So when do you want me to drop off the Hydraulic motor?

It's still sitting in the middle of the shop.
I'm working the long weekend. Just like the last sixteen years.

CJ

Today while job hunting I decided to "go play" with the poor '67...

I weighed it in at 3350 lbs with me and the tools in the back and a full tank of gas (yes the tank does hold 18 gallons...and it has no vent at the top like the Duster Tanks).


I pulled the G-Tech out so I had some numbers to play with....

I'm getting about 16 mpg still which I attribute to the Holley 1920 carb on it isn't up to par (sometimes it stumbles for no reason what so ever...yet can be smooth as glass other times...), I also have to occasional miss at idle (that point distributor is being yanked and converted probably tomorrow), and the A904 with full throttle kickdown is not my buddy....


Anyhow, after about 5 runs I found:

I have about 123 hp under the hood on my best run (they were all about 2-3 hp within each other), Peak Torque was about 185 toward the low end(and that died out after 2500 rpm...LOL).

And I can get a whole whopping 23 second 1/4 mile @61 mph (if you can only get it to shift and move better....)


Next changes:

Convert to EI, and install a stock 1974 Distributor...(will do a few runs...install one with a bit better governor 11R...then one with a 9R and some "polish")
After that, the tailpipe will give way to a stock Feather Duster pipe (less the Cat Conveter)

Final mod will be to install a late model radiator, a 1976 Holley 1945, and reinstall the vaccuum nightmare and reinstate the EGR with the Feather Duster distributor.


-D.Idiot

I love this thread....

Only pics would make it better.

_________________
Casually looking for a Clifford hyperpak intake for cheap.

I'll have to take some tomorrow, for ya guys...it truly is a "Beater" and I still haven't washed it either!


-D.Idiot

Whatcha mean? It looks better than mine!

CJ

I converted it to Mopar EI and it fired right off the bat for about 15 seconds...then it got salty and died....I checked and the carb seemed OK enough to run the engine (nice pump shot, gas in the throat).

I fired and ran it again at about 1700 rpm, and found the timing was bouncing around...about that time the idle got salty, and died....


Decided to check the cam/ timing chain.... wobble the damper back and forth..."click" "click" from the timing cover didn't bode well...Wow a whole 12 degree shift on the timing mark before the rotor turns, going back and forth....


Swell...

So I have another timing setup I can put in there...of course I also have a 1972+ cam in great shape with low miles I'd love to stab in there at the same time...then I also have a rebuilt head with hardened seats that I'd love to stick on there while I'm at it...

Of course if I do all that how long before the rings and or bore need some redoing....

Now's about the time I wish I had that high dollar job so I could just drop the mill and the better tranny off at my favorite shops and say "do this"...
(and make the "sleeper beater")


Of course being the "beater" I probably should just replace the timing chain and keep beating it into submission...more soon..



WEEEEEEE!!!!!


-D.Idiot

Redid the timing chain in Beater Valiant today...

Interesting to note, I have yet to see a post 1973 car slant have an oil slinger in the 225...yet all the 60's slants I've pulled apart have had said slinger in them including this '67....

I'm not really impressed with Cloyes's "cheap" timing set. It's ok, but the dot was 180 degrees out of synch from the normal dot position (normally you line the dots up to see how bad it is then degree it...this one the dot was 180 off on the cam sprocket.... )...and getting the timing cover to cooperate was fun too...

I took the time to relash the valves, replace the radiator with a better one out of a 1979 Volare(need it for the later EGR useage), and replace the fan with a 7 blade version out of a junkyard '67 Valiant.

I am currently running a 1974 Distributor (375042 I think..the tag was kind of dinged up)....Initial is set at TDC, the mech. is about 29-ish (can't get the engine to rev far enough up to get the 30 BTDC it should have), and my vacc. advance is 17 deg. total by about 14" of vacc. and it leaves about 6" of vacc...


Now if I can get it to "behave" for a while...

Next distributor recipe will be to drop in a distributor with an 11R governor and lower the "all in rate a bit"...and see about changing the vacc. advance to an 11X....

I'll also have to find all the peices to my other Feather Duster Exhaust and replace the stock noodle pipe.

more later...

-D.Idiot

Alrighty....

I'm not pleased with the Fel-pro front pan/to cover seal...I couldn't get one to fit right (the holes were off like it was too wide)...

New timing chain, 1974 EI conversion and distributor 1974, PN 3755042

The timing curve for that distributor is really f*&ed up.... at maximum rpm on the highway at 2700rpm I get only 22 degrees of advance...and 17 degrees of vacc...for 39 deg. total highway (I'm about 10 short for any kind of fuel economy)...gladly this means it doesn't ping using cheap crappy camel whiz gas...The new late model radiator and 1967 7 blade fan have the engine running about 2 notches under it's old temp gauge reading...Idle is much better and quiet.

Anyhow, new G-tech numbers for the benchmark:

118 HP @ 2430 rpm
257 ft/lbs TQ @2360

Average pass out of 6 runs: 18.6@82 mph....


I'll get an mpg benchmark out if before I change the timing again...I expect no real change in the 1/4 mile time, expect some shift in the HP/TQ numbers (no more than 5 either way)...maybe a little more mpg...


Will benchmark that change, then add the "fat pipe"...

cheers,

-D.idiot

I took a nice ride, and averaged 18.7 mpg...much better than 16 mpg...

Better tailored timing curve and the fat pipe should put it in the "what I'd like to get" range...

-D.Idiot

Next chapter soon to follow: a few more runs with the "schmo" distributor, just built up a new one to replace it out of "spares":

11R governor
10x vacc. advance.
Set to 8 degrees init...

Map for build is:
Vacc. adv out by 6", max at 12"+
5 degrees of adv. mech at 800-1000 rpm, 20 degrees at 2000 rpm...(can't hit 22 degrees with the stock spring set the 1 barrel won't let me run past 3200 rpm...)

1800 is much too low for the sluggy auto tranny and 1 barrel carb to cope with.... since cruise is at 2700 rpm I pulled the distributor after a nice run up the highway I got the same mileage as the other distributor, the same power...but got ping in the 2000-2400 rpm range that only went away during 4-5"HG (aka no vacc. advance)....

I'll have to respring that dist. to be stiffer...

In the mean time, I also developed a surge at cruise about 13" HG @ 55-60 mph...

So today's changes are:

Rejet Holley 1920 with a #612 close limit jet out of a Holley 1945...


Stock Super Six Distributor P/N 3874876 (should be a common distributor for 1978+ 1 or 2 barrels models)

It's got a 9R governor, 11R vacc. advance can...so it's installed @12 BTDC

So far at "cruise" the curve chart indicates I'm about:
12BTDC+22 deg. vacc. advance+ 12 degrees of mech advance (I wound the engine up to 3200 and it never got close to bottomig out...probably have max adv. around 4400 rpm-like I'd get that far up the food chain).

Tomorrow I get another nice 130 mile+ round trip to work, so I'll report in my mileage...

Gotta find my F.D. Exhaust peices.

-D.Idiot

Four score and many moons ago I wrote the last post on teh poor car...


Well a couple weeks ago I had a 24 degree weather carb icing problem with the Hpak duster...and I had started to tear down this car for another "upgrade"...

Today I finally got it running again after a long rest in the side yard:

Changes are:

Rebuilt 1974 Head with new valves and springs, new hardened seats (the better combustion chamber too...)
Calc's indicate I now only have 8.3:1 compression instead of 8.5:1...I also took the time to yard some foundry wires out of the cooling passages, clean the casting bumps out of the ports.
Had a 1974 intake/exhaust stack planed so it actually would be "flat" (and it sealed great against the head with a shim gasket!)
I'm running a 1973 Holley 1920, and will be hooking up the provisions for warm air intake.

After doing a massive warm up and complete valve lash the car became very quiet and docile, idled very smoothly (and the neighbor walking by had to comment on "How my engine must've died..." since it went from *rattle,rattle* to that nice sewing machine stitch and clicking...)


Tomorrow I'll do a shake down and see how it goes...


One thing to note, I think the early cam likes less advance due to it's profile, so I may pull the super six distributor and profile one to have an 11R governor for less initial and more throw...will note more later.



-D.Idiot

today I was slated to go help a friend in Portland fix a couple of HVAC problems before they sell their house...The Hpak Duster is slated to go tothe body shop and I didn't want to drive it up to PDX so I decided to pull the Beater Valiant out and drive it the last part of this week and until I get the Hpak Duster back on Thursday...


I got to Exit 12 on I-205 when the tranny started to feel like it was shifting out of 3rd into N then back to 2nd...followed by a weird BZZZZRRRT sound every so often... I decided to pull over and try to get to a place with a phone...about the time I made it off the highway and over to Clackamas Town Center I had a large smoke trail behind my car and had to run it at 3500 rpm to get it to roll at 5-10 mph into a spot out of traffic...

Luckily I have a friend who owns a tow company and was available to get me and the 'spare car' home... so far as I can tell, it looks like the tranny has no gears when engaged, by the time I parked it there was fluid spouting out of the dipstick tube onto the ground (and it was a nice clean color too and not burnt), also the engine looks like it ate a few rings and now smokes religiously(and it's a nice James Bond grey, white, blue effect too measured in cubic yards type affair) when fired up and blows oil out the dipstick and out from under the valve cover gasket (didn't do that this morning when I took it for a run to the gas station and pharmacy either...). Jeez...


Now comes the decision to build a spare tranny and block I have sitting around or just plain pull this car apart and sell the good parts off and work on something else....


-D.Idiot

today I was slated to go help a friend in Portland fix a couple of HVAC problems before they sell their house...The Hpak Duster is slated to go tothe body shop and I didn't want to drive it up to PDX so I decided to pull the Beater Valiant out and drive it the last part of this week and until I get the Hpak Duster back on Thursday...


I got to Exit 12 on I-205 when the tranny started to feel like it was shifting out of 3rd into N then back to 2nd...followed by a weird BZZZZRRRT sound every so often... I decided to pull over and try to get to a place with a phone...about the time I made it off the highway and over to Clackamas Town Center I had a large smoke trail behind my car and had to run it at 3500 rpm to get it to roll at 5-10 mph into a spot out of traffic...

Luckily I have a friend who owns a tow company and was available to get me and the 'spare car' home... so far as I can tell, it looks like the tranny has no gears when engaged, by the time I parked it there was fluid spouting out of the dipstick tube onto the ground (and it was a nice clean color too and not burnt), also the engine looks like it ate a few rings and now smokes religiously(and it's a nice James Bond grey, white, blue effect too measured in cubic yards type affair) when fired up and blows oil out the dipstick and out from under the valve cover gasket (didn't do that this morning when I took it for a run to the gas station and pharmacy either...). Jeez...


Now comes the decision to build a spare tranny and block I have sitting around or just plain pull this car apart and sell the good parts off and work on something else....


-D.Idiot

Beater Valiant has been under going some changes as time, physical posibilities, pain limits, and other mystical forces allow...

I have stripped the original engine down and pulled the engine bay apart, as well as pulled the front seat and carved a nice hole in the floor for the shift rods for a nice A-230 floor shift 3 speed I have (sounds like the perfect transmission for the 2.94 rear end). I also have switched the auto tranny pedal set out, for a 1976 set of clutch/ brake pedals.

I decided to 'test buck' a 1979 Cast Crank engine I had from an old 1979 Aspen super six car...let's say late engines leave a lot to be desired in 'casting quality' I have spent a few hours cleaning out casting flash, scabs, and boogers from the block and crank.

Everything came back a week ago and I set down to mic the crank (so far the journals-rods and mains are well within the standard range with no wear, no herringbone pattern on the seal surface, and the back looks to have a finished pilot bore hole...).

I'm hoping to have the short block assembled this weekend while my son takes his noontime snooze.

If all goes well target for the engine will be:
.060 over
9.1-2 CR (gotta check the chamber CC's and the final deckheight)
Stock Valves and springs, cleaned the ports up/'street port'.
(I'm noticing the weight of the cast crank is a bit lighter than the late model forged crank...probably explains the need for a heavier Damper...)


Once she's busted...I mean broke in...plans so far will be:
Standard G-Tech test on usual D.Idiot testing ground.
Will Start with 1973 1 barrel stock setup, with stock exhuast
1) Will test with my old '74's 'power pipe'
2) Test with 1978 SuperSix setup
3) Test with Super Six, Mr. Gasket 1932, and Holley 2300/350 cfm
4) Test with Offy Intake and Holley 390/450

This might help get some 'possible' numbers with these changes so we have some real data to play with on 'upgrades' and how 'good' each is...


Gonna have to change the name from 'Beater' Valiant to 'Test' Buck...


-D.Idiot

You sounds like a certifiable scientist. Sounds like fun!

Lou

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Home of Slant6-powered fun machines since 1988