65 Chevy II 409 Swap
- Thread starter 409envy
- Start date
Those look fantastic Evan
409envy
Well Known Member
Thank you... not bad for a first try!
Dam good for a first try. The secret now is to know what to weld first so you don't paint yourself into a corner( so to speak).
What a great job on the headers! They look fantastic. 
409envy
Well Known Member
Not much to report on the engine since winter decided to show up. I talked to my builder yesterday and he said he had the crank installed and set my oil clearance. I will have to get the exact specs but I think he told me .022"-.025" on the mains... don't quote me.
I have been making small progress in other areas. I had my slicks mounted...
I also made a few parts purchases. The first of which was a necessity. Due to the width of the big W, the relief cuts I made on the shock towers were pretty low. As such, the stamped steel oem upper control arms are now too tall to work with the sheet metal I will eventually have to weld in. So I searched around and found a nice set of tubular upper control arms with a smaller diameter cross shaft that would give me the added clearance I need. They are from TRZ Motorsports and work with stock springs. This will hopefully be my only deviation from OE looking suspension...
I also piced up a shifter for my powerglide. It's a 60 series B&M that I think is period correct... I might be off by a year or two but I'm pretty sure they introduced this shifter in 63 or 64 and Dick Harrell used them in his Nova's
More updates as I am able.
I have been making small progress in other areas. I had my slicks mounted...
I also made a few parts purchases. The first of which was a necessity. Due to the width of the big W, the relief cuts I made on the shock towers were pretty low. As such, the stamped steel oem upper control arms are now too tall to work with the sheet metal I will eventually have to weld in. So I searched around and found a nice set of tubular upper control arms with a smaller diameter cross shaft that would give me the added clearance I need. They are from TRZ Motorsports and work with stock springs. This will hopefully be my only deviation from OE looking suspension...
I also piced up a shifter for my powerglide. It's a 60 series B&M that I think is period correct... I might be off by a year or two but I'm pretty sure they introduced this shifter in 63 or 64 and Dick Harrell used them in his Nova's
More updates as I am able.
409envy
Well Known Member
Moving along at the speed of molasses here. Here's a couple shots of my 583's... they are pretty much mint. Stock valves, good guides, no porting. I think we are going to just clean them up and have the guides machined for umbrella style valve seals. My builder wants to clean up the bowls a tiny bit but I want to keep them as close to original as possible so I can make some money on them when I upgrade to Z11 equipment.... Oops... did I just say that out loud?
Last edited:
yep.........ya did.........COOL
409envy
Well Known Member
The jury is still out on compression ratio until my builder gets the pistons and rods installed in the block. He allegedly spent 6 hours last weekend file fitting all my rings so he is almost ready to install. He is estimating around 10.5-10.8:1. That is with a 70cc chamber volume, a .044" compressed head gasket and a little wiggle room for the valve reliefs and piston to wall clearance. My piston to deck height is .005" so with a .030" compressed gasket I can get my quench distance right at .035" which I have been told is ideal for 409's. This would also bring my C.R. up to 11:1-11.2-1. We have also talked about shaving a couple thousands off the heads to reduce the volume of the valve pocket.This is looking really good!! Have you said what Comp. ratio those pistons are?
Can't wait to see this baby in person!!
I have to say that I'm not exactly thrilled that it is looking like it will be below 11:1. When we initially started the build I told him I wanted to end up as close to 11:1 as possible. In my view compression=horsepower in a naturally aspirated engine. I also know that these engines are not as prone to detonation as other big blocks plus I am not against running 93 mixed with race fuel to prevent detonation.
It also limits my camshaft selection and in the future will necessitate that I go into the bottom end should I wish to get a little more aggrsssive.
We shall see.
Last edited:
Painted steel.......
Painted steel wheels on the rear and maybe Radirs on the front. Like this
If you are thinking of an upgrade be happy with the lower compression. It would be easier to sell.
409envy
Well Known Member
Good point but I'm not going to sell the complete engine. Just the top end. Now that I think about it I will have to spec new pistons anyway if I end up going the Z11 route due to the offset of the intake valve compared to a stock head. I would also want to build in at least a full point more of compression so new pistons would be a necessity. I'm getting way ahead of myself but it's always nice to dream.
