Shrunken66Stroker's build thread.

[Dinos63]

those mounts are trick !! always always such nice work

[shrunken66stroker]

Originally Posted by Dinos63

those mounts are trick !! always always such nice work

Thanks Dino. They came out nice but I seriously worked on them for almost two days. I'm slooooowww at this stuff.

[chad64chevy]

the truck is looking good! when you leave for vacation??

[shrunken66stroker]

Originally Posted by chad64chevy

the truck is looking good! when you leave for vacation??

Thanks. Mentally I'm already there.

[R.A.D]

i thought you were...........

[daverod]

Did you leave yet? It's all clear lets jack this thread. Have fun on vaca.

[Strodder]

Hijack???????? How shocking would that be?

[R.A.D]

[theastronaut]

Shrunken, I'm going to be using an LS2 and No Limit's R&P on my '66. Do you think there would be any interference issues with notching the crossmember to drop the engine/trans lower?

From this pic it looks like there's room for maybe a couple inches? I imagine that it would be tough fitting headers around the frame rails if it was dropped any more. Thanks in advance.

[wutnxt]

Dude...
As always great work....one of the best 64-66 threads there is....you have great vision

[hotrod1]

move the engine back to get away from the cross member and get a different pan. Better weight distribution and center of gravity. You will need to deal with your firewall though.

Autokraft has a nice pan for an LS. http://www.autokraft.org/products/

[chad64chevy]

wow its been almost 4 months since we got an update, he must be busy taking pictures or forgot about us!!!

[McMurphy]

Originally Posted by chad64chevy

wow its been almost 4 months since we got an update, he must be busy taking pictures or forgot about us!!!

Probably just now cooling off in Nevada enough so he can touch it. Last time we saw it, it was all brushed steel yes?

[R.A.D]

damn i hope everything is alright!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[shrunken66stroker]

Originally Posted by theastronaut

Shrunken, I'm going to be using an LS2 and No Limit's R&P on my '66. Do you think there would be any interference issues with notching the crossmember to drop the engine/trans lower?

From this pic it looks like there's room for maybe a couple inches? I imagine that it would be tough fitting headers around the frame rails if it was dropped any more. Thanks in advance.

Astronaut, the problems I see with lowering the engine might be prohibitive. Ultimately it's up to you but here goes. You'll have to custom fab the engine mounts and headers or cut the frame rail to squeeze headers in. You will have to get a shallower pan than the "muscle car swap" pan I have, which is about flush with the bottom of the crossmember. The f-body pan should work. I don't have the accessory drive yet, so that's a variable that I can't give you any insight on.

Notching the cross member won't be a problem, you just need to leave enough room to get to the nuts to tighten the rack mounting plate inside the crossmember. You might have to reroute the brake lines that run along the rear of the crossmember. Also, address the usuals stuff like drive shaft angle, length and shifter location. A couple inches probably won't affect flow between the block and radiator, right?

And after all of that, when you're done the engine compartment might look half empty. I don't know if it's worth the trouble, honestly. You're already taking a ton of weight off the front end with aluminum block, heads and no boat anchor steering box. Are you planning on racing autocross with it? If you are, go for it. If it's a street truck then I wouldn't bother with an inch or two either way. I hope this ramble helps. Good luck!

Originally Posted by wutnxt

Dude...
As always great work....one of the best 64-66 threads there is....you have great vision

Thanks!

Originally Posted by hotrod1

move the engine back to get away from the cross member and get a different pan. Better weight distribution and center of gravity. You will need to deal with your firewall though.

Yes, good advice. If you move it back more than two inches the fire wall will need to be addressed.

Autokraft has a nice pan for an LS. http://www.autokraft.org/products/

Originally Posted by chad64chevy

wow its been almost 4 months since we got an update, he must be busy taking pictures or forgot about us!!!

I've been lurking a little and definitely didn't forget. I haven't gotten much done over the summer because I've been busy with work and family. Business is getting better... Finally!

Originally Posted by McMurphy

Probably just now cooling off in Nevada enough so he can touch it. Last time we saw it, it was all brushed steel yes?

And it still is!

Originally Posted by R.A.D

damn i hope everything is alright!!!!!!!!!!!!!

All good, just trying to pay some bills. Thanks, guys.

[ERASER5]

Originally Posted by shrunken66stroker

All good, just trying to pay some bills. Thanks, guys.

Paying bils! Are you maskerading as a responsible adult or something?

[montoya22]

cant wait to see it when its done.. what kinda wire are you welding with?? i been doing some welding with my flux but it seem to be burning the metal .. any advice would help.. thank and keep working hard

[61 son of a Gun]

GREAT build !

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by shrunken66stroker

Astronaut, the problems I see with lowering the engine might be prohibitive. Ultimately it's up to you but here goes. You'll have to custom fab the engine mounts and headers or cut the frame rail to squeeze headers in. You will have to get a shallower pan than the "muscle car swap" pan I have, which is about flush with the bottom of the crossmember. The f-body pan should work. I don't have the accessory drive yet, so that's a variable that I can't give you any insight on.

Notching the cross member won't be a problem, you just need to leave enough room to get to the nuts to tighten the rack mounting plate inside the crossmember. You might have to reroute the brake lines that run along the rear of the crossmember. Also, address the usuals stuff like drive shaft angle, length and shifter location. A couple inches probably won't affect flow between the block and radiator, right?

And after all of that, when you're done the engine compartment might look half empty. I don't know if it's worth the trouble, honestly. You're already taking a ton of weight off the front end with aluminum block, heads and no boat anchor steering box. Are you planning on racing autocross with it? If you are, go for it. If it's a street truck then I wouldn't bother with an inch or two either way. I hope this ramble helps. Good luck!

Glad to see that all is well with you, and thanks for the detailed reply! It'll be a street truck that will occasionally see autocross action. Most of the things you listed will be things I'll be doing anyways (my own engine mounts and brake lines, move shifter forward, aftermarket baffled oil pan) so it may not be that much more work other than the headers and chopping the crossmember. I'd like to keep the stock low hump floor if possible so dropping the engine would help gain clearance for the T56. Rob at No Limit posted that guys do extra work to lower the engine even fractions of an inch when possible for track cars so 1-2 inches should be worth the extra work.

This is definitely one of my favorite build threads, can't wait to see what's next with it!

[shrunken66stroker]

Originally Posted by theastronaut

Glad to see that all is well with you, and thanks for the detailed reply! It'll be a street truck that will occasionally see autocross action. Most of the things you listed will be things I'll be doing anyways (my own engine mounts and brake lines, move shifter forward, aftermarket baffled oil pan) so it may not be that much more work other than the headers and chopping the crossmember. I'd like to keep the stock low hump floor if possible so dropping the engine would help gain clearance for the T56. Rob at No Limit posted that guys do extra work to lower the engine even fractions of an inch when possible for track cars so 1-2 inches should be worth the extra work.

This is definitely one of my favorite build threads, can't wait to see what's next with it!

No problem! After 5 years it's hard to know when to draw the line and move on in the name of driving it again some day, hopefully soon. I'm just a weekend warrior and I've used this project to teach myself everything about the rebuild process. When it's finished I will have done 100% of the work, so I want it to be dialed in. That said, I'm done moving the engine around and need to move forward. I need to get the accessory drive, radiator and some other misc. parts and get back to it. I'll post any progress I make and follow yours as well.

[daverod]

We really do need a update....

[R.A.D]

i second that

[bubbalou65]

Been looking thru the thread. Everything is looking great. I just saw that you pulled the front fender back 2in. I am doing the same thing just never saw anyone do it. Always thought that front needed to come back. I havn't done mine yet so now I have a visual. Thanks. Also what are the tire sizes on the front. I know they are 17's but I like the side wall height on yours and im getting my wheels next week. Thanks for all the info with this build.

[bubbalou65]

Originally Posted by shrunken66stroker

Thanks Jason. Good to see you back.



Thanks French. Go Ducks!



Thanks Dino!



A little trip the the ER with an ulcer has been keeping me down recently. I'm felt good enough to roll it out and take some picks today before I cleaned the garage.

love the grill. I am using the same one on mine. It was a freebie ta boot. looks great.

[shrunken66stroker]

Originally Posted by daverod

We really do need a update....

Argh. Been too busy to work on it, but the weather's nice and I'm going to get back out there soon. My wife bought me a small hydraulic lift for Christmas and I haven't even gotten a chance to use it yet.

Originally Posted by R.A.D

i second that

It will be back on the front burner soon. I promise.

Originally Posted by bubbalou65

Been looking thru the thread. Everything is looking great. I just saw that you pulled the front fender back 2in. I am doing the same thing just never saw anyone do it. Always thought that front needed to come back. I havn't done mine yet so now I have a visual. Thanks. Also what are the tire sizes on the front. I know they are 17's but I like the side wall height on yours and im getting my wheels next week. Thanks for all the info with this build.

Thanks, Bubba. Yes, 17x8 and the tires are 235/55/17 Toyo Proxes.
There will be updates sooooon..I hope.