be with a 350 or another engine in the future. I hope to take what I learn building this first engine and apply it to a more performance engine in the future when funds and skills/knowledge allow... :)

I am slowly piecing together a plan to get from point A (grimy old engine on the floor of the garage... I have a stand to put it on to tomorrow..) to point B (shiny, in the engine bay of the car, fun to drive and turn a few heads)..

Hopefully you'll all point me in the right direction when I ask questions as I go...

Cheers

Jimmy.
 
Welcome to Grumpy's garage!

My, that's one hell of a bio, Kiwi-man!

I rebuilt my 200-4R a few times... with zero experience to start. It still works very well now. There's more than enough experience here to get you though that one. Good snap-ring pliers and compressed air are your friend. Same with my 400 SBC. I had zero experience. Again, this place is indeed a goldmine of information and support.

As for the gleaming engine: niiiiice but beware of what you wish for. I had that as well... but it can get mighty dirty under there mighty quick! The only way to keep it that way is rubbing it down after every outing. Ever since, I've gone for the patina look :D

Mine is a bit of a daily driver - I retired it from the occasional amateur drag racing a couple of years ago. To get an Impala to run 13s with a 350 is certainly feasible. Don't you have big blocks around there????

As always:

Pics, or it never happened... including of Mr. Grimy picked up off the floor.
 
Oh, and yeah, we're all pretty much broke most of the time. Hence why we DIY so much. o_O
 
JimmyDuncan said:
Hi All,

My name is Jimmy. I'm a Kiwi (New Zealander) living in Melbourne, Australia, working as a prison psychologist and filling my spare time playing with my two kids, training for ironman triathlons and tinkering with my 66 Impala 4 door hard top.

I want to say that this forum is an awesome place to spend time trying to teach my self how to build a new engine for the Impala. I get lost for hours..

The chev currently has a tired 307 from who knows where and a 2 spd powerglide.... it cruises and that's about it... It's in need of love... I recently bought a running late 70s/early 80s 350 and a TH350 trans for a decent price (which is not anywhere as cheap as in America...) and the plan is to do a full rebuild over winter. I'm really excited for the experience. I want to give the Impala some get up and go, mainly to cruise around with the kids, but also, do a few skids and go to the drags on rare occasions just for fun.. My dad in NZ has a 66 Belair 2 door with a 427 bbc and manual trans that runs low 13s, so I 'd like to give him a run for his money one day... Which may be with a 350 or another engine in the future. I hope to take what I learn building this first engine and apply it to a more performance engine in the future when funds and skills/knowledge allow... :)

I am slowly piecing together a plan to get from point A (grimy old engine on the floor of the garage... I have a stand to put it on to tomorrow..) to point B (shiny, in the engine bay of the car, fun to drive and turn a few heads)..

Hopefully you'll all point me in the right direction when I ask questions as I go...

Cheers

Jimmy.
Click to expand...
Welcome to the forum Jimmy!!! How did you find the forum???

You and Dorian are much alike, Dorian is training for body building contests now and eating 8 times a day.

I've had a powerglide and two speeds is not enough. With motivation from Dorian and his 200-4R build I did one also when I changed over from a TH350. They are the same overall length and spline as the TH350, therefore there is no need to modify the driveshaft. But you do have to move the mount back about 5 inches. The TH350 will be cheaper to build, since it will need less upgraded parts.

You will find plenty of help here with the engine rebuild. Grumpy's middle name is Durability, he preaches mid range torque and reliability.

What is your budget and goals for this engine? Will you need to budget for any special tools during this project, ie ring compressor or valve spring compressor or ......???

Yes we live on pics here, so post a few when you can.
 
yes! glad you could make it here! ask your friends too join in also! and theres a good deal of info on how to build an exceptional SMALL BLOCK CHEVY ENGINE if you want to take the minimal effort to read a few dozen related links and sub-links
 
DorianL said:
Welcome to Grumpy's garage!

My, that's one hell of a bio, Kiwi-man!

I rebuilt my 200-4R a few times... with zero experience to start. It still works very well now. There's more than enough experience here to get you though that one. Good snap-ring pliers and compressed air are your friend. Same with my 400 SBC. I had zero experience. Again, this place is indeed a goldmine of information and support.

As for the gleaming engine: niiiiice but beware of what you wish for. I had that as well... but it can get mighty dirty under there mighty quick! The only way to keep it that way is rubbing it down after every outing. Ever since, I've gone for the patina look :D

Mine is a bit of a daily driver - I retired it from the occasional amateur drag racing a couple of years ago. To get an Impala to run 13s with a 350 is certainly feasible. Don't you have big blocks around there????

As always:

Pics, or it never happened... including of Mr. Grimy picked up off the floor.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the welcome Dorian!

I am in the 'no experience' boat, but I'm pretty good and finding out answers and teaching myself... I taught myself to build computers in the early 2000s due to lack of funds and wanting one to do my uni assignments on and to play games...

Actually, now you mention, shine is less important than giddyup in this build... I'll post some pics of the car and you'll see I have patina sorted... :) It's funny though, most people I've spoken to say leave it looking rough, lower it a bit and make it sound and ride fast... I agree :)
 
Indycars said:
Welcome to the forum Jimmy!!! How did you find the forum???

You and Dorian are much alike, Dorian is training for body building contests now and eating 8 times a day.

I've had a powerglide and two speeds is not enough. With motivation from Dorian and his 200-4R build I did one also when I changed over from a TH350. They are the same overall length and spline as the TH350, therefore there is no need to modify the driveshaft. But you do have to move the mount back about 5 inches. The TH350 will be cheaper to build, since it will need less upgraded parts.

You will find plenty of help here with the engine rebuild. Grumpy's middle name is Durability, he preaches mid range torque and reliability.

What is your budget and goals for this engine? Will you need to budget for any special tools during this project, ie ring compressor or valve spring compressor or ......???

Yes we live on pics here, so post a few when you can.
Click to expand...

Thanks Indycars!

I got to page 13 or 14 of your Tbucket engine build thread last night before I had to head to bed..... Only 77 pages to go.... ha!

Yeah, the TH350 is probably going to get a quick tidy up at this stage and go in behind the 307 to give it a little bit more movement off the stand still. I'll probably give it more love later in winter..

The budget is fairly tight..... I am estimating $2-3k, but spread out over the next 12-18 months.... Everything is more expensive in Oz, less available or have to pay shipping... So, I will have to be efficient and plan out buying as I need... I will need a few tools too. I've joined a local Chev club and hope to join a couple more groups, try to make some contacts and hopefully then I can benefit from their knowledge, skills and resources..

I think I'll start a new thread to document the progress soon.

Cheers

Jimmy.
 
Indycars said:
Welcome to the forum Jimmy!!! How did you find the forum???

You and Dorian are much alike, Dorian is training for body building contests now and eating 8 times a day.

I've had a powerglide and two speeds is not enough. With motivation from Dorian and his 200-4R build I did one also when I changed over from a TH350. They are the same overall length and spline as the TH350, therefore there is no need to modify the driveshaft. But you do have to move the mount back about 5 inches. The TH350 will be cheaper to build, since it will need less upgraded parts.

You will find plenty of help here with the engine rebuild. Grumpy's middle name is Durability, he preaches mid range torque and reliability.

What is your budget and goals for this engine? Will you need to budget for any special tools during this project, ie ring compressor or valve spring compressor or ......???

Yes we live on pics here, so post a few when you can.
Click to expand...

Oh, and I think I found the forum through Chevytalk or some other forum...?
 
welcome to the site! glad you find the place so useful, be sure to post some pics and start a build thread, this will not only give us something cool to look at, but allow you to get some personalized advice if you run into any snags... :D
 
Grumpy said:
yes! glad you could make it here! ask your friends too join in also! and theres a good deal of info on how to build an exceptional SMALL BLOCK CHEVY ENGINE if you want to take the minimal effort to read a few dozen related links and sub-links
Click to expand...

Thanks Grumpy!

I have read well over a few dozen links and sub links... I go down rabbit holes of reading... Its great.

I'm still struggling with putting together the planned build. I have some general ideas and will get together all the information you mention in other threads that is required to make a solid plan.

But, I think I need to get my hands dirty soon... I think stripping down the engine will help make sense of what I'm dealing with.

Thanks for having me.

Jimmy.
 
philly said:
welcome to the site! glad you find the place so useful, be sure to post some pics and start a build thread, this will not only give us something cool to look at, but allow you to get some personalized advice if you run into any snags... :D
Click to expand...

Thanks Phil.

I plan to do just that!

I'll get some pics up soon. They'll just be iphone shots at this stage, but I hope to get a decent camera soon, so I can take nice pics of the great cars I see at local car shows.

Cheers

Jimmy.
 
Last edited:
Hey Jimmy, welcome aboard the grumpsters information highway we call grumpys performance garage. I am sure you'll be alright with the engine build, just gotta do a large amount of research and choose the right components for your purpose. Again welcome aboard Jimmy!:)
 
post as much info on the application,
your budget, your skills, tools, and time constraints,
what you currently have and the options your considering
and the more experience members are sure to post useful advice
 
Thanks.

I got the grimy engine on the stand last night (it was a pain to do by myself as the hoist and stand didn't want to play nice and were fighting for leg room....) I'll start a build thread later today.
 
yes that issue of the legs on the crane not allowing the engine stand too roll into a location close enough under the crane too allow a direct transfer is an all too common issue I solved with swapping the casters on the engine stands thus they can allow the crane legs too slide under the stand legs o the crane can align with the stand to off load the engine

1284.jpg
http://www.harborfreight.com/8-in-rubber-heavy-duty-cushion-tire-swivel-caster-with-brake-61836.html
 
grumpyvette said:
yes that issue of the legs on the crane not allowing the engine stand too roll into a location close enough under the crane too allow a direct transfer is an all too common issue I solved with swapping the casters on the engine stands thus they can allow the crane legs too slide under the stand legs o the crane can align with the stand to off load the engine

1284.jpg
http://www.harborfreight.com/8-in-rubber-heavy-duty-cushion-tire-swivel-caster-with-brake-61836.html
Click to expand...

Ah yes! Now that would have worked... I got there in the end..... Maybe I'll do that to mine after the strip down and before having a fully built engine back on the stand...
 
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