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

[Greg]

Well, that's a kick in the nuts... what a waste of a 4 bolt main block. I rolled the block out of the shop, degreased it and pressure washed it to get it ready for the machine shop. I noticed that both freeze plugs on the rear of the block had been replaced and had silicone around them... then I saw the crack. It looks like the block froze, cracked and pushed out the freeze plugs. I didn't ever see a coolant leak, but the crack would only get worse, especially if it was overheated.

I have a friend that has a Vortec L31 350 short block locally... I'll see what he wants for it and I'll probably be building it. They have factory roller cams and I already have the rest of the needed parts.

The right cam combined with the parts I already have makes a proven 450 HP out of a Vortec 350! - https://www.motortrend.com/features/0611phr-vortec-small-block-350-chevy-engine/

 

[mbryson]

I have a running TBI 350 out of a truck if that's worth anything. It's the one that's currently in my Jeep.

 

[Greg]

I have a running TBI 350 out of a truck if that's worth anything. It's the one that's currently in my Jeep.

Thanks for the offer, Marc! I made a deal for that Vortec short block from a local friend, going to pick it up now! 😁

 

[Greg]

Vortec engine is in my hands, degreased and inspected externally and so far, so good. It spins freely, cyl walls look decent and no cracks in the block! I'll pull the pan and balancer tonight, maybe tear it down further.... we'll see, it's hot out there.

*edit*

Engine looks pretty decent internally, it's a 2 bolt main block which is fine honestly. It does have a roller cam, the lifters looks reusable... I'll do a more thorough inspection once they're cleaned. It seems to be another virgin engine, my luck is pretty good, at least in that aspect. Block is stock 4.0 bore with hardly any ridge at the top, rod journals are 2.10 and mains are 2.45. The cylinder walls have very little crosshatch left, but they look decent. The crank could use a little cleanup, there are a couple scratches that my nail catches on.

Feel like I just did this.... lol

 

[TRD270]

I really like that aluminum adapter plate for the engine stand. Much better than the floppy “universal” arms.

I mean he does an LS swap every other week so may as well buy the proper tool

 

[Greg]

I really like that aluminum adapter plate for the engine stand. Much better than the floppy “universal” arms.

It's a nice upgrade to a stand, really beefs up the mount and isn't too spendy. Works with all SBC's including LS engines.

ICT Billet Chevy Engine Stand mount

 

[anderson750]

It's a nice upgrade to a stand, really beefs up the mount and isn't too spendy. Works with all SBC's including LS engines.

ICT Billet Chevy Engine Stand mount

If and when I end up rebuilding the 396 in the El Camino I will definitely buy one of these.

 

[Mouse]

Just happened to see this article on making these trucks handle: https://www.summitracing.com/newsan...m_campaign=qa1-090722&utm_content=pnc20220059

 

[Greg]

Well, finally got the Vortec 350 back from the machine shop... apparently 2 week turnaround actually means almost 2 months. Nothing I can do about it but whine.

I had the block bored .030 over, had the heads cleaned up and milled just to even out the mating surfaces, new valve seals installed, new pistons, rings, bearings, gaskets, high volume oil pump, etc. I found some Beehive springs meant for Vortec heads that will allow up to .550 lift without any machining, which is awesome for a healthy cam! Also did some shopping at Summit Racing for a new double roller timing chain.

I selected a nice Summit Racing roller cam that makes power from 1,800 to 6,300 RPM. With that cam and the rest of the upgrades, this engine should be in the 420 HP range, which will make this truck sporty and scoot!

To go with the rest of the build, I found a rebuilt TH350 and added a 1,800-2000 RPM stall convertor. That should take advantage of the cam's power range perfectly. I added a Sidewinder shifter to control the trans too.

Now it's just a matter of building the engine, yanking out the old manual trans and stabbing it together! It'll probably be next Spring before it's running, with all the other things on my plate right now.

 

[Greg]

That’s a pretty light truck for 400+ HP. Those rear tires would need to be on a subscription basis if I owned that truck 😂

Yeah, it's going to be silly... I might have to change the wheels to 17's so tires are more affordable verses the 22's!

 

[Greg]

After a few busy months dealing with way too much family stuff, I finally had a chance to start assembling the Vortec engine.

Had KOH streaming on the TV in the shop and went about cleaning the block, installing the crank bearings, checking clearances, installing rings on the pistons & bearings on the rods. If I can get the right ring compressor, I'll drop the pistons in place tomorrow and move forward with the engine build. I had to order some small parts (oil filter gasket, oil pickup) that will delay the build, but they'll be here next week.

I love the rotating engine stand I built, it's super handy when working on a engine build.

 

[Greg]

Flat top pistons and rods are installed, as is the choppy roller cam. Got a few other small parts on as well. Thinking about properly degreeing the cam, to get the most out of it.

 

[Greg]

Wrapped up the Vortec 355 engine build this weekend, ended up adding stamped steel roller rockers (stock 1.5 ratio), ARP head bolts, etc. Set the valve lash and double checked it after rolling it over a few times. Bolted on the oil pan, valve covers, intake, dropped the distributor in place to make sure it's correct (at TDC), etc. It's not difficult work, but can be tedious.

Next up, I need to fill it with straight 30 weight Valvoline dino oil (great for breaking in a new build), connect an oil pressure gauge to the block and pressurize the oil pump, priming the system. I'm buying a Holley 3310 from a friend, the current 600 CFM carb won't be enough with the new cam and operating RPM range. The 3310 is a 750 CFM vacuum secondary carb... I know them well and really like them.

Next, bolt up the flexplate and then fill the TH350 and convertor with ATF. Bolt the engine and trans together, then drop them in!

That means the old SM465 needs to come out... and I really want to pressure wash the crossmember, clean up the old grease/dirt combo. Also need to install the new TH350 Sidewinder shifter.

 

[DaveB]

Greg, I notice in your last picture that you have the thermostat bypass hose connections blocked off. Normally there is a hose from the top of the water pump to the front of the intake manifold. Did you drill holes in the thermostat to compensate ? On the old 350 motors the bypass is in the block and the heads. Vortec heads don't have the port so you have to compensate externally or drill holes in the thermostat if you have an old block and vortec heads. Your block is a vortec block and the port is missing (3/8 inch hole below the right side water pump lower mounting bolt). The vortecs do it externally with a short hose.

 

[Greg]

Greg, I notice in your last picture that you have the thermostat bypass hose connections blocked off. Normally there is a hose from the top of the water pump to the front of the intake manifold. Did you drill holes in the thermostat to compensate ? On the old 350 motors the bypass is in the block and the heads. Vortec heads don't have the port so you have to compensate externally or drill holes in the thermostat if you have an old block and vortec heads. Your block is a vortec block and the port is missing (3/8 inch hole below the right side water pump lower mounting bolt). The vortecs do it externally with a short hose.

Good catch, thanks for mentioning it. I was aware and I did drill out my thermostat, I was researching Vortec engine swaps with carbureted intake manifold a while ago and watched this video that explains the same thing and why it's necessary.

 

[Greg]

Bought 5 quarts of 30W Valvoline, a K&N HP-3003 oil filter (David Freiburger says they're the best) and picked up a cheap mechanical gauge and started pouring the oil into the engine. Connected the gauge and dropped my priming tool with the DeWalt cordelss drill and spun it up! I had over 40 PSI with it building pressure very quickly.

I decided to pull the valve covers and have the wife come run the drill, while I rotated the engine over my hand... attempting to get oil in all the passages, everywhere it needed to be. I was only getting oil to less than half of the rockers, one side wasn't flowing any oil at all... that has me concerned. Plenty of pressure & flow, but after reading more online, it sounds like priming with a cordless drill isn't ideal. I'll hook up my corded 1/2" monster of a drill next and see if it makes a difference.

 

[Greg]

Just found this article, totally makes sense!

Pit Stop: Chevy V8 Right-Hand Valvetrain Not Getting Oil

After extensive pre-priming, no oil reaches the right-hand rocker arms on a brand-new small-block Chevy. Likely, it’s a problem with the priming tool.

www.motortrend.com

 

[Mouse]

I have an old distributor that I kept for this purpose. If you were closer, I'd loan it to you.

 

[Greg]

I have an old distributor that I kept for this purpose. If you were closer, I'd loan it to you.

I had the old points distributor I pulled out of this truck, I should have kept it! There's another one in the '69 K20, if I really cared...

I'm just happy to know why one side of the valvetrain wasn't getting oil. Should be good to fire it up still.

 

[Greg]

Been prepping the C10 for the 355 and TH350 that will be going in soon.... did some painting of the frame & crossmember, worked on deleting the clutch pedal & original throttle rod, pedal, etc. Dropped the heavy as sh*t SM465 transmission, which was a bitch.... had to unbolt the bellhousing to get it out. I placed a bunch of wood blocks under the trans and let it fall... it's 175#'s and I didn't want to be in the way!