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  1. S

    Dyno do’s and Dyno don’ts

    I particularly like the USMC stickers on the butterfly, very nice touch!!! Damn good lookin' mill, attaboy!
  2. S

    Putting on fuel injection! And a bunch of other upgrades

    454 TBI's/manifolds are known for freezing up, that's why the hot water adapter between the factory TBI and intake. Is this issue alleviated with use of an intake with a heat crossover?
  3. S

    Dyno do’s and Dyno don’ts

    I was fortunate enough to be able to watch dozens of big-inch engines being broken in and tuned on a dyno in a top shelf engine builder's shop. They NEVER had one blow up on the dyno. A dyno gives you a chance to seat the rings correctly and double check everything before you hammer on it. Load...
  4. S

    My 1980 K20 with a Quadrajet left me stranded...help

    Good on you, great looking truck. Nothing in the world wrong with a quadrajet and rebuilt correctly, it'll give you great fuel economy (for a carb in a truck with the aerodynamics of a wall) and last forever. I flew from Lubbock TX to KC and drove an '85 Mercedes convertible home once in...
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    Need help finding info/parts for 'burb tailgate

    ^ Nothing wanted to break loose. For anyone wondering what their next Milwaukee Fuel 18V purchase should be, I highly recommend the HackZall. One handed sawzall. About 5 minutes and it was out. I used it last week to cut complete fender openings along with inner fenders from a '91 Suburban...
  6. S

    Need help finding info/parts for 'burb tailgate

    Half price sale in the morning from 9 to 10, might have too grab a couple of wrenches and get the handle and this transmission mechanism.
  7. S

    Need help finding info/parts for 'burb tailgate

    ^thanks for that info! Warmer weather today, hope to get it out and see what the hell is going on. Local boneyard has an '81 with what looks like the same setup and it works fine. I think I'd probably rather work with an original if it's not badly worn than aftermarket.
  8. S

    Need help finding info/parts for 'burb tailgate

    Thanks for the reply, but I'm not having trouble with the glass motor or regulator, it's the mechanism that's connected to and activates the latch rods for the tailgate.
  9. S

    Porter cherry bombs?

    Dumps aren't that expensive and you can ride in peace when you want to. If you're going to be loud, be LOUD!
  10. S

    Need help finding info/parts for 'burb tailgate

    My '83 Suburban has an issue with the opening mechanism on the tailgate. It opens fine but does not spring back into position, so it doesn't latch and stay latched. From the few parts illustrations I have seen, this is controlled by a torsion spring mounted on the rotating shaft of the...
  11. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    Try a want to buy engine in craiglist, must be running. TBI's are fairly common and it's not difficult to take care of the center bolts issue. There's something about the roller TBI and Vortec blocks as well as the Gen 6 big blocks that makes 'em very resistant to wear. I've got pistons on...
  12. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    "And I will not purchase any parts or make any plans until I am confident that my efforts will result in a running engine, capable of filling the gap until I have time and resources to complete a more powerful and reliable engine" Too many people get excited at this stage and start buying parts...
  13. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    Before you do anything else, at least pull every main and rod cap and look for damage. A turned crank may put this out of budget, especially if you have to swap a rod. If none look worse than the one you showed, I think you're probably fine. I've never seen a production oil pump wear out...
  14. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    How deep is that score and what caused it? Busted ring? Trash? Can you clean it up and post a pic? Is there a ledge near the tops of the bores that can you can catch your fingernail on? Scotch Brite has abrasives in it , I think the red is about 400 grit, similar to a hone. Don't scrub a...
  15. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    Ask your machinist for an estimate of what it would cost to do all this machine work and parts. Might be within a few hundred of a crate engine. Best to learn now before you're into it for a stack.
  16. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    Keep the rods and caps together, you can't swap them around. And yes, mark each with the cylinder it's out of. Pushrods can all go together. When it's time to pull the cam, flip it on it's top and rotate the cam a few times to get all the lifters up. Chances of saving this cam are close to...
  17. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    That rusty cylinder looked rough. Tear it completely down and take it to the machine shop and have them give it a good once-over. Tell them your situation and ask what options you have. A good machinist will spend your money as though it were his and he were on your budget. They're plenty...
  18. S

    what do you guys think of a Short Burb

    Hate to contribute to a dead thread, but if you search YouTube, you can find the build for this shorty suburban. It is real. More than anything, they were trying to shorten the huge rear overhang for crawling, it caught on too much.
  19. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    I had a similar situation a few years back. Machine shop ran a hone through all the bores and honed the bad one to .040 over, ordered one piston, new rings, etc. and I put it back together. As long as the replacement piston is close in weight to the others, you'll never know. But you do have a...
  20. S

    Door Spring Replacement

    ^ I think that's pretty much internet-wide. Saw a tattoo a few days ago of a 10mm socket with wings, "Gone...but not forgotten".
  21. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    Shouldn't be, just bolts. Go ahead and drop the trans pan and drain it, then put it back on but not real tight. You're going to want to put a new filter in and add fresh fluid anyway, right? This will help a little bit with fluid loss but you're still going to spill some. I don't know of a...
  22. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    Once it turns over enough for you to get to all the torque converter bolts, rest the trans on a pallet, enough to take the weight off. Once that last bolt is out, take the bellhousing bolts out and you're good to go. You can be sure you have all the TC bolts when you can move it further into...
  23. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    I'd put the top and bottom bellhousing bolts in on both sides and snug 'em up a bit, that will distribute the load. Leave it on the cherry picker, you won't be able to wrestle it around much if it's on a pallet. Tie that transmission to the cherry picker to stabilize it, otherwise you'll be...
  24. S

    Door Spring Replacement

    Those are GMT-400's with the coil spring and that tool works like a champ.
  25. S

    Suburban Project- Need Help!

    You should be able to knock 3 or 4 pistons out from the bottom without moving the crank. Loosen all the rod caps slightly but leave the mains alone. Once you get a few out, you should be able to turn it enough to get to the TC bolts, start with rocking it back and forth. I use a piece of 2x2...

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