Signet-ficant Other

[Dr.Jass]

Changing those valvesprings, even with the "right" tool for the job, required some Herculean effort. I used a standard C-clamp style compressor that my boss loaned me. Taking off the old springs was easy enough, but compressing the new ones was no mean feat. It was very much a "lean into it using two hands with the head on the floor" exercise, and I was nervous the entire time, being fully aware of the potential energy in the system if something let go. I was sweating bullets by the time I was done, and maybe half of that was from exertion.

Old v. new, halfway through the job:




Side-by-each in the box. The line across some of the new retainers is drizzled assembly lube, used to hold the pain-in-the-ass lash-cap intake retainers, which wanted to teeter-totter rather than sit squarely on the valve:




All nestled into place and ready to rock, held by fancy titanium retainers (hey, I had 'em lying around... why not?):




The Sharp-eyed (ha!) amongst you might notice I replaced the old large-hex lash adjuster nuts for Harland's newer 12-point design. Realistically, it was more of an aesthetic thing, although I do prefer the 12-points for their better fit in the wrench. But, in the "seriously splitting hairs" department, each one weighs 3.1g less than the lightest hex nut of the bunch. Every little bit counts, right?

 

[Dr.Jass]

Since I hate raw aluminum in an engine compartment on just about anything but an alternator, I painted the valve covers and intake. I decided on red, because everyone does Street Hemi orange, I thought it would look better in the white (whitish?) engine bay, and since some early 1969 340s were painted that color. I went with the most-correct red one can find for a 1968/early-'69 340.

As a side note, I used to be a huge fan of Krylon paints. That opinion has changed significantly after this project. I'm a wizard with a rattle can, but this stuff is almost impossible to not run or sag, and the overspray was staggering. Apparently they've changed not only their formulation, but their nozzle design as well. Both changes were for the worse, in a big way. The results are middling at best (perfect for the Valiant, I suppose) and by the time the last coat was laid I was extremely frustrated.

 

[Dr.Jass]

Some acquistion progress has been made for under the floorboards, too (since one gets called names for ignoring trannies these days).

I made the decision that, expensive as it was, a scattershield was a necessity for this car. Launching at 4,000+RPM is very taxing on things inside the bellhousing. Man, those things are pricey! I was really hesitant to pull the trigger on one, since the only one available (QuickTime number RM-6072) is $623, and that's on sale! :doh: Best I could do through my own sources would've still had me at $612 by the time I paid the sales tax. Used Lakewoods have been bringing around $350 without the block plate and as high as $450 with it through the normal channels such as eBay and racingjunk. If I was going to pay $450 for a used one, it was a short leap in my brain to $623 for a brand-new, better design. Yes, that's a lot of money, but experience tells me it's only $30 more than a 1-mile ambulance ride. Without checking, I'm almost positive it's a lot less than, oh, a prosthetic foot or two. So, my finger hovered over the "Add to Cart" button on the Summit website several times in the past week or two.

Imagine my joy upon sitting down to my laptop yesterday morning to see an eBay search notification in my inbox showing a Lakewood unit for $250 + $30 shipping. I could not hit "Buy it Now" fast enough! Yes, it's the heavier Lakewood unit that leaves precious little ground clearance, but I'll live with both the drawbacks and extra three-and-a-half Benjamins still living in my wallet. :dance: Having such a safety item really takes a load off my mind; as some of you may recall, I've already survived one clutch explosion with the only injuries being to my underpants and the car itself. Between the blowproof bellhousing and SFI billet flywheel I already had, I'll be able to abuse the clutch fearlessly at the starting line.

 

[Dr.Jass]

The clutch that will be taking all the abuse? A Ram 903 sintered-iron disc sandwiched between a McLeod 2,350lb pressure plate and a Ram SFI billet flywheel. I agree that 2,350lb doesn't sound like much static load, but Ram assured me I did not want to go with either their 2,800lb or 3,200lb plate, since between the the static load and the coefficient of friction of the sintered iron, the car would be nigh-on undrivable anywhere except the starting line (basically a hair trigger) and suggested their 2,400lb plate to allow for some slippage. I could almost hear the face he made when I blurted, "Oh, cool! I've already got a 2,350lb McLeod" without thinking. They mentioned I might want to consider an aluminum flywheel considering the car's weight, so I asked if they might want to consider paying for one. He said they would not. So we're back to the basement, where both the pressure plate and flywheel (both new) have resided for a couple of years. More "stuff I'll need someday" and someday is comin' up fast. :dance:

This disc is serious business. Pictures don't do it justice, especially since you can't feel the heft in a photo.

 

[69.5CUDA]

doc im actualy an original fan of going RED..and gave up on krylon ages ago ...tho i can never remember if its VHT or duplicolor that has the "good" red....ones pale brick the others true red...neither are listed as OEM mopar red since every OEM one i have ever found has been either too bright or too pale....most every enegine ive done for an A-body has gone red cause the hemi orange is over played and the blue just never looks good either...the "exception" is the purple block in my 67 fish

 

[68R/T]

I like turquoise. :toot:

 

[Dr.Jass]

For the final update, a huge "Thank you!" goes out to restoman for donating a bolt-on A-body Hurst shifter stick to the cause. We were chatting online and I was complaining about the asking prices of these things, and mentioned I'd probably just use my old F-body lever rather than pay what people seem to think they're worth. He said he had one just lying around that he'd never use, and asked me if I wanted it. Oh, hell yes! He wouldn't even allow me to reimburse him for the shipping... I owe him a huge debt of gratitude.

As delivered, it had a Hurst aluminum T-handle on it, which is pretty old-school cool but to me didn't really fit the character of the car. A quick check of the Core Shifters website landed me a 100% correct white shift knob that would've been original for the car. If you're not familiar with Core Shifters, they buy up Hurst's old stock parts and assemble them, as well as producing discontinued Hurst products. I found out about them when I bought the shifter for my Dakota--they still make and sell the long-discontinued Hurst AX-15 shifters as well as many others, including those for NV transmissions.

In the spirit of restoman's generosity, I'd like to pay it forward a little. Since I'm not using it, if a regular contributor to this board wants and will use the aluminum T-handle he sent me with the shifter, PM me your address and I'll send it to you at no charge whatsoever--regardless of location. Notice I said "regular contributor" and not just "member"; the assholes that are here only to use PM system (there are a bunch of 'em--am I the only one that's noticed? :hmmm: ), and the newbs that have only posted once or twice and subsequently disappeared are not eligible. I also said, "will use", meaning I'm not sending it to someone to sit in their junk drawer or to be used as eBay fodder. The eligible first person to ask gets it!


The stick itself is perfect, because it's not perfect. It's in about the same shape as my F-body handle, and is the exact condition I sought to put in the car... but wasn't willing to drop $200 to do it:




And, a close-up of the Core Shifters reproduction knob. This is perfect, right down to the 3/8" fine-thread brass insert embedded in correct material and the shouldered chrome locknut that came with it:




And, a shot of the T-handle for those of you who might be interested. It will polish out nicely with some Mother's aluminum polish; I tried inferior Eagle One Nano on the bottom and it cleaned right up. Remember, this is a "native Mopar" 3/8"-24 (fine) thread. It will not fit any GM/most Ford shifters, nor Hurst aftermarket sticks built since the '70s. Make sure you can use it prior to asking me for it!

 

[Dr.Jass]

doc im actualy an original fan of going RED..and gave up on krylon ages ago ...tho i can never remember if its VHT or duplicolor that has the "good" red....ones pale brick the others true red...neither are listed as OEM mopar red since every OEM one i have ever found has been either too bright or too pale....most every enegine ive done for an A-body has gone red cause the hemi orange is over played and the blue just never looks good either...the "exception" is the purple block in my 67 fish

The closest match for '68 red is the Krylon, sadly. International Harvester red, in fact. It's accepted by show judges at the national level. Yes, I researched it that far. The Mopar Performance or Dupli-Color reds will actually cost you points. They're not "brick" enough, for lack of a better term.

Krylon worked very well for me in the past, but I haven't bought any in maybe three or four years, other than the wrinkle paint. This is the first stuff I've used that was problematic. Call it tooting my own horn, but those who have seen my spray-can work will attest that it looks like it was done professionally with a spray gun... a bodyman friend saw the engine bay of the LeBaron and absolutely refused to accept the fact it was all shaker-can base/clear work.

I like turquoise. :toot:

I'm sure you do, but 340s were never painted turquoise. The vast majority of 1969 340s were painted a one-year-only blue. It was very similar to Corporate Blue, but heat and time faded it to a turquoise hue quite different from the color used on B/RB engines. Literally nobody knows the formula for that color, not even Greenback Gobbler, so the accepted color at the Platinum level is standard '72-up Corporate Blue. All I have is a relatively-low sequence number (there's no data tag in the car), but I'm sure a 340 installed that far into production would've still been blue. Red is very unusual for a '69 engine, but I think the red will look a lot better against the dingy white engine bay.

 

[68R/T]

I like turquoise because it was used on pre '69 big blocks.

 

[thrashingcows]

I like turquoise because it was used on pre '69 big blocks.

And still one of the best colours in my opinion.

 

[Dr.Jass]

It was used on some pre-'69 big blocks. Others were silver, gold, black, and even, *ahem* red.

If my '61 wagon was originally a big block, the engine would've been silver. The 440 won't be, because that's a terrible engine color. But now that I'm thinking about it, the Imperial's engine won't be black, and I'm not sure if I'll do the Challenger engine in Corporate Blue, either.

One thing is sure: I won't do any of them with Krylon! :doubt:

 

[restoman]

I'm reasonably sure that somewhere I've got two or three of those white shifter knobs. I know exactly where the black three speed knob is but the four speed ones are MIA...

 

[69.5CUDA]

ive seen quite a few general LA's in red...273, 318, 340, 273C....red was the norm untill midyear shift of 69 as best i can tell

i too have atleast one of those white balls..and i know theers one of those shifters in my box o shifters....was in my 68 fish at one time

as much as the kid in m wanted a T handle..after trying one oh hell no...they just feel WRONG

as for your painting..im the same way with a can..theres just a style to doing it...the red you laid there looks like the cherry red i like to use

 

[Dr.Jass]

As far as I'm aware, all the LA engines were red from '64-'68. Most of the '69 engines I've seen were red as well, with the exception of the 340, which if original is faded to that odd turquoise. The International Harvester red is the closest to the original Chrysler red, so that's what I used.

The shift knob was less than $30 including the shipping, so messing around trying to find a used one wasn't worth the effort... and being from Core, it's exactly as original. Their products are awesome.

My Trans Am had a T-handle in it when I got it, and I never liked it. When I bought the '77 T/A parts car, it had a '72-'74 B-body bench-seat Pistol Grip in it, which went in mine after the flywheel explosion (along with the 3-speed from that car) and stuck around after I found another Super T-10. I pulled it from the car when I sold it, though, and later used it in my Aspen. It went with the car, but I got it back almost a decade later. I still have it. It would fit and probably clear in the Valiant, but on the subject of "just wrong" that's how I feel about Pistol Grips in pre-'70 vehicles (and all A-bodies). They just look out of place.

 

[Dr.Jass]

And, from the "I didn't want to pay this much but..." here's the tachometer I bought for the car. Not a huge fan of 5" tachs, but c'mon... NOS, period-looking as hell, and with recall?! How does one not whip out his wallet for $125 shipped?!

 

[69.5CUDA]

i have that EXACT vintage set in my 69.5 but its the all black n white....never seen a vintage one with recall...very cool and still a steal at that pri9ce imo...

the "set" was the speedo and tach 4 or 5inch?..its been ages..but i took the trim ring off mine did ever so light of triming to it where the turn signal tubes are on a fish dash..and then "shimmed" it a bit..and it slid right in from the rear and looks OEM

 

[Diplomat_Wagon]

View attachment 19733

I've got that same vintage handle with a button on it.

Anyone need it?

 

[Dr.Jass]

Just a short update. I worked on the engine last weekend, but it's fighting me every inch of the way. Whomever assembled the engine used Lubriplate engine assembly grease (the white stuff), which is a horrible idea if the engine's gonna sit for any length of time. It dries out, and either turns directly into solid rock, or becomes what could best be described as "chewing gum pried from the bottom of a desk" consistency.

The lifters, which weren't actually in the engine when I got it, had to sit in the carb soak tank for three days before the shit would budge. It took me four hours, several cans of brake cleaner and carb spray, half a roll of paper towels, a sharp pick and a used lifter to get eight of the lifter bores cleaned so that a lifter can actually move in them. That's right, I'm only half done after four hours' work... and that's just the lifter bores. I still have the cylinder bores and deck surfaces to clean, as well as the cam bearings (which are gonna be a bitch, no doubt). The shit literally soaks into bearing material and stains it, I found out from the rod bearings. I haven't gotten into the mains yet, but I expect no joy there either.

On a happier note, though, my feetkeeper arrived:




But, back into the sadness... after getting the lifters shiny-new clean, I discovered a couple of bums in the bunch. One's got a bit of scuffing on the body, which may or may not be a big deal, but it's not exactly heartwarming. Much more depressing, though, was this previously-hidden bad spot on the wheel of another:




That actually makes it look worse than it really is, but suffice to say I'm not putting 895lb of pressure on it (560lb open spring load through a 1.6:1 ratio lever) to find out what might happen. So, unfortunately all the money I saved on the bellhousing is now going toward a new set of lifters. Howard's Cams sells a set of solid rollers, their SportMax line, for around $370. I called them this afternoon to ask about them and amazingly, after telling him my combination, their own tech guy said, "I build a lot of motors. I won't use 'em, and I won't recommend 'em to anyone either. I sure as hell wouldn't put 'em under that kind of spring." He recommended their next step up, which is almost another $200, and sports pressurized oil to the wheel. Nice feature, but my engine has the cam galleys blocked so I can't use it anyhow. I thanked him for his candor and made another phone call to my supplier's performance division (the same cats that sent me the free Demon carb). They cut me a decent deal on a set of Comp Cams 828-16 lifters, but they're still more than I saved on the bell.

You win some, you lose some. At least my cam won't get chewed to death by a couple of sketchy lifters.

 

[Dr.Jass]

Stretch and I put in nearly a full day yesterday working on the car I'm now referring lovingly to as Lethal V. Those of you that are FB friends will recognize this as an extension to a running joke involving my dog Valentine, whom I refer to as simply "V" preceded by whatever adjective fits the situation. Both the car and the dog are predominantly white, both names begin with V, and I only want one to be a pooch.

I'd purchased a set of subframe connectors and my plan was to install those prior to the front frame rail replacement. My thinking here was to stiffen the structure as much as possible prior to lopping of a quarter of it to be replaced. Plus, with the car still together and running we could do it on the drive-on hoist at work, with the car's weight on the wheels.

It was actually a pretty darned good idea, but best laid plans and all that...

First order of business, of course, was to rip out the interior. It had clearly never been apart previously, and went surprisingly well. Stretchy-Poo found the original upholstery tag for the front seat, which was very cool. One doesn't see them, very often, but more importantly, '69 Valiant Signet seat covers are not available. There are, however, companies that can make a reproduction cover off the original upholstery tag if you've got it. After getting home and reviewing the photos, though, my excitement turned into minor disappointment and major laughter. The original vendor had a dedicated jokester in their midst. How dedicated? This joke might never have been found, but it was--after 48+ years. I'm bummed that I don't have the secret digits for the seatcover, but I can definitely appreciate humor five decades in the making.




We also discovered the original carpet trim tag, which was correct for the car because carpet sets are fuckin' easy. :doh:




Other discoveries included $1.55 in miscellaneous US coinage, and two screws that were rolling around in the car when it got painted at the factory. Those two screws were actually glued in place by the paint and had to be broken off the floor.




Yes, that's a pile of mouse crap to the right of the screw. Big mice, too--those are way bigger than the mouse droppings to which I'm accustomed, based on the camp we had when I was a kid. Hell, they might've been chipmunks. More mouse evidence:




Once the carpet was removed, the real tragedy began. She's bad--real bad in the floors. This damage was hard to see from underneath the car, which is why we never noticed it despite the car being on the hoist several times. First, the carpets were stiffer than a wedding dick--I was literally able to lean one of the subframe connectors up against the front set. Second, much of the missing metal was still there, it was just bonded to the back side of the carpet. After the initial "Oh, shit" moment, Stretch simply said "Looks like we're doing floorpans too" without a hint of disappointment or irony. With that kind of can-do (will-do, really) attitude in your corner, it's hard to not stay positive and just say, "Well then, I guess I'd better order some." It was an unexpected setback, but nothing we can't overcome pretty easily... and I've fallen enough in love with the car to simply get it handled and move along.










The irony here, of course, is that after all the hard work we'll pour into 'er, this car will not look one bit better on the outside, nor do I plan on that happening. I want it to remain tattered-looking, to maintain the element of surprise with the 340 and the 4-speed. :dance:

Undaunted, we pressed forward with installation of the frame connectors. "But how?! They weld to the floor!" I hear you exclaim. Well...

 

[Dr.Jass]

Unwilling to quit, or even be slowed down by this development, the next step was to put 'er in the air and lop off the gorgeous, if not quite finished, custom dual exhaust that our co-worker had installed for me last summer. This was sorta heartbreaking too, because he'd done a really nice job on it--mind you, we don't have any exhaust "bend cards" so it was totally by eye--and it actually sounded impressive as hell. At idle, you'd never know it was a six cylinder. Damned shame, but we kept it in a condition where it can be reinstalled at a later date either under this car, or another 108"-wheelbase A-body. This system has maybe 20 minutes of total engine run time on it. :doh:












With that out of the way, we could get on with assessing what other obstacles we would have to overcome. This would come to include some we wouldn't tackle at the moment, such as the parking-brake cable, and brake/fuel lines. We'll cover those after the new floorpans are installed (with photos, of course).