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Here we go... 1969/70 Chevy C10/K20 projects

B

boogie_4wheel

Active Member
Location
North Salt Lake, Utah
Make sure the points aren't too tight/loose. Start with about 0.018". That should get it to idle, assuming everything else was in decent working order. From there, I dial them in with a dwell meter, then get my timing correct.

I would expect it to fire with a bad condenser, it would just eat up the surface of the points.

I shotgun-replaced all the ignition components on my '70 chasing a stumble that was quickly getting worse. Ended up being the points 🤦
 
Greg

Greg

I run a tight ship... wreck
Admin
Location
Grand Junction, CO
BCGPER said:
⁸Not worth messing with. Just get rid of the old system.
Click to expand...

Totally agree, I ordered one of these last night.

www.speedwaymotors.com

Chevy HEI Distributor and Spark Plug Wire Kit, Under Headers

Complete assembled HEI distributor ready to install High output 50,000 volt ignition coil pre-installed Premium high-temperature distributor cap with brass terminals 4340 chromoly steel distributor gear compatible with cast and steel billet camshafts Mechanical and vacuum advance systems, vacuum...
www.speedwaymotors.com www.speedwaymotors.com

Also bought a new high torque, mini starter for $55.

Now the debate is, do I mess with the current engine any more or just move straight to yanking it out and replacing it with a known, good runner?
 
Greg

Greg

I run a tight ship... wreck
Admin
Location
Grand Junction, CO
boogie_4wheel said:
Compression test, then decide?
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's easy enough to do.

NYCEGUY01 said:
These old motors are usually pretty good.
Id pull the valve covers and crank it just to make sure it doesnt have missing cam lobes, toss in the hei, a reman holley 600, and go...
Click to expand...

It was apparently running when parked, so the engine should be OK? I was looking at the reman Holley carbs the other day, they're a steal for the price!

mbryson said:
That hits your "flip" budget right in the feels
Click to expand...

Not like I haven't been there before! ( El Camino)
 
Greg

Greg

I run a tight ship... wreck
Admin
Location
Grand Junction, CO
Working on some small things, while the big things come together.... got a new dash pad & installed it, also replaced the headlight trim rings. The rusted ones made it look like it had 2 black eyes! X-D I wiped down the interior and it actually cleaned up pretty decent! Polished up the grill, too... trying to make it shine after all these years! Got the HEI distributor I ordered, hoping to do a compression test first before I pull the points distributor, but the battery is dead or the starter is shot.

I have a new ignition wiring harness with a HEI plug wired in, as well as a new starter coming, but they won't be here till Monday. Need to pick up some spark plugs, went ahead and changed the oil. The old oil looked dirty, but nothing unexpected in it. Probably ought to get a decent Holley carb coming, get a new fuel pump and water pump in case it's running soon!

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Greg

Greg

I run a tight ship... wreck
Admin
Location
Grand Junction, CO
The 350 engine in the '70 Chevy C10 isn't looking so hot. I did a compression test and the compression numbers are all over the place, ranging from 60#'s up to 160#'s. The oil pump feels like it's making pressure after an oil change and spinning the pump with a drill, but no oil pressure is getting to the mechanical gauge or into the heads. Looks like the engine isn't worth taking any further. I do have another 350 that was rebuilt (like 40 yrs ago) in the K20! I'll do some testing on it and see if it's worth using in the C10.

Debating just doing a cheap, junkyard LS swap in this thing and not messing with these old 350's... I have a Gen 3 ECU in the shop, a 5.3 base tune and HP Tuners at my disposal. I do think a LS under the hood will make this thing more desirable when it goes up for sale. It will also be more reliable and get better MPG. There's a TH350 near me that's been rebuilt for a good price, it would be easy to put that behind a 5.3 for minimal costs.



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B

boogie_4wheel

Active Member
Location
North Salt Lake, Utah
I vote LS. Why? Because I want you to document parts for the swap so that I can do the same to mine (mine has the TH350). I'll give you bonus points for me being able to keep my power steering.

Mine does have a healthy 307 so I'm curious on the total cost of the swap. There isn't any financial reason for me to do it, but the power would be fun.
 
Greg

Greg

I run a tight ship... wreck
Admin
Location
Grand Junction, CO
Well, it's running!!


I decided to give the old 350 one more try before I abandoned using it, mostly concerned with the lack of oil pressure.

With the spark plugs still out, I started cranking the engine over with the starter. Stayed on it for a good 20-30 seconds, then noticed that oil had sprayed onto the inner fender! That's a good sign, so I got to work putting new spark plugs in, dropping the new HEI distributor in and running the wires. When I first cranked it over, it backfired!! The timing was off... it took me a few tries to get it right, but eventually I got it to run on a bit of gas and starting fluid. 😍

This is all very good... may not have to abandon the old 350 after all.
 
Greg

Greg

I run a tight ship... wreck
Admin
Location
Grand Junction, CO
Figured I'd better start working on the gas tank.. I pulled the sending unit & pickup out, expecting it to be nasty.... but I wasn't prepared for what was in the tank. The sending unit came out with resistance, as I snaked it out there was a bunch of carpet attached.... and nuts, husks, etc. :skeptic:

Figured the best thing at this point was to remove the gas tank from the cab and unbolt it... it was much heavier than it should be! It was a good 35-40 pounds heavier! I took it outside and tried to pour the contents out, got some seed out and then the filler tube got blocked. I fished around with some metal rod made into a hook and pulled out even more carpeting, seeds, husks, etc.

After awhile, I couldn't get any more out so I hooked up the garden hose to flush it out. I probably flushed it out at least 20 times.... I had to poke around early on to get the gunk flowing. I stopped counting dead mice bodies at 8...? The smell of varnish, the dead mice, seeds & carpet was disgusting. If I get hauntavrirus, you know where it came from.

After getting the tank pretty clean, I ran some degreaser thru and rinsed the tank out, then dumped it. Added a gallon of gas and flushed it out again.

Once the tank was clean, I blew out the fuel line with brake cleaner & lots of compressed air. I'm going to replace the rubber line, add a filter and set things up for the new Holley when it gets here.

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