Lavron's '64 Build Thread

[Jims65cyclone]

the round part at the bottom is a piece of tractor 3pt stabilizer link that I bent the devil out of when brush hogging (actually bent it until it broke) so I cut a portion out of the straight part of it

That's why you should never throw away perfectly good junk! Seriously, you do good work, Mike.
Jim

[popscomet]

that is the very reason POP don't get shed of anything,,while walking across a parking lot,,I will pick up a length of wire ,bolt washer,anything and put in pocket,,,,you just never know when that piece of scrap will come in handy....might save the day or a dollar let alone time,,,,and money and time is very worth while......pop

[lavron]

That's why you should never throw away perfectly good junk!

Everything looks like raw materials to me, needless to say my wife doesn't always understand Pops does however;

you just never know when that piece of scrap will come in handy

So I am going to say something about what I am doing, not bragging or anything, just when you have a rare car necessity becomes the mother of invention, plus I add to the pain by doing something most don't using a rare inline 6 motor that most six cylinder guys overlook as well in favor of it's smaller brother (200 six) Anyway with that being said I have built a lot of custom parts for this project, mostly mounts with just old junk, I have bought very few pieces of pre-made stuff (mostly because they don't exist) So I guess I am pretty happy with what I have done.

I have made a video I will link to here, forgive the terrible audio, when I put the GoPro on the extended stick (I think it is a selfie stick) it gets to far away from me and does not pick up the audio too well, I thought about doing a voice over but didn't, also I am a bit shaky with that little camera out on the end of a 3' stick.

Before I put the link in I have a question about 4 barrel carbs, I talk about the aluminum head near the end of the video and it comes with a intake for a 4100 carb, what I have been reading they are good carbs, so if I go that route do you guys agree on the 4100 or is there something better out there?

https://vimeo.com/330165656

If you need me to clarify something I said on the video let me know

See Ya,
Mike

[popscomet]

My wife knows the importance of having and saving parts,,she caught on to that fact fast,,when she had the alarm system installed ,,she told the installer,,,you wire the shop first,,then the house,,,she said the things in that shop and all the parts in it are worth more then whats in the house,,,,that's what the installer told me,she said..!!

[comethead]

Hey Mike I’ve been running a 4100 on my Comet for a few years now without any issues. It’s a great carb and there are still lots of parts available for it.
There’s a 650 and 480cfm. I’m running the 480 version.

Joe

[tomb22]

Loved the video Mike. Good job. Whats nice is You can see all the modifying you did and how it all fit together.
tom

[lavron]

Loved the video Mike. Good job. Whats nice is You can see all the modifying you did and how it all fit together.
tom

Thanks Tom, not a perfect job but I think it will do for me, just building it to drive not win any awards

Hey Mike I’ve been running a 4100 on my Comet for a few years now without any issues. It’s a great carb and there are still lots of parts available for it.
There’s a 650 and 480cfm. I’m running the 480 version.

Thanks Joe, from the stuff I have read some claim they are best 4 barrel ever made for a daily driver, I can't say that is true but it sure sounds like some people really like them. I would probably need to find the smaller one as well, I think it would have been on the 260/289? If that is true I would think it would work on a slightly non-stock 250 well enough. Now to scratch up enough money for the head, I think if I can it may take several months to get the head but I guess I am in no hurry June 17th, 2019 marks 40 years I have owned my Comet.

Marine-Tex Epoxy came in today so I will try and get the motor pulled back out next week and finish up the oil pan. Oddly enough the instructions on the epoxy said the thicker it is applied the better it cures so for sure I will be doing a combination of it and JB Weld.

See Ya,
Mike

[popscomet]

my comet 289 came with one those 4bbl's,,,like a true gear head...I thought I just had to have a holly,,so the swap was made...can't recall what ever become of it....wish I knew...hate that it's gone.they are so simple,no wonder they work so well,,,,if I still had it,I'd just haul off and ship it to you.....pop

[comethead]

Yeah mike the 1.08” Venturi/480cfm version was installed on the 289s. Some 66 big blocks got them but I’ve read to steer clear of those because the flow is all wrong for a small block. (Not sure though).
The ideal small ones are 65-66 with C5Z and C6Z stamped on the base.
I had a Carter AFB that was a pain to live with compared to the Autolite. I set it up around 7 years ago and thousands of miles and I have yet to tinker with it again. It just goes.

Joe

[poboyjo65]

I've been running a 4100 on mine. I like it. I'm running the bigger one. I was thinking its a 600. Joe said 650, is that right Joe? I know they had a bigger one in 57 or 58 on some mercs but they're really rare. I rejetted it , & changed the power valve. float level is sensitive. may have been my imagination but seems like you can sort of fine tune it by setting float level.

[Jims65cyclone]

Cool video, Mike! Very impressive what you've done in less than a year, especially considering that a lot of it you fabbed from scratch.

Jim

[comethead]

I've been running a 4100 on mine. I like it. I'm running the bigger one. I was thinking its a 600. Joe said 650, is that right Joe? I know they had a bigger one in 57 or 58 on some mercs but they're really rare. I rejetted it , & changed the power valve. float level is sensitive. may have been my imagination but seems like you can sort of fine tune it by setting float level.

Yeah 600cfm John. Some say less.
Ive had 650 on the brain lately

[lavron]

Yeah mike the 1.08” Venturi/480cfm version was installed on the 289s. Some 66 big blocks got them but I’ve read to steer clear of those because the flow is all wrong for a small block. (Not sure though).
The ideal small ones are 65-66 with C5Z and C6Z stamped on the base.

Thanks for this info Joe, it really helps out to know what to watch out for.

Cool video, Mike! Very impressive what you've done in less than a year, especially considering that a lot of it you fabbed from scratch.

Jim

Thanks Jim, it really is pretty cool what I have done, not bragging, I guess you don't think about it while you are are working on it, it is not like I have a specific plan just what I would like to have when I am finished, so while fabbing something up as you go it is just one small thing and then you look back and think about all the stuff that was built on this project (not saying building is better than buying, I really have no choice) and on top of that most everything is made from scrap I have laying around

Got the motor pulled back out this morning, while I was getting ready to unbolt the steering rack I discovered I had never put the nuts back on the bolts, not a problem, actually there is more clearance than shows on the video when everything is pushed up into place.

I also got the pan acid etched and degreased well (mostly just WD40 on it from after I left it in Purple Power for a week) ready for the epoxy now. I took pictures but think I will not post them until I have a full series on finishing the pan and painting it.

I looked today at the sway bar again, even though I like it behind the cross member I think I will flip it around to the front and attach it like a traditional sway bar, all I need to do is make a couple of brackets to weld on the frame and I think I can tuck it up a bit higher than it is now. The biggest issue I foresee is getting it to clear the tie rod ends through the full range of motion and needing longer end links after I cut the others down so short .

See Ya,
Mike

[lavron]

Just a random picture of pulling the engine out yesterday



I also got a coat of epoxy on the pan today, this is the stuff I used, Marine-Tex, it was kinda messy for me but I wore rubber gloves, it is somewhere between bondo and JB Weld in consistency, stickier than bondo.


I read gray is for metal and white is for wood, it looks black to me. It is a little pricey, I paid like $35 for that little box but I only used about half of it. It is a two part epoxy the filler is really thick and the hardner is like jelly but I just mixed them like bondo and it seemed to work ok.

I am going to town right now to run some errands, I need to get away from it, I keep wanting to mess with it and it just needs to set up without me around

I did get the motor mounts modified over the last couple of days and before I pulled the motor I raised the right mount about two turns out and seemed to level up the motor a bit more, the pan was a little too close on the right side to the steering rack for comfort. I think you can see in the video I posted earlier the cross member and the bottom of pan look out of alignment, because they are

Keeping at it.

See Ya,
Mike

[lavron]

Got the first coat of epoxy sanded smooth(ish) and added a thin coat of JB Weld to some low spots, should be ready for a coat of POR15 tomorrow and then some paint. And the epoxy looked a lot more gray after I sanded it

I ordered some magnetic drain plugs (actually 4, thought maybe be good for trans and rear too) from Pegasus Racing, hopefully they are a reputable vendor.

So pan is just about finished, I think it will turn out good (hope).

See Ya,
Mike