77 Cheyenne meets Ramjet 350 by N2TRUX

[N2TRUX]

It looks like we might have what we want. We stepped back to look at it from a distance. Just a little adjusting and trimming should get the finished pattern ready to be transferred to sheet metal.

You can see my 82 Blazer resting in the background. Hopefully it will see some progress after the 77 gets out of the way.

[N2TRUX]

After playing with the template material it was time to test Roger's skills. Everything I had seen him fab from sheetmetal had turned out really nice. The covers for the injectors weren't any different.

He rolled them out nice and smooth. Then he built some small tabs to mount them to. All you can see are a couple of small screws that hold them in place. This was just the top side, and already the motor looked much cleaner.

In this picture you see we are still playing with valve covers. What will it be? Do I want chrome, painted or polished...?

[N2TRUX]

The passenger side will take a little extra work. If you look at the pics of the template, then compare them to the one above you will notice that we decided to make the cover come up higher on the plenum. I wanted to eliminate as much of the tall skinny look of the plenum as possible.

This worked great on the driver side, but caused problems on the passenger side cover. If we made it the same, the throttle cable would not be able to operate properly. Roger solved the problem by cutting a notch for the throttle cable so it had a clear path to the throttle body linkage.

[N2TRUX]

We faced another challenge when building the injector covers. Should they be made to look even on the head, or on the plenum? Since small block Chevy heads are staggered, with the drivers side farther forward than the passenger side there was a dilemma.

If we mounted them the same on both heads they would be uneven at the front. If we mounted them even on the front of the plenum they would be uneven on the head.

The decision was made to make them the same and mount them uneven on the heads. This would give the motor a balanced look even if the heads look asymmetrical.

This over head shot gives a clear view of how the heads are staggered-

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Now that the size and shape of the covers were final, it was time to fill in the gaps. The front filler pieces were added to clean things up even more. There is a small opening to allow wires and lines to run through. This will prevent heat buildup as well.

You have to look close at the front of the cover to see how it's filled in-

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The chrome Sanden A/C compressor finally arrived. It will look much better when the chrome clutch cover is added. We installed a set of polished hose ends that will eventually be connected to custom made pressure lines.

[N2TRUX]

Your going to have to use your imagination for this segment of the article. Due to technical difficulties by our free lance photographer we don't have any pictures of the front clip being installed. Something about forgetting to put fresh batteries in the camera was the story I got.

Regardless of the reason, there are no pics of the install of the clip and it's related components. Since you have already seen most of the parts in previous pics, you can apply the magic of imagination, and prest-o, change-o the front end is back together.

No that we have done that, I can show you some of the detail that we have so far. There were a couple of choices for making cosmetic improvements on the air conditioners components. We could shave the firewall smooth (which was suggested) or detail everything. The best solution Roger and I could come up with to make this rather ugly area blend in was to paint the larger parts satin black.

This does tend to disguise it rather than have it stick out like a wart-

[N2TRUX]

On the other side, the decision was made to add a little shine. The brake booster was painted gloss black. The master cylinder will be gloss black too, with a chrome lid to bring attention away from the large parts.
You can see that the wiring is still a bit of a mess. That will be sorted out and rerouted as needed.

[N2TRUX]

Things are starting to progress pretty good at this point. There were a lot of small parts that needed attention, and they are coming together now. The a/c system is still waiting on custom hoses to be built until the final decision on how the intake will be routed.

Roger and I have had quit a few discussions on what to do about routing the intake tube. There doesn't seem to be way to route it that won't require a lot of tubing that will distract from the motors appearance.

We could do like most everyone else does on an install like this and just leave the air filter where it is. Unfortunately I have never liked the way that looks. It really bothers me to see a nicely detailed motor with a open filter hanging off of the end of the intake tube.

At this point the radiator hoses had not been built ye either. The routing of these hoses will have a direct impact on how the intake tubing is routed.

[N2TRUX]

The project is really starting to take shape now. All of the major components are in place and have been checked for fitment. There are still a few loose ends to wrap up though. The exhaust manifolds and exhaust system is still at the coaters. Soon the brake booster will get painted, wiring rerouted and detailed, a/c lines and radiator hoses built as well.

This shot gives you a true perspective of what we were trying to accomplish. The tall skinny plenum doesn't stand out anymore, and everything has a nice balanced look to it.

[N2TRUX]

Here's another view of how the motor looks. This gives a better perspective of how it flows.

[N2TRUX]

I have to fast forward a few steps here. The pics I have that document the next stages of progress are terrible. What isn't shown are small details for the most part. I will have quality pics of the completed motor in the wrap up.

In the meantime let me focus on a sidebar project that was done. As you already know one of my dislikes of the Ramjet motor was the tall narrow plenum. Rogers creative talent managed to overcome that quit well. Another cosmetic concern of mine is the air filter. It really bothers me that it's just hanging there off the end of the throttle body. I have seen a couple of alternatives and didn't like any of them.

We considered routing an intake tube away from the motor and put the filter out of site. Roger and I worked with this plan for quit a while and ultimately decided to scrap that idea. It seemed that no matter where we tried to route the intake tube it was going to cause a problem. It would also take away from the uncluttered look on the front of the motor and we didn't want that.

I came up with an idea to create a cover for the air filter. This would camouflage the filter and not create a routing nightmare. It sounded good in theory, and even looked good in cardboard mock up.

[N2TRUX]

Roger took the template I started and refined it to fit properly. Then he transferred it to sheet metal and built a collar that clamps to the front of the throttle body. He welded a bung on the bottom side to mount the oxygen sensor. Once everything is installed the sensor will be hidden.

[N2TRUX]

He installed the collar and cover to check the fit. Everything fit perfectly. You can tell he's done this a few times before.

[N2TRUX]

There is a lip at the edge of the of the throttle body housing. He put a slight bend in the filter cover to allow the cover to fit flush up against the lip for a nice smooth transition.

[N2TRUX]

From the side you can see there is still a lot of open element still exposed. There is at least a half inch clearance between the filter and the cover to ensure adequate air flow.

[N2TRUX]

Sometimes things that seem like a good idea still look good on paper. Unfortunately when they are transferred to a 3 dimensional product they don't quit look the same. That was the case with the air filter cover that Roger built. Let me clarify right up front that Roger did exactly what I asked him to do. He followed the design and built the cover as we discussed. I'm not sure if he saw the results coming out like it did, but I know I didn't.

The cover looked HUGE after it was installed. Instead of masking your view of the top of the exposed filter it dominated the front of the motor. The two small mounting screws looking somewhat like beady little eyes and the shape in general caused you to think of some prehistoric creatures head. My daughter said it looked like an aardvark's head. I think she was trying to be funny, but I was not seeing a lot of humor in this situation.

[N2TRUX]

To say that I was disappointed would be a mild understatement. To say that I was stunned at my inability to see this coming would be a polite version. I felt like a complete idiot for ever suggesting that we build the cover. I called Roger and asked what the going price for scrap metal was, thinking that my only salvation was to send this pterodactyl nose guard to the recycle bin.

[N2TRUX]

Fortunately Roger and the guys at Stoked Out decided there might be a glimmer of hope for the filter cover. With some creative trimming they managed to save the cover. The end result turned out much better than the first incarnation.

[N2TRUX]

The screws in the top of the cover still looked like beady little eyes so the decision was made to remove them. Here's anther view before the screws were removed.

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With everyone in agreement that this looked much better it was welded up. It was time to get it primed and painted so it would match the rest of the motor.

[N2TRUX]

Wow, I guess it has been a long time since I have added an update to this thread. As most of you know by now, the motor is finished. Roger and the crew at Stoked Out did an awesome job of transforming a ho-hum engine compartment, into a slick frame work for a higly detailed Ramjet motor.

[N2TRUX]

Even though I brought it home, due to my very busy schedule it still took a few weeks to get some minor bugs fixed. I had to take it to my bro-in-laws transmission shop to have the TV cable adjusted properly, the correct seal put in the tailshaft, and the speedo gears updated.

[N2TRUX]

I have had very little time to actually drive the truck since it has been finished. My first impression of the motor was that it started very easily thanks to the electronic ignition and injection.

A bump of the key and the high torque starter spins the motor easily. It seems like less than a single turn of the crank and it fires to life. It takes a few seconds for the idle to settle down to a nice deep rumble, with a slightly detectable lope from the cam.

Once warmed up you just can't resist a few revs to listen to the mechanical music. I'm running a dual inlet, single outlet Flowmaster with the exhaust pipe going all the way back. This is a nice quiet combo the emits a very pleasent rumble at idle, and plenty of growl when revved a little.

[N2TRUX]

The first few times I drove it, I thought GM was full of crap if this thing was a true 350 hp motor. It pulled smoothly from idle to cruisin speed, but did not feel like there was a lot more available. I was beginning to think that mating the 700r4 to the factory 3.08 rear gear wasn't a compatible union.

I had forgotten that GM had programmed a "break in" mode to the Ramjet computer. My last trip out must have put me through the break in period. I spent the day cleaning him up for his public debut.

I had been asked to meet with Joseph Dowling a free lance photographer that shoots features for Streetrucks. He had done a photo shoot while the truck was still in Rockwall. The editors liked what they saw but wanted some different views.

We were set to meet at dusk for the shoot then I planned to go by a local cruise spot. On the way to the photo shoot I noticed that the truck felt much stronger. I didn't know if it was running better or I was just excited about the possibility of getting my truck featured in another magazine.