Hey guys! I have to tell somebody what I've done cuz I'm sooo proud! I just finished re-wiring my entire truck with the kit from Chevy Duty. Man-o-man that thing went in easy, and the best part is, everything works. I also fixed my ignition problem in my mallory dual-point distributor, it turns out that I'd neglected that gap too long and one of the points was cooked. Unfortunately, its just a single point distributor now. Forty bucks for new points? I don't even have a job!(I'm only a high school student now) I've also got new Auto-meter performance series guages in the dash with a handmade oak panel to mount'em in. It looks killer! Well, I'm going cruisin' so I'll see ya later. TrustyRusty 1965 short/step with some good stuff . . .
Way to go Trusty. Suggestion , Save your pennies and get a HEI distributer. One 12V hookup at the ignition switch and say goodby to all distributer related ignition problems. Expect a nice jump in performance too. I picked up a rebuilt GM HEI on e-Bay for less tahn $100. Christmas is right around the corner Mom & Dad !! DValentine
I had a points dist. and i put n an hei and well i love it it is much more rebiable (i love the power it has now)than my points.(my coil on the points set up mihgt have been bad). I got a freind getting a 60to 63 chevy truck and he was thinking about puting a 350 in the truck he wanted to know how well the 3spd manual tranny would hold up to the power if he was running about 400-500 horse out of the 350. cowboy 1961 cheyv 1/2 ton shortstep known as sarah w/ a 283 v8 and four on the floor.
> I got a freind getting a 60to 63 chevy truck and he >was thinking about puting a 350 in the truck he wanted to >know how well the 3spd manual tranny would hold up to the >power if he was running about 400-500 horse out of the 350. > Three word answer.. "Not Very Well." Tell your friend to go with a 4 or 5 speed. If he keeps that 350 in the 300 to 320 HP range the three speed should be fine. I suspect that 400-500 hp will vaporize that three speed though. Dvalentine
Hey guys, thanks for the suggestions. I have really given some thought to the HEI thing. The dual-point distributor, even though I bought it brand-new and checked eveything, never lived up to my expectations. Mallory Ignition, from my home town of Carson City, Nevada, jsut came out with their own all-new HEI system. It costs about $150 with the hi-po coil or $120 without the coil. Will the HEI distributor fit with the engine so close to the firewall? I used the motor mount holes in the chassis that are closer to the firewall and further away from the radiator. It doesn't look like there's much room for anything else, my points distributor is almost kissin' the 'wall already. About that 3-speed cowboy, I'm not sure about that. I've got a TH-350 in my truck, so I don't know how many ponies those old manual gearboxes could handle. The Saginaw four that was in the truck was a real gear grinder and a crash-box(it had no syncromesh gears--I don't know if it came like that or if it was just shot). I hated that transmission, but I was the first stick-shift that I really learned to drive. Thanks guys, happy trucking. . . Trusty
Trusty, I don't know about the Mallory. I DO know that the 305 in my 64 is mounted in the normal location and the "standard" GM HEI is close, but just make it without touching the firewall. There is not much clearance at all. When that motor comes out next year for the 350 crate, I'm moving the mounts forward one bolt hole just for insurance. Go with a rebuilt stock HEI. It fits and makes a BIG difference. Dvalentine
howziit Rusty! if that big-headed HEI won't fit, GM made a smaller one for their TBI model, in the 1980's, about the same size as standard distributors. there's also a guy in whittier,CA, that converts stock distributors to HEI. google search for "daves smallbody hei"
Thanks again guys! I've also given some thought to just converting my points distributor to an electronic one. Mallory has the Unilite conversion kit for $105 and Pertronix has a conversion for $75. I've made sure both will fit my distributor. I already dished out $120 for just the points, so I'd kind of like to keep it.(it looks nice too with the billet body). Gee, you guys are the best! -Trusty
