barefootcyborg5000 said:And in a case of severe stuff-acquisition-syndrome, I've purchased a proper quadrajet for whatever engine I end up using. It's only slightly jammed up, but there's no play in the throttle shaft and at $25 I'm not too fussed either way. Ideally it's close to correct for a slightly warm 350... so we'll see.
slightly crusty is all.
Can't go wrong with that one for $25. You going to freshen it up yourself?
In reply to Indy - Guy :
I'm certainly not going to pay anyone else... RA shows the rebuild kit for $16 so... I did pull the top and while it is crusty, nothing is stuck and it is all there.
I've just always had good luck with QJs and nothing but headaches with AFBs. And I'm too caveman to want to deal with or afford any of the Holley variants. Give me a Qjet and an HEI any day.
For better or for worse
Still undecided, though hear me out. Above is a running 305. I wouldn't feel guilty at all to just reseal it and go. It came with a decent AFB, a nice billet HEI, and a decent manifold. A few hours with a grinder and a cam set later and it would be an honest 250hp and 300tq truck motor. It would make the little s10 quite a handful for very minimal investment. A transmission kit and a shifter would finish out the package for probably $1500 all in, including the mounts and all.
Or, a bit more money to do the same thing to the 350 we picked up just to use the heads on the Funderbird. That is a roller cam, 4 bolt block that looks really good. Heads are off and the cylinders look great, no ridge, and is a cam and some flat pistons from a number closer to 350hp. It's more money for the rebuild, and needs an intake, but it's going to be a better result. The heads are not cracked, and I don't see any signs of damage otherwise. Cam is more money, intake... probably end up closer to $3k in the truck. Too much power, still needs lowered, still handles like a truck, yada yada. That's the recipe I'd like for the zephyr. That platform has a better chance of being an all around package than a mini truck with 4x factory power and a 7.25" diff. And leaf springs.
Either recipe includes a manual valve 4l60.
cheap truck swap: zero extra cars. The trans needs replaced anyway. Cheap
Zephyr swap: still cheapish, more fun. Double the bench seats. Ugly sleeper.
barefootcyborg5000 said:For better or for worse
....cheap truck swap: zero extra cars. The trans needs replaced anyway. Cheap
Zephyr swap: still cheapish, more fun. Double the bench seats. Ugly sleeper.
Why not do both?
Or is that already the plan>? Do both?
In reply to Indy - Guy :
Both is a long term possibility. Leaves me with a transmission deficit, but that could be overcome.
And the dumb ideas continue. There's still the 400 from the Funderbird. It's a known runner that's already been resealed, new plugs, water pump, all that. It's wearing some 1.94/1.50 valves and 76cc heads. We could take that 8:1 lump and make it 10:1 with the 1.94/1.50 54cc 305 heads.
And now y'all see why I titled this thread the way I did.
Fickle? What do you mean?
I'd be tempted to use the 305 to get things moving along and avoid analysis paralysis, since that would get you moving but not preclude you from preparing the other two motors.
And the much lower cost helps
In reply to Piguin :
That's actually a pretty good idea 
I like penguins idea
In reply to Piguin :
Not a bad idea. Cheaply reseal the 305 and just send it for now. Wouldn't even bother rings or bearings. The rest is stuff I'd need anyway. Then take some time to properly build the 350, swap when ready.
It is with a heavy heart and much introspection that I post the following photo.
Time has passed and decisions have been made and things were done.
Parts are being scavenged and the rest will be scrapped. The Funderbird is no more.
Still in a holding pattern for the S10 project, but there are three SBCs and two transmissions that are up for grabs. So we will see. New house is a month to completion, so I will have my own garage, but monthly expenses will also be going up so my project budget is going to be minimal for the next while.
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