Gasser HotRod Forums banner

dsb's chevy gasser build

75K views 787 replies 17 participants last post by  dsb 
#1 ·
Well, time for me to join the party. My first stint on here I was building a 1949 chevy styleline 2 door gasser. Ran into money problems and went back to HD choppers. Well, sold my bike and decided I was going to go another direction. I started with my running gear first since that is where most of the money is. So, without further ado, here we go!


For the motor- it is a mid 70's 350 bored .040. Camel hump heads with screw in studs, comp cams muthr thumpr, Edelbrock air gap intake, edelbrock carb, new pistons, polished crank etc...

Wheel Tire Motor vehicle Automotive tire Hood


Transmission is early 80's TH350 with 56000 miles on it. I put a B&M shift kit in and a new pan. Should be in good shape there.....

Automotive lighting Motor vehicle Automotive exterior Hood Gas


Motor vehicle Wood Gas Engineering Machine


Rear end is out of a 1997 Trans Am WS6 with 15x10 wheels on it.

Tire Wheel Motor vehicle Automotive tire Automotive design


Front tires are morose drag skinnys

Wheel Tire Automotive tire Motor vehicle Vehicle


continued next post....
 
See less See more
5
#182 ·
Not much progress to report, had the kid and her fiance over for Easter yesterday so I took advantage of the help and pulled the front clip off in order to start re-doing the the whole front end suspension. It did not fare well on the drive out to Pittsburgh, but it needed to be done anyway since the rear shackles completely folded down when the weight of the car sat on them. I think I have to move them back some.
 
#185 ·
Yeah

it looks beautiful but it's really going to look even more beautiful when those velocity stacks are sticking out of the hood are the only thing in focus and the scenery around you is a blur because you're hauling ass past it...........
 
#186 ·
Dave are you using iPhone for pics? Uploading from iPhone? Just a tip. Don’t know why it happens but here is the fix. Open the photo on the phone and edit. Rotate it 3/4 around and save. Open edit one more time and go one more quarter to straight up again and save. This forces our forum to recognize straight up again. The only time it happens is from the iPhone direct.

motor looks killer buddy.
 
#194 ·
#195 ·
Going to get some 1/4 inch steel plate today at the metal supermarket. I found an awesome video on youtube on setting up leaf springs and I now know what I did wrong to the first set up.
 
#196 ·
Setting up shackle angles if there's not full weight on the car can be tricky. I usually set them straight up from the spring eye, and tack the mounting plate. Then put the weight on it, and even add weight if I'm sure whatever is on it isn't everything that will be. Then once I'm sure it's got a slight backwards angle I want I weld them up solid.
 
#197 ·
Finally got a chance to mess around with the car this weekend. The weather here is very comparable to Seattle. I made a front "cradle" for the car so I could roll it over to the garage so I could weld on it. it rolled pretty good, but I have it on jack stands now since it was a little spooky getting it over there. If you look at the corners on the front of the frame, you can see my outriggers for the front leaf mounts. Way better design now that I have had some time to actually sit and think about it. I just have to build some gussets for the top and weld it in. The back is all set up, I just need to make the mounts. I also used my new flake bomber gun and flaked my engine! I always have to do something different with my builds and this actually looks OK. Orange and aqua green flake. Does not show up well in the pic, but I cannot wait to see it in the sun. And as always, safety is third in my shop! I got that sticker from a chopper shop I used to buy parts from. I ordered up a small oil pressure gauge and that was in the box. I am waiting for new shackles since one of the ones on the car got so bent it was not even worth trying to save. After this, I have some Eastwood rust encapsulator paint I will be applying to the whole front end.

Wheel Tire Land vehicle Car Plant


Orange Drinkware Art Sports gear Motorcycle helmet


Motor vehicle Luggage and bags Automotive design Gas Engineering


Hood Motor vehicle Automotive tire Automotive design Automotive exhaust
 
#198 ·
Been plugging away. I am horrible about documenting things as I go along. Front end is in and looking good. I started on the interior a couple of days ago. I have the dash completely stripped of all gauges, ignition switch etc.... I am going to paint the dash then slowly put it back together and then wire it. I bought all new light switches, ignition switch, turn signals. This car always surprises me. The glove box liner looks to be the original one from 1951. I yanked the heater and emergency brake lever and have it for sale on a bomb group on Facebook. I am going to clean up the factory gauges and re-install them but the only thing that will work is the dash lights. I will run aftermarket gauges for everything else. Will post pics later as I take them
 
#201 ·
Dave

I'm guessing because of it's age it was originally a 6 volt system although I might be wrong. If it was 6 volt you can as Vall said use your original fuel gauge but you're going to need a resistor or a volt-a-drop to go from 12 to 6 volts.
 
#202 ·
I'm guessing because of it's age it was originally a 6 volt system although I might be wrong. If it was 6 volt you can as Vall said use your original fuel gauge but you're going to need a resistor or a volt-a-drop to go from 12 to 6 volts.
I believe you're right Steve. They sell a nice ceramic resistor to cut down voltage on these older cars and allow owners to run everything that's 6 volt through the resistor. Headlight switches get run 12 volts direct, and people just use the later headlight switches.
I would guess most people use a whole new wiring harness system, even if they retain the old 6 volt instrument clusters. At least that's the route I'd take. I hate screwing with old wiring, and troubleshooting shorts after a build is done. So easy and trouble free with a new fuse block and all new wiring. And cheap today too! I bought my system for $85 off Fleabay and it's a 21 cir. kit that is capable of wiring to GM, Ford, or Mopar cars.
 
#203 · (Edited)
Here's

a few choices Dave. The volt-a drop type I mentioned; another one, ceramic, like Vall mentioned or a diode resistor for one device only such as your fuel gauge. Don't know if you've ever used a diode resistor before but they're made to be installed one way. I can't remember if the line painted on the body is the 12v side or the 6v side) and the solid wire has a coating on it that needs to be removed (I use sand paper) before soldering. The one pictured has a crimp splicer attached but I'd go with rosin core (electric) solder.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1-5-Ohm-Vo...008485?hash=item43a855dde5:g:3K8AAOSwb79aSGsR

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Voltage-Re...rsOtherItemsV2&_trksid=p2047675.c100008.m2219

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1937-54-CH...001056&hash=item4456b589d4:g:3SIAAOxyXWdQ7Iu2
 
#204 ·
The line on a diode is direction of flow. It wont allow the electricity to flow back the other way Steve.
On anything carrying much current a crimp connection is better than solder. Solder can be heated by current flow, and then will let go. Dash instruments and lights shouldn't be much current, so either way works well.
 
#206 ·
good info Vall. I always twist my wires first on solder joints but I never new solder can melt from heat in wire when it can build heat.
 
#208 ·
I also got the door glass out finally. WD40 was not working to get the screws to loosen up so I tried a can of this stuff I got months ago from a sales rep who did not want it anymore. Cannot recall the name, will look it up later. Anyway, after 2 minutes with this stuff on it, they all let go right away. Glass and chrome frame around it were trashed, so I saved all screws and hard ware in bags for later. For now, I am going to run it without windows.
 
#209 ·
As long as the chrome frames aren't rotted out, I wouldn't hesitate to use them myself. I just sanded mine and shot the frames with Rustoleum spray chrome paint. It's not quite chrome, but comes out looking like polished aluminum and looks pretty nice I think.
It doesn't take those high 60-80 amp loads for soldered connections to break down. Of course loads of very small under 10 a. wont usually cause it, but even they can depending on the wire size, and how well the soldered connection is done. Resistance is the big enemy of soldered connections, and wire size. Both of those will increase amperage, so a circuit drawing only 10 a. might draw twice that if the wire isn't sized correctly, or the length of the wire is long, or the soldered connection causes resistance to increase amperage.
Loads like headlights, charging circuit, ignition, starter solenoid circuit, can all draw enough to create issues with a solder joint. Heck, I had a sending unit for my gas tank go bad on a car because someone put in a new wire and soldered the wire to an existing wire coming off the tank sending unit. I cut the soldered joint out, and crimped in a butt splice and all was great afterwards.
 
#212 ·
I love it when the shelves start emptying out. Got the dash put together and wiring is next.

View attachment 103095
I love that feeling too. I had one of those baker racks on wheels and it was full in the beginning. As it emptied made me feel good that the car is almost done.
 
#213 ·
rubbing compound on a buffer works pretty Good to remove small imperfections in the glass. Use 4-0000 steel wool first with cleaner to get any grime off before you buff it. Even comet Or Ajax on a scotch pad will do well. Just use it wet so it don’t scratch. I’ve cleaned a lot of glass this way.
 
#215 ·
I've done the same as Mario and used Comet and 4/0 steel wool to clean glass, but never had any that bad to do. I hope it gets clear, but doubt it can be saved personally.

When I start a build my storage shed, and shop shelves are both packed with parts. As the end gets closer both seem to regain a lot of space! And I notice my internet deliveries seem to dwindle to nothing too.
 
#217 ·
Hope all works out for ya Dave. Car looks pretty cool.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top