'70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Even though it's a few months after the fact, but I figured I would write up a build thread for a project that I got myself into a few months back earlier this year. Took a bit of mild convincing, well maybe more than a little bit, to "hack up" his original 28k mile 6 cylinder PG nova with a roll bar, frame connectors, and a new drivetrain. I decided at the end of last year, even though I had gotten the handle on hitting the tree with a low horsepower, tall front tire car, I decided I wanted to go a bit faster. After some thought, and the generosity of a fellow D1 racer in donating a 295hp 350 engine, I decided to go with the 1970 350/300 rated at 286. One thing that sticks in my head is when I suggested that's what I was building to my car owner, I got the response "Nice job choosing the worst 4bbl 350 combo in the guide." A little harsh IMHO, but I decided to do it anyway. I'll start with the chassis/fab work, and move on to the engine. The car owner is a very knowledgeable and talented fabricator, so naturally, with some "here, hold this" assistance from me, we got the bar and frame connectors done to where we are both very satisfied with the final fit and finish. I'll post some pics of this process under this post.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

At some point, I decided I was not a fan of the "70s couch" style bench seat, and with some more convincing, made the decision to fit the car with aluminum racing seats.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Congratulations on "moving up " a bunch in class designation. Anxiously waiting to follow along with your project.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Well being that I just got off the phone with crower try and order a replacement connecting rod (more on that later), I figured I would go ahead and talk a little bit about the engine I put together for the car. I started with a complete 295hp stocker engine that had been sitting for quite some time. I pretty much ended up using the block, cylinder heads, and camshaft due to the crank being cracked, and my lack of trust in stock rods, and worn out .030 over trw pistons. I was originally going to send a stock crank to get cut and indexed, but after realizing I could by a brand new eagle crank from summit for $250, I figured it wasn't worth the effort(in the end I threw the crank in the garbage, spoiler alert.) Nonetheless, I was able to get a great deal on a set of good JE pistons, and some old, but in nice shape, crower rods. I took the cylinder heads to a fellow d1 racer in CT who did a great job with a stocker valve job, and was more than fair in pricing the work. Side note, ever wonder how many sets of sbc cylinder heads fit in the trunk of a 2010 camaro? Well I'm glad you asked because the answer is 4, with some room to spare. Anyway, I got a few replacement valves from Manley, and set up the heads myself with some leftover valve springs I had from the 6 cylinder. The machine work was done by B+B machine in LI, who did a really nice job with everything I had him do, and provided some very useful tips throughout this entire process. For rings, I sort of made up my own ring package. I can't afford the latest in Total seal rings, so I bought a basic set of Enginetech rings, and had a local friend back cut the top two rings for me. I was able to mix and match oil ring expanders to make my own low tension oil ring, and with some fish scale measurements, I was ready to go. I put it together almost all by myself, with some guidance from others in the process. Was able to dig up a set of NOS crane gold rockers, and some morosso valve covers(that leaked horribly), and I was ready for the dyno.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Some pictures to follow up my last post. My cylinder heads are the second pair in on the left for those with keen eyes.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Just curious, did said car owner Splurge for a new Headliner ?

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

No, he did not. The headliner is actually still in pretty nice shape. We did however remove what was left of the original blue rubber floor mat in exchange for black carpet.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Here comes another part of the "story." I had a great time at the dyno with my engine. I was very impressed with myself that everything seemed happy and stayed in one piece, even on the final pull where I decided to go past 7k rpm. I was a little disappointed with the power numbers, but for what it is, I considered it a very successful day at the dyno at RBRE. Now I needed a car to put it in. The date was June 24th. Billy and I had just finished wrapping up what we could with the car with the parts we had available. What I had was pretty much for all intents and purposes a V/SA car with a rollbar, subframe connectors, most of a new carpet, with more material on order from Lutty's in PA (highly recommend), and had 10 days until my proposed "debut" at Numidia for the t+t before the double header. Well I got the car home that night and went to work immediately. With the help of a friend, and some last minute parts runs, we were able to swap the powerglide and 6 cylinder for the small block and metric. Throughout that week I worked on the car for about 6 hours a day. Would come home from work at 3, and, sometimes with help from my Dad, my uncle, and or some other friends, worked on the car until about 9-10pm each day. We decided against cutting up the unmolested 12 bolt that was put in the car years ago, and went for a rear that needed some work anyway. I got rid of the 5/16 fuel line, and opted for a 1/2 line instead. Well long story short I made it to Numidia that wednesday for the test and tune. Out of the box I went the best of an 11.64 at 110 mph, but at the end of the day, the car, and ultimately the oil filter told me something was going very sour with my engine. Even though they can get pricey, I am very thankful for my easily readable KP oil filter....

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Well here's where things got a little "dicey" with my project. After pulling and reading my oil filter, there was an obvious bearing issue going on. The first thing that came to mind was I thought I was done for the season. Well, that didn't happen. As a matter of fact I was back at Numidia 3 days later ready to run the division race. That Wednesday night, my uncle and I had yanked the engine, and blew it apart to inspect the damage. It turns out that all of the bearings were junk, but the big issue was I spun number 6 rod bearing, ruining the connecting rod, and bending the crank .009 in the process. I was and still am very grateful to have been able to dig through some surplus small block parts my uncle had leftover, including a good crank, and some good (relatively speaking) stock connecting rods. So after running around finding bearings, having the rods honed for bearing clearance, and a lot of cleaning, we were back in business to begin assembly Friday morning. After a few hiccups Friday morning, it wasn't until noon that I was able to begin assembly. Well everything sort of just "fell together" and by 6pm, the car was back on the trailer, and I found myself back at Numidia late that evening. The car ran fairly well at the race, and I was very happy, even though I lost first round. Since then, I've been very happy with the progress I've made in picking the car up little by little. Even though it's only gone .50 under in NHRA competition, I'm quite happy with how the car has been running for me.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

The first picture was the not so nice sight of my oil filter after my first day of testing. The second picture was before the first of 2 heads up races I've had already in competition.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Any updates or plans for the Nova during the off season ?

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

I have a few things in the works for next season. Took the engine out a few weeks ago and tore it down. Was pleased with the condition of all the parts, and hopefully picking the block up soon after getting a fresh hone for next year. Mostly going back together with fresh rings, bearings, gaskets, valve job,etc. I may try a different camshaft. Taking the stock rods out and replacing them with the Crower rods that I originally installed on the first build, with the exception of a replacement rod. That's about it for the engine. Even though it worked fine, I'm going to take the initiative to give the transmission a once over, maybe try and make some small changes to improve what I have. I'm going to replace the original rear monoleaf springs with a good used set of calvert split-monos. I may change out the comp engineering "slide-a-link" bars for some caltracs, but not sure yet. (side note, at the end of the year I had a 1.43 60ft with the current setup) I might change out the original front springs as well to give the front some more energy. I will probably "spiff up" the brake system as well. Front disks are not really in the budget for this year, but a good freshen up of the drums should make the car a bit nicer to drive.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Great start on your Nova build. I always like reading about projects and how they evolve with time and use. That 60 foot sounds about awesome. The main thing about this project is how it evolves as you continue to use it. That's the fun thing about this sport.Keep it up and see a lot of Win lights!

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Great progress in such a shot time.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

I've come to learn that sometimes ignorance is bliss. When I "threw" my engine back together in July, it was found that my brand new Eagle crank was off .009 in the middle journal due to the spun rod bearing and all that extra heat and friction. Luckily for me there was a steel GM crank that was recently in an engine that ended up expiring due to other issues. Got some .020 under rod and main bearings, which was difficult in a hurry, and slapped it back together after cleaning the "trash" out of the block the best we could. Well, I decided that I would have the crank balanced before putting it back together this year. Set up the bob weights, and found that the way I was running the crank was 80 grams underbalanced. Funny enough the engine didn't vibrate one bit the way it was. At that point I decided that I wasn't going to put that kind of effort and money in a 50 year old crankshaft, and "sprung" for another cast Eagle crank like I had initially.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

What made you wanna change from V/SA to F/SA ?

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

I sort of got bored of it after a while. After driving a few 10 second cars I got the "bug" to go fast. I sort of ran out of patience for the 6 cylinder. I threw everything that I could, almost the kitchen sink, well in this case, the toolbox, and nothing I did really made the car any faster than it was when it was last ran 10+ years prior. Solid lifters, more modern camshaft grind, roller rockers, radial tires, 7in. converter(yea that definitely didn't work). The only thing I achieved that made the car faster was getting some "welfare" from the good people at NHRA. With my "improvements" I managed to run the best mph the car owner had ever seen by a decent margin, but my cam killed the 60ft, so it ended up being no better for ET. One thing I would've liked to try was a 3 speed over the power glide that was in the car. The 2.74 low may have helped gain back the 60ft I lost with my "big" cam. It may find it's way back into the car some day for laughs, but not right now. Would only take a rear tire change and changing around a few wires.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Well I've made some headway over the past few weeks. Decided to spend my spring break from school working on my engine. Had some pretty late nights and early mornings, but it got done. In the end, I got it together, it sounded good on the "ear dyno," and ran decent on the engine dyno. I spent the entirety of my Saturday this past weekend "spiffing up" the drum brakes on the car. I was luckily able to find a poor soul about 5 minutes from me, up the road from ETown, that was able to cut my drums for me on short notice. Also taught myself the long lost art of rebuilding a wheel cylinder when one was a little weepy, and couldn't get a new one that day. However, the local Autozone did have a rebuild kit, as well as a reasonably priced wheel cylinder/master cylinder hone. I then spent my Easter morning wiring in a new fuse block to replace the "old school" glass fuses as well as creating a combination water pump/fan switch with a double pole switch and a diode. Hopefully by the end of next weekend I will have a running and driving car and can test all of my new(well some only new to me) parts on the "E.T. dyno."

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Well it's been a while since I've added anything to this thread. I've more or less just been racing the car the way it was all season. In the middle of changing my transmission pan for a more purpose built piece, I ended up finding a piece of metal in the bottom of the pan. After getting much more up close and personal with a th200 than I ever had before, we found that it was a piece of the rod that actuates the parking pawl. The rest of the trans showed to be pretty worn, so I also discovered the not so easy task of sourcing th200 clutches and steels. With some luck, I sourced the parts, and the transmission went back together about a week later. The torque converter I've been running that has worked fairly well is a Dynamic that was built in the early 2000s for a 305 stocker. I had the stator changed midway through the season which has improved my 60ft times a bit. My most recent upgrade that I actually documented was changing over the front drums on the car to a good used set of wilwood front discs. An upgrade in another part of my racing "crew" meant that I ended up with these brakes. Was a very straight forward job, and with the addition of a residual pressure valve for the rear drums, I'm in business. Hoping to get out this weekend for the Mid-Atlantic S/SS series to test out my new brakes.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Don't "lose" those original 6 cyl. drums!

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Don?t worry, they?re safe and dry. OBTW, for inquiring minds, the weight savings was 8lb per side. And these are not the super lightweight brakes. They are definitely lighter than a stock rotor, but are still finned.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Any "news" to share or results from this season ?

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Well, I've had some ups and downs this season. For the most part, the car has been great. Apart from maybe one or two runs, the car has followed my ET predictions really well. As a driver I've sort of just been all over the place this season. But, for it only being my 3rd full season of racing, I can't be too unhappy with how I've been doing. I've definitely made some progress in my E.T.'s this season compared to last year. My best ET in NHRA competition this year has been 11.21, knocking on the .65 under mark. The timing of the Dutch classic this year could be a recipe for some fast runs. I'm pretty pleased with how the car has been running. I am aware of a handful of things that are making my car "slow," but for now, my budget has determined where I've spent my money with this project. The front discs haven't shown me any ET so far, but the car is much nicer to stage, and more importantly it stops much better than before.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Well I originally was going to end the season with the conclusion of the "Dutch Classic/Virginia LODRS," but I made a last minute decision to do some "foot swapping" down at M.I.R. this past weekend to close out my season. For having never not used the 2 step, the car worked very well with a best of a 1.42 60ft. I struggled hitting the very loose tree, and by the time I figured out what I had to do, it was too late. I did manage to go a few rounds here and there, with a 4th round loss in the "gamblers" race Saturday night being the most notable, which made for some very nice pictures of the car. For Stock/Super Stock racers that never have, I would definitely recommend attending a "money race" like this some time. This marks the end of the season, with my best E.T. at an NHRA race now being an 11.18 at almost 116 at maple grove. Work on the car this winter will most likely reside in things like "neatening up" the wiring in the car, as well as some fiddling around with the "traction bar" setup that is on the car currently.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Wow! nice car! ;-)

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

So how would you rate the footbrake vs 2 step, which was better for RT and 60'? Do you leave at the same rpm?
I wanted to try some runs on footbrake only but haven't had a chance yet.
Nice picture and a pretty good wheelie for an 11 sec. car that looks like the front doesn't have a ton of travel dialed in.
(also like the color :))

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

My testing in footbrake vs 2 step is inconclusive. From looking at timeslips with similar 330' and 660' numbers, the 60ft times I was seeing down there were very similar to what I've seen with the 2 step. However, the headers that I was using at Maple grove were not my own, and I had to return them to their owner, so I threw my "trusty" hooker super competition 1-3/4 headers on and went down there. The car was down on 660' mph from Maple grove, which I am going to "blame" on the header change, but, I was also running the car a little heavier at the footbrake race to try and ward off any potential traction issues. What I did notice, was I used my 2 step launch rpm as my footbrake rpm point, and then at one point decided to go up 500 rpm, and the car picked up .02 in 60ft. Personally, my "grouping" of R/T has proven to be more consistent on the "foot swap" over the 2 step. As far as front end travel goes, the springs that I put in the car are definitely better than what was in there, but the front end runs out of energy pretty quickly. I like the "lowered" look the car has, but trying to find springs that will keep the front end low, as well as retain energy all the way through the range of travel is proving to be tricky.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

I'm definitely going to try the footbrake and some more rpm, a .02 improvement in the 60' would be good.
I also would like to change my Hooker super competition headers for a set from REF and try a radial tire. (When the budget allows)
I bought new springs from Marty Rinehart, you might want to give him a try.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Well, it's been a while since I've posted on this thread. The car has seen a few changes over the past few months, and I was forced to learn some things. The most obvious change to the car is that the car once again sounds like it has a 230-inch 6 cylinder in it, but that is just due to the bundle of snakes that found their way onto the car earlier last month (see pictures below). While I was assisting with the headers, I noticed the bellhousing on my th200 was cracked yet again. This time I figured out why it re-cracked the bellhousing and remedied the issue. Due to time constraints, and the fact that I conveniently purchased a core for $75 a few weeks prior, I taught myself (with some over the phone guidance) on how to re-case a th200. So far so good with my DIY transmission, and as far as the headers go, they aren't too shabby either. I've also been driving myself crazy with ride height changes, which I'm hoping to put an end to by installing some 180lb/in landrum front springs in the next day or so. I had a fun trip with Billy out in Norwalk last week, where the "crew cab" nova made an appearance. Next stop, Lebanon Valley next weekend.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Would love to know how the crossovers perform vs some 4 to 1's. Super cool!

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Well, I have had 2 different sets of conventional 4 to 1 headers on the car. These are definitely better than the hooker 1 3/4 super competition headers that I ran on the car. The other set was a 1 3/4 to 1 7/8 header that was VERY long, even though the car didn't seem to care much. Just "throwing them on" they are pretty good, but with some testing there might still be some more in them.

Re: '70 Nova V/SA to F/SA Makeover
 

Badasp looking pipes!