After an almost three year break, I’ve started work on the project again.
Saturday night (1/I0/21) I spent about three hours doing an inventory of the various parts and pieces I have collected for the car over the last 8 years. It was fun to rediscover everything I had picked up form various sources. Carpet, a hoodliner, engine parts, switches, a genune Delco heater core, body and interior fastener kits … and the list goes on.
I had ordered a small block reubild kit from Summit Racing a while back and discovered I didn’t get a rear main seal. In addition to that, I figured the rubber motor mounts had to be like rocks so Summit Racing to the rescue on both of those. A Fel Pro blue seal and Energy Suspension mounts showed up today and ready to go.
One of the big, big reasons I stalled on the project (aside from life in general) was due to the pistons. If you have been following along, a couple of pistons were scuffed and I had a very serious bout of paralysis-by-analysis about what to do. So much paralysis that I stopped thinking about the car for a long time.
After consulting for a while with my engine expert (my father) I bought a set of new, Sealed Power 534NP cast pistons and will have them installed on my factory rods. I found myself going back and forth for months about the impact of new pistons on the balance of the rotating assembly and finally came to the conslusion that factory motors just can’t be that sensitive. Since the 534NPs are cast pistons and are intended to be factory replacements, and are not ultra-lightwright hypers, I shoudl be fine. We’ll find out when the day comes to fire it up.
A few weeks ago I re-installed the side spoiler pieces and found one of the studs on the spoiler itself was loose and came out of its mounting hole. I need to expoxy that so I can put the spoiler back on and will continue putting the rear end back together.