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'64 Corvette Convertible

10K views 38 replies 9 participants last post by  GronkDaSlayer 
#1 · (Edited)
Did an engine swap on my Vette yesterday.

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TL;DR--It was my father in laws car for 30 years and I inherited it, didn't pay a dime for it.


A little back story about this car. It was bought by my father-in-law in 1972 or 73 when he was in law school at the University of Illinois. He drove it as his daily driver for about 6-7 years, while dating who would become his wife and my mother-in-law. Once he had kids, it became his "toy" driving it less and less each year. He was a big fan of Corvettes, even had a '63 Split Window in the 80's alongside this car. He kept this one because he had dated his wife in it, and eventually only drove it a few times a year for parades and such. He would get it out every year and have his mechanic get it up and running, and repeat that every spring essentially.

It was restored at some point in the 80's (I was told around '86, but based on some pics I've seen it may have been anywhere from '86-'88.) and engine was rebuilt, paint, pretty much complete tear down. My FIL didn't really have time to do much with it, as he did everything--he was the Circuit Court judge, did oil and gas law stuff on the side, farmed a little, was a Mason, head of the Fire Dept., Rotary Club, you get the idea. EVERYBODY knew him and his family and they know his car. I could drove it around and got a few ppl asking me who I was and why I was in his car. Most of the above info I got from his good friend who also did most the work on the car.

Unfortunately, cancer took him in 2002, before I even knew him. The car sat in a barn from then, only getting started once in a while and moved to a few different resting places, no one really wanting to put the work into it that it needed. That's where I came in.

I started dating my wife my senior year of college in 2005. When I took my first trip to meet her family, she told me about the Corvette in the garage. Gorgeous blonde, and a Corvette in the family no one wants to claim? Win-win! We got married in 2008 and I hinted I would like to restore the car, and her mom hinted that she wanted it out of her sight because it only served as a reminder of her late husband. She started getting more serious about selling it, word getting out in her small town that it might be for sale, and a few family friends offered to buy it. It was finally offered to us by my MIL and SIL and I had to say yes. I have been gradually restoring things as I drive it.

Last year I was doing some maintenance and broke a bolt off in the block. While trying to drill it out, I accidentally drilled a hole in the cylinder wall. It is a very expensive mistake, and now the engine needs major surgery (a pin in the hole and cylinder bored and sleeved). Since originality is very much prized in the classic Corvette community right now, and so the original numbers matching engine typically adds about $10k of value to the car, so I am going to get it rebuilt right, so the new engine is going in for the meantime, and I may leave it in the car for a while. I will feel a lot more at ease beating on it.
 

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#8 · (Edited)
Some progress pics:

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I'm playing the old hurry up and wait game. I order some parts, put them on, something isn't right, order something else, wait till it arrives, etc. First it was the intake manifold was too tall to fit under the hood, then it was taking some parts to get sandblasted, then paint them (rattle can bro!), now I had to get my distributor rebuilt.

Here's mainly what I've done since the engine got put in:
Put on new Edelbrock intake and carb,
Put on NOS ram horn exhaust manifolds (great deal from Craigslist from an old hot rodder)
Hooking up the side pipes--this was an issue, as there is a heat riser in the pass side one for the mechanical choke. I was hoping to delete it, but without the heat riser spacer, the exaust will not clear the bottom of the car, so heat riser spacer back on, but locked in the open position. PITA to get this on with new aluminum gaskets.
Radiator shroud, F bracket, alernator bracket, pulleys, and a few other odds and ends have all been painted with gloss black engine paint and are ready to go back on
Dizzy was sent off yesterday to Chicago Corvette for a rebuild
Ran SS braided fuel line
Ran the heater hoses
Installed new water pump, water neck, and thermostat
Installed temp sender

Going to get a harmonic balancer installation tool from Advance today to put that on, then hopefull reinstall pulleys and radiator. It may look like an actual engine bay soon.
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#9 ·
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Advance, what a joke. They have the tool, sure, except a jam nut that is CRUCIAL to putting the harmonic balancer on and almost screwed me. I had to go to Tractor Supply and spend 20 minutes looking for a nut that would fit it, then once installed. The center part gets stuck in the harmonic balancer center bolt shaft and there was NO WAY for me to get to it. It was up inside the center of the balancer, with only a nut on it that I couldn't get a socket or plyers on or anything. I eventually got it, but was fiddling with it for like an hour. What a PITA!
 
#11 ·
I don't have the money, time, nor patience to do an LS. Plus an LS engine takes some fab work for the transmission tunnel in a C2 to work, and my car is very original (until now). The orange engine is all original to this car except for the water pump and carb.
 
#14 ·
Awesome, thanks for sharing!

I was 13 when my dad bought a 65' big block roadster. It was a basket case when he bought it, so he had all of the body work and paint done professionally. I helped him install side pipes, brakes, new pushrods and lifters, and fell in love with that car. It was blue with the 396 big block (first year for a big block Corvette) and Hurst 4 speed. He sold it when I turned 15 and I hated him for it. Being older now, and the father of two, I now know how wise he was for selling that car before I turned 16. It looked a lot like this one, but the hood scoop was black on my dads.

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#15 ·
Awesome, thanks for sharing!

I was 13 when my dad bought a 65' big block roadster. It was a basket case when he bought it, so he had all of the body work and paint done professionally. I helped him install side pipes, brakes, new pushrods and lifters, and fell in love with that car. It was blue with the 396 big block (first year for a big block Corvette) and Hurst 4 speed. He sold it when I turned 15 and I hated him for it. Being older now, and the father of two, I now know how wise he was for selling that car before I turned 16. It looked a lot like this one, but the hood scoop was black on my dads.

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Love the knock off wheels. I'd love to have a set of those if they weren't $1500.
 
#16 ·
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So last night I really got some stuff done to make my engine bay look more like, well, an engine bay. Installed the crank shaft pulley, radiator, radiator shroud, radiator hoses, and water pump pulley. I'm not on the home stretch yet, but nearing it for sure.

My wife even helped me, which she never does. :in love:
 
#18 ·
Sweet! Looks like you're getting pretty close. What's next, the distributor?
 
#19 ·
I sent the distributor up to Chicago Corvettes to get rebuilt, although I am using a Pertronix Ignitor III to replace points and condenser. The Corvettes of this era used a tach drive distributor, and the gear to that was stripped, so it had to be taken apart anyway, and Chicago Corvettes has a great price to do the whole dang thing.

While I'm waiting for that, I need to install the starter and fill with fluids, and I will be nearly ready for first start up and break in procedure (I'm actually not even sure the hood is going to fit either, so that will need solved too). I told my wife I could get done by the end of the month if I work on it every night after kids are in bed (7-10ish).
 
#20 ·
Went to fill the car with coolant yesterday and got about a quart of it pouring on the floor from the driver side motor mount. I was like WTF? Then I noticed this:
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Its a threaded hole upon examination is for a temp sensor (I already have mine mounted on the intake manifold). It's only on the driver side and didn't come with a plug. Here comes the interesting part. Wait for it...

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I ordered the wrong size plug for something else, and so I had a 1/2" pipe plug left that I was planning on returning. SO, I was able to plug it and keep on keepin' on.

Now I am just kinda waiting on the distributor. Here's my current list left to do:
Reconnect steering linkage (2 bolts I need to replace)
Wire electric choke and electronic ignition
Install spin on filter adapter and oil filter
Fill car with break-in oil
Install distributor
Begin break-in procedures

The distributor should be here Mondayish, so my goal is to have her on the road by the end of next week. As I type that I'm getting really excited. It's almost like that feeling of picking up my ST for the first time.
 
#22 ·
Added the oil on Friday afternoon and got everything ready for start up.

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Prettied up my wires, and made them able to sustain 500 degree temps from the exhaust manifolds.
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So I got the distributor Friday night and was on the first step of the break in procedure yesterday (priming the oil pump) using an oil pump priming tool to spread oil into all the galleys before startup, and noticed again, a huge puddle underneath the car. This time, oil. Here is the culprit: Auto part Wheel Disc brake Rim Automotive wheel system


Its the spin on filter adapter. It didn't come with any directions, so I slapped it on and said "I'll see if it works." It doesn't. I did some online searching and found out...it needs the factory bypass valve installed BEFORE it goes on to work properly. Well I don't have that because the crate engine didn't come with one. So off to Autozone I went today to find one with a different design (bypass valve included). Got it, now just waiting till the wife comes back from some errands. All I really need to do is put the thing on and it should be ready to start.
 
#24 · (Edited)
Still some stuff to do, but I'm on the right track. Figured out that the harmonic damper has top dead center marked on it from the factory, so all I had to do was put it there and line up the distributor and plug wires and see what happens. Started up first try, which actually kind of shocked me (you can see that on my face in the video). After the video, I started it again and it ran rough, but did stay at idle until I shut it off. However, there is a MAJOR exhaust manifold leak on the passenger side that I need to attend to.

Next steps:
1. Replace exhaust manifold collector gasket on pass side
2. Time the engine--just bought a timing light
3. Clean up my garage so I can actually get it out
4. Take it through the proper break in procedures
5. A-arm bushings really need replaced (I'm having that done by a shop).

And now just when I'm about to get done, I have my HPDE next weekend, so I need to switch over to "Focusing" on my ST. Racing pad time + adjust coilovers to make stiffer + get things packed and ready for the track.
 
#25 ·
Got a buddy coming over Thursday to help me install the hood and we might be able to take the car on its maiden voyage. I timed the engine according to the break in procedures (36 degrees before TDC at 3000 rpm) and adjusted the idle. It wants to idle at 800 rpm a lot better than a normal 650-700, so I left it there. The Performer Series Edelbrock carb I'm using says it can be just bolted on and go, but I am wondering if that is not part of it. I am running an electric fuel pump at 5 psi, but it seems to have a lot of fuel at start up (revs way up to 1500 rpm at start up before it evens out) or maybe that's the electric choke I am not used to. Also the valves are very loud and clicky. Hopefully that is just from the springs or lifters not being broken in, because it sounds aweful, like 5 times louder than the ST fuel pump clicking sound.
 
#26 ·
I'm assuming they are hydraulic and not solid lifters?
 
#31 ·
just found your thread. cool stuff for sure. my dad has a 65 327 convertible white/white/black. we just spend this weekend doing his fuel pump which was a huge ***** as we don't have a lift and didn't want to take off too much stuffso we had to get to it from under the front passenger wheel well. he always has trouble with the timing and carb and prolly will never get it right but for now hes happy its back on the road. he thinks he may try to tackle some suspension stuff this summer but isn't sure whats easiest for our limited skill set and only jack stands.
 
#36 · (Edited)
Yeah I don't have a lift either, so I'm in the same boat. I have a electronic fuel pump that was installed years ago, which is in the rear passenger side. Does your dad have HEI distributor or points? What carb is he using? I took off my original Carter AFB, but the Edelbrock I put on is essentually a replica of it.

??Don't know why it posted this pic again, but I can't delete it??
 

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#32 ·
Haven't updated in a while cause I've just been busy as heck. I figured out my oil problem, the distributor wasn't seated down onto the oil pump all the way. It is fine now and pumping with steady pressure and the valves have quieted down quite a bit.

I drove the car for the first time a few days ago (6-11-15) and it made it to the top of the hill by my house no problem, then quit, now won't start again. I get to have more fun now diagnosing stuff. Woohoo!
 
#33 ·
Went to the Corvette forum and figured out my problem (talk about guys who know cars, some of the ppl on that forum--the C1 & C2 section at least--have ridiculous car knowledge). The car would start, but as soon as you let off the ignition, it quit. Most of them said to check the ballast resistor--some were saying bypass it altogether. I consolted the Pertronix manual--which is the aftermarket HEI system I put in, and indeed it said it should be bypassed. I soldered the wires together, and bam--back on the road!

I drove it for about 2-3 miles without issue (other than it was hot from me checking the timing again in my garage). It is very weird going from driving the ST to this thing. It's a 4 speed, and the clutch engagement is way at the top. Clutch engagement happens more gradually than the ST, shifter feel is weird and throws are super long. No power steering, so steering at low speeds is a workout. No power brakes, so braking from high speeds is a workout.

The cool thing, and this is why I will probably keep this car forever although I'd love to trade it for a new one, when people see it, they stop what they are doing. I mean literally stop and stare at it. There was a guy mowing his lawn with a walk behind and he stopped and turned around to watch it go by. It's such a great looking car.
 
#34 ·
So recent issue is that it is running very very hot. I did a compression test and all were in the 115-125 range when coldish. It was a little low, but again, that was cold and the compression of the engine is 8.5:1 so it's not gonna be very high. When pulling the plugs I did get #6 fouled bad.
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Checked the timing and adjusted slightly. Took it for a drive yesterday and it stumbled bad under load. It's just too dang hot to work on tonight, so have done some reading and will try some stuff tomorrow to see what works.
 
#35 ·
A friend of mine came over today who has rebuilt many SBC's to help me try and sort out my problem. After starting the car and trying to set the idle with the idle screws, he figured out that it needed an adapter plate because the intake is a spread bore and the carb is a square bore. I had originally purchased a square bore intake, but it didn't fit under my stock hood, so I bought this one as its the only one offered by Edelbrock that will work under my Corvette's hood. So when I ordered it, I forgot that I had to match the square bore or get the adapter. So here is where a 45 minute job turns into 5 hours.
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So, upon installation of the new adapter, I had to take the carb studs out. As I was taking the first one out, I dropped it, it went into the intake manifold on the passenger side, down the intake inlet, and ALL the way into the head, resting on a valve. We tried and tried to get it with a magnet, but after taking the intake manifold off and seeing where it was, there was no way we were going to get to it.
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So it rolled down into one of those intake holes, the third one from the left actually (#6 piston). Once the intake manifold was off I was able to get at it very easily. The intake manifold was a PITA to get off, mainly because I had gone a little overboard with the black silicone.
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So we spend a couple hours scraping off the intake manifold gaskets and I went and bought new ones and just put them on. I am eager to see if this is what caused my stumbling problems, but it will have to wait a day or two because the new silicone has to set before its run. Then I have to fill it up with coolant also and put the thermostat housing back on and let that silicone set as well. *sigh*.
 
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