Barn Find 56 Bel Air LSA w/ TR6060 [Archive]

lsx70

03-24-2022, 08:24 AM

Hey guys,

Now that the Chevelle build is wrapped up I'm getting around to building the 1956 Bel Air I picked up in January of 2020. I use the term "picked up" loosely in this situation because getting the car was actually a huge hassle. I purchased the car from a gentleman in New York in January for 2020 with an agreement that he would continue storing the car until I could come down and trailer it home. We planned on heading down to NY in April to tow the car home (the car was not running/driving). So of course now you may realize that some things happened in the world that prevented me from getting to NY to get the car. In March the border from Canada to the US closed due to covid so I was unable to get to the car. The plan then changed to we would wait until the border opened back up enough that we could drive down and pick the car up. We were expecting the border to be open in a few weeks or possibly a couple months, that obviously didn't happen so I had to start looking into getting the car shipped.
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Getting the car shipped is where I really started to run into problems. New York has a weird system of registering cars that are antique that I still don't fully understand, but essentially I went through about 4 months of back and forth with the seller, the border, and the brokerage company before I finally had all the required paperwork to import the car.

So rolling into August I could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel and the possibility of seeing the car in person for the first time (at this point I had still only seen the car in pictures). The car finally arriver around the end of August. The shipper was very good with sending me updates and pictures!
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A little back story on the car, the gentleman I bought it from bought it from a guy in Alabama as a non running project, he then pulled it into a barn and parked it for 20 years. the car appears to have been either a drag car at one time or a car someone intended to turn into a drag car. It had slapper bars, open headers with collector extensions, a driveshaft loop and what appeared to be clearancing to the firewall to fit a big block and cut out distributor access.

So to flash forward a bit to current day, I "finished" the Chevelle build in the summer of 2021 (they're never really done) and started working on the 56 shortly after, so I'm going to be playing catch up on this thread. The original plan for the 56 was always to be LS swapped with a stick but I did plan on driving it as it was for a couple summers (spoiler that didn't happen). In the end we decided that it wasn't cost effective to get the car running as it sat and I just parked the car from when it arrived home until late summer 2021.

I did some looking at what transmission and engine combo I wanted to use and was originally planning to do a high RPM solid roller LS deal with a jerico or faceplated doug nash transmission.

A little backstory on that plan is that it is essentially based off my dad's 56 which he has had as long as I can remember. It has a high compression (borderline race gas) 355 and a face plated doug nash trans. He used to race it when I was a kid, full weight, stock suspension, stick shift and ran a best of 11.31 before the track told him to slow it down or put a cage in it. I grew up in the back of this car, sliding around the back seat. Lots of good memories, and really that car is the reason I'm building my car now.
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A couple pictures of my dad's car (he used to tow it with a 56 chevy truck to the racetrack).

When the car arrived home I basically washed it, cleaned up some parts, checked out what all had come with the car and then took out the drive train (327 and a th350) and parked the car.
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I knew going into the build that I wanted the car to be low, have a fairly big tire on the back and to be loud. I essentially wanted to build a more modern version to what my dads car was in my eyes.198331

I ended up stumbling upon a good deal on a low mileage (50k kilometres) tr6060 out of a smashed camaro. I picked up the trans along with the clutch. This started to slightly shift the plan of the build towards what could be described as a more user friendly combination. I was still planning on the solid roller high RPM deal but I was starting to consider something maybe a little more modern.

C Presley

03-24-2022, 08:53 AM

Dude, a very nice Bel Air to start with! I'm building a 56 Chevy Bel Air as well. 495HP LS3 Crate engine, Magnum T56, Paul Newman Car Creations Chassis, C6 Z06 Brakes, just finished with a new trunk pan, floor pan, minitubs, recessed firewall, smoothie hood. Both cars should be very nice when finished!

andrewb70

03-24-2022, 09:24 AM

Good stuff. Looking forward to updates.

Andrew

thumper877

03-24-2022, 09:54 AM

Nice car to start and also love the 56 truck that was towing

lsx70

03-24-2022, 05:11 PM

Good stuff. Looking forward to updates.

Andrew

Thanks Andrew! I have been following along with the next iteration of the GTO, you do some nice work!

Nice car to start and also love the 56 truck that was towing

Thanks! Although my dad doesn't race that car anymore we still have the truck! It has an easy life now, no towing just the occasional car show.

Dude, a very nice Bel Air to start with! I'm building a 56 Chevy Bel Air as well. 495HP LS3 Crate engine, Magnum T56, Paul Newman Car Creations Chassis, C6 Z06 Brakes, just finished with a new trunk pan, floor pan, minitubs, recessed firewall, smoothie hood. Both cars should be very nice when finished!

I appreciate the kind words. I'd love to see some pictures of your car, it sounds fairly similar to the direction mine is going.

TANKMASTERJ

03-24-2022, 05:51 PM

I can't wait to see your build thread progress.
Looks like a real barn find.

ryeguy2006a

03-25-2022, 04:12 AM

I love the background story, very cool! I didn't know cars that clean existed in NY!!

Alwhite00

03-25-2022, 09:00 AM

Damn, pretty hard to beat a red/white 56. My favorite year of the tri 5's and a great color combo. Always wanted one. What are your plans for the body?

lsx70

03-25-2022, 09:13 AM

I can't wait to see your build thread progress.
Looks like a real barn find.
Thanks! I would have liked to know some more about the history of the car, the previous owner didn't know much about the story of the car before he got it, but the car definitely wasn't on the road then either. I'm thinking the car probably hasn't been driven since the 70's but it's hard to know for sure.
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As the summer of 2021 neared the end, I finally started really digging into the 56 build and got it pulled into the shop. The first thing on the list was to tackle the ugly, most ugly of all was the firewall. I got started by pulling the front clip off (because the car fit quite well as it was I kept track of all the washers, spacers, etc. that will help put it back, as well as drilling some locating holes).
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cleaned the firewall up enough to see what was actually there
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I bought a clean original firewall and made it fit
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tacked in
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welded home, I also did a quick test fit of the trans here and determined I would be cutting out the tunnel.
This was really the first welding I had done outside of some small test pieces.
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next up was the drivers rear floor pan
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lsx70

03-25-2022, 09:19 AM

I love the background story, very cool! I didn't know cars that clean existed in NY!!

Thanks! I don't really consider it a NY car if I'm being honest. The whole time it was in NY it was inside. That being said, it's definitely not perfect, I had to replace part of the firewall (from hackery not rust), 3 floor pans and the trunk pan (again not from rust) but overall the body is in excellent shape

Damn, pretty hard to beat a red/white 56. My favorite year of the tri 5's and a great color combo. Always wanted one. What are your plans for the body?
My favorite year as well! plans for the body are to leave it alone! I had to do some repairs that will be coming up soon but the plan is to leave as much alone as possible. I'm a sucker for original paint/patina cars especially with badass drivetrains, lowered with a nice set of wheels. That being said, thats exactly what I plan to do with this car!

Alwhite00

03-25-2022, 09:45 AM

My favorite year as well! plans for the body are to leave it alone! I had to do some repairs that will be coming up soon but the plan is to leave as much alone as possible. I'm a sucker for original paint/patina cars especially with badass drivetrains, lowered with a nice set of wheels. That being said, thats exactly what I plan to do with this car!

Thank you, exactly what I would do with it.

lsx70

03-25-2022, 04:11 PM

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I ended up doing 3 floor pans. They weren't super bad but I felt better replacing them and having the car super solid going forward. I also cut a rough hole for the transmission.
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next up was tackling the trunk floor. At some point someone had welded a piece of angle iron along the rear panel (basically whats left of the trunk floor at the rear of the car in this picture). The trunk floor wasn't 100% solid and I wanted to delete the spare tire so it just made sense to replace the whole trunk floor.

This is where things got a little interesting, when I was getting the trunk floor out , the back section that had the angle iron was hiding some other issues.
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along with the rust in that corner and the same on the other side, the trunk lid didn't fit quite right. So we decided to slice the rear panel and move it over ever so slightly.
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Trunk floor in.
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while I was trying to avoid the rear corners I decided to patch the hole that had been cut in the upper firewall. This was another piece I used from the donor firewall.
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I came up with this 2 piece patch panel to get the right shape
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A bit of engine mockup, checking angles and making sure everything would clear.

lsx70

03-27-2022, 04:36 AM

A few fun boxes showed up after a while of waiting for it
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This is Ridetech's front and rear coilover conversion for tri five chevy's. The rear ditches the leaf spring set up for a bolt in 4 link and the front gets rid of the old control arms in favour of some tubular, geometry correcting control arms.

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It was also time to start really figuring out where the trans was going to sit
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My original plan for the tunnel was to buy an aftermarket one to put in, they ended up being quite expensive so I decided to try my hand at building my own tunnel. I didn't want to do the usual square tunnel because I wanted to keep the factory look. I was also getting a little more confident in my welding skills at this point

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A coat of black and it was ready for dynamat!

ryeguy2006a

03-28-2022, 11:06 AM

Looks great!! What engine and transmission mounts will you be running? Doesn't look like the Tri5 has as much aftermarket support for LS swaps as other platforms.

lsx70

03-29-2022, 06:21 AM

Looks great!! What engine and transmission mounts will you be running? Doesn't look like the Tri5 has as much aftermarket support for LS swaps as other platforms.
Thanks! You're right, there is much less LS swap support for the trifives than there was for the chevelle when I did it. I used williams custom chassis mounts along with their transmission crossmember, I had to modify the crossmember slightly because it's made for a t56. the mounts and the crossmember are both weld in where the chevelle holley setup was completely bolt in.

lsx70

03-29-2022, 06:36 AM

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Things in the rear are buttoned up and fitting well, the trunk closes now and the gap is much nicer.
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on to some bodywork
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lots of sanding involved but things are shaping up nicely
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I like this shot of the car on jackstands, you can see the motor mounts welded in here
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taped up
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time for some primer
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a couple shots of the corners where there was some major rust repair
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so the plan from here was to paint the frame gloss black, the firewall semi gloss black and do the underside of the car with black raptor liner. I'm leaving the trunk and the rest of the back in white primer until I can move the car into the paint booth. The plan for it then will be to get something as close to matching as possible and blend it into the existing paint.

lsx70

04-02-2022, 07:30 AM

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Lots of progress happening at the front of the car. Frame and firewall are painted and some of the front suspension is on, the spindles are not here yet, but they're really all thats left for front suspension.

In the rear I ran into an issue where the main bar for the 4 link wasn't wide enough to touch both frame rails. I called ridetech support and the tech was very helpful and easy to work with, he tole me that it is a fairly common thing on these cars because the jigs they used in the 50's weren't very accurate. He told me I could either make spacer plates or wrap a ratchet strap around the frame and pull it tight. Because this car fits really well as is I didn't want to pull the frame (I was mostly worried about the doors not closing), so I opted to make the spacers.

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A nice tight fit.

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rear bar bolted up, you can also see the painted frame and raptorliner on the floor in this shot.

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I was originally planning to bolt the rear bar as per the instructions, but I decided I would be happier knowing it was welded solid considering it supports the entire rear suspension. everything will be cleaned up and painted again.

Motown 454

04-02-2022, 02:34 PM

Your progress looks great, nice job.

TANKMASTERJ

04-03-2022, 06:23 AM

Wow your making some great progress fast. I'm watching this closely. Who doesn't love a tri 5 ina modern build

lsx70

04-04-2022, 07:52 AM

Your progress looks great, nice job.

Wow your making some great progress fast. I'm watching this closely. Who doesn't love a tri 5 ina modern build

Thanks guys! its moving along well!

lsx70

04-04-2022, 08:01 AM

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Took some time to mock up the tank, its a tanks inc direct fit with a walbro 525 pump, which should be plenty for what I'm planning.

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I also threw the gauge cluster and clock in. They're classic instruments units.

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mock up of the rear suspension, I ordered a complete rear end from quick performance, it's a 9" ford in the standard tri five width. I'm pretty happy with it overall.

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Monster LT1-S triple disc clutch should be plenty! I'm excited to try this clutch out, it's supposed to have stock drive-ability but be able to handle 1150whp which is way more than I'm going to be making.

lsx70

04-08-2022, 02:51 AM

So from the outset of this build I knew I wanted to do a different drivetrain than the chevelle (6.0L w/4L80E), my very first plan was to do some sort of boosted LS. I actually looked pretty seriously at doing a procharger or another centrifugal supercharger but the cost to do that was higher than what I was looking to get into at the time. I also considered doing a turbo but it just didn't feel right for this car. So with all that being said I started to look for a PD blower, I was mostly interested in a whipple based primarily on looks, I soon found out that a PD blower was no cheaper than the centri blower so I scrapped the whole idea and decided on the solid roller spin it to the moon plan. That was all well and good until I started really thinking about what I would have to buy to make that plan happen (shaft mounted rockers, CID intake, accufab TB, etc) and I realized that for the price I would be paying for that setup I could probably get close to the cost of an LSA setup.

So the plan changed and I started looking for an LSA supercharger. 198846

Dad couldn't let me have all the fun so he got one too. we got a good deal on the pair.

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I also picked up an LQ9 from a 2005 escalade. This would give me gen 4 rods which I planned to keep and use.

Unfortunately the plan to use everything over didn't last long. As I tore the engine down I started to come across some issues. Cam bearings were bad and the pistons were scuffed. Fortunately for me I work at a machine shop in the summer months while I'm not in school.

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I dropped the block off at work to have the cylinders checked and in the end it had to be bored 0.030". I went with a wiseco forged piston and BTR forged rod. the crank also had to be gorund 0.010" on the main journals and the rod journals were ok, so just a polish for them.

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A friend if mine is in school to be a mechanic, I invited him over to help put the engine together and showed him how to assemble the pistons on the rods.

lsx70

09-27-2022, 03:31 PM

Wow it has been a long time since I updated this...

Since the last update I finished assembling the engine
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Lots of good parts in this one. Brian Tooley camshaft, Wiseco Pistons, Brian Tooley connecting rods, Johnson lifters and ARP headstuds.

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lsx70

09-27-2022, 03:44 PM

Some final mockup
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the quick performance 9 inch finally arrived

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I got it cleaned up and painted after having a buddy tig weld the 4 link brackets on

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9 inch installed with brakes. I keep thinking this car is looking more and more like a racecar lol

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Monster triple disc assembled and installed on the engine

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and the tr6060 is on also... ready for install

lsx70

09-27-2022, 04:23 PM

Drivetrain is installed
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The shifter position lined up perfectly with the hole I cut in the new tunnel
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I also stuck the seat in for now, I'm pretty happy with the overall shifter position ergonomically
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some more mockup, 2" primary hedman headers that I will have to make some small modification to, the LSX concepts race drive fits phenomenally and the holley high mount alternator looks like it will work well. The blower snout is off so I can install a smaller upper pulley along with a solid isolator
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There is some more progress since these pictures but I'll get to them soon. Current day I am getting ready to wire the car, I have an American autowire harness that I loomed using techflex woven loom.

I had planned on using a P01 LS ecu that I converted to a 6.0L 6 speed with custom 3 bar OS using HPtuners along with a harness I built custom to fit the engine super tight that is loomed with the same techflex woven as the American Autowire body harness. Unfortunately the combination of injector angle on the LSA blower and the cathedral to square port adapters I am using are likely going to cause me some tuning issues using the factory ecu (there is not enough adjustment in the transient and tip in fueling to adjust for the injector spray hitting the side of the adapter plates and it causes stumbling and stalling issues at tip in and off idle)

Sooo the solution to this is either change the cylinder heads or change the engine management system. I'm leaning towards putting a holley terminator system on the car but most of my tuning experience is with hp tuners so this would be a new ball game. Hopefully someone will chime in with some experience with the holley stuff and possibly even someone who has an LSA with a holley

thumper877

09-28-2022, 03:33 AM

Andrew I hear someone calling your name :)
Drivetrain is installed
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The shifter position lined up perfectly with the hole I cut in the new tunnel
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I also stuck the seat in for now, I'm pretty happy with the overall shifter position ergonomically
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some more mockup, 2" primary hedman headers that I will have to make some small modification to, the LSX concepts race drive fits phenomenally and the holley high mount alternator looks like it will work well. The blower snout is off so I can install a smaller upper pulley along with a solid isolator
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There is some more progress since these pictures but I'll get to them soon. Current day I am getting ready to wire the car, I have an American autowire harness that I loomed using techflex woven loom.

I had planned on using a P01 LS ecu that I converted to a 6.0L 6 speed with custom 3 bar OS using HPtuners along with a harness I built custom to fit the engine super tight that is loomed with the same techflex woven as the American Autowire body harness. Unfortunately the combination of injector angle on the LSA blower and the cathedral to square port adapters I am using are likely going to cause me some tuning issues using the factory ecu (there is not enough adjustment in the transient and tip in fueling to adjust for the injector spray hitting the side of the adapter plates and it causes stumbling and stalling issues at tip in and off idle)

Sooo the solution to this is either change the cylinder heads or change the engine management system. I'm leaning towards putting a holley terminator system on the car but most of my tuning experience is with hp tuners so this would be a new ball game. Hopefully someone will chime in with some experience with the holley stuff and possibly even someone who has an LSA with a holley

ryeguy2006a

09-28-2022, 04:48 AM

lsx70

09-28-2022, 08:02 AM

Love this build and you're doing a great job on this car! I'm hoping to find a 55 or 56 Nomad sometime this year to start building.

I ran a Terminator X Max with my 6.2 LSA and TR6060 trans, which is very similar to yours. I did have LS3 heads on mine, so no adapter plates. I'll say that it works really well for boosted applications and I was able to very quickly get the tune dialed in. The software is very user friendly compared to HP Tuners. With the X Max ECU you can run the VSS into the ECU to enable speed based outputs and commands. I used it for the reverse lockout and to disable my cooling fans above 40 mph. I'm happy to answer basic questions, but if you need in depth questions I'd contact Andrew here on this site. He's the go-to guy for tuning Holley ECU's.

I appreciate the kind words! I love 56 nomads, I don’t love the rear wheel well on a 55.

In terms of Holley, did you use a cable drive throttle body or drive by wire? I like the idea of a drive by wire setup but I really don’t want to lose the instant throttle response of the cable.
Andrew slipped my mind, I have him on Instagram so I’ll have to reach out

ryeguy2006a

09-28-2022, 09:10 AM

I appreciate the kind words! I love 56 nomads, I don’t love the rear wheel well on a 55.

In terms of Holley, did you use a cable drive throttle body or drive by wire? I like the idea of a drive by wire setup but I really don’t want to lose the instant throttle response of the cable.
Andrew slipped my mind, I have him on Instagram so I’ll have to reach out

I like the rear wheel well on the 55 better, but I really love the hidden fuel filler neck on the 56. I'm waiting for the right project to come up and I'll take whichever fits my criteria haha.

I ran DBC on mine with a Nick Williams 92mm. No idea if it made any difference in HP, but when I took the snout off to swap to the ZPE hub, I took the opportunity to port match the TB to the snout and got rid of the hump on the right side inlet looking in the intake. Motion works makes a DBC bracket, but I made my own from a piece of aluminum plate and an old truck intake throttle bracket I had. I have tons of pictures and documentation of the LSA swap I did on the build in my signature.

andrewb70

09-28-2022, 09:12 AM

I appreciate the kind words! I love 56 nomads, I don’t love the rear wheel well on a 55.

In terms of Holley, did you use a cable drive throttle body or drive by wire? I like the idea of a drive by wire setup but I really don’t want to lose the instant throttle response of the cable.
Andrew slipped my mind, I have him on Instagram so I’ll have to reach out

Drive by wire is the way to go. You won't lose any responsiveness, and you will gain drivability. Shoot me a message if I can help with the tuning.

I also highly recommend the Bowler all in one T56 controller. It will handle your reverse lockout solenoid and provide an easy way to add a VSS channel to the Terminator X Max ECU. Call Bowler to make sure you get the right one for your particular T56.

Andrew

lsx70

09-28-2022, 11:26 AM

I like the rear wheel well on the 55 better, but I really love the hidden fuel filler neck on the 56. I'm waiting for the right project to come up and I'll take whichever fits my criteria haha.

I ran DBC on mine with a Nick Williams 92mm. No idea if it made any difference in HP, but when I took the snout off to swap to the ZPE hub, I took the opportunity to port match the TB to the snout and got rid of the hump on the right side inlet looking in the intake. Motion works makes a DBC bracket, but I made my own from a piece of aluminum plate and an old truck intake throttle bracket I had. I have tons of pictures and documentation of the LSA swap I did on the build in my signature.
I was following your build a little while back but it was before I started this build, I’ll have to look back through

Drive by wire is the way to go. You won't lose any responsiveness, and you will gain drivability. Shoot me a message if I can help with the tuning.

I also highly recommend the Bowler all in one T56 controller. It will handle your reverse lockout solenoid and provide an easy way to add a VSS channel to the Terminator X Max ECU. Call Bowler to make sure you get the right one for your particular T56.

Andrew

Andrew I’m going to shoot you a message on instagram

lsx70

09-28-2022, 04:45 PM

On to some more updates

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Engine fitment with the front clip on, the clip is on temporarily to measure for a radiator, heat exchanger and fans

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I couldn't resist taking some pictured with the front clip on. I love how the stance is looking, its getting me thinking about wheel choices..... any ideas??

Alwhite00

09-29-2022, 03:59 AM

Damn nice looking 56. My favorite year. Great build.

andrewb70

09-29-2022, 08:01 AM

Per our conversation, I would run this fan:

https://www.vintageair.com/custom/product-pop.php?pn=280479

Andrew

ryeguy2006a

09-29-2022, 08:59 AM

Those Spal Brushless fans are where it's at. I grabbed mine off of a C7 and modified it to work with a custom fan shroud on my aluminum radiator. Also, get the largest heat exchanger that you can fit.

Pingar

10-15-2022, 09:28 AM

Loving your build.

lsx70

11-26-2022, 06:24 PM

Damn nice looking 56. My favorite year. Great build.

Thanks! my favorite as well!

Per our conversation, I would run this fan:

https://www.vintageair.com/custom/product-pop.php?pn=280479

Andrew

Thanks Andrew, I already have a fan that isn't the one you linked but I definitely think you will like what I have acquired...

Those Spal Brushless fans are where it's at. I grabbed mine off of a C7 and modified it to work with a custom fan shroud on my aluminum radiator. Also, get the largest heat exchanger that you can fit.

Fan update coming soon.. heat exchanger too.. I appreciate the input, I remember looking through your build thread thinking that I would love to have an LSA at some point!

Loving your build.
Thanks! lots to come!

lsx70

11-26-2022, 06:52 PM

Since the last update quite a lot has happened so this update may be quite large...

To start off I had a buddy modify the blower snout to remove one of the unnecessary vacuum ports
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and then reinstalled the snout on the blower
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then after much consideration dad and I decided we should get a tig welder
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It's an everlast 255EXT with the water cooler. The only problem was neither one of us know how to tig weld... so I started goofing around with the welder
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first with some steel
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then with some aluminum. After a weekend of messing around trying to figure the welder out I decided I was ready to do something that would actually progress my project.
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I decided to try and weld Vband flanges on my headers. Now the headers are mild steel and the flanges are stainless so I used a 309 filler that is specific to welding stainless to mild (or so I've been told)

lsx70

11-26-2022, 07:00 PM

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I also welded in O2 sensor bungs. There is probably a bit too much heat in the welds but overall I'm happy with them for my first attempt.

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this is one I did for the headers on a 69 chevelle we're building for my mom. Her headers are 304 stainless so this was my first stainless to stainless.

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I also picked up a terminator X max for a good deal. I already re-loomed the injector harness and stripped the main harness to do the same

C Presley

11-26-2022, 08:26 PM

Dude, the LSA looks right at home in between the fender wells of the 56. Nice touches, mixing the old with the new!

lsx70

11-27-2022, 04:21 AM

Dude, the LSA looks right at home in between the fender wells of the 56. Nice touches, mixing the old with the new!

Thank you! I always love giving a modern drivetrain a bit of classic soul to make it look at home in the car!

lsx70

11-27-2022, 04:34 AM

Up next was figuring out where to mount the coils. I wanted to mount them somewhere remote and have wires run to them similar to how it would look if it were a SBC
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So I whipped up some coil brackets and mounted them under the dash on either side of the glove box
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I also picked up a pierburg cwa400 pump for the supercharger cooling system. this was my first real aluminum tig welding that was for the project, I added -12 AN bungs to the pump housing so I can run all AN lines.
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So up until this point the original 1956 corvette valve covers have just been sitting on top of a slightly modified factory LS cover (I just had to remove some material from the outer edges of LS covers along with a few of the coil mounting nubs and I had to remove some material from the inner edges of the corvette covers). So I needed a way to mount the covers solid.. this brings us to welding the tabs on the factory LS cover. wow what a fight that was at first. It was my second real aluminum tig experience and my first with used aluminum. Let me tell you there is a pile of junk in a used cast aluminum valve cover... lots of time spent cleaning and slowly adding new metal until there was actually something to weld to. All while making sure not to burn through and ruin the oring boss for the cover. All in all a good learning experience and I didn't ruin either cover. Overall I'm pretty happy with the outcome.

lsx70

11-27-2022, 04:45 AM

Once I had a solution to mounting the covers I had to figure out an oil fill. Since the original LS fill was much too tall to fit under my covers.
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I ordered an aluminum -12 oring bung to weld in.. after measuring and cutting down the original filler neck I welded in the new filler and put the oring cap in. This should make for a nice seal. Also visible in the picture is a -10 AN fitting in the valve cover that will be used for crankcase ventilation. I have one of these in each valve cover that will be going to a motion raceworks catch can.

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A bit of CAD (cardboard aided design) to get an idea for radiator size before I ordered and to start planning for an intake. the catch can can also be seen mounted to the firewall. AN lines run from the front of each cover underneath the corvette covers and out the back to make for a clean install and also have the lines plumbed to the front of the cover for less oil sloshing in under acceleration.

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Heat exhanger is a frozen boost unit, I'm not sure how well it's going to work yet but with the rest of the cooling system quite beefy along with a dose of water meth injection I'm sure it will be adequate. The unit shpwed up with 5/8" npt inlet and outlet so I carefully drilled them to fit some -12AN bungs and welded them in.
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The boys at work know about my new tig welding adventure and decided to give me a challenge.. weld two pop cans together. It was a fun experience and definitely something I'll try again sometime.

lsx70

11-27-2022, 05:01 AM

I decided at some point that I really wanted to have a factory style but slightly modified (colors and materials) interior for the car. My goal since the beginning was to have a faded patinaesque body with a really nice underhood, interior, modern drivetrain and suspension. So I reached out to Gina at Ciadella Interiors and got an Interior on the way. It's a few months out but I'm really excited for it. Heres a little sneak peek
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Once I decided the interior had to happen I also decided to do some paintwork inside the car
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This is only probably the third time I have used a paint gun to base clear something and it turned out pretty good! I'll have another update soon of some sanding and buffing and once the dash is reassembled. The car is also going to get a vinyl covered dash to replicate an original padded dash so I should have that update soon as well.

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Since Black Friday sales are going on I thought I would look at some wheels on sale and these three all caught my eye. I'm leaning towards the steely style with a hubcap (it's a Billet Specialties motor city) but i'm not sure if I would do them in black, cream, red or polished and I'm not sure whether to have the lip polished or not (it is an option).. I would be using a factory 56 150/210 dog dish cap. I also really love the Bonneville but they're quite a bit pricier. The Weld's are the least expensive and a wheel I really like but I'm not sure they really fit the style of the build as much as the others.. I'd like to get some opinions but I'll probably have my mind made up by tomorrow to take advantage of the sales.

andrewb70

11-27-2022, 06:17 AM

Nice progress! Let me know if I can help with the first start and the tuning.

Andrew

TANKMASTERJ

11-27-2022, 07:30 AM

I haven't looked at this build in a while. Progress is coming along and looks great. As for the to pop cams welded together that's on my to do list. I've welded stick and mig for years but have never tried tig.
Sooooooon!
Love the build.
Jason

lsx70

11-27-2022, 07:08 PM

Nice progress! Let me know if I can help with the first start and the tuning.

Andrew

I haven't looked at this build in a while. Progress is coming along and looks great. As for the to pop cams welded together that's on my to do list. I've welded stick and mig for years but have never tried tig.
Sooooooon!
Love the build.
Jason

thanks guys! Any input on the whee choice?

TANKMASTERJ

11-27-2022, 07:28 PM

Personally
I like the last one for more of the pro touring vibe.
But that's my .02!

andrewb70

11-27-2022, 07:29 PM

thanks guys! Any input on the whee choice?

The choice of wheels plays a big part in the overall "vibe" of the car. What's the "vibe" you're looking for?

lsx70

11-28-2022, 03:14 AM

Personally
I like the last one for more of the pro touring vibe.
But that's my .02!
Thanks man! I’ve really likes those welds for a while! Thought about putting them on my Chevelle for a long time!

The choice of wheels plays a big part in the overall "vibe" of the car. What's the "vibe" you're looking for?
That’s a hard question.. but it’s also THE question. I’ve bounced back and forth between wanting the car to be a modern rendition of what I would call a street bruiser (steelies and dog dish hubcaps) and something more race inspired (like the bonneville’s or even a 5 spoke in a magnesium color way). All three wheels are wheels I’ve liked for a while but I think for the look of this car with so much factory stuff being left as it was the two billet specialties fit my vision better. I’m really leaning towards the aluminum steely with a hubcap.

TANKMASTERJ

11-28-2022, 04:18 AM

Do it.
You can always adjust it later. As Andrew said you gotta get the vibe your after.
Jason

thumper877

11-28-2022, 04:21 AM

X2 on the steelie with the hubcap.

Alwhite00

11-28-2022, 06:24 AM

I like the 2nd wheel. Classic street machine vibe in a larger pro touring diameter.

andrewb70

11-28-2022, 09:20 AM

[INDENT]
Thanks man! I’ve really likes those welds for a while! Thought about putting them on my Chevelle for a long time!

That’s a hard question.. but it’s also THE question. I’ve bounced back and forth between wanting the car to be a modern rendition of what I would call a street bruiser (steelies and dog dish hubcaps) and something more race inspired (like the bonneville’s or even a 5 spoke in a magnesium color way). All three wheels are wheels I’ve liked for a while but I think for the look of this car with so much factory stuff being left as it was the two billet specialties fit my vision better. I’m really leaning towards the aluminum steely with a hubcap.

Go with whatever feels right to you!

Andrew

lsx70

11-29-2022, 02:49 AM

Do it.
You can always adjust it later. As Andrew said you gotta get the vibe your after.
Jason

X2 on the steelie with the hubcap.

I like the 2nd wheel. Classic street machine vibe in a larger pro touring diameter.

Go with whatever feels right to you!

Andrew

thanks guys! A decision has been made!

lsx70

11-29-2022, 03:00 AM

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Now that the wheel decision is out of the way let’s get back to some updates! The new driveshaft arrived with the slip section so I can use it with the tr6060.

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Heat exchanger, radiator and fan placement. The radiator is a summit LS swap unit that I ordered by size. The fan is the real talking point in the setup.. it’s a 2019 camaro 600watt spal brushless fan that is PWM. I modified it slightly to fit in the original opening for the factory radiator. Should provide plenty of cooling!

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And an update on the lower section of the dash that I painted. This is only my second or third time spraying clear! The glove box door still needs some fitting but that will come.
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Terminator mounting location
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I also picked up some pedals and pedal pads to liven up the interior! These are lokar restomod pedals.. they are brand new and I actually haven’t seen another set posted anywhere yet.

andrewb70

11-29-2022, 06:15 AM

I believe that can is actually 850watts. Double check me, so that you can wire it appropriately. You'll need at least 8 gauge power and ground wires.

Andrew

ryeguy2006a

11-29-2022, 10:36 AM

Killer update man! Love the TIG welding skills. I actually just picked up an Everlast welder myself, but I went with the MTS 225 all in one. I haven't gotten a chance to use it yet, but I may reach out for some tips.

lsx70

11-29-2022, 04:50 PM

I believe that can is actually 850watts. Double check me, so that you can wire it appropriately. You'll need at least 8 gauge power and ground wires.

Andrew
Andrew,
is there a way to check the wattage of the fan? I was planning on 8 gauge already so that should be fine. I will need to find the connector for the fan..

Killer update man! Love the TIG welding skills. I actually just picked up an Everlast welder myself, but I went with the MTS 225 all in one. I haven't gotten a chance to use it yet, but I may reach out for some tips.
Thanks! I’ve been liking the everlast so far (probably about a month and a half in). I’m no expert but feel free to reach out whenever!

lsx70

11-29-2022, 05:01 PM

Ok so I promised a dash update… so here it is!

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Mom has an upholstery sewing machine in the shop and she is pretty familiar with that sort of stuff (she does a lot of quilting and sewing in her spare time) so she has done a few seat covers for different projects. I twisted her arm and got her to sew me up a 2 piece “dash pad” to mimic the original padded dashes from the 50’s. I always thought it was pretty cool that we could do this stuff in house.

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First fitup. There are some pretty intimidating curves in the 56 dash. Mainly the corners where the dash starts to wrap around to meet the door.

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And this is current day. Still some trimming and gluing to do before I can put the trim and bezels back on. I’m also hoping to have the glass put back in this weekend which will let me put the trim around the windows back and secure the dash pad for good. Overall I’m very happy with how it turned out. I think the padded dash adds a bit of luxury while maintaining the original theme I’m heading towards

thumper877

11-29-2022, 07:31 PM

Dash turned out great. Nice to have a mom that knows how to sew. Definitely ads some style.

ryeguy2006a

11-30-2022, 11:04 AM

Wow, that dash turned out really nice! How much to have her make me one!

Alwhite00

12-01-2022, 07:16 AM

thanks guys! A decision has been made!

And...........?

andrewb70

12-01-2022, 10:31 AM

That dash pad is looking good. Nicely done, Mom!

Andrew

lsx70

12-01-2022, 06:14 PM

Dash turned out great. Nice to have a mom that knows how to sew. Definitely ads some style.

Wow, that dash turned out really nice! How much to have her make me one!

That dash pad is looking good. Nicely done, Mom!

Andrew

Thanks guys! She definitely knocked this one out of the park!

Andrew, is there a way to tell if my fan is an 850 or 600 watt?

And...........?

I'm going to keep you guys in suspense a little longer... still a few things to finalize

eversaul86

12-01-2022, 08:54 PM

Love the progress. Great work! Love this body style.
Martin

ryeguy2006a

12-02-2022, 05:21 AM

Andrew, is there a way to tell if my fan is an 850 or 600 watt?

There should be a serial number on the motor itself that will have 850. If it came from an SS or greater trim, it should be an 850 watt, but I believe the V6 and lower trims may have come with the smaller watt motor.

lsx70

12-02-2022, 06:17 PM

Love the progress. Great work! Love this body style.
Martin
Thanks Martin!

There should be a serial number on the motor itself that will have 850. If it came from an SS or greater trim, it should be an 850 watt, but I believe the V6 and lower trims may have come with the smaller watt motor.
I ordered it for a zl1 trim but I will double check the serial number and see what I find!

andrewb70

12-02-2022, 06:23 PM

If it's for a ZL1, it's 850 watts. What's the part number?

lsx70

12-02-2022, 06:34 PM

- - - Updated - - -

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Here’s a couple more shots from yesterday after I did some more finish work to the dash. Still a bit more to go but I’m very happy with the results

- - - Updated - - -

If it's for a ZL1, it's 850 watts. What's the part number?

the part number is 1581927

andrewb70

12-02-2022, 08:55 PM

That's 850 watts

lsx70

12-03-2022, 05:01 AM

That's 850 watts

Sweet! any idea where I might find a harness or at the connector to build my own?

andrewb70

12-03-2022, 07:24 AM

Sweet! any idea where I might find a harness or at the connector to build my own?

The Yazaki mating connector can be purchased here:
Spal connector (https://www.amazon.com/Replacement-Connectors-Terminals-30130628-Brushless/dp/B07CTDGNGT/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=SKP4R12W4HB1&keywords=spal+connector&qid=1670080909&sprefix=spal+connector%2Caps%2C243&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyM1FaRVFWRUNSREhOJ mVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMjE5MDcyMzdGWVlWN0dXMlBKTSZlbmN yeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMzIwNDUzMUJKTDlMSVg3SUQ1SSZ3aWRnZ XROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05 vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=)

For the wiring, I would duplicate what is shown in these instructions:
https://www.vintageair.com/instructions_pdf/371253.pdf

Maybe call Vintage Air and see if they will sell you just the harness and the related components.

Andrew

lsx70

12-04-2022, 03:59 AM

The Yazaki mating connector can be purchased here:
Spal connector (https://www.amazon.com/Replacement-Connectors-Terminals-30130628-Brushless/dp/B07CTDGNGT/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=SKP4R12W4HB1&keywords=spal+connector&qid=1670080909&sprefix=spal+connector%2Caps%2C243&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyM1FaRVFWRUNSREhOJ mVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMjE5MDcyMzdGWVlWN0dXMlBKTSZlbmN yeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMzIwNDUzMUJKTDlMSVg3SUQ1SSZ3aWRnZ XROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05 vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=)

For the wiring, I would duplicate what is shown in these instructions:
https://www.vintageair.com/instructions_pdf/371253.pdf

Maybe call Vintage Air and see if they will sell you just the harness and the related components.

Andrew

Thanks Andrew,
I also found this https://bp-automotive.com/product/gen-v-2010-2019-camaro-fan-lt-swap-pwm-fan-harness/
looks like the proper connector

andrewb70

12-04-2022, 06:51 AM

Thanks Andrew,
I also found this https://bp-automotive.com/product/gen-v-2010-2019-camaro-fan-lt-swap-pwm-fan-harness/
looks like the proper connector

Yes same same

ryeguy2006a

12-05-2022, 10:08 AM

That dash turned out so nicely!! Congrats man! I'm definitely copying your interior when the time comes. :yeah:

lsx70

12-11-2022, 05:09 PM

Yes same same

Thanks Andrew! Got one rolling!

That dash turned out so nicely!! Congrats man! I'm definitely copying your interior when the time comes. :yeah:

Thanks! Feel free to copy! If you have any questions when the time comes feel free to reach out! or any trifive related questions at all for that matter! Your nomad is good timing, my dad just picked up a california 1956 nomad, we ordered a roadstershop chassis for it with plans for a twin turbo LS!

lsx70

12-11-2022, 05:24 PM

Well another weekend, another update!

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I started out the weekend with some wheel fitment. This is an 18x10 with a 275/35/18. I'm planning on running a 285/40/18 for the final. currently thunking aboit something sticky like an NT05R.

The front will be a 2450/40/18 on an 18x8, which I also test fit but neglected to take any pictures.

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I did manage to snap one of the front brake setup while it was on temporarily! I may run into some slight issues with this size brake and an 18 inch wheel, the brake setup measures 16.08" and the inner barrel of the 18" wheel is 16.1". If it comes down to it I will grind a small amount off the calipers but I'm hoping when the wheels are in hand I wont have to.

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After the wheel fitment I finally had the chance to build my intake tube. I got my hands on a motion raceworks ICON throttle body that is about 3/4" shorter than the previous throttle body I had. That gave me the clearance required to get the intake around. Once the intake is through the inner fender it makes a 90 degree turn towards the headlight. I haven't quite sorted out the filter placement or supports for the tube yet but that will come, I'll probably get the car up on the hoist over christmas time so I can get a better look.

My TIG welding and fabrication skills are getting better, the last picture shows my CAD template compared to the final product. I'm quite happy with how the whole thing looks, especially since its the first tig welded piece thats really visible.