Posted by ed browning
on 7/13/2009, 17:29:35, in reply to "Chevy 350 V8 Conversions for sustained freeway use."
74.171.98.10
well call me stupid or short sited, I just cut up the jeepster frame about two months ago. Well well well, what to do next. One of my FC-150 frames is straight and in very good condition, the truck even sits level, no driver side sag. Can I box the the 150 frame and use the jeepster front end and rear end? Thanks Ed
--Previous Message--
:
: Chevy 350 V8 Conversions for sustained
: freeway use.
:
: I talked to Scott on the phone, he will be
: searching for a complete 73- 85 Chevy 1/2 or
: 3/4 ton V8 TH-350/Np205 4x4 Let him know, if
: someone has one in Chicago area, so we can
: end the 44 gears questions, I was getting
: lost with all the replies.
:
: Craig's Tech section on the FC Connection
: Yes you can post to your website anything
: that I have ever written.
: Isn't it nice that Craig works full time,
: and makes the time to be so helpful, he is a
: Most Excellent FC person.
: This should help to explain a few things
: that hopefully will prevent terribly wrong
: expensive conversions.
: About costs, when building an FC Freeway
: Flyer, quit trying to think of economy, and
: think of long time reliability, a lot of new
: people like Scott and a few others are very
: new to FCs, Scott for example had never seen
: my #1 M-677 4 door on Craig's Website. In
: past years, I have met a lot of people, that
: are really new to all, that is automotive.
: questions that seem to be common sense, to
: an FC dinosaur like me, are really not the
: experience someone who has never driven an
: FC can understand. Worse if you ask enough
: people that don't have an FC, about what can
: sustain freeway speeds, it is easy to go in
: many directions. I have enjoyed the benefits
: of driving my 4 door for many years as a
: daily driver on freeways in hot AZ, so I
: want express a few FC-on the Freeway
: experience facts.
:
: About the Small Block Chevrolet V8 350 or
: SBC, if you have you ever driven a 283 Chevy
: anything, you now it was reliable and had
: good power, well compared to a 6 cylinder,
: they were plentiful, but they were here
: before the freeways, they are over 40 years
: old now. The 307 a longer stroke and the
: cool 327, these were good motors, but short
: lived, then came the 350, like the original
: VW they were unchanged everything was
: basically the same, until 87, the changes
: and improvements made some problems, along
: the same time another short lived motor the
: anti smog 305 came and went, it had a list
: of different issues. The pre 85 350 SBC
: remains as Chevrolet dealers most popular
: replacement, brand new motor that is on the
: shelf. Here at the FC Roundup each year we
: only see a few FCs that are actually capable
: of being on freeways, most can go for a few
: offramps or miles, but can't or shouldn't go
: on the freeway, because of overheating or
: handling. The FC is a big box, unlike a low
: to the ground sports car, as the FC goes
: faster over 40 mph, it really pushes against
: the air, the faster it goes the more the
: wind it fights against it, the more it
: pushes against the wind it also looses
: stability, it is as heavy and requires about
: double the energy that is required to push a
: regular Chevy pickup, maintaining constant
: freeway speeds, this extra requirement,
: causes a lot of engine friction, that heats
: up the oil, as the water gets hot the oil
: gets real hot. A larger motor does not mean
: you can go faster, but it does the work with
: less effort, taller gears are what makes
: them be able to go faster, the bigger the
: gear ratio, the more torque / HP is
: required, again the 350 does the work with
: less effort.
: Forget small cubic inch V6s and V8s, like I
: mentioned for example, the V6 225 or 283
: motors, because they were last made over 40
: years ago, it is impossible to find one that
: is not going to need to be bored and they
: had small journal cast cranks, they were
: made before unleaded gas, rebuilding a set
: of heads, and changing the valve seats to
: hardened valve seats, can be a bunch of $.
: The 283s are only good for when they are
: going in an original 58-66 Chevy.
: 4.3 made by Chevrolet, good but harder to
: maintain passing acceleration at over 60,
: without gaining overheat, working temp 195
: degrees, 4.3 is a 5.7 (350) with 2 cylinders
: missing, Again more expensive to rebuild
: than the SBC.
: SBC temp can run fine with 160 degree
: thermostat, this means cooler in the cab, a
: large radiator is required and an oil cooler
: for the engine and trans are needed.
: Average cost on a band new SBC 350 crate
: motor is cheaper than the parts and machine
: work to rebuild a tired motor. This applies
: to Ed Browning, just because you have a
: motor taking up space don't assume it is
: less money to have it redone. It will
: surprise most people how inexpensive it is
: to buy a band new crate motor from the Chevy
: dealer. And it has a 2 year guarantee.
: Question of Ed,
: I have an intake from a 1978 z-28 also a
: friend gave me, don't know if would help
: either.
: Answer,
: it is probably is for a 305, water
: crossover is restricted on some factory
: aluminum manifolds but it may have the same
: size intake ports.
: Question,
: I have a tranfercase out of a 1973
: 3spd/T-15, jeepster/Commando I think is a
: Dana 20. What do you think I would need to
: bolt all these together after I overhaul the
: engine and rebuild everything? Can we do
: this upgrade and the back drive shaft not
: bind up - FC-150?
: Answer?
: An inline 4.0 AMC motor and a 72-73
: Jeepster, the bell housing will only fit an
: AMC 232 six or 304 V8, that T-15 is a top
: shift. plus the Adapter that comes on the
: Dana 20, makes it all pretty long for an
: FC-150. Even if someone is in the bed
: shifting the gears. use a Chevy TH350/NP-205
: or adapt the D-20 to the TH-350
: Another question if you don't mind,
: I have cut up a fc-170, if I put the spring
: hangers on one of my 1957 150 and I know I
: can move the stands.seat on the housing, I
: have jeepster parts 1971-1973, will any of
: this help make the upgraded 150 truck better
: on the highway 3.73 gears in jeepster front
: and rear end? Should I look for a certain
: model of housings to change to? Thanks Again
: and Again Ed your carefully planned insight.
: Answer,
: The 57 frame is tired fatigued and I am sure
: full of fractures, if not find someone that
: really needs it. The frame on the FC-170 is
: very wide at the rear and is tapered to the
: middle, the FC-150 frame is narrow front and
: rear, so the hangers are not true 90 degree.
: Use the much better 73 Jeepster frame and
: the Jeepster axles.
: If you do use the Commando frame it probably
: has the mono leaf composite springs, for
: sure the axle centering bolt will be to far
: forward in the wrong place, so use the
: better FC-170 springs. After changing the
: springs, you will have the centering holes
: in a new position, but upside down, use new
: ones and put them in to match the perches,
: should be at less than 100" leave it,
: lengthen the bed, or shorten it to 80".
: it will still be a spring under suspension
: but a taller wide track. or cut off the
: spring under perches and add new ones on the
: top. With the axles mounted, measure from
: the front axle on an FC-170, to where the
: front cross member with the bell crank needs
: to be, then add on to the front of the
: Commando frame, 2 feet of an FC-170 frame,
: to the Commando frame for the steering. It
: sounds like a lot of work but it does have
: good resulting strength benefits over the
: weaker narrow track frame.
:
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