55.2-59 Help with my automotive ignorance pls

[1project2many]

Originally Posted by mongocanfly

keep in mind the firewall wasn't designed for the weight and force of a firewall mount master...id seriously look at firewall reinforcing if you go there
ive got a buddy that mounted his on firewall..and its amazing how much flex the firewall panel has when he gets on the brakes just from bleeding...hes added some brace rods but its still moving...he said hes gonna fab a plate to try and spread out the load some

Exactly. With a firewall mounted booster the factory places significant brackets on the firewall to support the load of the pedal and master. Continuous application of brakes, even with booster, creates substantial stress on the firewall. Plus there's the possibility of at least one booster failure.

[dsraven]

a bracket like that could be fabbed and placed on the inside of the firewall if need be.

[Phungki]

All the MC booster kits I've found, like from brothers, come with support brackets. They wouldn't be sufficient to make it sturdy?

[gigamanx]

I had no idea how to do this either. I have an SBC 350 and a 700r4 in my truck. S10 chassis, but the rules were the same. I had to setup the engine and trans on the motor mounts and then check the angle of the intake manifold along with the angle of the transmission yoke. Lots of adjusting and eventually found the right place. I then welded a brace around the placement so it would stay. I still want to go back in and make it stronger later, but so far it has held up the past few hundred miles. i believe the angle is 3 degrees for the S10.

[Phungki]

Originally Posted by gigamanx

I had no idea how to do this either. I have an SBC 350 and a 700r4 in my truck. S10 chassis, but the rules were the same. I had to setup the engine and trans on the motor mounts and then check the angle of the intake manifold along with the angle of the transmission yoke. Lots of adjusting and eventually found the right place. I then welded a brace around the placement so it would stay. I still want to go back in and make it stronger later, but so far it has held up the past few hundred miles. i believe the angle is 3 degrees for the S10.

Did you have to remove any of the existing crossmembers to get that drivetrain in? Or did you just have to fab up one for the transmission? I don’t want to remove the trans crossmember since it is such an important part of the structure. Hopefully at most I can just notch it and box it in. I’m assuming you had the cab on first to decide where the engine went?
Thank you for the pics

[Driver_WT]

Originally Posted by gigamanx

I had no idea how to do this either. I have an SBC 350 and a 700r4 in my truck. S10 chassis, but the rules were the same. I had to setup the engine and trans on the motor mounts and then check the angle of the intake manifold along with the angle of the transmission yoke. Lots of adjusting and eventually found the right place. I then welded a brace around the placement so it would stay. I still want to go back in and make it stronger later, but so far it has held up the past few hundred miles. i believe the angle is 3 degrees for the S10.

Does that mean 3 degrees tilted down in the back?

[Matt_50]

Yes, at the transmission. Axle will point up.

[gigamanx]

Originally Posted by Phungki

Did you have to remove any of the existing crossmembers to get that drivetrain in? Or did you just have to fab up one for the transmission? I don’t want to remove the trans crossmember since it is such an important part of the structure. Hopefully at most I can just notch it and box it in. I’m assuming you had the cab on first to decide where the engine went?
Thank you for the pics

The only cross member removed was the original transmission one. Its four bolts and came out pretty easily. Looking at the way it was attached, I don't think the cross member was structural. If you're super worried about rigidity, weld the new cross member to the frame. I just used grade 8 bolts so I could remove it all if I ever wanted to.

To get everything to line up its all about where the front fenders meet the front wheels. I placed the engine and transmission down on 2x4 and the motor mounts. I put the cab down. I then lined up the front fenders and the core support (radiator). As long as the radiator isn't touching the front of the engine, that's about the place to put it. Nothing was bolted, drilled, or welded yet at that point so I could move things around.

Then you get to take all that sheet metal off knowing where the engine and transmission goes