"Grace" - 67 Camaro Driver

[turbo kid]

Very cool family at home in the garage project.

[srh3trinity]

I have been a pro-touring snob so much for the last few years that sometimes I forget how great 1st gen Camaros look with a classic color and 15 inch Rally's. Great looking car.

[Dons67]

Thank you all for the complements

My top 3 favorite things about having an old muscle car are:
-Pounding on it
-Wrenching on it so I can pound on it some more or because I've been pounding on it
-Knowing that others are somehow enjoying the car - either by getting a complement or letting someone else get behind the wheel and seeing the same big goofy grin on their face when they start it up that I get when I'm driving it

Yesterday I started on the next step in Grace's development - her new motor (I've waited a long time to get started on this part). It was slow at work on Saturday so I ordered the top end parts and when I got home started getting the block ready.

After removing all the paint and some prep work I put a few coats of primer



A little sanding and ten a few coats of classic Chevrolet Orange engine paint....



Today, after a good night of drying, I removed all the tape and cleaned out all of the threads with a thread chaser and cleaned up the deck a little -- took a little time but now it is ready for some assembly once the parts come in.




According to my calculations it should be somewhere north of 450hp and if all goes well my brother will be in town in June to help me swap the motors out.

[68firebird]

oh man, Thats the way to go. why didn't I think of that!! I was planning on pulling the motor after the suspension was done to rebuild it, but now I think I'm gonna do the same as you and build a second motor, then do a swap when its done, that way I can drive her when the suspensions done. I've got a 350 4 bolt main block thats been sitting in my aunt's garage collecting surface rust for quite a few years. only problem is I don't have any of the stock internal parts. I'm learning alot by following your thread don.

And yes, I'm keeping a small block chevy in my pontiac, LOL

[67speedfreak]

Nice Mill !

[senor_camaro]

great job on the rear, I'm building the courage to open up and do a posi transplant on my 10 bolt.

[BritishGreen68]

cool build up man! I hope you had the car covered when you sprayed that motor orange though, I have turned my garage and everything in it orange numorous times with small bliock chevy's!

[MCMLXIX]

I would guess you know but just in case you didn’t, they make steel rims that look like rally wheels in 17".... modern performance with classic looks…

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/WVI-66-7812042/

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/WVI-66-791205/

[AintQik]

Nice Don!

[68400BIRD]

Great progress!!!! I like the way you are building your car. Making upgrades and driving the car with as little down time as possible is the way to go.

[Dons67]

Thanks guys ---

Wednesday was a somewhat productive day, in order to save money for parts that will help the car go faster I grinded, sanded and painted the old oil pan, timing cover and ballancer as well as the new thermostat neck (why spend $$ on chrome when black looks just as good).



I also picked up my drive shaft from the shop after realizing I had a significant vibration after changing out the old gears in the rear. I can't wait to get that back in tonight as the weather should be good saturday

I give an A+ to the guys at Fleet Pride in Rochester NY - easy to talk to and very helpful - also very fair on pricing and it didn't hurt to get the drive shaft back the next day either!


Also I had some parts come in yesterday




Tonight the drive shaft goes in and I start the engine assembly although i need to wait until the end of the month for the Brodix heads to arrive in order to finish the job

[Jims78elky]

Very nice Don! Should be a little torque monster when done!


-Jim

[stewy]

If you change the wheels to a larger size, I'd vote for the vintage wheels in a size 17. Seeing that you want to still lower the car a bit without changing the leaf perches, you can just have the springs dearched.

Word of advise with the repo wheels. Consider buying new center caps and trim rings as every set I've messed with were not compatable with the stock trim.

[Dons67]

oh man, That's the way to go. why didn't I think of that!! I was planning on pulling the motor after the suspension was done to rebuild it, but now I think I'm gonna do the same as you and build a second motor, then do a swap when its done, that way I can drive her when the suspensions done. I've got a 350 4 bolt main block that's been sitting in my aunt's garage collecting surface rust for quite a few years. only problem is I don't have any of the stock internal parts. I'm learning a lot by following your thread don.

And yes, I'm keeping a small block chevy in my pontiac, LOL

Nice thing about doing it this way is that i can list the current block on craigslist and hopeful get more ca$h and a quicker sale because buyers can see it run before i pull it.

And keeping a sbc is a GREAT idea (i'm a little bias) but in reality it is supper easy and inexpensive to have a lot of fun with a small block -- all in I will prob have around $2800 in my motor and will be pushing over 450hp -- $6/hp doesn't seam like a bad deal to me - I can't imagine what some guys are spending on power plants:bsjerk:

[Dons67]

If you change the wheels to a larger size, I'd vote for the vintage wheels in a size 17. Seeing that you want to still lower the car a bit without changing the leaf perches, you can just have the springs dearched.

Word of advise with the repo wheels. Consider buying new center caps and trim rings as every set I've messed with were not compatable with the stock trim.

I'm having a hard time finding a lot of beauty in the old rally's when they are stretched out to the 17" - the 16's are pushing it -- the geometry of it all i think messes with me -- the exception is when guys go nuts to the 19's all polished out and tucked up like Scott is doing with his 67 NASCAR - it should be called a NASTYCAR - this car is SICK




I'm leaning towards the 17" American Racing Torq Trust wheels -- gunmetal spokes and a polished lip -- still gives the classic look to keep it somewhat a sleeper

[John Wright]

Motor looks good....I usually paint all of mine black, no real reason other than I like them that color...painting the tins is the way to go...some of those chrome, shiny tins are stamped out of something too thin and don't always seal up the motor real good, so the gaskets weep.

[Dons67]

The rear is finished -- put the drive shaft in this week and gave Grace a tune-up yesterday. Vibration is gone and the 4.10's have waken up a beast - - wow what a diffrence -this is what she left behind during our little stroll....


There would have been more but the darn thing poped out of gear - - next step is adjusting the linkage so that doesn't happen anymore.

Also drove her to work today and stopped at the auto parts store for some paint and when i came back out she didn't want to start -- starter is on the way out -- hopefully it makes it a little longer as the new motor is soooo close to being done

[Dons67]

Motor looks good....I usually paint all of mine black, no real reason other than I like them that color...painting the tins is the way to go...some of those chrome, shiny tins are stamped out of something too thin and don't always seal up the motor real good, so the gaskets weep.

John - I just checked out your ride on NastyZ28 -- very nice I love the 70 - how is the break portpoting valve below the frount seat working out for you? does it come in as handy as you thought it might?

Props to the guys form Nasty Z28 - I ran into some guys last year at the Camaro Nationals at Carlise -- Great group - they let me borrow some tools when the window fell out of my car at the show - good thing it rained almost all the way home that day!

[John Wright]

Yeah I have to say that the group that shows up for Carlise each year is a pretty good group of folks. I met most of them for the first time in person in 2008 when my son and I attended.

Prop valve...not sure just yet...car isn't on the road. Side tracked with a garage project so that I will have somewhere out of the weather to work on it.

[Dons67]

WOOOO HOOOOO --- Final part for engine assembly showed up today...


It is a shame I will be out of town this weekend

Assembly will begin next week though and if all goes well the new motor will be in soon!!!

Man I love this stuff!