Bruce's long awaited journey begins: #1294

[Mastertech5]

I put it all together as much as I could with what I had. Notice the front adjustment rods are missing, still no clevises.
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Don't mind the mess, I haven't picked up yet today. If I don't I won't be able to find anything, tools or parts.

[Mastertech5]

Don't let 8 nuts missing for the control arms stop you, just run to your local hardware store and pick up come nuts.

Jim

My local store doesn't have anything over 1/2 inch.

[Mastertech5]

I have a firewall question I posted in the Body and Interior thread under Question about interior panels. If you can help it would be great.

[33fromSD]

My local store doesn't have anything over 1/2 inch.

Bummer

Jim

[cob427sc]

There are several industrial supply stores in Worcester (Tri-state Fasteners is one) that would have your nuts. Only a short drive from Spencer. You could also try McMaster-Carr. When I order odd fasteners from them they usually show up the next day.

[Mastertech5]

There are several industrial supply stores in Worcester (Tri-state Fasteners is one) that would have your nuts. Only a short drive from Spencer. You could also try McMaster-Carr. When I order odd fasteners from them they usually show up the next day.

Thanks cob427sc. If it gets to a point where I absolutely need them I'll go to Worcester. I just hate the idea of buying something I've already paid for. Lots more to do. I have everything to put in my LS3 except the long spacers for the motor mounts and the blowshield. They're supposed to ship it Monday. Maybe I'll make spacers.

[33fromSD]

Thanks cob427sc. If it gets to a point where I absolutely need them I'll go to Worcester. I just hate the idea of buying something I've already paid for. Lots more to do. I have everything to put in my LS3 except the long spacers for the motor mounts and the blowshield. They're supposed to ship it Monday. Maybe I'll make spacers.

You're actually going to be surprised at the amount of hardware you have left over after your build is done. Between some of the tweaks / modifications I made, some of the HW I bought on my own either cause I was waiting on HW or I didn't like the HW that FFR sent, replacements from FFR, and just extra's FFR supplies in their kits, I have one of those 1 gallon ice cream pails 1/2 filled with extra hardware (bolts, nuts, spacers, washers, clips, etc) that I now use when doing other vehicle build projects I'm working on.

Jim

[Mastertech5]

I got the firewall position right, drilled and clecoed in place. Of all the things we do to build these awesome machines, drilling holes is the worst. It takes more out of me than anything else. Foot wells are next. They are clamped in place right now. The suggestion to use the insulation pieces to gauge the firewall position was brilliant. I put mine in place where I had clamped the firewall in place and it was spot on. Makes me feel better knowing for sure though.

[CaptB]

I got the firewall position right, drilled and clecoed in place. Of all the things we do to build these awesome machines, drilling holes is the worst. It takes more out of me than anything else. Foot wells are next. They are clamped in place right now. The suggestion to use the insulation pieces to gauge the firewall position was brilliant. I put mine in place where I had clamped the firewall in place and it was spot on. Makes me feel better knowing for sure though.

Wait until you get to the wiring! At least that's the least favorable for me.

[RoadRacer]

I got the firewall position right, drilled and clecoed in place. Of all the things we do to build these awesome machines, drilling holes is the worst. It takes more out of me than anything else. Foot wells are next. They are clamped in place right now. The suggestion to use the insulation pieces to gauge the firewall position was brilliant. I put mine in place where I had clamped the firewall in place and it was spot on. Makes me feel better knowing for sure though.

LOL if you haven't already, start buying up clecos You'll need a bunch

[Mastertech5]

When I was at Breeze Automotive on my way back from picking up my kit I bought some of Mark's version of clecos. I wanted to get 10- 3/16 ones but he said I shouldn't need that many so I bought 5. Should have got 10. I have 20 of the 1/8 size and I wish I had a few more. He's used to building roadsters though.

[Mastertech5]

Hey CaptB, I am one of those rare birds that actually like wiring. It can get frustrating at times but a good schematic is your friend, assuming you know how to read them. They are like looking at a road map to me. Finding shorts in cars for 35 years tends to give you a good feel for it. I'm going to need to integrate the FFR chassis harness with my LS3 harness. Can't wait. I bought a connector kit with several 1 wire up to 6 wire male and female connectors and it came with the crimp tool and weather seals with male and female terminals.

[JimLev]

You’ll find that some of the LS3 and tranny harnesses are way too long for these cars.
I removed individual wires not needed and shortened some of them.
Next I removed some of the corrugated flex tubing then wrapped the wires with automotive cloth tape.
This reduced the diameter by at least 1/2 the size it previously was.

[Mastertech5]

You’ll find that some of the LS3 and tranny harnesses are way too long for these cars.
I removed individual wires not needed and shortened some of them.
Next I removed some of the corrugated flex tubing then wrapped the wires with automotive cloth tape.
This reduced the diameter by at least 1/2 the size it previously was.

I have a manual trans so no tranny wiring except for 2 sensors. I took a quick peek at the LS3 harness when the engine came but haven't got to the point of fitting to the car yet. I have to polish or paint the firewall and install and then attach the floors. I'm assuming you rivet the top floor panels to the foot boxes. They aren't level with the front tubes that the floor mounts to and I tried to bring them up higher but they're as high as I could get them.

[JimLev]

I forgot you had a manual. I did rivet the floor and pedal boxes. You’ve got a Gen 2 which (I think) has different floor panels than my Gen 1. Mine are just a thin aluminum sheet.

[BradC]

I did an LS3 on my last build. The wiring isn't bad at all - but, I do remember the PCV system not making sense in the manual they provide. GMPP gave me these files which made it very simple. It's been 5 years so they may have improved the docs that come with it, but for what it's worth here they are. It might be a little different with the eRod you have too.

LS PCV with Catch Can.jpg LS PCV without Catch Can.JPG

[Iziks]

I had same build date and still waiting on clevises as well. I have a POL shipment coming Monday, but not sure what is there. Meanwhile, I am pretty sure these are the clevises. If mine don’t come Monday, I may go this route to make some progress. https://www.speedwaymotors.com/QA1-C...LH,261063.html

[Mastertech5]

I forgot you had a manual. I did rivet the floor and pedal boxes. You’ve got a Gen 2 which (I think) has different floor panels than my Gen 1. Mine are just a thin aluminum sheet.

Same here about the floors. Does Gen.1 have a sandwiched floor with the foam in between too?

[Mastertech5]

I did an LS3 on my last build. The wiring isn't bad at all - but, I do remember the PCV system not making sense in the manual they provide. GMPP gave me these files which made it very simple. It's been 5 years so they may have improved the docs that come with it, but for what it's worth here they are. It might be a little different with the eRod you have too.

LS PCV with Catch Can.jpg LS PCV without Catch Can.JPG

Yes mine is like the second one. I had to read it half a dozen times to understand the routing. I kept thinking the dirty air went to the intake tube before the MAF. That didn't make sense because then it would get the MAF oil soaked. I finally got it through my thick skull it is the fresh air that goes there after the MAF. DUH

[Mastertech5]

I had same build date and still waiting on clevises as well. I have a POL shipment coming Monday, but not sure what is there. Meanwhile, I am pretty sure these are the clevises. If mine don’t come Monday, I may go this route to make some progress. https://www.speedwaymotors.com/QA1-C...LH,261063.html

Thanks for the link. They look like the ones. For that kind of money I'm not going to wait if they don't come soon. I've gotten most of the POL stuff (3 shipments) but still don't have some vital stuff to button some things up. Do you have the 8 big deformed thread nuts for the control arms? I'm still waiting on those too.

[Mastertech5]

I didn't know if I wanted to paint the firewall or polish it. If I painted it I wanted to be the body color, which I haven't decided on yet, so I stood back and stared at it for a while and decided to polish it. I just couldn't bring myself to cover all that shine. I ordered some super fine discs and buffing pads for my random orbital sander, some aluminum polish and I have WD 40 for sanding. Just have to drill the holes to mount the reservoirs and off it comes to po!ish.

By the way that's not my car in the picture on the left but I had a 65 fastback in my youth. It was yellow. I loved that car.

[Iziks]

No nuts either

[JimLev]

Same here about the floors. Does Gen.1 have a sandwiched floor with the foam in between too?

Gen 1 floors are not sandwiched, just a sheet of aluminum with the mufflers 1/2” below the floors. The heat was unbearable until I insulated the mufflers and pipes.

[33fromSD]

Gen 1 floors are not sandwiched, just a sheet of aluminum with the mufflers 1/2” below the floors. The heat was unbearable until I insulated the mufflers and pipes.

On the Gen2 set up, the foam sandwiched between the aluminum panels may help a tad but the heat is still really bad.

On my first longer cruise when I completed the 33 I had a zip lock bag with my registration and insurance info in it under the seat cushion that flips up sitting on top of the 1/4" mdf board breeze automotive supplies with their seat frames which was a good 2 inches above the carpet and the exhaust got so hot which radiated through the floor that I melted the plastic baggie to the foam under the seat and the carpet under the floor mats on both sides which I only tacked in on the edges with glue (you could lift the middle up a little) was fully bonded to the aluminum, you could no longer lift it.. Keep in mind I'm not running a hard top so if I'm getting bad heat radiated up I feel sorry for everyone running a hard top where there is no where for the heat to go..

I did the same as JimLev, and went a couple steps further. First I installed heat shields around the mufflers, also the headers, and wrapped the pipes which run under the floor area which helped a bunch inside but it still got toasty so next I removed the exhaust, and installed DEI Boom Mat (black thermal & accoustic mat) on the entire floor, trans tunnel & trunk area (yes, I am aware this is designed to go on the inside of the car but the adhesion properties to the aluminum panels is amazing and it's not going anywhere and then where the exhaust system runs I installed DEI Boom Floor & Tunnel heat shield, installed it so it's 3-4" beyond the pipes and mufflers, and then reinstalled the exhaust.

With all of the above the sound of road noise, mechanical noises & other noise from other things in the car is gone in the cockpit, the car sounds so much more solid, and the heat reduction is amazing too. So much better than before I did anything. It was quite a bit of work to do it but I'm glad I did.

I guess the short story is, anyone expecting these 3/4" foam panels sandwhiched between the aluminum to shield the extreme heat from the exhaust is going to be very disappointed.

Jim

[Mastertech5]

I have a plan to attach aluminum sheet to the floor spaced about 1/4" down, front to just after the cockpit. I just hope I have the space to do it. My engine came with cats (primary and secondary on each pipe but I don't know how they are going to land in reference to the floors yet. I just need all my parts.

Has anyone read the thread about the guy that got the 3 link frame instead of the IRS frame he ordered. Dave Smith even posted vowing to fix the situation ASAP. The customer is MAD!!!!

[BradC]

Has anyone read the thread about the guy that got the 3 link frame instead of the IRS frame he ordered. Dave Smith even posted vowing to fix the situation ASAP. The customer is MAD!!!!

I had the opposite happen. I got the IRS chassis when it was supposed to be just the 4 link. Cost me $600 to have it all cut out clean (vs. just doing a few brackets myself) so I could do the custom rear. Kind of irritating.

[Mastertech5]

Why didn't you call FFR and have them send you the right one or ask them to pay the $600 to have it done. They really are a stand-up company.

[BradC]

I didn’t want to wait for a new chassis just for that. I guess I could have asked them to compensate but it was my choice to have it removed. Whatever.

[Iziks]

Got my POL today. Still no nuts. I think I s sourced them here. https://www.boltdepot.com/Product-De...?product=17712

[Mastertech5]

Got my POL today. Still no nuts. I think I s sourced them here. https://www.boltdepot.com/Product-De...?product=17712

When did you get your kit? I've have mine for over 2 months. Got most of my POL but I'm still waiting for key parts. I ordered a blowshield and TKX trans the end of JUNE. Got the trans in 3 days and I'm still waiting for the blowshield. It was suppose to ship today but now it's been delayed another week. Originally to be shipped Aug 10th.

[Iziks]

Kit ordered back in Nov, June 10 kit completion date. Ordered the motor and trans in Jan as I knew there was a big wait there. It came late May. My POL after today is IRS axles, LS exhaust manifold, Wilwood brakes (Oct for those) and a bunch of hardware. Ordered all the hardware today - was under $100 total - so I could at least get something assembled. I was missing key hardware from front suspension, rear suspension, and LS motor mounts. So I really could not do much.

[Mastertech5]

Kit ordered back in Nov, June 10 kit completion date. Ordered the motor and trans in Jan as I knew there was a big wait there. It came late May. My POL after today is IRS axles, LS exhaust manifold, Wilwood brakes (Oct for those) and a bunch of hardware. Ordered all the hardware today - was under $100 total - so I could at least get something assembled. I was missing key hardware from front suspension, rear suspension, and LS motor mounts. So I really could not do much.

I ordered my engine in mid June from Summit and it said "to ship late august/early Sept. from manufacturer." It came in 1 week from a dealer in Texas who had one in stock willing to sell it back to GM. Lucky for me! I got all the LS install parts last weekend except the mount spacers and exhaust headers. My engine came with the stock manifolds. I was going to make spacers from 1/2 black pipe for now just so I can do a mock up to route the fuel and purge lines but now my bellhousing is delayed another week. I'm getting sick of this supply chain s__t. The EVAP purge line, from purge valve to firewall connection, just got delayed a month. I just want to scream!😤

[Mastertech5]

Bought 2 pieces of 4 1/4" - 3/8 pipe and made motor mount spacers. 2 that are 2.28" and 2 that are .14"(listed as a shock shim). They fit very tight like when putting the shocks in.

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A couple more of the engine

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Brake and clutch reservoirs mock up before I polish the firewall.

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[Mastertech5]

I put my engine in today so I could figure out where to run the fuel and purge lines to on the firewall. No trans yet. blowshield is suppose to ship Tues. It's already been delayed twice, we'll see. I had to remove the thermostat housing because the nipple hit the upper frame tube. Flipping it around won't work either. I hope I can find one that points down or adjustable. The thermostat is attached to it so wish me luck.

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[Mastertech5]

I assumed the thermostat was attached to the housing because it came out with the housing, but it's not. The GMC trucks I worked on were attached but those were older than 2004 when they changed to a long style more conventional one. I ordered a Mr Gasket 360 degree swivel housing. It was more than I expected but it is what it is.

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The EVAP line I had ordered from Summit has been discontinued unbeknownst to them. I found out when trying to get one from a dealer (2x the $). That was for a newer Camaro. Got one from Rock Auto for a Corvette in 1 day. They didn't have the Camaro one either.

[JimLev]

I used the Mr. Gasket swivel t-stat housing too.
I pulled out the 2 coolant fittings that run to the cabin heater, tapped the holes and screwed in elbow fittings.

[Mastertech5]

I used the Mr. Gasket swivel t-stat housing too.
I pulled out the 2 coolant fittings that run to the cabin heater, tapped the holes and screwed in elbow fittings.

That's what I'm doing with the heater pipes too. Waiting for taps and fittings. I ordered the Dirty Dingo LS low mount a.c. Compressor and mount kit. It should fit per my measurements. I made a mock up alt with card stock from a picture I found with measurements of the housing it should fit too with th ICT bracket and Powermaster alt you used, except I opted for the natural finish. It's almost $100 cheaper. It's not a show car, just a project to have fun with and drive around when done.
I was going to ask you about what you did about the heater pipes. I found a YouTube video an LS guy showed how to tap the holes. Took a while to find elbows with nipples short enough to be able to screw them in without hitting the other one. I had to cut the tabs off the side of the stock gm o-ring gasket and then spent about 1/2 hour getting it into the housing, very tight. Now I have to take it off to collect chips when I tap the heater pipe holes.

[JimLev]

Put some grease on the tap, the chips will stick to it.
I bought my alt from some guy on the LS forum, I got a good deal on it.

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[Mastertech5]

I got my HVAC box mounted today so I can drill the holes through the firewall for the 4 pipes. Got the spots measured out and marked. The compressor will be here soon, so I can mount that and figure out the hose routing. Then I'll be able to crimp the ends on the hoses. Got an estimate to crimp 12 ends for $100. I bought the Mastercool manual tool instead. I haven't ordered the body kit yet so no grill to mount the radiator and condenser. My bellhousing got delayed for 2 more weeks. I called Summit and they called QuickTime (owned by Holley) and they assured me Holley would ship it direct to me on the 15th. The alternator should be here Sunday along with a spacer/bushing kit. Bracket is installed waiting.
This wouldn't post the other day and then just showed up while I was typing a newer one. ?

[Mastertech5]

Those pics above were suppose to go in this post. My alternator set up is exactly the same as JimLev's. I bought a separate bushing kit to make custom sizes as needed. I did the AC the same too but made some changes to the front upper bracket ear and compressor ear. I cut the bracket and had a piece welded on to relocate the bolt hole. I cut the end of the compressor ear off and drilled and tapped a new hole further in all to clear the rear UCA.

Attachment 172151Attachment 172152Attachment 172153Attachment 172154Attachment 172155

If any one is interested, Mike at Replica Parts (Bronze Vendor) has a inner firewall piece to give you better options to mount things under the dash and a cooling fan shroud for the radiator for better air flow through the radiator. I picked them up on the way to get my kit. You'll have to modify the firewall piece some of you have AC. I'll post a picture when I get to that point.