Hello all, New to the site and have been reading up on much of the information as I can. A little about my project and what I've been doing: I picked the truck up in Sept. 2013 and since then, I've installed a Heidts IFS w/2" droped spindles and disc brakes (5 x 4-3/4) with power rack & pinion. Came across some used some whitewalls and mounted those on. I also just mounted up my new power brake booster under the cab, and still need to mount the master cylinder but thought that it might be a good idea to do that once I run my new lines, that way I can bleed the master and brake lines all at once. At the same time, I found a used stock 350 motor (it does have an edelbrock intake and 600cfm carb) and have been cleaning it up, replacing the accessories, and will be just about done once I drop in the new HEI and get that dialed in as best as I can until I cane set timing. My next order of business is to locate a rebuilt a 700r4 transmission, so I can begin mocking up where I will be mounting both the motor and trans. Already have new cross members for both. In the meantime, one of the items on my to do list is to replace the seals in the rear end. I was told by the PO that it came off a 1966 Impala. Leaks pretty bad. My question here is, is this rear-end good enough for my application to just go ahead and replace the seals and clean it up, or is there a better alternative in my case? This will be mostly used as a cruiser, and sometimes as a work truck. Still have a lot of work ahead of me, and look forward to learning from you all as I go. Thank you. Ralf. Here are some pics so far And this is before removing stock trans.xmember
You're well on your way! Welcome to the site and thanks for posting the photo's. The '66 Impala rear axle should be up to the task of getting the power to the pavement. Before making the decision for certain you should remove the rear cover and inspect the gears and check to see what the rear end ratio is. With a 700r4 you can handle some decent gears, 3.73 and larger, which will give you more pep driving around town. If you know what size rear tires you will be running you can then go to the charts / calculators and zero in on the best rear gear for your set-up. Check that out here: http://www.csgnetwork.com/multirpmcalc.html I replaced the front pinion seal on my '65 C10 about a year ago, it was leaking also. I did a thread on how I went about the swap, here is a link, go to posts #185 and #189: https://talk.classicparts.com/showthread.php?t=13928&page=13 Hope this helps! John
Welcome aboard enjoy your ride while here, thanks for the photos nice start at getting it back on the road.
Welcome to the group! Thanks for posting the story and photos. Looking forward to following the progress as your project takes shape. Damon
Thank you Thank you all! Have a lot of work to do, and will make an effort of posting progress and pics when I can. Lakeroadster: Thank you for the feedback. I'll have a closer look at the gears to determine exactly what I have and use those links you've posted. Thanks again, Ralf
Mocking up motor/trans--need a little help Hello all I plan on mocking up the motor/trans (I ended up going with a TH350) along with the tubular cross members I purchased from CPP. Not having done this before, I am hoping someone can share with me on what I should know, what to look for, what to avoid, etc. basically, any advice would be helpful. My only plan (or lack of) is to position the motor as far back as I can, and make sure that the cross members are positioned in a place where it can then bolt up to the side rails. Is that all there is to it? Thank you, Ralf
looks great. just watch out for the fuel pump as you may have not enough room in the frame. you may have to go to electric pump. Also watch the clearance of the power steering rack under the harmonic balancer pulley.try to keep it .75 inch minimum distance imho Kevin
Truck upgrade Hey and welcome to the forum! I would wanna ask you what brand and size white wall radial tires do you have on the stock rims ? Martinius
Martinius: Thank you. Generic tires, some sort of off-brand but they are 215/70/15 in the rear and 195/70-14 upfront.
Helpfull Hints... Ralf, - I always try to locate the crankshaft at about the c/l of the frame height. - With the truck at ride height, sit a level on the intake manifold carb. mounting surface. This ensures the carb floats will be correct. - Make sure you will be able to remove the distributor.. (firewall clearance) - And if you box the frame (for cross members or just fro strength) I suggest welding the boxing plates as follows: Here's how I prefer to install boxing plates, by using a groove and fillet. It ensures a more uniform weld and is easier to fit up and weld than a corner to corner weld. And the scallop at the end of the boxing plates helps minimize stresses. It looks pretty cool too after the install. I used the inset boxing plates on my '27 RPU, got the idea from a So-Cal Speed Shop rolling chassis I saw at the Street Rod Nationals back in the late 1990's. Here's some archive photo's of my '27 RPU frame: Hope that helps!
Thanks Lakeroadster I do have my boxing plates already installed this way--just not nearly as gorgeous as the pic you provided You do good work. Thank you for the tips. I'll take my time doing this mock up--sometimes, you don't think of something until after a few days. I'll continue my inspection during this process...
What size gear? Came to a stopping point when my local auto parts stores didn't have any of the inverted flare tube nuts needed to finish installing my brake lines...so, I decided to tackle the leaky rear diff. (Thought it would be a good idea to finish the brake lines before mocking/installing the motor/trans) Pulled the cover off...any idea what size gears I have? Thanks, Ralf
GM 3790628 11 37 12 64 GM 3790628 = part number 11 37: 37 ring gear teeth divided by 11 pinion gear teeth = gear ratio of 3.36 64=year
Ralf mark one of the teeth as a starting point then count all of the teeth, then do the same thing on the pinion. Divide the big number into the small and you will get your gear ratio. That is how it's done.
Belt & Suspenders Rico, The numbers 11 & 37 are the numbers of teeth. 37 ring gear teeth 11 pinion gear teeth 37/11 = gear ratio of 3.36 But I guess counting them would be a good belt and suspenders double check.
Thank you Rico and Lakeroadster. Learned something new I managed to get the nut and washer off, having a heckuva time removing the yoke. Have a puller, but cannot find a nut to fit for the life of me--have plenty of other nuts, just not the right thread pitch--off to the store...this weekend has been all about 'the right nut' it seems. By the way, here's a photo of another 54 I recently acquired--all solid, I just couldn't pass up-it may be a year or two out before I can begin working it though.
Mine were 39 an 13 gave me a 3.00. I'm going to try it before I spend money on something else. I was told 3.50 work really well with the 700r4
