1966 Chevy II motor refresh

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66DUCE
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Location: Maple Ridge, B.C.

1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by 66DUCE »

So I have taken a break from working on the 510 to refresh my motor in my Nova.
I have had this car since 1988 and while working part time I managed to pay to have all the body work and paint done yes way back then. The car sat in this state for a year or so until I built up the funds to build a motor. I found all the parts an proceeded to build a 383 stroker, now keep in mind this was 28 years ago and you could not just go to Summit and purchase the stroker kit. Again building the motor all those years ago I was just starting to work full time so the engine was built on a bit of a budget using cast iron heads. I had put Hyperutectic pistons in to make the shortblock decent. My hopes were to one day put better heads on it. I drove the car during most summers since then and every year I would buy a winter beater to keep me going through the rest of the year. This car has gone through many changes since I have owned it. I worked on the interior put it back to stock, put a newer front end into it, brake upgrades, headers complete stainless exhaust etc. About a year ago the cam decided to finally give up one of its lobes (I have never driven this thing gently). I was a bit disappointed and started to loose interest in the car, but decided to dive into it and spend some money on it. So recently I tore the motor out and stripped it down for a rebuild. I also picked up a cheap set of aluminium heads and an aluminum radiator.

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Old engine prior to pulling it out
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New Champion radiator
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These are Blue Print Engines aluminum heads (just on for mock up) 195cc with 2.02 intake 1.60 exhaust
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RONSLYCHUK
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Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by RONSLYCHUK »

Nice, that is my favourite year Chevy II. Way back when I had a 65 two door post with a 300 horse 327 and 4:10 posi rearend. Some days I wish that I still had it. Good luck with the refresh and Merry Christmas.
powerbench
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Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by powerbench »

Love it.I've had a 67 Chevelle since 90....Nice car
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Byron510
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Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by Byron510 »

I've always liked this model, and with the bolt on upgrades you can really update the front end easily these days. These also lOOk awesome in a wagon version.

Great car, hope the refresh goes smoothly.

Kind of funny, the Armada family hauler has produced a small exhaust leak on the RH bank somewhere behind the transmission, and every time I lay into it a the motor chugs like a Chevy. It does make me laugh.

Byron
Love people and use things,
because the opposite never works.
510rob
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Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by 510rob »

Aluminum heads. Good call. The off-the-shelf stuff these days is amazing.

What cam did you put into it?
datzenmike
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Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by datzenmike »

Man I came that close to buying a '66 Canso. It was a 327 4 gear with crumpled front fender for $650. This was '73? I should have borrowed the money, robbed a bank... something. Favorite Chevy Twice
"Nissan 'shit the bed' when they made these, plain and simple." McShagger510 on flattop SUs
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66DUCE
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Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by 66DUCE »

RONSLYCHUK wrote:Nice, that is my favourite year Chevy II. Way back when I had a 65 two door post with a 300 horse 327 and 4:10 posi rearend. Some days I wish that I still had it. Good luck with the refresh and Merry Christmas.
Yes the second gen is my favourite as well my first nova was a 67 that one met its demise and I traded what was left of it and polished centrelines for this car. As this has been with me for so many years old H/S buddies always ask if I still had my Nova (I had my1967 in H/S) once I reply yes they always say "man I wish I never sold my _____ car." Strangely enough I sold my second 510 to buy my 67 Nova. Now I have come full circle! To me the 510 and Nova share similar lines.
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66DUCE
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Location: Maple Ridge, B.C.

Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by 66DUCE »

Byron510 wrote:I've always liked this model, and with the bolt on upgrades you can really update the front end easily these days. These also lOOk awesome in a wagon version.

Great car, hope the refresh goes smoothly.

Kind of funny, the Armada family hauler has produced a small exhaust leak on the RH bank somewhere behind the transmission, and every time I lay into it a the motor chugs like a Chevy. It does make me laugh.

Byron
Yes about 5 years ago I did upgrade the front end with a kit from CPP. One of the weakest point on the first/second gen is the front end. (Lower control arm is very similar to the datsun where it uses a singular mount point with a t/c rod) The kit I put on has a plate that bolts on to tie the 2 sub frames together and also provide a mounting point for a wishbone style lower control arm.
Thanks Byron as always I am doing things "while I am at it" so it is slowing the rebuild process.
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66DUCE
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Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by 66DUCE »

510rob wrote:Aluminum heads. Good call. The off-the-shelf stuff these days is amazing.

What cam did you put into it?
YES i had my eye on the heads from MOPAC but even with our terrible exchange rate the BPE heads were cheaper. Both are off shore castings with finish machining done here in NA. For a car that only sees occasional use I talked myself out of spending $1700 usd on AFR heads (originally what I wanted) that way i could spend the rest to freshen the motor upgrade cooling system and other areas.
Cam is a crane grind HMV-278 lift is 467 in 494 exh
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66DUCE
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Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by 66DUCE »

datzenmike wrote:Man I came that close to buying a '66 Canso. It was a 327 4 gear with crumpled front fender for $650. This was '73? I should have borrowed the money, robbed a bank... something. Favorite Chevy Twice
Thanks Mike. Funny my buddy had/has a 66 Canso, both of us worked at a local grocery store in POCO and in the summer when we both worked on the same day you could see my 67 (White) and his 66 (Red) parked on Shaughnessy St in downtown POCO.
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66DUCE
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Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by 66DUCE »

powerbench wrote:Love it.I've had a 67 Chevelle since 90....Nice car
Cool, working on helping a buddy rebuild his 67 Chevelle lately. My dad had a 1964 Chevelle 283 4spd SS both years I also like as my Favorite Chevelle.
powerbench
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Re: 1966 Chevy II motor refresh

Post by powerbench »

Love the Shakey 2's ...My brother inlaw and I have been looking for awhile to build one for him. He wanted to get something different than my Chevelle.
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