"Midnight Rider" 1970 C10 SWB Fleetside

[omodified]

Today, I did something I have been wanting to do for a while. When I bought my engine, the builder told me it had already been primed. If you have been following my build, you know that I drained all of the oil when I replaced the oil pan. I never put oil back in the engine because I wanted to ability to rotate it on the engine stand. I wasn't worried about corrosion since there was residual oil inside and my shop is climate controlled. Since I am prepping to install the engine into the frame, it makes sense to get oil back inside this thing. I figured the best way to add it was by priming it again. This way, I can see it for myself and check for leaks in the process. There are a few ways to go about priming an LS engine, even though some say you can't. I found a cool video that offered a pretty inexpensive method. Here is what I ended up doing.

I needed two of these fittings. One gets installed into the front oil port on the side of the block. The other gets installed on the top of the block where the oil pressure sensor normally lives.







Next, I needed to install a hose barb into the previously installed adapter on the side of the block.







Next, I installed an oil pressure gauge into the previously installed adapter on the top of the block.









I'll be forcing the oil inside the engine with a pump sprayer. I had to make a few modifications to it for this to work. First, I installed a metal valve stem so the bottle pressure can be measured during priming. Second, I removed the external spray tube that came with the sprayer and replaced it with 1/4" clear tubing.











The engine builder originally put 3 quarts of oil in this engine. He supplied an additional 3 quarts with the purchase. I'll be used this oil to prime. Before I start though, I filled to kitchen sink up with water as hot as I could get it. I used the hot water to transfer heat to the oil through the bottle. This will help the oil get where it needs to go, quicker.







Ideally, I would get the pump sprayer up to about 30psi and the engine would report back something steady over 20psi. As I started pumping oil in, it only took about 10 seconds for the pressure gauge to start coming up. Within about 20 seconds, the pressure gauge showed 20psi. Awesome!. In all, it took about 5 minutes to pump in 3 quarts. I rotated the crank 90° every 45 seconds. This took far less time than I expected, so I drained the oil and did it a second time. The best pressure I could get was 26psi at the sprayer and 21psi at the engine. No leaks either. I'm very happy with this. Prior to actual first startup,, I will drain this oil and prime one last time.

[omodified]

The next step in getting this driveline mounted in the frame is installing the torque converter into the transmission. I bought this unit quite some time ago. So long ago, that I don't even see this model on the manufacturer's website anymore. I decided to go with Circle D Specialties. This company came highly recommended, especially for my specific build. Customer service was great too. I called and talked to Chris Ostendorf. He was full of great information. Based on my specs he was able to recommend exactly what I needed. It was a special order but it only took 4 weeks to get it. What I received was a 05D-09-07-2A HP Series Single Billet 278mm converter. This converter is 11 inches in diameter making it about an inch smaller in diameter than factory which is where most of the higher stall rpm comes from. It has some internal tweaks such as anti balloon hub plate with integrated bearing retainer, re calibrated impeller fins and hand TIG welding for reinforcement. This converter is rated around 550rwhp. However, I chose to upgrade to the billet front cover which brings the holding capacity up to 750whp. Last, I went with the 2A, 3000-3200 rpm stall speed for the most performance increase. Here it is in all of it's glory...













Before I installed it, I double checked all of my dimension to ensure this thing was the proper fit. Everything looked good there. Circle D recommends pouring a half quart inside the converter prior to installing onto the transmission. Using a funnel, I poured a little at a time. Each time, I spun the converter clockwise and shook it a little so the fluid could force air out. This is considered priming. Once I got a half quart in there, I carefully slid it on to the transmission. Some people say you will hear three clicks when it's installed completely. The correct way to know is by measuring. The distance between the converter mounting surface and the front edge of the transmission mounting surface should be 1.125". This is exactly what I ended up with.









The last thing to do for tonight is loosely install the transmission mount. Like the engine mounts, I went with polyurethane. This mount actually came with the CPP transmission mount that I already installed. Judging by the part number, I think it's an Energy suspension piece. I already had this nickel plated, so it was ready to install. The kit didn't come with bolts to mount it to the transmission, so I used some leftover ARP bolts. Will torque these later once it's installed onto the frame.

[omodified]

The paint shop called and said it was time to take a few parts to be acid dipped. We decided this was the best approach for these two parts since the hood is so delicate and the tailgate is so pristine. Concentrated heat from media blasting would not be good for this application. The closest place to me was about two hours away http://chem-strip.com/. I was nominated to make the drive. Goog thing they are open on weekends.
Sounds like they will be ready for pickup in about 3-4 weeks.

[omodified]

Next thing to do is permanently mate the transmission with the engine. I added a bit of white lithium grease to the hub that inserts into the flexplate. It's a machined tolerance fit so the grease will help with assembly. I also added a bit of anti-sieze to the dowels on the engine's mounting surface. I used the engine lift and leveler to get the engine and trans at exactly the same angle. This ensured that I would be able to push the two all the way together without having to beat on anything. Once they were together, I torqued the transmission housing bolts to GM specs of 37lb/ft.









Next step is to measure the space between the converter mounting surface and the flexplate mounting surface. Circle D recommends using an 1/8" drill bit to check. The gap should be around 1/8" (0.125" +/- 0.025") but no greater than 3/16". When I checked mine, it was greater than 1/8" but less than 3/16" (0.177" actual). In my case, Circle D recommends using an SAE washer to take up some of the space, which they included with my purchase. With these in place, I could barely squeeze in a 7/64 drill bit. So my gap ends up being 0.108" which is close to perfect!







Now, I can bolt the flexplate to the torque converter. I had to remove the starter for this step in order to get to the bolts. I also used the flexplate lock to keep everything in place while I torqued them. I tried to use ARP bolts for this but the bolt heads had zero clearance to the rear engine cover bolts. So, I ended up using the bolts that Circle D supplied with the converter. I torqued these to Circle D specs of 50lb/ft with medium Loctite.







Next was installing the transmission dust cover. I used ARP bolts for this and torqued the bolts to GM specs, 24lb/ft transmission case and 37lb/ft oil pan.







Right about here is where my problems started. I didn't get much further than this only to realize that I have the transmission crossmember in the wrong location. I installed this one back into the original location which is correct for a TH350. Apparently, the 4L80E is a bit longer.





I quickly got the crossmember moved an torqued down so I could try again. Here is the next issue. The top of the engine mount is rubbing the engine stands on both sides. The passenger side is bolted in, but the driver side is off about an inch. I'll stop here for the night. Tomorrow, I will trim the engine mounts and see if things get better.

[omodified]

I trimmed the engine mounts all the way to the polyurethane on the top (you can see how much I trimmed off the LH mount in the first pic below). This gave me the clearance I was looking for. Now, the driver side hole is about a 1/4" off. I can feel the hole, I just can't get the bolt started at all. I tried different combinations a raising, lowering, shaking, prying, bolting left side mount, bolting right side mount. No matter what I tried, I ended up about 1/4" short on one side. time to stop for the night and regroup.

[omodified]

I researched to see if anybody else had issue with these engine mounts when using with an LS swap. It took a while to find something, but I think I found the problem and the solution. These engine mounts are for a Gen I small block. I used these since I was trying to reuse my original small block engine stands. On a small block, there is not a flat surface to mount these to. So Energy Suspension provides a "preload plate" for the polyurethane to rest against. For an LS application, the preload plate becomes the LS adapter plate that I already have installed. The only issue I have is the pocket that was cut out of the center of the adapter. So, I cut a piece steel to fit inside the pocket, only it protruded the adapter surface by about 1/16". This will allow for some preload to the adapter which apparently the manufacturer thinks it needs. I bolted everything back up without the preload plates and tried again. This time I got within about 1/8". It was so close. I poked and prodded again and it didn't get any better. As a last ditch effort, I removed bottom and front bolts from the driver side engine stand and loosened the back one. This allowed me to bolt it to the engine mount without issue. Next, I put a ratchet strap around the base of the engine stand and the transmission crossmember. A couple rounds of the ratchet and the holes were lined up and the bolts dropped right in. I torqued the engine stand bolts to 30lb/ft with anti-seize. I couldn't be happier with how this turned out. The angles even line up really well. Another milestone accomplished and floor space gained!!

[omodified]

The hood and tailgate received their acid bath. I went and picked them up yesterday. They are back safe, sound and all cleaned up. The metal looks beautiful. Time for some black epoxy this week.

[rodstored-72]

man!!.. this is becoming a really cool build.. I envy the detail & notes! the hood and tailgate really do look very very nice!! .. wow!
...nice job!!

[omodified]

Originally Posted by rodstored-72

man!!.. this is becoming a really cool build.. I envy the detail & notes! the hood and tailgate really do look very very nice!! .. wow!
...nice job!!

Thanks for checking in Rod and thanks for the compliments. I have some more cool stuff planned. Stay tuned!

[omodified]

The hood and tailgate are in black epoxy now. I said two months ago we would start to mock up the trim. This week, that will finally happen. Need to get all of the holes drilled before paint. The plan is to tape the trim in place and then draw an outline of the trim. The holes will get drilled somewhere in the middle of the outline, in the factory locations. I decided when I ordered the Mar-K trim that I would use 71-72 trim. There is no difference in the trim itself from the 69-70, but it requires less holes to be drilled. In 1971, the factory used less push in metal clips and more double sided tape. We had lots of disruptions today, so there was only enough time to place the tailgate trim. More work to be done tomorrow.

[omodified]

Did some organizing at home tonight. This is what 11 years of receipts looks like. I'm still not ready to know how much $$$ is here.

[omodified]

Got the side trim taped on and outlined today. Will need to come back tomorrow and make swiss cheese.

[omodified]

Holes are all drilled. Very nervous the entire time. Only made two mistakes, which will get welded up and smoothed out later. Had two original holes that need closed up too. I'm pretty happy with how it all turned out. It was definitely worth the time spent researching, preparing. Measure five times, drill once!!!

[omodified]

I installed the Speed Engineering headers tonight. I decided not to torque them yet just incase I need to put heat wrap on the starter or something . I used Cometic multi-layer gaskets and ARP bolts. Everything fits great since I took the time to clearance things during mockup.

[hewittca]

Lookin' great buddy! Your thread should be the go-to guide for resto-modding a C10. Immaculate work. You'd probably have a heart attack if you saw how I organized my bolts!

Did you end up doing the top trim straight, or arced like factory?

[rodstored-72]

....This is what 11 years of receipts looks like. I'm still not ready to know how much $$$ is here. that is too funny!.. I am sure that all of us here are with you on that! I am at the point where i just "kinda round up" & hope it is still within reason...

[omodified]

Originally Posted by hewittca

Lookin' great buddy! Your thread should be the go-to guide for resto-modding a C10. Immaculate work. You'd probably have a heart attack if you saw how I organized my bolts!

Did you end up doing the top trim straight, or arced like factory?

Hey Dr. Hewitt. Thanks for the compliments. I ended going straight on the upper trim. I can’t remember what the measurement ended up being but I had equal spacing front to rear between the upper and lower trim within a 1/16”. The driver side spacing ended up being within 1/8” of the passenger side, so I was pretty happy with that. We used string to check for straightness on each side, front to back.

[omodified]

Still working on trying to clear out as many boxes as possible from the corner of the shop. Let's work on the top of the engine.

This outing, I will install the valley pan cover plate. For this, I went with a Holley 241-369. I like this one for two reasons. One, it deletes the factory knock sensors, which I won't be needing for my setup. Second, it adds an oil filler cap. This eliminates the need for me to remove a valve cover when I need to fill the engine with oil. Before, I can install though, I have a few sensors to add. That would be the camshaft position sensor and the oil pressure sensor. The camshaft sensor is held in place by a small bolt. I torqued that bolt to GM spec of 18 lb/ft. The oil pressure sensor takes a special socket to tighten it down. This sensor gets torqued to GM spec of 26 lb/ft. Once I removed the engine lift plate (nice to see this thing gone after so long), I cleaned the mounting surface on the block and the plate with acetone. Using a new GM valley cover gasket and ARP bolts, I installed the new cover plate and torqued the bolts in two steps, with a criss-cross pattern to 18 lb/ft.

[omodified]

Next up was suppose to be installing the steam port kit. Originally, I bought an Earl's LS0036ERL kit. This is a nice stainless hardline kit. However, when I mocked it up, the front lines interfered with the oil fill cap on the valley cover. So, it looks like I need flexible lines. I ordered a kit that should work, just have to swap some parts. Follow up to come later...

[omodified]

More finishing touches going on with the body work. Along with just general smoothing, this is the also time to just keep looking at it from every angle to make sure nothing has been missed. During the last inspection, I found a high spot on the passenger side roof that didn't match the driver side. Also found an area inside the gap between the driver side front fender and the cowl panel. The fender had some extra metal on it that could easily be seen and it didn't match the passenger side. All of these items have been addressed and all the extra holes have been filled..

[omodified]

I received the parts I need to properly install the steam port kit. I ended up using the LS0015ERL nickel plated kit. The steam port adapters that I previously installed are still correct, so I left those in place. I did have to swap the adapter I installed on to the back of the water pump during the engine accessory kit install. The original kit required a -4AN but this new kit requires -3AN adapter. I installed the new adapter with 567 thread sealer, hand tight first and then tightened two full turns. The four corner hoses bolt right up. The steam port adapters swivel, so they end up finding their own happy places because of the length of each hose. Once I tightened all of the hoses, I torqued the steam port adapters to Earl's recommended 65 lb/in. Next, I had to use a cutoff wheel to cut the last hose to length. This is the front hose that connects the distribution block to the water pump. Earl's provides the correct hose end to finish it off. With AN wrench and aluminum jaws in the vice, the hose end install was a breeze. Last, I used some Permatex flexible high temp RTV to mount this distribution block to the valley cover plate. This will keep it from bouncing around and making a bunch of noise. Turned out looking great.

[omodified]

Next up is installing the intake manifold. For my setup, I decided on the Holley 300-132 carbureted single plane intake manifold. First, I installed the Holley supplied intake manifold o-ring gaskets. As recommended, I put a little high temp grease on each o-ring after they were installed around each port. Next, I used acetone to clean the mounting surface on each cylinder head. Carefully placing the intake on the engine, I used ARP bolts to snug it down by hand. Following Holley's torque sequence recommendation and using ARP assembly lube on the bolts, I torqued each bolt to 45 lb/in and then again to 100 lb/in.

[omodified]

Got a few easy ones done tonight. I will be doing some plumbing on the 4l80e sometime in the future. For now, I can start with these coolant AN fittings. These are both nickel plated. I lubed the threads with transmission fluid and tightened each fitting by hand. The longer fitting goes in the rear position. The shorter one goes in the front location. I final torqued each fitting to 28 lb/ft.

[RCbowtie69]

Just look at your build, Keep up the pics & Keep on Truckin''

[omodified]

The body is starting to be taken apart. Last bit of massaging before finish primer. Also, holes were drilled in the bed wood for the mounting bolts. Still need to open the tops of the holes a little more later, since the mounting bolts are the carriage type.


























Decided not to drill the hole in this location on both sides. I believe this hole is a provision for a spare tire carrier.