Well I am not getting ahead of my self. The sheet metal repair guy who will be working on my Camaro needs it assembled (body panels front and aft) before it enters in his garage. Than he will disassemble the parts he needed to work on etc etc.


That is the way he works so I cannot argue with that. As long as I am not going to carry out the repairs my self, I have to move along with who is going to make the repairs for me.

 

wow this thread was awesome man .where are you at with the car its been long build ,I notice you don't post any pictures ,wich engine are you going with ,I did a swap back to old school an like you I want to do car shows an street rods are my passion ,raceing cost alot of money ,an is dangerous ,looking back on mine wich some think is crazy ,couse I put 406 an 95 z28 carberated ,I realy think one day there will be a lot to talk about with it .like yours a lot of conversation ,I actually went with 3 core radiator with mine ,runs nice an cool with a 160 to 190 thermostat,what I felt I was missing was how long the older camaros engine compartments are ,now that I have mine right against the fire wall,i kind wish I had just found a 79 to 81 with no engine an went from there ,but it turns out now I got the right headers an exhaust it was ok ,an runs great,when I think about how much I spent ,I could have ,so yes I now basically have 95 z28 with 80s on back power plant an tranny th350 .post some pics ,I know one thing you got a lot of pationats ,we did mine is like record time of 6 weeks ,but it will allways be a work in progress

 

I agree that racing costs a lot of money, IF you go all out. But it can be done fairly cheap, if you don't go crazy. I don't agree that it's dangerous. There are occasional crashes, but if you compare the numbers to how many safe passes are made; it's less than driving on the street. I did it for 16 years with my '71 and never spent a ton of money, and never crashed. I still do a couple races each year for fun, and it's been a safe/fun hobby.

 

ok I guess I coulds say ,an agree the road can be just as dangerous ,raceing depends on how much one has to spend to ,some guys actually spend more on show cars an trailering them to shows ,an keeping the paint clean ,I have one friend just had the worst luck couse every other week he is breaking something,i think raceing oldshcool cost less then the new cars .I am interested in seeing pictures soon of something I read the whole thing yesterday,its interesting you talk about you 1985 camaro a bit ,you could put 572ci in that car ,I got that info from street outlaws ,?is it the 572 thanks scott

 

Hello Scott, how are you? Yes it is a long post. I have been working on my 78 Camaro almost 3 years now. Disassemble, cleaning, stripping, blasting, epoxy, you name it. I have learned as well from this forum. People helps me a lot here. I am not a specialist on cars but I read and try and learn from mistakes. I be very careful and weight the ***** and cons before I do something. Although some mistakes never can be avoided.


If you look in the post, there are some pictures, of the breaks, the exhaust, the ridetech 4 link, radiator, hood, and some working progress.


I am currently working on my 4 link......installing the bracketry. A headache but need to be done.


Yes I have an 84 Camaro but this is all original. would not change a single bolt or nut. Happy running it smooth. This 78 will be the beast.....


Keep in contact

 

well yes happy to know that your building an nice old one ,,I will keep watching for this progress ,you will have a car that's truly a classic ,mine just turned 20 this year an Antique is 21 in NH ,I still feel there all nice ,I dont much like the new ones though,that goes without saying if I won the lottery ,I like the zr1 2015 with the ls7 engine an 680 hp ,but the cost unreal ,yes I feel like I am kind in the middle now with the oldshool an new a bit ,I got my engine at karl performance an could not be more happy ,if it not on there page they can build it an save alot , they run a circle track car

 

I have been wishing to have a muscle car since I was 15 years. Watching TV shows with American cars was my favourite. At the age of 24 I bought my first 85 Camaro small block manual transmission. Had some of my friends having 454 BBC on their Second gens. These 454 are something, nice sound etc. I was always thinking of installing a 454 on my third gen. Searching and asking I got to know that it is not worth it due to the fact that the 3rd gen body was never made for a 454 BBC. Then I put my look on the second gens and bout the 1978 Camaro. I bought it from Germany and import it my self.


Then started to plan the build. I want to make something I always dreamed of when I never had the money to do it.

 

yes I hear you ,I want to find an older one too one day an do something similar to yours ,I got to say though with the small blocks making so much HP these days I am thinking a 427 sbc though ,I know though there is a lot more room for the bigger engine in the gen 2,i would not mind a 1980 81 there are still a lot of them out there,i got a friend has a 78 with the 350,i was aslo thinking about a formula 400 2 very similar cars for looks ,the shear weight of the big blocks ,though for a show car ,I am more into that to ,but I also like to think on the raceing side to if I wanted to lighter ,usally meens faster , now with the 406 is about 120lbs lighter then the lt1 with the th 350 lighter to ,from the manifolds to headers lighter it adds up .alot of guys like 383 strokers realy all you get is 350 with 400 crank ,yes the 454 bbc ,is a lot more weight too they sound great there an upgrade in shocks,its what makes the world go around though,alot of guys said go with 355,i wanted the 406 ,so you put what you want an works for you

 

Yes small blocks make them run fast as well and lighter as well. Like you said....it is just personal and what you like to have between the fenders either SBC or a BBC.


I have a SBC and will go for a BBC.

 

I'm uncertain where you got the info on one SBC being lighter than another? Yes, a SBC is lighter than a BBC, but the difference in weight between various SBC from the smallest to the largest, is hardly worth mentioning, as it's simply a few pounds.
A BBC can be drastically reduced in weight with pair of aluminum heads, which will also usually add to performance also. The difference between a stock BBC 427, and a SBC 427 is not just weight. The longevity of a BBC in equal cubic inch size, vs. a SBC pushed to it's limits of bore and stroke to get 427 c.i. is huge also. Even with the extra weight, I'd personally go for a BBC if I was going much over 400 c.i. on a build. You have to do a fair amount of work, and expense to get a SBC to over 500 hp, but almost any stock 454 BBC can hit that HP with a stock short block, and cam, heads, and the right intake/carb. Much cheaper HP for the BBC, and better longevity.