Beemon

John, when the case is dismissed with prejudice, it means there can never be a round two. It's basically over with no victor on either side and cannot be taken to court for the same issue ever again, at least in Washington.

Case was dismissed with prejudice. The judge made his decision after consulting another judge on the grounds of no concrete evidence to show he was at fault. It's definitely a learning experience, next time I'll be sure to have affidavits before serving, and not after. That was the only reason why it was dismissed. It was really weird, it wasn't a win or lose for either side, which says a lot about the character of the machinist.

Rooster, maybe I have them backwards. If it's a 401, it should work. Otherwise, I don't think BestGasket would sell a complete kit with the rubber two piece - the 322 kits come with a rope seal instead.

Great write up and great pictures Ken. I've been trying to figure this one out myself, and finally settled on a system. You should made a post a while ago! There's a guy local in Washington that is making a direct bolt on unit that is near identical to the 56 setup, but also for the 55s, too. It goes through your normal duct system, too. I can't tell from your pictures, did you route the hoses through the drain hole on the plenum?

The rubber seal does not work on the 264/322 because of the machined groove in the rear main. However, supposedly the 364/401/425 have been reported with great success to work because the machining of the rear main is consistent. I think the difference between the two is the 322 looks like this: \_/ and the later engines look like this: |_|

I presented enough evidence to raise reasonable doubt with the Judge and I'll find out tomorrow what the verdict is. The defendant argued with me in trial about the material of the connecting rods, and claimed they were cast iron when they are forged steel. He explained that he heated them in a "rod forge" for 6 minutes at about 1000 degrees. I explained to the judge the shop manual requires they be pressed in. Judge asked him if he's ever seen this type of damage, he said it was rare and he's only seen one piston do that on one engine. He was trying his hardest to bank on a "word of mouth" warranty and his ASE Master Machinist certification. He also claimed the rods were faulty from the factory and were going to fail anyways. This was after I told the judge it was all 8. I told the judge that if he didn't know the difference between cast iron and forged steel, and the fact that he didn't mic out the rod eye to confirm faulty rods, he installed them regardless and was either incompetent or negligent. He was also quick to denounce the engineers that designed the rotating assembly, and thought he knew a whole lot about heat expansion and stresses... I brought my engineering books with me and provided explanations and formulas. The Judge said because I didn't have any affidavits or witnesses to help my case, he was going to do his own research and get back to us Friday about the final verdict. Obviously since he didn't side with the "master machinist", there is some reasonable doubt and I'm confident of the outcome. I have nothing to lose if I win or not, so I won't be upset whether the outcome. During mediation, he offered me $250 to cover half the cost of the engine I bought to get the car back up and running, and this was after he refused my offer of $2000 just to buy components and cover machine work to start over again. The total I'm suing for is $5000, considering the bill of sale was ~$4700 and the $300 extra is to cover one of my core engine blocks and some gas. I told him I'd rather lose in court than take his insult money. One of my favorite quotes now is "Why are you doing this to me??" In terms of engine update, I'm pretty certain I have a rear main leak. I received a knee injury at work a few days after installing, so I never got to put the transmission inspection plate back on the car. In the driveway, there is about a foot and a half long oil line from what I presume is the flywheel throwing it on start-up. Looks almost like the wall my parents marked as I grew up. Hoping to recover soon. Now I regret pulling the pan, but at that point it would have been a complete engine tear down... lol. Hoping to feel well enough to get low before school and try the Willie trick. I kinda refrained from posting because I know how a lot of people on the forums are... "how can you live with yourself knowing he'll be in poverty if you win?" Not my problem, really. If you're going to hide behind your "master machinist" papers, then get ready to face the music when you think you're too good to pay up and underestimate some dumb kid who doesn't know any better. Also I included his wife in the suite, not because she was co-owner of his shop, but because he's "in-between jobs" after being fired from his last machine shop job (I WONDER WHY) and she's not. Also kind of makes it hard to hide money... If I win, I don't expect all the money to land on my door, but I figure two years from now when I graduate, I'll be able to have another engine built right. Sorry if I offend anyone because I've done this, I don't have a bleeding heart and I've never been to church. When I invest $5000, I expect it to last and wear out over time. I don't expect it to be faulty before leaving the shop, but I guess that's what happens when you don't verify the "expert's" work.

Looks like it goes pretty fast

Without finding an original two barrel carburetor, you'll have to rewire your ignition system to use an aftermarket Holley or competition Rochester remake... there isn't a whole lot out there for two barrel carbs.

99,999 rolled over on the odometer.

Just remember Pilgrim, the Torque Tube and associated parts is what separates the men from the boys.

Do you not have the original carburetor that came with the engine? What about the intake? Is it two barrel or four barrel?

https://www.jgrelining.com/services

Would be nice to see the condition of the engine. I always hate these listings that show a beautiful exterior, but when you get it, everything else is in disrepair.

LED bulbs almost generate no heat. The heat from incandescent bulbs comes from the filament, something the LED doesn't have. However, you would need a special dimmer switch to control the brightness of the bulbs. Because LEDs are not resistors like traditional bulbs and will not be affected by a change in load, they're either on or off. You can probably find them online, but LED bulb technology, at least in the automotive world, is really lacking. LED bulbs require a projector to diffuse the light properly because it only shines in one direction, versus an incandescent bulb that shines omni-directional and only requires a reflector or nothing at all. It might look good in practice, but when installed it might look bad because the LED bulb, unless shining directly on the gauge, will not illuminate properly. There are many online sources for bulbs, just stay away from the tower bulbs and single bulbs where the LED has a clear lense. LEDs are just now becoming descent for house lighting, it should be soon I would suspect that they will be getting better for automotive application.

Scrap Iron, out of curiosity, what MSD distributor fits the old straight 8's?

I'm 25, I own one car (my first) and it's my 56 Buick.

I'm not sure for the 90 fin but it definitely looks too tall for a 2.25" shoe. When I was looking for Roadmaster 2.5" shoes, they didn't exist either but that's what they came with, could be the same here.

That's what you call going green for the environment. Now all it needs is a Lithium battery sub frame that, when reaches the end of it's lifespan in 10 years, will be much more toxic for the environment to dispose than hydrocarbon emissions.

I found this on Ebay today. I saw it locally on Craigslist and thought it was the original setup, but turns out the same guy that is doing the brake pedal conversion has now also done a stock-like firewall AC system that is supposedly smaller profile than the factory. Looks pretty clean, just thought I would pass it on! A setup like this could look pretty good, would just then need to grab the dash pad and controls so you can really get that 56 AC flowing.

Are you running progressive linkage with EFI?

There are two different sizes, 2.25" shoes and 2.5" shoes. It looks like your 45 fin has 2.25" shoes and the 90 fin drum has 2.5" drums. I have two 45 fin drums I had gotten last year to convert to the aluminum drums, they're both 2.25". They don't have a lot of meat on them, but if I recall correctly someone relines them now. On one of them I had removed the rivets to separate the drum from the hub to see if they'd work on a stock hub, but they interfered with the stock backing plates on my 56 Buick and stuck out .25" off the hub. Both drums are worn down between the fins and the brake surface, where the backing plate rides. They are no use to me, PM me and maybe we can work something out? You can also get replacement drums over the counter, they're cast iron instead of aluminum, but is a cheaper more local fix to your problem... just need to remove the rivets that hold them to the hub.

I've been using Gates 4219XL which has a maximum burst of 50psi; I've had zero issues with it.

$200 for parts, $400 for a runner I think is pretty ball park. That's what I paid for my engine cores.

I would look into disc brakes on the front. Now I know, I know, I've been down this road before. But considering hauling a trailer at 60mph down a steep incline in narrow highways, brake fade will be a serious problem to look out for. I agree with everyone else about external transmission cooler and more cooling potential for the engine.

The part that gives it away is that it doesn't have the gasket surface for the valley cover. Luckily there are engines out there, too. Trust Salvage, owned by Matt Cooper. He's open 10-3 I believe only on Saturdays. 253 735 6690, located at 14909 SE 326th St, Auburn, Wa. You'd be surprised what you find out there.