Hello I've ben visiting the site for some time now and have a few questions. Just about
finished on my ground up resto on my 69 Z/28
(drivetrain/frame/underbody only so-far,,,whew what a job) and would like to know from someone whos been through this some opinions on how to proceed. Car optioned as follows original 302 VI018DZ 10E build LA car rebuilt engine
.030 over pistons to deck (low) .018/ .035
headgasket crank .010/.010 all original carb to rear end (BU1018 G2) I mounted the core support temporarily after finishing the exhaust, and want to start and break/tune in my engine and original spec solid lifter cam. I figured it would be best to temp mount the core support, temp wire it and fire then tune the engine before paint. Any suggestions? Also when I've got the inner fenderwells mounted can you mount the fenders after without scratching everything to heck or should I paint it all hold off on installation and wait till paint and install the parts piece by piece? Kind of hoping someone else been der don dat with some advice. Getting close and wanna here her run and get the fever goin!

Before you paint any body parts put the car together and line everything up using the proper shims just like you would if you were putting the car together for the last time. When its together the way you want make diagrams or notes as to the location of all the shims and which went where. Then you can take the car apart and paint everything. Now when its painted and its time to put it together you don't have to play around and keep adjusting to get everything to fit right
and worry about chipping your paint. Its just a matter of putting the puzzle back together. It still takes great care but at least your not trying to fit everything together out of the blue with freshly painted panels.

only two more things i can think of after the above statement! 1) use a not-too-sticky masking tape or something similar to protect the metal to metal surfaces when rehanging your panels to eliminate scuffs/chips in paint and 2) ultra-thane paint like Nason, Dupont etc which is non-metallic is MUCH easier to repair than two-stage paints or metallics. Also, try to get your painter to give you several ounces of extra paint from the original batch the car is shot with to do touchups. With or without reducer is your preference. Touchups can be done with a Q-Tip then on any scuffs that happen. good luck!

Just my two cents, but I had wrecked my 67 Camaro's front driver's side fender two years ago. I waited to fix it until I had money to simply install a new fender and paint the whole car at one time. I will tell you that I had one hell of a time getting that fender to fit, and even through being careful, scratched and knicked the hell out of my driver's side door. If the fender was painted when I installed it, I couldn't imagine how it would have looked when I finally got it all mounted up. I actually found that in my case, loosely mounting the inner fender to the fender and installing them as a unit was a little easier. Hope this is somewhat helpful.

Todd, Agree with all before. When I did mine I laid bath towels over every area where the possibility of a chip or nick could occur. I placed the fender over the inner fender well, put the radiator support to fender bolts in first. Then the lower rear fender bolt followed by the upper rear bolt. I slid the towels out as I went. Sometimes they were hard to wok out but I never scratched or nicked one piece. Just go slow and if you get frustrated cause something isn't going right, go into the house and have cold drink. The name of the game is patience. It's gonna look great when it's done!!!!

Well got the engine going and cam broke in on my 302.
But I have a couple of problems I need help with.
First my original aluminum intake had a cracked fitting
at the heater hose fitting. Cast #3932472 So I sent it off
to A.S.L. in Sparks Nevada they said they would weld in a
fitting and blend the weld with a needle scaler so the cast finish
would look original. When I got the manifold back a couple
of years ago it looked great couple of little weld blemishes,
but it was not noticable except to me as I knew where the repair
area existed. Now after starting motor and getting temp. up the
repair area leaks! And guess what A.S.L. is now out of business!
Does anyone know of a good aluminum weld shop that can blend
a repair on my original intake and hide the repair?

Next after starting noticed the rear pan area leaks.(pan to tranny area)
I know I need To pull down the clutch insp cover but I’m positive I
did the following On assembly and it shouldn’t leak help!
At the rear cap the crank seal parting line was staggered and I added
a dab of seal at each end it was also installed lip in toward oil. The new oil pan I put in I used Mr. Gasket seals and sealed the crap out of them! Nothing else leaks. Oh well guess I will be pulling the motor back out bummer
but the best way to do it is now while all I have mounted is the core support.
Todd

Todd,
There are several areas I can think of that could be leaking in the rear of the motor:
1. The rear main seal itself
2. The camshaft plug
3. The three screw-in oil galley plugs
4. This is the hard one to explain. If you were to look at the rear main cap, where it sits into the block. At each side there is a chamfer that can allow oil to leak out to the back of the motor. I used to have a drawing on my web site but removed it to save some space. I will see if I can find the orig or draw it again and e-mail it to you.
What you might want to do before tearing everything apart is...go to your local Chevy dealer and purchase a little bottle of the die they sell for finding leaks. Put it in the oil and run the motor a while longer. Then you can use a black light to see exactly where the oil is coming from. The die glows bright yellow when viewed with a black light.
Now as far as your manifold goes, any good welding shop with a TIG welder should be able to properly do the repair...however, finding someone to make it look original might be hard. I have never heard of using a needle scaler on aluminum, but I suppose it would work. Depending on how bad and exactly where the weld is leaking, is it possible to remove the fitting and clean the area real good, then apply a light coat of epoxy on the inside ? Just an idea.
Hope this helps,


------------------
Bill Koustenis
Advanced Automotive Machine
Waldorf Md

I agree with Bill. Another leak area could be the rear of the intake. Start with the highest part of the engine and work down. Gravity will fool you. On the leak, I once bought what I thiught was a good used intake but later discovered it had several pinholes in the water passages due to corrosion/electrolosis. I used JB Weld on the inside and never had another leak. If you can access this area on yours it might be worth a try. Remember always check the simple stuff before tearing your motor apart. You probably did everything right and just have an easy fix to do. Don't "over think" the problem. Let us know what you find.

John
'69 Z/28

Gravity does like to play some tricks with the leaks. I had a leak that I thought was my rear main seal. But after tracing it down it turned out to be the oil sender.

Just got the car up in the air today as a matter of fact to look at whats
going on before I start tearing it apart. Looks like the main but I've got to pull
the starter and then the clutch inspection cover then remount starter. Then I can start it with some dye in the oil and hit the florescent light and see where shes
coming from. just takes time. I've also developed a leak at the front seal
at the water pump so I guess I'll go after that number matching part
(datewise) now after all!