First try 66 stepside

[idaho66stepside]

My dad and I decided to work on a truck together. Dad liked the look of the 60-66 stepside Chevy and GMC's, I just like all the cars and trucks of the sixties and seventies. We found this 66 lwb stepside in Mtn Home and it hadn't been run in two years. After changing the fluids, patching a leaky gas tank filling it with fresh gas and the 283 sbc started! But our plans for the truck don't include the 283 and powerglide. Kind of a shame because it is all original excluding the crappy repaint, have all the paper work from when it was purchased in Long Beach Ca. in april of 1966.

[jonzcustomshop]

I see you snuck over here to montana and grabbed that! You have to give it back
looks like a nice start.

[idaho66stepside]

We took a 350 from a 77 suburban and the power steering box and pump. Dad went back to Colorado leaving me the job of grease clean up!! Cleaned and painted engine then got a little exicited and added Edelbrock easy street heads, performer intake, new edelbrock carb, and RV cam, lifter, and pushrods. I guess we'll just have to wait a little longer for paint! Debating on which transmission to go for, so many options. My first thoughts are a 700r4 or the 200r4 because I heard the 200 is a direct swap. A local transmission shop told me 700r4 is a disaster to make it work with an edelbrock carb and all this blah blah. He said get a th350 and a Gear venders OD unit. Oh well one thing at a time I guess!! Heres the 350 ready to go to it's new home

[idaho66stepside]

Thanks Jon, the PO is in the USAF and I guess was stationed out there. I've been out for a long time now and don't remember the bases out there. Not too much rust a little in the passenger door corners and the bed. Looks like there is filler in the hood and front end. It'll be a learning experience for sure!

[jonzcustomshop]

I have heard good-or no negative things about the 200's, with a few tweaks they hold up some pretty decent power, they are also the same size as, and use the same mount as a turbo 350.
I know lots of people use the 700's, however everone I know that has chosen one has had nothing but problems....

[markeb01]

That's a very nice straight looking truck to start off with. Hope you and your dad create a lot of great memories together building it.

[idaho66stepside]

Dad came out on a vacation and I worked him like a dog or was it vice versa. We yanked out the 283 without too much trouble, but we were getting late in the day and a little exicited to get things done I forgot to put a jack under the transmission. When we separated the engine from the tranny it almost fell out from under the truck the transmission mount was totally disintigrated.. We found it on the ground after power washing the underside it looked like a grease ball that bounced!! The next day was spent part hunting and found out that 3 or the 4 local parts store don't know s*$t, but I only know a little more than that. We got a break from the rain and threw down some rattle can black wrinkle paint on the firewall and inner fenders.

[idaho66stepside]

Yep we're no professionals!! But having a good time!!!

[idaho66stepside]

We wanted to put in power steering and I bought the mount from Early Classics before I learned about this site. We debated on if I got all the needed parts and guess I didn't. It took us several hours and a few trips to parts store and GM dealership to realize we had a big block ps pump bracket, and those don't work right on a small block. So we pressed on with getting the 350 in and running.

[Captainfab]

You two made good time on that engine swap....looks good.

[LILRED66]

It looks like you guys need to loosen up a little and have some fun...just kidding, you guys look like you are having the time of your life. Congrats on the purchase and thanks for sharing. Welcome to the forums from Kansas City, KS. Keep the progress photos rolling.

[jason65]

The new mill looks good in there. Nice project dude.

[daverod]

Looking good. You need to send your dad this way.

[bubba327]

Nice Score on the stepper !!
If your dad has more "Vacation time " send him here after Dave is caught up.
Maybe we all could get our trucks a little farther along toward driving again

[Alan's Classic]

Nice progress!!

[rbkanco]

Nice job Scott. You gave me more credit than I deserve. can't wait to see the streetside pics. With the dual exhaust! And Wheels. Hope no one thought the white spokes were staying. And a big thanks to all the supportive comments.
Dad

[idaho66stepside]

While getting the exhaust installed I had the valves adjusted and timing fixed. He had a hard time with a miss and vibration which I though was a balancer problem. Nope, most likely a crank problem. The thrust bearing has more than 0.04 play in it and the balancer is shaking like a chubby belly dancer. I guess I'll take it back to the garage and pull it out and break it down, which will be new territory for me. Been thinking of getting a short block over rebuilding this one because I have no clue what else could be wrong. Will 350 heads fit on a 327?

[Captainfab]

Yes the 350 heads will fit on a 327, since they are both small blocks. However, the typical 350 heads have large combustion chambers which will drop the compression on a 327 with flat top pistons to the point that it will be a dog. If you are going to have a 327 short block built, you could go with a set of domed pistons to keep the compression where it will run better.

If I may make a suggestion. If you're looking for a better engine, look for a Vortec 350 from a '96-99 pickup, Suburban, Tahoe or a '96-02 Express, Savanah van. If that sounds interesting let me know and I'll elaborate more.

Originally Posted by idaho66stepside

While getting the exhaust installed I had the valves adjusted and timing fixed. He had a hard time with a miss and vibration which I though was a balancer problem. Nope, most likely a crank problem. The thrust bearing has more than 0.04 play in it and the balancer is shaking like a chubby belly dancer. I guess I'll take it back to the garage and pull it out and break it down, which will be new territory for me. Been thinking of getting a short block over rebuilding this one because I have no clue what else could be wrong. Will 350 heads fit on a 327?

[idaho66stepside]

Thanks Cap. That makes sense to me. Smaller chamber sizes increase compression thus increasing horsepower is that right. What do dished pistons do if domed increase compression. I kinda threw up a hell mary with the 327. The local engine guy had a 396 I considered for the camaro then putting the 327 in the truck, but the wedding bills are rapidly approaching. I've heard about happy wife, happy life!! I have considered the the vortec alot but I have proven to be a poor judge on used engines or to naive. I've seen a few on craigslist but not skilled enough to know if it's a good deal or not.

[Captainfab]

Yeah, buying a used engine can be a gamble even if you know what to look for. One thing about the Vortecs is that they will go for 200,000+ miles if reasonably taken care of. So unless there is some major damage such as a spun bearing, or a rod thru the block, there's a good chance it is in running condition. Or at least with minimal work. What kind of prices have you seen the Vortec 350's for? The Later Vortec's such as the 5.3 and 6.0's are typically a bit more $$. Do you have a reputable wrecking yard down there that might have one?

I just went back and looked and I had forgotten that you have the Edelbrock E-Street heads on there. Which ones did you get? They come with either 64cc chambers or 70cc chambers. If you have the 64cc chamber heads, those will work just fine on a 327. All you really need then is a short block. Is a rebuilt shortblock in your budget?

[daverod]

Guy here sells 350 vortec 1100. 700 to install. Plus carb and intake.

[Captainfab]

1100....that ought to be a very low mileage engine if not rebuilt. The most I've paid for a Vortec 350 was $500 and I got to hear it run. Granted I had to pull it, but I got everything.......and I mean everything, including wiring harness and PCM. Heck in today's newspaper there was a running driving '97 1500 pickup for $1100.00

Originally Posted by daverod

Guy here sells 350 vortec 1100. 700 to install. Plus carb and intake.

[idaho66stepside]

The local pick n pull is WEAK. But I haven't checked to see what kind of engines they have to offer. A short block would certainly work. How would dished pistons effect performance with the 64cc heads?

[Captainfab]

Dished pistons in a 350 and 64cc heads would be around 9:1. If it were me and I was building a 350 short block, I would go with flat top pistons. Depending on the pistons that will give you around 9.3 to 9.7:1. The performance will depend on what cam you use with a given compression.

Originally Posted by idaho66stepside

The local pick n pull is WEAK. But I haven't checked to see what kind of engines they have to offer. A short block would certainly work. How would dished pistons effect performance with the 64cc heads?

[idaho66stepside]

Makes sense again, Thanks Cap. Heading north to the Sawtooths this weekend to enjoy the mtns and some bluegrass then back recharged to tackle the truck.