Inliners International Forums General Discussion Engines New Guy - Pictures of my 250 Build

Gentlemen,
I have been lurking on here for months, reading lots of past posts and finding lots of great information.(I was using the name "El Camino Guy" but I swapped the beast for a 64 Nova SS, hence the new name) Well, you guys converted me. Last fall, I bought a 74 Nova with a 250, for my daily driver. Shortly after that, I found this site. I liked what I saw and decided to ditch all the smog stuff and lose the one barrel and the tiny exhaust. I went out and got a Clifford Intake and Exhaust( Before I read on here that the Offy offers better low end torque,Thanks Twisted, now I know.) and a Holley 390. Well one thing led to another and before I knew it I had aquired a rebuilt 250 with an RV cam, MSD Pro Billet Distributor and wires and a 6A Box along with a bunch of other stuff. Sorry for the long post but I wanted to share the history. I have mocked it up to learn how it goes together (I consider myself a novice mechanic at best) as well as to fab the hard lines for the intake and the braided lines for the pump, filter and carb and all the other stuff. My goal is to do the swap in a weekend. I would like to ask your help with the details. I value your thoughtful comments and opinions. I have to tell you, I really enjoy reading all your past posts. (even going so far as to compile a list of my favorite quotes) You guys know how to write.
Here she is.

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I'm pretty happy so far. I can't wait to get her in a show.(I have a new cowl induction hood and my buddy's a body guy!) (My thanks to the guy who posted the pics of the half a V8 wire loom and you guys that posted pics of your hard lines, mine are still to come) I still need to do a lot of work on her. If you would be so kind as to answer some questions,I would really appreciate it.

My current fuel pump looks shiny and works. Will I see a benefit from using a 292 pump instead?

Clifford says use flat washers on an angle,on the intake/exhaust bolts and grind them flat on one side if needed. You think these will be ok?


And my last question for now is, Do you think she will do a decent burnout with those 245/45/17 tires, TH350 and 3.08 gears?

Best Regards,
Chris

more pictures PhotoBucket

You can use the stock hold downs I have used them on the offey and the clifford intake with out any problem 1 or 2 i may?? have ground a little.???

I agree with d6, even if you have to grind them some the stock hold downs will look better. Burn out??? If you can break 'em loose you can smoke 'em! Not sure about the 308s. I'm doing the first mock up on a turbo-injected 292 and it doesn't look nearly as good as yours! Nice work,great detail!

Some poor boat is missing its covers!! Very nice job and agree with the comments on the stock hold downs. Might want to think about changing rear gears. The 74 is not a light weight and you do not want send u-joints flying out from underneath.

Nice! And welcome aboard!

Nice!
Did you coat the headers?
If not,the stock paint might burn off.

MBHD

Very nice job with the plug wire looms. Motor looks real good. You have P/S on the Nova now? You will have to change the brackets and pulleys from your original motor. Hopefully your Nova doesn't have the integral head but I don't believe it does in that year or your brackets and pump will be different.

Good morning, Guys
Thanks for the replies. I will use the stock holdowns. Anybody have any? I would like to do everything I can while it's on the stand. Caps coated the headers. They did a nice job and gave me a 10% discount when I told them I saw them in the 12 Port News.
My current 250 is not the integral head. I expect I'll need to grind the P/S bracket a bit to fit...My current balancer has a 1/2" space between the grooves and 95,000 miles on it. It appears to be one piece. The rebuilt engine came with a nice balancer with one groove on it and a single groove pulley that bolts to it but there is only a 1/4" space between them. Can I just shim it? If so, Should I use steel or aluminum? The crank has already been drilled and tapped. How about the fuel pump? Will I see any benefit from using a 292 pump? Future plans call for Larry lump porting my spare head and installing bigger valves, switching to a 700R4 and changing the gear ratio.
Best Regards,
Chris

I would use the stock '74 balancer. All the brackets, pulleys and belts will fit as before and be stock for that year.
There should be two different size manifold hold down clamps on your '74 engine. The long type, pictured below, is too long. You will need a total of six short ones and they may need modified slightly. The head originally had two of the studs (pictured below) and two end stud pins that you have already replaced.
Your manifold hardware now includes course thread nuts, fine thread nuts and course bolts. I put stock studs from one end of the head to the other and can use the same size nut at every location.
Nice valve cover, but are you planning on using a PCV?
You are also in need of a vacuum source for the power brake booster which I assume is standard on '74. The clifford has a spot on the back for that, but needs drilled and tapped.
292 and 250 pump are the same.

I may have the 6 that you need if you don't have any.

Thanks for your replies.
Larry, I will PM you. My valve cover has a small hole,you can just see it in the pic. I figured I could use this for the PCV. My manifold has a center outlet which I think will supply vacuum or couldn't I pull the vacuum off the carb? As for the balancer, I figured my current one would be
unsuitable after so many miles, but maybe not. Another concern I have is where I'm going to put my temp sender. I thought I had a hole in my head on the drivers side(according to Leo's book) but it's not there. I may be in need of a thermostat housing with the three outlets. Any suggestions?
Thanks again,
Chris

Nice ride & motor...where did you get your wire looms?

Nice ride & motor...where did you get your wire looms?

Sorry for the double post...still getting used to the new web site!

Thanks!
I got those at a napa auto parts. They're one half of a set for a Chevy small block. The brand is Spectre #18483
I stole the idea from an earlier post...

Do you need more than two outlets on your thermostat housing? In your first post you said you were going to ditch the smog stuff. Is a 1974 now exempt from smog tests in Calif? If that is the case, you can use one hole for the temp sender and the other for the intake manifold heat passage. How many outlets are on the thermostat housing in the car now?
I still can't see the hole in the valve cover. The thing is so clean and shiny my eyes are blinded. Are you going to use a breather in place of the oil fill cap or do you have another plan for the fresh air into the PCV system?

DoubleNova, How's it all going? Do you have an update?

DoubleNova
I do have extra stock hold downs if you still need them.Great looking motor.

Here's an update,
Things got tough and I Put the engine up for sale. Things are better now. I'm glad I didn't sell her. I'm going to keep her and run her.


I installed hard lines for the manifold hot water heat and fixed a broken water pump bolt. I finally got my cowl induction hood on and the dents fixed and the front painted.



Next I'll get a 700R4 and a lump port head.
Please forgive the XL pictures.

If you can,try & get a 2004R to install.
Much better gear spacing,especially if you are normally aspirated,the big gear drop ( on a 700 ) from 1st to 2nd will not be as good as the 2004R.
Drops right in w/no driveshaft change. IIRC?
BTW, nice engine & nice ride!

MBHD

Checked your Photobucket... I like these six better
http://s242.photobucket.com/albums/ff247...Bikeshow-67.jpg

Just for the record, I went from ElCaminoGuy (then I sold the El Camino) to DoubleNova but I sold my other Nova (shown) so now I'm just 74NovaGuy.

Kinda' like reading a Russian novel where the character's names change throughout the book. If that is a picture of you there may be other changes you haven't told us about!