Originally Posted by Spartan65
I remember cruising on I-25 with my cousin Bob, he had this Emeron Emerald Green 68 Chevelle. He was pretty trusting to let me cut my teeth on that car as far as recommendations, and modifications. I was still paying my Pops back for the money he lent me for my 56 210 post Bel-Air.
Bob scored this straight body 6 cylinder 3 on the tree 68 Chevelle, I wrote down a list of things we could do to it from ideas I had seen in Hot Rod. I used to watch this one builder closely Scott Sullivan He would be the guy that was my mentor through the pages of Hot Rod.
I helped Bob pull a 350 four bolt main from this old Cream Land milk truck. We landed up having it bored .30 over and he picked up new 12:1 TRW Pop up pistons and matching rods. I found a steel crank from a local racer that was out a COPO 302 Z-28, having it balanced and the block line bored, I remember Bob's ass cringing at the dough he laid out. I guaranteed him this would be the heart of his car and it would be worth it. Because of the cost he bought an engine stand and the rest of the build would take place in the wash room where his dog slept.
I had a hard time finding the heads, no 2.02 anywhere so we settled for the 1.94 camel backs got them cheap so we took them to ABQ and Kenny Noice beaded em, flow benched them with new Manely valves, Crower springs and retainers. Bob drew the dollar line no roller rockers, but we put tappets that had needle bearing rollers on them. The cam was a mid range monster about a 454/463 gross lift from Crower. He came home one day with this awesome set of OEM Vette tall valve covers, so I took them to school and glass beaded them in auto shop. He took them to the guy that painted the car and had them painted to match the car but with Corvette in red with the fins in black. Clarence at the paint shop sold him a cross ram manifold from a Camaro.
I've always thought of Bob as the big brother I never had, for a while I thought we were going to give birth to Rosemarie’s baby, this car was either going to be unique or fizzle like a cheap firecracker. Bob found a couple of Holley 650cfm vacuum secondarys right around the time it was his birthday, I asked him if I could take them to school. I bought two rebuild kits, stripped em and dipped them and polished the bodies and bowls and took them to him a couple of weeks later, he was ready to kill me while he was waiting for me to bring them back from school, he had no idea, the grin on his mug was worth it.
One Saturday we went down to Henry’s tire, it was in the old McDonald’s building, he bought some 15 x 8 American racing Gold modular, they were chrome hoops with gold center and black stamped rivets. Not my first choice, not my car when we took the wheels and tires to Clarence, it was the first time I’d seen it since it was painted. He used an airplane paint which was legal at the time. An Emeron Emerald Green with Gold Super Sport stripes. He popped the hood and there was a bare short block bolted in where the straight six used to go. He’d been busy getting the car ready for the new motor. He said we needed to stop by Roybal’s transmission. He backed up my Dad’s 1974 Datsun pickup; I wish I still had that little truck too. Paul rolled out a black M22 Rock Crusher tranny with a hugger orange bell housing bolted to it. Paul’s dad carried out some boxes McLeod boxes and off we went.
My dad had taught me to drive in that truck, MT all the way, I was 12. Bob got us on St Francis drive and home we went. I can’t help but think if I had that truck still it would probably have a SR20det.
I remember it felt like Christmas coming home from school one day and going into the garage and seeing the Chevelle there, blanket on the roof with the hood sitting up there. A brand new 8 track of Van Halen’s first album was in my eight track player; it looked like a suit case. When you opened it up it was two speakers with a cord that plugged into the wall and a slot for the cartridges.
I went and sat in my 56 and started sanding the dash, Bob wouldn’t be home till five or so. When my mind fleets back in time knowing what I know now, I can’t help but thinking that dash would jack a person up in an accident. I had a wonder bar radio sitting in a trash bag on the passenger floor telling to keep sanding.
Both cars were actually finished his that day mine about a year later, Sorry about getting long winded, us old guys sometime ramble on.
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