Messages

1726

Originality / Re: 4053 Carb question.

« on: February 27, 2013, 03:31:29 AM »

Gary,

Check some of these out. In comparing the 2-1/2 carbs I have, the only differences I see are the dashpot bib and some minute differences in the throttle plate casting. At least for the one repop that i bought, literally everything else on the carb, from the bowls to the screws to lettering, was right on to the point where it is virtually impossible to tell at a glance which is which, with the obvious differences in cleanliness and colors/coatings. The only skew to this may be the fact that I bought this 4053 clone in the 80's, when Holley first released the remakes - later production might have changed somewhat.
Incidentally, the screw heads on the repop were identical to the originals, and the bowls (all) have sight plugs in them. If you need additional details let me know and I'll show you whatever you need to look at. BTW - 1 is an April '68 (June '68 Z), and 1 is a December '68 (January '69 Z).

Regards,
Steve

Post Script: Was your Z ever in Tennessee ? I looked at an unrestored Cortez X33 years ago, offered to trade my LS5 '70 for it (he turned it down, wanted $16K for the car). Stupid of me -

1727

Originality / Re: 4053 Carb question.

« on: February 26, 2013, 03:57:43 AM »

Give me a couple of days to fish them out, and I'll be glad to share pics of 2 original 4053's, 1-68, 1-69, plus the balance of parts from an early Holley 4053 reproduction I parted out (bought the carb in the 80's when they first started repopping them, sold the center section, 4 digit date, and kept the bowls, throttle plate, metering blocks, and all small parts intact to rebuild my 4346 for the 375 horse).

I really wish the Holley Custom Shop was still in Springfield, TN - they used to take your Holley in, completely rebuild it, replace any and all worn parts with new (proper part #'s !), restore and replate ones they didn't have, and bench it and send it back to you for about $400.00. I don't know if they still offer that service, but it was great while it lasted here. They closed that location down, moved it back to Bowling Green years back.

Regards,
Steve

1728

Originality / Re: 1969 Z/28 motor mounts

« on: February 20, 2013, 03:13:30 AM »

PS.  Are you in Murfreesboro?  I'm just north of Huntsville;  we should try to get together sometime... compare notes!

Gary,

North and east of Murfboro about 30 miles - shame our local Camaro club went away; we used to have some great outings and meetings, local drive-ins and events. Maybe we'll get the chance to meet at one of the local shows -

Keep the posts coming - it really is goading me into working on the projects.

Regards,
Steve

1729

Originality / Re: 69 smallblock (302) Oil dip sticks

« on: February 19, 2013, 03:02:27 PM »

Added one -

Member            Production            Dipstick
                    Plant       Week           Type

jdv69z            NOR        10(68)        flat
firstgenaddict   NOR       10D (68)     flat
LatebuildZ         ??         Nov(68 )     green tip
68CamaroZ28  NOR       11 (68)        green tip
Boston14        NOR        11D (68)     flat
z28z11 (X77)   NOR         01C            flat
JOHNZ            NOR        02D            flat
z28z11 (Z11)   NOR        03D            flat
Hans L              ??         04B             flat
X77-69Z28      NOR        05A             flat
RSZMJT          NOR        06A             flat
BULLITT65      NOR        08C             flat
69Z28-RS        NOR        09C             flat
LatebuildZ       NOR        10C             flat

Regards,
Steve

1730

General Discussion / Re: !969 cushion grip or rosewood steering wheel with tilt column

« on: February 19, 2013, 04:58:39 AM »

Garth,

Your humor is most appreciated - helps assuage the loss of a great part.

I kept the hub and horn parts (including an NOS button) to use on a repop wheel - I couldn't see putting the absolutely perfect,  primo condition rosewood that I bought in 1982 on a car that sits in a garage all day every day - kid's college careers are more pressing.

Thanks for asking - I'll cradle it for a while yet.

Regards,
Steve

1731

Originality / Re: 1969 Z/28 motor mounts

« on: February 19, 2013, 04:43:58 AM »

Gary,

Still functional - engine has been on a stand in the garage since 1980, as has the rest of the "garage car" - my new term for the hobby-on-hold for 33 years. Patiently waiting either for death or restoration - my death, or the car's restoration.

Regards,
Steve

1732

Originality / Re: 1969 Z/28 motor mounts

« on: February 19, 2013, 04:38:50 AM »

Additional pic of the 466 mount -

1733

Originality / Re: 1969 Z/28 motor mounts

« on: February 19, 2013, 04:33:16 AM »

And mine, 01C X77. Sorry they are not as legible as Steve's, but the numbers corelate the same. All bolts are original as well. Man, I had forgotten that I put these away -

Regards,
Steve

1734

General Discussion / Re: !969 cushion grip or rosewood steering wheel with tilt column

« on: February 19, 2013, 03:45:30 AM »

Adaptor is between 4-3/32" and 4-1/8" diameter. The part number is cast as shown in the back side of the part - this one is off of my recently departed rosewood (still in mourning).

Regards,
Steve

1735

General Discussion / Re: Old pictures of the 1969 Z/28 I owned in the late '70's

« on: February 13, 2013, 04:12:45 AM »

Mission Valley Raceway, San Diego, CA circa late 70's, early 80's. Used to race there alot:


Burnout complete:

Out of curiosity - did you get the Henry J or did he get you ? My best friend in high school (class of '71) built an ex D/G straight axle, fiberglass front end, Pontiac welded spider gear narrowed rear end, 327 ram-log intake Henry on the street: looked very similar to this pic. I swear it would jump over a Coke bottle when it launched. Ride quality was so bad you'd leave a kidney on the road every bump you hit, but what a blast to cruise in. Those were the days -

Regards,
Steve  

1736

Restoration / Re: Radiator tag restoration

« on: February 11, 2013, 12:26:55 AM »

I wonder if Evapo-Rust would have worked here too.
 
Mike

Mike,

Probably does O.K. - the beauty part about electrolysis is replacement of the oxide with pure iron. This is not a plating process - it won't remove material from the part, it won't fill pits, and it won't add material like plating does. It will leave a black film on the part, which I scrubbed off during a clear water rinse with a nylon brush. I did "passivate" the part with a rust preventative after the rinse (this keeps it from rerusting when it dries, which it will do quickly). Any good bare steel prep like Ospho or Evaporust will work well - WD probably works too. Amazing thing - when the process starts, rust starts to float to the surface around the positive side of the connection, not around the part being derusted - very strange.

Regards,
Steve

1737

Restoration / Re: Radiator tag restoration

« on: February 10, 2013, 11:58:07 PM »

Steve - what did you use for the sacrificial rod?
I tried rebar but got inconsistent results reviving an oil pan but would like to try again since I have a ton of washing soda left over LOL

I used a flat (thick) uncoated steel washer, suspended about 2 inches from the tag. I also used steel wire rather than copper (to make sure no contamination to the tag from free copper dissolved from the anode). Since the iron oxide replacement is more or less line-of-sight, for a large item you can rig several electrodes around the part (rebar is good; steel and usually uncoated, easy to rig). Your imagination can have a lot of leeway - just make sure you suspend the parts in the solution, submerge and try not to let them touch the bottom or the sides of the container (should be plastic, or nonconductive). And always make sure the negative cable is connected to the part you want to derust, otherwise it will eat it alive like it does the sacrificial steel part.

If you bought a big box of Arm and Hammer like I did, you probably have enough to do a couple of subframes and an engine block or 2. Just be careful when you mix water and electricity - use common sense. BTW - raising the pH to the alkaline level is the main thing - the residue is no more harmful than leftover washing machine rinse water. Don't do this indoors, as the electrolysis produces both hydrogen gas and pure oxygen, which can be explosive if not ventilated well. Great thing - it's just plain cool to watch the rust disappear from the part (and watch the sacrificial part dissolve). See the next response to Mike's statement as well -

1738

General Discussion / Re: Old pictures of the 1969 Z/28 I owned in the late '70's

« on: February 09, 2013, 05:17:21 PM »

1975 - car owned for two years at this point. It will get back to this one day, soon. This was my back-and-forth to school (187 miles one way to college) - 4:10's and 75 miles an hour, an exhaust pitch you never forget. I loved the Goodyears then, probably couldn't drive on them now (brought the Pacer home on bias ply Generals, all over the road for 113 miles, all over the interstate). Gotta love the X77's.

1739

Restoration / Re: What arer the correct colors for these?

« on: February 07, 2013, 03:44:05 AM »

I matched the color/gloss from an NOS cowl cleaner that I own when doing an L48 auto (ThermAC) cowl cleaner a few months ago - the best match I found was Dupli-Color acrylic enamel DA1603 semi-gloss black - to me, a dead-on match when it dried (very glossy when wet). I compared the 2 side by side, and could not see a difference in gloss or texture. Watch the temperature when you spray, too cold and you'll orange peel a little (but then again, factory paint was light years from perfect !). 

Jerry has good suggestions in the '69 Definitive book's part finish section if you want a better guide. If you don't like spray bombing parts, a good auto paint mixer can get you there from Jerry's gloss percentages/recommendations. Just my opinions -

Regards,
Steve

1740

Originality / Re: 69 smallblock (302) Oil dip sticks

« on: February 07, 2013, 02:16:41 AM »

Member            Production           Dipstick
                     Plant       Week        Type
69Z28-RS        NOR        09C            flat
JOHNZ            NOR        02D            flat
BULLITT65      NOR        08C            flat
RSZMJT          NOR        06A            flat
jdv69z            NOR        10(68)        flat
68CamaroZ28  NOR        11(68)        Green tip
X77-69Z28      NOR        05A            flat
z28z11           NOR         01C            flat