My teenager's first small block build

[Keuka C10]

I am doing about the same with my son right now. I'm not doing a full rebuild, just replacing all the gaskets because of bad leaks everywhere. The motor runs decent, I'm not fixing what isn't broken. We will work on it through the winter and hopefully have it back together by spring time. This is a learning curve for both of us as I really have done much of this before either. We pulled the front clip off and have disconnected almost everything from the engine. Now I just need to borrow a lift to pull the engine. The ink is barely dry on his learner's permit so he is itching to drive it.

 

[Midnightmoon]

I am doing about the same with my son right now. I'm not doing a full rebuild, just replacing all the gaskets because of bad leaks everywhere. The motor runs decent, I'm not fixing what isn't broken. We will work on it through the winter and hopefully have it back together by spring time. This is a learning curve for both of us as I really have done much of this before either. We pulled the front clip off and have disconnected almost everything from the engine. Now I just need to borrow a lift to pull the engine. The ink is barely dry on his learner's permit so he is itching to drive it.

Sounds like we are both on the same path. That is really cool. One of the thing's that I hope my daughter learns from this is the cost value of time vs. money if that makes sense. In a world where these kids are used to pushing a button on their phone or computer and whatever they need is delivered to the door the next day, I think it is a great lesson to see how long it actually takes to source the parts and assemble something like this on a reasonable budget. It should prove valuable as they grow older.

She already has figured out just how expensive it is to buy new parts. I got a "hey dad, did you know that we can get a rebuild kit for a Q-Jet for less than $50? Summit lists their remans for over $300" text a little while ago. She must have been parts shopping after school....lol

 

[Bextreme04]

Picked up the block this morning. Casting #3970010. ID from the stamp pad K0327TBF. I'm a little confused by the TBF suffix code. From what I am finding online, it could either be a '70 or '79. Not that it matters, but if anyone can tell me for sure, I would appreciate it. I am assuming that it is a '79 since most of the guys stuff was late '70's square parts.

But anyway, I'm happy with what the block looks like. The cylinders look great and there is nothing visually obvious to be concerned about. Hopefully it will turn out OK at the machine shop. I paid $150 for it as it sits.

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The engine stamping "K" indicates it was manufactured in the Ontario, Canada engine plant. While TBF could be from a 1970 or a 79 truck, the partial VIN stamped under it makes me think it was from a Canadian truck manufactured in 1979.

 

[Midnightmoon]

The engine stamping "K" indicates it was manufactured in the Ontario, Canada engine plant. While TBF could be from a 1970 or a 79 truck, the partial VIN stamped under it makes me think it was from a Canadian truck manufactured in 1979.

Thank you.

 

[Midnightmoon]

Well, I dropped the block off at the machine shop today. Engines stacked up in there like cord wood. I've never used this shop before but they come highly recommended. By the amount of work that they have there, they must be popular. High end stuff in there also. That's good to see.

They didn't give me an estimate of when they will get to working on it. But, by the looks of things, I'm guessing months.

 

[DoubleDingo]

Yeah, machine shops are not fast in turn-around, but if they are good, it is worth the wait

 

[Grumpy]

Yeah, machine shops are not fast in turn-around, but if they are good, it is worth the wait

Eight month turnaround for mine.

 

[Midnightmoon]

Eight month turnaround for mine.

That wouldn't surprise me in the least with mine.

 

[DoubleDingo]

Eight month turnaround for mine.

Sounds about right

 

[75gmck25]

Since you are doing a complete engine build , make sure your budget includes funds for either vortec iron heads or 64cc budget aluminum heads. You can pay a shop to rework and tweak the old-style iron heads, but even the best 50’s or 70’s heads will never reach the performance of a stock Vortec head. And those old heads will be sitting right in the middle of the engine, limiting your overall performance.

Also be careful on your cam choice, which should be one of the last components you pick out. It should be one that will work well with your compression ratio, head flow, vehicle weight, rear end ratio, tire size and torque converter stall speed. If your budget is enough, I also suggest using a roller cam conversion kit, since a roller cam will live longer and work better than a stock hydraulic cam.

If your daughter found a $50 Quadrajet rebuild kit, it might not have everything you need to revive a well-worn carburetor. Cliff Ruggles sells excellent quality kits that are matched to your carburetor number, and to any other engine mods.

 

[Grumpy]

Since you are doing a complete engine build , make sure your budget includes funds for either vortec iron heads or 64cc budget aluminum heads. You can pay a shop to rework and tweak the old-style iron heads, but even the best 50’s or 70’s heads will never reach the performance of a stock Vortec head. And those old heads will be sitting right in the middle of the engine, limiting your overall performance.

Also be careful on your cam choice, which should be one of the last components you pick out. It should be one that will work well with your compression ratio, head flow, vehicle weight, rear end ratio, tire size and torque converter stall speed. If your budget is enough, I also suggest using a roller cam conversion kit, since a roller cam will live longer and work better than a stock hydraulic cam.

If your daughter found a $50 Quadrajet rebuild kit, it might not have everything you need to revive a well-worn carburetor. Cliff Ruggles sells excellent quality kits that are matched to your carburetor number, and to any other engine mods.

As far as a first rebuild, I would angle towards the iron Vortec heads if available. To correctly install aluminum heads, the recommended gasket is a Fel Pro 1010 (or similar) as they are made to prevent brinelling of the head surface. If you wish to purchase these gaskets, ensure you are hanging on to the parts counter or are in a seated position - the gaskets are sold separately and each is considerably worth more than a set of ones for iron heads.

 

[75gmck25]

I used Mahle 5746 .026 thickness gaskets with my aluminum heads, which brings the compression up a little more than just the switch to 64cc chambers. They are also cheaper than the Fel-Pro gaskets.

Since the original GM crate engines had such low compression (often about 8.0-8.2), any little bit helps.

 

[73c20jim]

BC​	1979	350	conv. cab, m/t,fed	L LS9	165	4	C-10 to 2500
TBD​	1970	350	convfwd cab, m/t	-		4	C-10, 20, 30
TBD​	1971	350	conv. & fwd cabs	-	255	4	K-10 to 2500
TBD​	1979	350	conv. cab,m/t, fed	L LS9	165	4	K-10 to 2500
TBE​	1970	307	m/t, 3 spd		200	2	K-10
TBF​	1970	350	convfwd cab, mil		255		C-10,20,30
TBF​	1979	350	convcab, alt, fed	L LS9	165		K-10,15,20
TBG​	1971	350	conveab, a/t,		255		K-10 to 2500
TBH​	1971	350	convcab, m/t		215		C-10,20,30
TBH​	1979	350	bus & vans		165		C-10 & 1500
TBJ​	1971	350	Powerglide		250		truck
TBJ​	1979	350	conv., van, bus		165		C-20 to 3500
TBJ​	1982	305	conv., van, bus	-			C-10 to 2500
TBK​	1971	350	turbohydro		250		trucks
TBK​	1979	350	conv., van, bus				C-20 to 3500
TBK​	1982	305	conv., van, bus				C-10 to 2500

 

[Mark Jones]

YES YES YES get her to the drag strip, get her building engines, my boy is 17 and he's a engine builder himself, he don't play video games and knows how to produce in life, best thing you could ever do for a kid!

 

[Midnightmoon]

YES YES YES get her to the drag strip, get her building engines, my boy is 17 and he's a engine builder himself, he don't play video games and knows how to produce in life, best thing you could ever do for a kid!

I'm actually going to start her in my Corvette at the track this season while we are working on this build. It isn't very fast, runs low-mid 14's @~ 95 all day long. But leaves straight and true every time and will be a great car for her to learn on. Our local track allows passengers in anything 14.0 or slower. So, I can get out there with he and guide her through the process for the first few runs in that car.

I'm actually still waiting on our block to come back from the machine shop. I talked to them last week. Everything is fine. They are just backed up with work.