Trinten's SBC/F23 build - The work has begun! (Page 7/76)
Trinten SEP 05, 12:08 AM
Jncomutt - thank you for the cable! I haven't heard from Joe today, I asked him to call me when he knew he'd be at the shop. Looks like I'll be getting out there tomorrow to get that cable in. PM me with your email that you have paypal on (if you have it?) if not we'll meet up sometime and I'll get the cash to you.


FieroGuru-

Thank you for the info! That is the valve cover I had: A plastic one with a 4x sensor in there. The 411 ECM is the one I intend to use! The small harmonic balancer/pulley was rubbing against the plastic. I showed Joe your info on the spacer. He said it was possible to do, but then we'd need to space out the alternator and everything else by the 1/4 inch so the pulleys would line up. I don't think he looked at the pictures, so he might have misunderstood the placement/purpose of the spacer. I'm not sure. All that stuff is out of my depth, so I was just relaying info between you guys.

Maybe when I got to do the EFI conversion, I can make a trip out to your place if you'd be interested. I'd be happy to compensate you for the time/trouble. What do you say?


So next time I'm at the shop, my personal checklist is:
Get the new throttle cable in.
Be annoyed with my cracked skeleton and those damn plastic tabs.
flush out my A/C lines with some compressed air
Help Joe with whatever he's working on after I'm done with all that crap.


Joes list (to my knowledge):
Make sure the A/C lines can get around the headers
Finish getting the old valve cover on if not done (we didn't have any gasket sealant)
Put the damn thing in the car.
Hook it up and put the suspension back together.
See if I can get him to help me swap in the S10 master cylinder (please tell me it is the thing that is the brake fluid resevoir with that weird metal pipe under it?)
Get the brakes back on, filled up, bleed them
Get the rest of the fluids in there.

Then we take it for a test drive down an empty, low traffic side street in case anything goes Horribly Wrong (tm).

[This message has been edited by Trinten (edited 09-05-2010).]

Jncomutt SEP 05, 12:27 AM
Just curious as to why you're putting an S10 master cylinder in it?
Trinten SEP 05, 12:34 AM
It doesn't have to go on there now, but if I recall correctly, it was one of the recommended upgrades for doing any sort of brake upgrade. Eventually I'll be doing the Lebaron brake upgrade (unless something better comes along before then), already got the master cylinder and the ten-degree brackets.

Will It hurt anything to have that master cylinder on there with the rest of the brake system stock?
L67 SEP 05, 01:45 AM
You're confusing the master for the brake booster. Switching to the S10 master without the aided assist of the more powerful booster is going to make braking a choir, if not impossible; given how terrible brake leverage/clamp already is.

-Paul

[This message has been edited by L67 (edited 09-05-2010).]

fieroguru SEP 05, 08:25 AM

quote
Originally posted by Trinten:
FieroGuru-

Thank you for the info! That is the valve cover I had: A plastic one with a 4x sensor in there. The 411 ECM is the one I intend to use! The small harmonic balancer/pulley was rubbing against the plastic. I showed Joe your info on the spacer. He said it was possible to do, but then we'd need to space out the alternator and everything else by the 1/4 inch so the pulleys would line up. I don't think he looked at the pictures, so he might have misunderstood the placement/purpose of the spacer. I'm not sure. All that stuff is out of my depth, so I was just relaying info between you guys.

Maybe when I got to do the EFI conversion, I can make a trip out to your place if you'd be interested. I'd be happy to compensate you for the time/trouble. What do you say?




Joe is correct in that putting the pulley where it needs to be to clear the plastic timing cover will force all of the other accessories to move, but that really isn't that bad compared to modifying the balancer pulley. When the time comes to convert to EFI, just send me a PM and we can see if we can work something out.
Trinten SEP 05, 11:31 AM
L67 - thank you for the catch/correction! That could have been very, very bad. So I need to get an S10 brake BOOSTER and put it on there. Does that require changing the master cylinder as well, or can I leave the Fiero one in place? In the meantime, off to reread that brake thread...

FieroGuru - Sounds like a good plan to me, thank you for being open to discussing it!
Jncomutt SEP 05, 12:10 PM
I've done the S10 booster in my sisters car, you dont need to upgrade the master cylinder at the same time. The typical upgrade mc,however, is from a full size blazer. It's a quick take up, 1.125" bore.

------------------
| 1984 3800 Turbo / 5speed | 518hp on a Dyno-dynamics | 11.8 @ 129mph |

Trinten SEP 05, 12:25 PM
Thanks Jncomutt, maybe I'll luck out and find that the master cylinder I have is from a full blazer. It was one of the things I picked up from Skoon.
L67 SEP 05, 01:25 PM
Understand, that using a larger vacuum assist isn't going to make your braking situation any better; the brakes will lock and fade faster. You should be considering larger, *vented*, rotors, because therein lies the problem. The S10 booster will be a metaphorical band aid, if you will.

The difference between the Grand Am upgrade + S10 booster and the stock system, is through the windshield verse standing on the brakes to stop. I drove a stock system home last night, after a few drinks, and still can't believe how unacceptable they are.
Jncomutt SEP 05, 01:55 PM
Though I don't want to sidetrack this into a brake thread, Paul is right. The larger MC will give you harder pedal feel, with less travel, using the stock calipers. The S10 booster will increase the assist and therefore make the pedal feel more like stock, but you are still pushing more fluid to the calipers using less pedal travel. The result is that the calipers squeeze a lot harder, a lot quicker. They feel like they 'bite' much quicker and lock up during 'panic stop' becomes very easy. Of course, the better the tires you have, the better you can stop, as well.

Putting those 11.25" rotors on there, with the S10 and the larger MC is asking for some serious braking power.

[This message has been edited by Jncomutt (edited 09-05-2010).]