Re: 1972 Chevelle SBC combo
 

It's a good think I'm not a newbie. After reading all this, I would run like hell. 20 thousands dollar motor. 2nd house mortgage.

Re: 1972 Chevelle SBC combo
 

^^^^^THIS!^^^^^^^

Rick Thomason
GTOMayhem

Re: 1972 Chevelle SBC combo
 

You can build something in your backyard and be competitive. You might even win a trophy or two. I would recommend enjoying all aspects of the sport.

Re: 1972 Chevelle SBC combo
 

Thank you everyone for all of the comments. I wouldn't consider myself a "newbie" per say as I started following class racing more than 30 years ago as a teenager. I attended several Divisional and National events per year with a Division 3 champ in the late 80s/early 90s all the way from Florida to Canada. About 15 years ago I had a '95 Impala SS that I ran in Pure Stock while living in NC. I have never owned a Chevelle and thought with a gear and converter change I might be able to put an engine together to run the index and have fun but didn't know which combination would be best. I also didn't realize that competitive long blocks cost the numbers you guys are mentioning. My wife and I are both high school math teachers and with a daughter in college that's out of the question now. However, it's not unreasonable for us to start gathering the correct casting heads, intake and carburetor as I run upon them.

Re: 1972 Chevelle SBC combo
 

Hey Scott;
Yeah I am stll chasing that 95 Impala SS Corbit Mashburn bought from you.
It ran 1.3 under the index on a good cold day.
You forgot about the B/PS LS1 Vette you had that ran a second under.
Got close with a 1.1 under in my 95 SS on a cold air day.

Can run Stock with the Chevelle a 350 4bbl for about $10000 for engine trans TQ and Gears.
The rest of the car looks great!
Have fun with it!

Re: 1972 Chevelle SBC combo
 

I do recognize your handle now ..Is it Scott then?
What meant by newbie was in regard to ladder games. Only a few that are really good at it. Would hate to see you have to worry about it all the time.
A couple of things that a few of us have been talking about regarding tech ,as a Stocker. First ,there's the hood, of course. You also need the rubber strip that seals it against the cowl.
The firewall will probably be okay, if not too extreme. Hard to tell in picture.
The air filter top is not legal.
Rear suspension ? Post some pics, if you can.

Re: 1972 Chevelle SBC combo
 

1.1 under is awesome Dan! Congratulations! :D

We will see where we go with the Chevelle. It's just in the exploratory phase now as I examine combinations and see what's possible and if we want to go that route. Currently we show the car locally often and plan to do some bigger regional shows this summer. I also hope to hit some Super Chevy events and try my hand at True Street. I think the car has a solid 9 in it with the fogger system (which I know will have to be removed if I do jump to Stock).

Take care.

Scott

Re: 1972 Chevelle SBC combo
 

Since it's an SS hood on the Chevelle (it is an OEM steel GM piece), even though it's a small block Malibu, I thought that would be legal. It is on some of the Camaros correct? Sorry, had to throw that in for fun.

The rear suspension currently is stock. Lower control arms have been boxed but nothing as far as suspension aides other than CE adjustable shocks. I know there are some quality aftermarket bolt-in options out there that would be legal.

Yes, we aren't interested in playing the ladder games just to avoid heads-up runs. If we aren't fast enough at this point we aren't fast enough. That's why I was inquiring about combinations for this car since, for whatever reason, there aren't a ton of Chevelles running Stock so I wanted to see if there was an engine choice that landed it in a less-populated class. My wife and I are just interested more in the travel and the friendships to be made with other car guys and gals. Most likely will never be fast enough for Indy and don't plan on that serious of a financial investment; wanted to see if I could put something together in my shop on my own and run the number. I understand it won't be a dime rocket but I also don't want to mortgage the house to build a serious engine.

Scott

Re: 1972 Chevelle SBC combo
 

You're wise to ask questions first. The major acquisition you already have-the car.It looks very decent, and would make a good Stock E project. You would have to put in a five point bar and a harness, carpet the back seat area and all that, but a good fab man could make a bar that would be removable at a later date so as not to forever alter the car. Assuming it has a 12 bolt, there is another costly obstacle overcome. A ring and pinion and axle and spool with C clip eliminator kits from Strange or Mark Williams or whoever is about half the cost of a whole rear end. Suspension pieces,shocks and springs are readily available,and are not difficult to install. Any 350 block that's decent to start with will do, a Dart block is nice, but a little costly. Cylinder head cores are very common even still,the 993,882, and 487 heads came on a lot of engines for several years between'71and 76, the intake is a one year part, #751,still common,you want the 9207 Q-Jet, get a Deano, a Holroyd, a Hedworth, there are a lot of excellent carb guys out there, the 350 trans would be a good place to start, for gears, 5.13-5.38's are an excellent place to start, just take your time and collect parts as you go along. I've raced small block Chevelles for some time, it's a consistent and user-friendly car. Good luck on your project, don't get in a hurry and buy stuff you don't need, and don't let somebody push their worn out junk parts on you thinking they will take advantage of a newbie.Oh, yes. In '72, the Chevelle SS was available with a 350. Your hood is legal with that combo if raced as an SS.

Re: 1972 Chevelle SBC combo
 

I have a steel hood for the car, I don't remember if its a SS or not.