my new RB project!

[kevwa]

well as always i didnt get quite as much done as hoped but i only have few more pieces to make for the floor! Then I can focus on getting the radiator mounted and get the wiring harness installed. I still need to body drop the box and I have plans to chop the top but im really trying to have it ready to drive for the end of September since we have alumni weekend at Morrisville State College during which the auto department has a car cruise in - so im not sure how much will be done by then but if I have to I can tow it there. Anyway here is the latest progress from this weekend...

[kevwa]

I am now 3 weeks behind on my floor since my new welder has stopped working for the past 3 weekends... anyway I managed to get the box dropped and started mounting the radiator....

[67 411]

the radiator looks great, im planining on doing the same thing in my truck. Hope you get your welder fixed.

[Kalypso]

lord have mercy you are such a gangster

[DJButton]

lord have mercy you are such a gangster

Quoted For Truth!

[kevwa]

Finally an update!Long story short since my last post... towards the end of summer the manager for the body shop I work at, in nice terms .. didn't work out... I had been working about 50/50 in the office and on cars so my manager gave me a shot at running the shop while he had an ad out for a new manager - one thing led to another and it landed me as manager. Needless to say that has been a little overwhelming and has taken up most of my time. Anyway I have been slowly making progress on the truck with working on the chop....

The body drop killed my hood clearance mostly due to the stock intake so thanks to Raw Brokerage I got my new ISIS manifold yesterday....









With the new manifold I am about an inch from having the hood close - its so close but enough to just piss me off..







I was figuring out all my options for getting the hood to shut and after looking at the position of the motor it looks like I have it angled a little too much - I should be able to lower the passenger side of the motor and raise the driver side a little which Im hoping will give me the clearance I need for the hood.

[S14-NEO]

man i bet the chevy guru's are going to blow a gasket when you pop the hood on your sweet and up and coming ride after its all said and done . they will be expecting a small block of some sorts and low and behold you will have somethign under there they wont be expecting ...lol...PURE WIN!!!

[boosted98gst]

BIg prop's to you man!! way to be different !

[meet07]

Its like wacthing an episode of Muscle Car!!!

[kevwa]

thanks guys

[bllabong89]

this build is sick. you got mad skills man

[kevwa]

I re-built my motor mount for hopefully the last time today... I lowered the passenger side mount just under 1", notched the reinforcement on the hood and removed the timing cover and now the hood shuts. I want to put the timing cover back on but it will need some modifying to clear the hood. Its a little hard to tell in the pictures but i have about 1/8" to 1/4" clearance... here are some pics...















I still need to trim the mount down but the motor is bolted in and the hood latches so I called it a day while I was ahead

[l0nestar]

This thread makes me happy.

[kevwa]

Finished up the driver side mount tonight...







Still thinking I should go with some sort of hood scoop or cowl, clearance is just too close for comfort - even though the motor is solid mounted and wont lift up at all...

[kevwa]

Still have to mod the transmission cross member more but here is my mock fitment of the radiator lines from the front of the cab to the back of the cab.. Ultimately i wanted to used braided lines but I didn't feel like selling a kidney to buy them lol

Copper lines seemed to be a good idea since they would be durable against anything hitting them while driving - i was going to solder fittings for the slight bends but opted for the flexible hose instead - I did not trust solder joints against the vibrations of the truck. Time will tell how they work...

[USMCgetsome]

estimated coolant capacity? lol

[kevwa]

the only difference in capacity is about 10 feet of the copper pipe and its 1.25" pipe so its not really that much - i should not have an issue with that. There are other cars that have rear engine with a radiator in the front like the Fiero which is the same idea as having the radiator mounted in the rear with the motor in the front.

[kevwa]

A few more pics of the coolant lines - Its not in the picture but I trimmed the transmission cross member a little more to clear the lines. The hard lines are mounted how they will be - I just need to run flexible lines up to the motor and up to the radiator.

[Sil240]

WOW.... that is badass!!!!

[rb25det250sx]

wow man! nice build. the radiator idea is epic! just a quick question though, did you have any issues with that isis intake?

[Coolwhip]

damn i love this truck

[kevwa]

Thanks guys!

as for the ISIS manifold I had a few small issues - I had to make a couple of the mounting holes on the flange oblong a little bit, the hole for the coolant sensor was the wrong thread - nothing a tap wont fix, and the fitting for the radiator hose is not tight so I will epoxy it in - overall I am very please with the manifold - to me those were very minor issues. Thanks RawBrokerage

[240cp]

Looks awesome, but why didnt you just sweat the copper line in. They make copper flex if your worried about movement? I can see that i make's it easier for removal if a problem arises. But sweat'n em in is less likely for leaks.

[kevwa]

I was considering soldering the lines but I did not know how the solder joints would hold up to vibrations so i decided to use some flexible hose - ill see how well it works once i start test driving...

[kevwa]

another step closer...

after a few trial cuts on spare windshields, I got the new windshield cut - it needs a little trimming on each side by the roof but other than that its good. The only other issue is I have about a 1" gap on the top edge of the windshield and where it is suppose to sit on the roof flange due to lowering the front of the roof more than the back - but that will be a simple fix to modify the front edge of the roof...






Also got my Greddy fuel fail in from RawBrokerage

[Seanzyyy]

this thread makes me giddykeep up the amazing work

[kevwa]

Thanks!

I was sick of working on the windshield so I decided to work on my exhaust some... side exit in front of passenger rear tire... the tips are off a C6 vette

[WhatsADSM]

Funky... Yet awesome.

Keep up the good work and all the pics!

[kevwa]

Finally got the truck running again for the first time with the new manifold, rail and injectors

It fired right up and idles good - thats as far as i am so far lol - i need to get the coolant bled out, hook up the cooling fans and some gauges so i can start tuning it again. Ill try to get a video up soon - even though it is nothing special - just another RB running..

[Carl H]

but its backed up by ballin fab work!