The first "Hawk-Rod" resurrection, Roadkill style

[HawkRod]

Unfortunately not much to report on the engine front, except parts are getting really hard to find. I wanted a roller cam, but they are impossible to find - there are no blanks to grind anywhere in the country. Even flat tappet cams are getting sparse. The cam I ended up with doesn't have the lift or duration I want, but it'll do OK for driving across country, so it will have to do. BUT, I don't even have it yet, so I can't finish the motor.

On the car front, not much to report. I have been bolting more things back on the firewall in the engine compartment. I invented a few new swearwords getting the power brake booster bolted in and connected under the dash (luckily, no audio or pictures of this).

The biggest "UGLY" is the (what I thought small) hole in the driver side wheel well. After doing some digging, it looks like this:

AND, that isn't even trimmed back to all good metal yet.

I am no bodywork guy, so fixing this will definitely test my metal working, welding and bodywork skills. I am going to Eastwood today to buy a shrinker/ stretcher so I can make some metal pieces - I might need one of the leather sand bags too to shape the metal.

I have to dive in head first on this repair - sink or swim!

Hawk

 

[Builderguy]

"After doing some digging, it looks like this:"

Ah, Hawk, you were not "digging", you were mining with that excavation you have there!!!!!
You got this, just don't light it on fire.

 

[MoparJimT]

Thanks for the kind words folks. This is definitely "RoadKill" as I am doing stuff that makes me cringe based on the quality of work (looks wise). But time constraints require the car to be drivable and a "nice restoration" needs to take a back seat. I am targeting to have all key safety and drivability elements done - the looks parts have to take a back seat on this car. Assuming we actually make the trip deadline, don't expect much with the car - it's a beater!!!


Sounds good. We are not sure of our trip itinerary yet - we have a decision point somewhere around Wyoming regarding timing and heading to Oregon vs. heading to towards California and LA area where we have some family. Sit tight and we'll come back with trip plans once things start getting better defined. I'd love to see your car and trade a few stories if we can make it work out!

Hawk

Sounds good I am looking forward to it.

 

[HawkRod]

Here are some engine updates.

First, I got the cam installed with the new chain. Looks super, but is the cam set exactly where it needs to be?

So next step was to degree the cam. To find the correct top dead center, I used the same method that @Don Frelier used on his engine build. I put a stop for the piston, and then turned the engine both ways to the stop. Marked each and then TDC is the center between the two stops.

Then to degree the cam, I used a lifter on the #1 intake lobe and measured lift vs. degrees. First, I measured that the cam had the lobe lift that it should have (different than the valve lift). The lobe lift on my cam was supposed to be .318". I measured .319". Great.
Then, to find the intake center line, I measured to an arbitrary lift before the max lobe lift. I used .300" because that is easy. I read the degrees off the degree wheel, and then I rotated the cam until the lifter was after max lift of also .300". The middle point between the two was 106 degrees, and center line of my cam was supposed to be 106. Perfect!

So now I knew my cam was installed exactly where it should be with the lift it was supposed to have. And I had to make zero changes to get it there, so I was feeling like I should play the lottery! Well, Murphy soon showed up.

So to measure actual lift, you need the head on. So first, the head was assembled with the new 1.5 rockers. Some really light springs were put on #1 cylinder so installed height could be measured (now we can order the correct springs).

Then the head is bolted on with an old head gasket. It is only snugged on to the block, so the actual numbers measured won't be perfect, but they should be within a couple of thousands of an inch. The dial is then set to measure the retainer and see how much that moves. Note also in this picture I have a variable length pushrod mounted in the block so I can measure what size pushrods I need to get.

Here is where things are not so perfect. The lift I theoretically SHOULD have is .477". This is calculated from the lobe lift (.318") multiplied by a 1.5 rocker arm.
My actual measured lift was only .444". Where the heck did .033" go?!?
Well, this is eaten up by variations in the rocker arm construction, block deck height, gasket thickness, etc. But a big factor is also the absolutely crappy design of a small block lifter vs. pushrod angle. If you look at a small block, they are not even close to being in-line. So you lose some here as well.

I may likely replace this cam after the drive across country. This means that I will get a bigger lift cam than I want next time since some of the advertised lift will be lost through valvetrain geometry. But, I still need to measure what my actual clearance is between the piston and valves. I need to know what my max allowable lift is so I don't whack valves into pistons!

The next issue I discovered was the windage tray. I had to modify it a bit to allow for the additional stroke this engine has. I broke my arm patting myself on the back when it fit nicely without interference, and then discovered that the oil pickup tube for my new oil pan would not mount properly. Crap - more to modify!

OK, back to work on stuff to try and get done in time!

 

[JDmac72chrgr]

Sometimes getting out of your "non-cringe" mode will spice up your driving pleasure!! Think about the "the journey" ahead, enjoy the drive, the scenery, the places and the people you meet along the way. That's "OLD SKHOOL", that's "ROADKIL"!!!

 

[Don Frelier]

Well my piston stop is more bad ***...
But I did make it on the drill press which is fancy for me. No measurements just transferred the holes from the old head gasket.

 

[HawkRod]

Well my piston stop is more bad ***...
But I did make it on the drill press which is fancy for me. No measurements just transferred the holes from the old head gasket.
View attachment 1145294

Dude, you could turn the piston up into that angle iron stop with a 3 foot breaker bar and it would still not flinch!!!

So your overall car and build are more manly: You have a big block, but I only have a lowly small block, so I guess the wimpy stop was all I needed...

...of course, it does displace 416 cubes!

One of these days, I need to take a road trip to your area and we can argue over a beer!

 

[Don Frelier]

It's almost August, can't wait this stuff is outstanding:

 

[Don Frelier]

Where the heck did .033" go?!?

It's a hydrualic flat tappet cam correct?
This may be due to the fact that the lifters are not "pumped" up with oil.
That plunger space in the lifter will likely diminish/vanish when the engine is running.
The lobe grind is correct so I'll bet it runs well.

 

[HawkRod]

It's a hydrualic flat tappet cam correct?
This may be due to the fact that the lifters are not "pumped" up with oil.
That plunger space in the lifter will likely diminish/vanish when the engine is running.
The lobe grind is correct so I'll bet it runs well.

Yes, it is a hydraulic flat tappet cam (I wanted a roller with more lift, but no rollers were available anywhere and even the choice of flat tappets was limited.)
I wish it was just that the lifters were not pumped up, but it was not.
If you look at the picture of my head, you'll see the tiny valve springs used for testing. These have just enough pressure to keep tension on the valvetrain while testing. And my father-in-law specifically had me check to see if the inside of the lifters moved below the retainer. They did not.

But, yes, this engine should still have enough power to move us along and even do a burnout or two. 450 or 500 HP? I don't think so! But maybe we'll be in the upper 300s???

 

[HawkRod]

So I got a lot done on the engine (as I needed to) this week:
Thanks to FBBO members, I got the fuel pump eccentric and installed that and then the timing cover, water pump and balancer.

I needed to further modify the windage tray to get the oil pickup to fit. I got an extra windage tray bolt for the mains but the oil pickup was a bit too close to the bottom of the oil pan (should be about 3/8"). So I stuck it on the lathe and cut it down a bit.

With some additional clearance holes in the windage tray, everything finally fit well!

I then did some very minor clearancing in the heads and then assembled them with some old, weak springs. These springs will be used for break in to not put too much pressure on the camshaft lobes. Once the engine in broken in, I'll swap in the beefier springs.

I then bolted on the heads - starting to look like a complete engine now!

I set valve lash using the new custom length pushrods (no pics) and figured all I needed to do was bolt on an intake manifold...

... not so fast. The intake was off a little bit. I measured with a feeler gauge up top

and from below

For a good seal, the most you want to be off is by about .005". Mine was off by .009" on the top, driver side of the manifold. In my garage, I'd throw on some extra sealer and be done with it. But, I had a full machine shop at my disposal, so I cut .009" off.

I was then able to bolt on the rest of the stuff and get the engine home. I threw it in the garage and left it there as it was late.

Now to paint and finish some small things like thermostat distributor, etc., bolt it in and fire it up!

 

[JDmac72chrgr]

AAAHHH, that is NOT Roadkill style for sure!! More like Engine Masters!! LOOKS SWEET HAWK!!! Definately attention to details.

 

[HawkRod]

AAAHHH, that is NOT Roadkill style for sure!! More like Engine Masters!! LOOKS SWEET HAWK!!! Definately attention to details.

I agree, the engine and driveline will (hopefully) not be RoadKill style - I am trying to do that well. Having said that, it is my first engine build where I am doing everything including the machine work. I just hope I haven't screwed anything up!

The overall car, on the other hand, is definitely RoadKill! But it will hopefully get us down the road!

Speaking of going down the road, look what UPS brought me today:

Here is what is in the box:

I painted the engine tonight (no pictures until I can pull the masking tape off tomorrow). Hopefully tomorrow I can work on replacing the transmission tail shaft with the gear vendors tail shaft. I will also work to finish up other engine work and start getting it set back in the K-member.

If I am really lucky and things go well, MAYBE I can fire it up for the first time this weekend....

Hawk

 

[MoparJimT]

Awesome work Hawk. You sure do detailed work. I am sure everything is 100% with the amount of detail your putting into your work. Cannot wait to hear how it runs.

 

[JDmac72chrgr]

NICE!! Hawk has some $$$$$$. Was thinking of a 515/555 out of 2x4 Dakota for the OD, stayed with A904.

 

[HawkRod]

Awesome work Hawk. You sure do detailed work. I am sure everything is 100% with the amount of detail your putting into your work. Cannot wait to hear how it runs.

Thanks Jim! When priming the engine it made 90 PSI of oil pressure so it seems most tolerances are good. I've done a lot of work to it so I certainly hope it will all be good. But it only takes one thing that I screwed up to have issues!
I also worry about startup and cam break in. I have NO time for a wiped cam - that would be disastrous and kill the trip.

NICE!! Hawk has some $$$$$$. Was thinking of a 515/555 out of 2x4 Dakota for the OD, stayed with A904.

Yeah, this was supposed to be a budget build.
But, quite frankly, I can't deal with 3500 RPM on the highway for hours at a time any more. The easiest way for me to get overdrive was the Gear Vendors. What you see cost $2900 delivered, so it's not cheap, but I hope it lives up to the many positive reviews others have given it. Plus, with the trip across country, it'll go about 12,000 miles in a couple of months, so it'll save me some gas money too!

 

[qkcuda]

Cam break in had me spooked too, especially after having lost one (which caused me to have to build a 500 stroker) but everything went fine for me. You are methodical, so I have no doubt yours will go well too.

 

[HawkRod]

Cam break in had me spooked too, especially after having lost one (which caused me to have to build a 500 stroker) but everything went fine for me. You are methodical, so I have no doubt yours will go well too.

Thanks!

The trick is to immediately get the engine up to 2500+ RPM and keep it there for 20-30 minutes. So hopefully I have my act together and have fuel, carb, ignition, timing, etc. figured out so it does exactly that. I'm sure it will piss off the neighbors - the car is NOT quiet!

 

[JDmac72chrgr]

Money into powertrain like we did "back in the day", had to have a kickass car for Front st, Delaware Ave and by JFK. Usually, had just enough cash left for gas & WW bridge toll and scavenged til next pay day. You got this Hawk!! "NO WORRIES MATE" Give neighbors disposable ear plugs, the noise problem solved!!!

 

[HawkRod]

Engine is painted (at least all I'm going to paint on this one).

What do folks think about clear coating the rest? I've never done that but perhaps this will keep the finish nicer longer? On the other hand, I don't want clear peeling off either...