New Studs for the Ram Horns!

So much to do, so little time....... I sandblasted the ram horn headers and then had to use my neighbors blow torch to heat them up to remove the old rusted studs.

With the studs removed, I then used a 3/8 - 16 tap to clean out the threads.

The new studs went in fairly well. One side I could only get them to screw in about half as far as they FULLY could go. The other side screwed in very easy.

Next they will be bolted back on to the engine and the exhaust mockup will begin!!!!!!! I now have all the parts, just need more TIME!

Fabbing Transmission Mount!!!!!!

With the engine mounts done and the 4th tab built for the power steering gear box, I then primed all of them with the black KBS paint.
I then set the engine back in place. Everything fit perfectly in to my new motor mounts!

Next i started to fab up a tranmission mount. I used a piece of angle iron and some quarter inch flat stock to raise the center up to where the tranmission will rest on it.

The transmission mount is almost complete. I'm going to weld on some additional supports, cut it to fit, and then bolt it into place tomorrow!

Motor Mounts & Steering Tab 99% Done!

Lots of cutting and welding today. First I welded on some mounts to help support the motor mounts. I had to make sure the supports cleared the pittman & idler arm.
Next I made plates to weld into the center of the motor mounts just to add a little extra beef to the mounts. It was probably overkill, but I KNOW they won't be falling apart any time soon.

I'm switching from a manual steering box to a power steering gear box. The original box only had 3 bolts which held it to the frame. The new power steering gear box had 4. The 4th bolt had nothing to grab on to which probably would have been ok, but since i'm welding on the front end, I decided to fab up a 4th mount for it the box to bolt to. It came out pretty damn good if I don't say.

Next up...... grinding smooth all of my welds and priming everything. Then I will put the engine back in place and start working on the exhaust system.

Engine Mounts Almost Complete!

I completed the inside portions of the engine mounts tonight. I was having a problem welding upwards...... the slag kept falling down into the gun, prohibiting a good arc. I thought I had the wire speed too fast, but it was actually the opposite. I wasn't feeding the wire fast enough to create the arc. With the wire speed increased, welding became much easier.
Driver side engine mount.

Passenger side engine mount.

Both engine mounts almost complete. Tomorrow I'm hoping to weld in the center cross supports on the mounts and then grind them smooth.

Engine Mounts 50% Done!

I first tack welded one side of each engine mount into place and then removed the engine so I could get to the mounts easier.
Here is a view of the half finished driver's side engine mount.

And here is the half finished passenger's side engine mount.

Both mounts are now 50% complete. The other side of the "triangle" will be finished tomorrow night.

Engine Mounts......

I've been working on getting the engine perfectly positioned to create the engine mounts. I first had to weld 2 pieces of quarter inch flat stock together to form one 2.5" wide piece of flat stock.
I then squared the engine up with the frame and leveled side to side and front to back.

Where I will be welding my mounts into place, I had to grind off the paint leaving a nice smooth clean metal surface. This was done on both the passenger and driver side.

Tomorrow night I will be welding the mounts in to place. With the engine permanently mounted, next up will be the exhaust.

Mocking Up The Engine!

3 very productive days! I set the engine in to place and realized I will have to fabricate some higher motor mounts. The engine needs to rise up about 2.5" so the transmission will line up correctly with the X member on the frame. This will allow the drive shaft to go thru the X member without any obstructions.

Once the engine was set into place, I also realized that the springs are too big........ Even with me standing on the front of the frame, the suspension is still resting on the upper control arm rubber. If I jump up and down, it moves nice and smooth, but they are just too tall. By removing 1 coil from each spring, it should lower the front end about 1.5 - 2", giving more room for the suspension to travel.