Building a free LT1 for my Camaro

[da_raabi]

"ran when pulled"

Phrase of the day. Back in October I picked up a free LT1 long block. It had been sitting in a warehouse for quite a while and the owner wanted it gone. He said it ran when pulled, and when I dug into the top end I believed him. Clean. As. A. Whistle! No gunk, no carbon, Nice!

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[da_raabi]

HOWEVER... When I pulled the oil pan things got a bit... unsightly.

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Spun bearings EVERYWHERE. Fortunately it was all rod bearings and the mains were fine, so no issues with the main caps.

SO what now?

How about a stroker???

The standard bores cleaned up nice so it'll be a 377 with this kit:

https://motorsportsunlimited.com/lt...draulic-roller-camshaft-choose-options-below/

 

[da_raabi]

The build kit showed up last week, so now I've got to mock build everything and take a few measurements. I'm looking to deck the block so that the pistons are .014 in the hole. With a .026 shim gasket that will get my quench right at .040... perfect. With a Comp 08-443-8 cam that will get me a static compression of 11.39:1 with a dynamic of 8.51:1... Again that should be perfect with the LT1.

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Other than the cam, this is the kit I got:

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[RecklessWOT]

This should be a cool project. A lot of people talk **** on the LT1 but I've always loved that engine. Sure, LS swaps are cool and all, but the LT1 was the last real 350 and it can actually make quite a bit of power when done right. Even stock they were no slouch

 

[bucket]

Didn't you recently build and install a big block into the car? Or has time gotten away from me and that was a long time ago?

 

[bucket]

This should be a cool project. A lot of people talk **** on the LT1 but I've always loved that engine. Sure, LS swaps are cool and all, but the LT1 was the last real 350 and it can actually make quite a bit of power when done right. Even stock they were no slouch

Remember when they were new and that was THE swap to do? LT1's and LT4's in everything. Oodles of bolt-on stuff available. They were the greatest thing since sliced bread. Then the LS1 came out and nobody cared anymore.

I agree, they were good then and they are still good now.

 

[da_raabi]

Didn't you recently build and install a big block into the car? Or has time gotten away from me and that was a long time ago?

Yeah time has gotten away from you lol.

The timing chain on the 454 in the truck let go about 2 years ago, so I pulled it then decided to pull the RV 454 out of the Camaro and drop it into the truck. Discovered after doing so that the block was cracked, so that came back out and the original went back in again with a top end rebuild done. The Camaro has sat without a motor since then.

I was talking with a builder friend last week and I told him what I was doing with this LT1. He figures I could see 450hp with equitable tq. That is honestly more than I planned, and more than I wanted, but it will be a fun motor for sure.

I'm hoping to start mock building the bottom end this week so I can figure out how much of the deck needs to be machined off...

 

[da_raabi]

Time has passed and this is where I'm at:

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I've got a long way to go, but at least she's in there!

 

[DoubleDingo]

NICE!!

 

[Catbox]

Looks good so far!

 

[RoryH19]

Time has passed and this is where I'm at:

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I've got a long way to go, but at least she's in there!

LT1s are great, my 95 z28 has one with a 6 speed. Mid length headers, high flow cat with borla exhaust sounds great. With other bolt-on it can move.

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[da_raabi]

A few updated shots. It's slowly coming together. I've had a LOT of wiring to do. I'm about 90% done. Just the in-cab switches and the power/ground for the electric power steering pump.

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[da_raabi]

And she's running! This is my third attempt at getting her fired up. Turns out the secondary bowl of the carb was manufactured incorrectly, basically preventing the float from functioning correctly. Can you say fuel geyser??? Anyway, I replaced the bowl with a genuine Holley part (unfortunately in grey instead of black) and boom, runs like a ***** ape.

Just gotta get a few things finished up and find a Volvo power steering pump and I can start getting this thing tuned!

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[DoubleDingo]

r a p e d is even censored! OY!!

 

[QBuff02]

And she's running! This is my third attempt at getting her fired up. Turns out the secondary bowl of the carb was manufactured incorrectly, basically preventing the float from functioning correctly. Can you say fuel geyser??? Anyway, I replaced the bowl with a genuine Holley part (unfortunately in grey instead of black) and boom, runs like a ***** ape.

Just gotta get a few things finished up and find a Volvo power steering pump and I can start getting this thing tuned!

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When a woman can stand there and video an engine fire up, seem excited and then in response to something you said exclaim "because you don't have the throttle (return) spring hooked up!"... You marry that woman.