Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
It sure does look good. A very nice stance. Looks like it was fun and the rain is making California jealous.
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Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
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The stance may change somewhat. I'm researching springs as we speak. The Hyperco springs that came with the chassis are a bit soft for road use. The front rate is 575# and probably needs to be closer to 625 or 650# Don't know yet what I have in the back, but I'm sure I need to step up there as well. So after adjustment, the look should be about the same - maybe a tad higher depending on what I come up with. What a day - what a day - what a day! I got the headers and pipes off, only to find the wires going to the coolant temp sensor on the driver side were burned and intermittently shorting together. We kept seeing the temp on the laptop jump around but I was blaming it on a possible poor ground for the MSD ignition controller. According to the gurus on the web, that's a common problem with those boxes and can cause all sorts of gremlins. But in my case, it appears to be yet another side effect of the heat from the SS headers. As you can see, they're now consigned to the dustbin of history. After repairing the temp sensor wires, I test fit the stock manifolds. There's way lots more room now. I'll post photos when I'm finished. Right now I'm waiting for a product called Zycoat from Eastwood to apply that's supposed to help contain the heat. I needed to change the oil as the engine now has about 2K miles on it. It was really nasty looking and smelled terrible. Went to auto parts and bought a high performance filter and full synthetic oil but when I got home, the filter didn't fit. Turns out the Mast Motorsports pan has a smaller, LS2 thread for the filter. So I had to return the one I just bought. The filter that came on the engine was an inexpensive AC-Delco version. Not sure why you'd put a $4 filter on an expensive engine. Of course, if I'd changed oil at 500 miles like I should have (before leaving on our trip) we wouldn't be having this conversation. The 1" bore Wilwood master cylinder arrived today. I plan to swap it out for the 1.125" one in the car. The guys at Wilwood said I'd like it a lot better. The bigger bore is better suited to the HydraBoost setups. Even with good vacuum from the Leed pump, the 8" dual diaphragm booster is hard pressed to build the pressure in the lines you need for panic stops. And we had one of those on the trip which is what prompted the switch. |
Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
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Still fixing things. Received the ZyBar coating and applied it to both exhaust manifolds. It was very runny but sprayed out fine. I'm unsure how effective it will be at reducing the heat. They claim a 90% reduction in radiated heat, but that might be for a thicker coat than I was able to get out of the 4 oz. can I bought. At $80, it was some pretty expensive snake oil. If it doesn't flake off under operating conditions, I'll consider it a win.
The exhaust system revision is progressing nicely. I reinstalled the H-pipe I'd removed long ago. I found that moving it back 3" let it clear the shifter cable and still have adequate spacing between it and the E-Stopp. I was short one 90 deg. tubing bend but it should be here today. Once it arrives, I'll be able to connect the manifold flanges. I'm hoping the combination of the cast iron manifolds and the H-pipe will reduce the noise level a bit. Not to mention lowering the underhood temps. I also installed a Flex-A-Lite aux trans cooler. I didn't want it in front of the radiator which is probably where it would work best, so I located it under the splash pan. There's a factory opening in the pan right above it which should direct at least some air from the high pressure area across the fins. Once I get back on the road, I'll connect the laptop to see if it's working. Typically, the trans has been running about 15 degrees hotter than the radiator. If that narrows down a bit, I'll assume it's the cooler. ;) |
Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
That coating looks great! I'm about to sandblast the storage paint off my headers and had planned on VHT black. My confidence in durability isn't very high. I'll have to look into this stuff! Is it purpose made for cast?
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The expense is a factor. There probably comes a point where it's almost as cost effective to have the parts ceramic coated as it is to DIY. Of course, when you do it yourself, you have control over the timing and the quality of the prep, etc. If you send it out, that goes away and you're at the mercy of the business doing the work. Time will tell if it's durable or not. The guys at Hot Rod Express said they go thru several heat/cool cycles before putting the headers in service. Run the engine until you see a small amount of smoke come off the headers/manifold and then shut it off and cool down completely. Doing that several times will help cure the coating. When I get everything buttoned back up next week, I'll post an update. |
Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
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I'm completely exhausted ;) or more accurately, the exhaust system overhaul is done. I moved the O2 sensor bung back 24" per the recommendation from Innovate so I hope that contributes to a longer lifespan for the sensor. And, as I may have mentioned earlier, I was able to relocate the H-pipe rearwards which allows it to clear everything comfortably.
With the exhaust revisions complete, I crossed off a few other items on the punch list. I affixed a standoff to the top edge of the trans cooler so it's solid now. I wasn't happy with the way the PCV system was operating so I moved the clean air side filter to the inside of the air cleaner and hooked the hose to both valve covers instead of just one. I also sealed up the catch can fittings better than they were originally. There was only a couple of teaspoons of oil in the reservoir after the trip, but I don't know if that was the result of an efficient engine or poor performance of the PCV setup. I'll know more in a couple of weeks after we take another trip. I also adjusted the coil overs. I tightened up the springs an inch in the rear and a half inch up front. Also went one click firmer on the single adjustable shocks. As crappy as most of the roads are, it shouldn't take long to find out if the changes helped. Tomorrow I'll be pulling the passenger front seat and the console to access the wiring. I need to run the new temp sensor wire to the Dakota Digital brain box. I also have to snip some zip ties to give the O2 sensor some slack. It won't reach the relocated bung as things sit now. Then I need to spend a couple of days cleaning up. The underside of the car got oiled down from trans fluid puking out the overflow on the trip to the TFN. I was concerned about that when we overfilled it while shaking the car down. I drained 8 quarts out of the trans but only put 6 back in. I'll watch the pressure gauge to see if I need to add more, but I'm betting it will be okay just a little over the full mark. |
Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
Glad to see she's back on her wheels!
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Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
Looking good, I hope this cures most of the bugs.
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Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
Breather inside a breather.....pretty slick
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The exhaust note is radically different than before with the new manifolds and H-pipe. I can still hear the exhaust but it sounds like it's coming from the very back of the car instead of right under me. May actually be able to listen to some tunes going down the road. The change in the spring height also made a difference. Ride is a bit more harsh, but it didn't seem to bottom out going over bumps. The true test will be crossing bridges at highway speed. I still have a few items left on my punch list, but if the weather cooperates, we may hit a cruise in or two this weekend. |
Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
Sounds like you may get through that punch list yet. :metal:
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Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
Man I am truly impressed!!! Read the whole build in the last 2 days and it has got to be frustrating to bee so close when the gremlins started. Looking forward to seeing the final solution to the problems had the same issues with heat and ac on my truck and 10 years later still fighting the trans.
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Case in point, after my test drive yesterday, I decided to change the adjustment on the shocks just slightly. When I reached under the driver side rear for the knob, I grabbed the tire and realized the backside was greasy/sticky. Upon further inspection, I could see the axle seal has been leaking. Not a huge amount, but more than enough to cause problems. The caliper, rotor, e-brake and the inside of the rim were coated with 90W rear end grease. A small amount had slung up into the wheel well, but it didn't appear to be dripping off of anything - yet. So, the axle is out and a cursory look see didn't reveal any obvious defects. The axle assembly came preassembled with the chassis from Roadster Shop. I reckon I need to get a good light and my magnifier to see if I can find the cause of the leak and then come up with a plan to fix it. |
Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
Per the Bishop in Caddyshack- "RAT FARTS!"
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So the problem would appear to be some hairline cracks in the outer rubber ring. After cleaning it good and then pre-lubing the taper roller bearing, I saw some seepage thru the rubber in a couple of places. For now, I'm going to apply a thin coat of RTV to it and then carefully assemble the whole mess. I don't hold out a lot of hope this will totally fix the problem, but it may patch it sufficiently to get me into winter when I can press it apart and put a new seal in. Don't try this at home, kids - test driver on closed course - etc., etc. |
Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
i had a axle seal start leaking once for no apparent reason..when i pulled it apart it all looked good..then i found the cause..the spring inside the lip seal was broken..
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We took a 550 mile road trip to visit some friends and attend a cruise over the weekend. The rear axle problem appears to be 99% contained. I had one small spot on the backside of the rim that looked like a few drops of axle lube may have dripped onto it, but other than that, no signs of major trouble. I've added a new seal to my winter makeover list.
Speaking of that, my list now includes: 1. Replace the 3000-3200 rpm stall converter with one closer to stock - like a 1600-2000 unit. 2. Take another stab at the EFI using my intake setup and Holley's Terminator X controller. 3. Replace the dual Perma Cool fans with Spal fans that actually move air. 4. Repair a small spot on the roof that's lifting due to my improper prep. There's certain to be more, but those are the biggies. We have a few more cruise-in's and car shows to attend before the car gets blown apart for repairs, so meanwhile, I decided to test another linkage setup on the dual quads. Ever since I put the carbs on, I've been using a progressive linkage that mainly runs off the rear carb. In fact, the front carb has the idle mixture screws all the way in and the primary throttle blades completely closed until the rear carb reaches half throttle. So most low speed operation is handled by the rear carb only. The AFR and the plugs are white when comin in off the highway but in town, the center plugs appear slightly darker which is probably due to the dual plane intake. So I decided to do something I've been wanting to try and that's to use a direct link between the carbs. I reset the idle mixture screws on the front carb and tweaked the curb idle. It feels more responsive and the AFR readings are much more stable. I'm going to leave it like this for awhile and see how it affects the mileage. On our trip this weekend, we averaged 15.2 mpg which was the same as the trip to Bowling Green. So that should be a good baseline. We have one more long trip planned which will give me a chance to compare. |
Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
Congrats on making the trip...sounds like your getting a handle on it..
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Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
Glad you got there and back ok.
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Re: 57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'
Sounds like a fairly successful trip. It sounds like you're getting the bugs chased out.
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Received an email from Speedway with a link to some radiator tech. One thing led to another and I ran across a thread on a forum that suggested that at least some overheating issues might be traced to using an aftermarket thermostat and housing. Apparently, the LS water pump has a bypass hole used for warmup that when left uncovered by using a SBC thermostat will cause hot water to recirculate in the engine rather than being routed thru the radiator. The LS thermostat has a plunger that supposedly blocks this flow once the engine reaches operating temperature. It looks like the housing on my FEAD from Synister Products is an aftermarket piece. No way to know without removing it what type thermostat is in place. So I reckon when I pull the radiator and fan shroud to replace the fans, I'll have a look.
Another post suggested that replacing the water pump with a high volume unit would help reduce overheating. I can't tell from the numbers on my w/p what it is exactly so I'm unsure whether a swap would be useful. There may be other numbers cast into it, but there's too much stuff in the way to tell. While I have it apart, I want to do all I can to address potential cooling issues because I only want to do this once. I bought a replacement 4L60E case off eBay. It looked really nice in the listing, but what they sent wasn't the same as the picture in ad. Filthy as all get out and a totally different part number than they showed. When I asked them if the case they sent was identical to the one they advertised they said "should be". How's that for commitment? This kind of practice is why I hate buying eBay junk. |
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