Chevelle 2.0
 

Since Photobucket kinda messed up my original Chevelle 2.0 thread, I decided to just start fresh with a new one. So here goes Chevelle 2.0 again, AKA, The Blue Car.

The plan is to make this version a more dedicated track car along with some autox. The first step is to update the chassis and I decided to build my own (more or less) because my budget doesn't allow an aftermarket chassis.

This has been going on for some time so there will be an overload of pictures with or without comments just to get caught up.

As a side note, this is the first chassis I’ve built. You may see some things that don’t make sense to you or it may seem like I’m doing things the hard way, and I probably am! I’m learning as I go and ask for help when I need it.

This is the donor '66 chassis I started with:

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4747/...ee213c68_b.jpg00001 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The first thing I did was to strip it down to the bare frame.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4608/...8db7461b_b.jpg00006 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Next I got it sandblasted.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4718/...a59a3e89_b.jpg00007 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Then I sprayed some primer on the areas that I was going to keep.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4743/...905c41ec_b.jpg00008 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Once I got the frame mounted on the frame table, I installed all of the suspension from my car on to the new frame. That way I could locate the front and rear axle center lines. Once I cut the front and rear sections off the frame, I needed to know where to put the new stuff.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4661/...76eea6b7_b.jpg00009 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4649/...a8050f3b_b.jpg00010 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Speaking of new stuff, back when I worked at Ridetech, I bought a front clip from Scott Mock that uses C5 components.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4700/...01648899_b.jpg00012 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With the suspension mounted I was able to locate the front axle center line. To ensure I put the new spindles in the same place, I made a pair of stands that I could bolt to the hubs and table to keep things from moving around.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4768/...c528d7fb_b.jpg00013 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4757/...f0654f18_b.jpg00014 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

After I felt confident about the center line, I placed the new front clip on the frame to get an idea of where I needed to cut.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4621/...e7403f7d_b.jpg00015 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Instead of cutting off too much, I chose to be a little more cautious. I cut the main cross member off…

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4696/...34995ccd_b.jpg00016 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

And then I followed that up with more precision cuts.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4742/...56d06cb5_b.jpg00017 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

After I was happy with the cuts, I lowered the new clip in place to see how it fit.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4748/...9bb3b389_b.jpg00018 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4663/...18feb50f_b.jpg00019 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4714/...b97b6380_b.jpg00020 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

After I got it in place and the fit seemed good, I needed to fine tune the location. I did that with string, bubble levels, and spacers.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4770/...f605ef86_b.jpg00021 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4607/...425b1cb7_b.jpg00022 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4660/...ecdd7ec4_b.jpg00023 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

After I was happy with its location, I tacked it in place and started figuring out how to permanently attach the clip to the side rails.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4654/...bfa218d2_b.jpg00024 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4619/...cbbda541_b.jpg00025 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4708/...62909b9f_b.jpg00026 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With that out of the way, I made a wheel fitment tool because I’m too cheap to buy one!

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4630/...7da6fac4_b.jpg00027 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With my new tool, I was able to mount a 315/30-18 tire and adjust the back space to simulate a wheel to check for clearance around the frame and suspension components.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4712/...cd4a95af_b.jpg00028 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4715/...3868b0c5_b.jpg00029 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Next comes the rear suspension…

Its looking like a great start!!! Subscribing.

Herb, I can’t wait to see more. I have to say that I wasn’t aware you no longer are with RideTech. Where have I been?
What drivetrain will this have? 315’s all around....me likey!

Nice Herb!!

Sweet!! That wheel fitment tool is ingenious. I wish that I was half as smart.

Thanks!

Thanks Scott! Yeah, I left Ridetech in June 2016 so I could use my GI Bill before it expired. Time flies and I didn't want to wake up one day and it be too late. After leaving Ridetech I enrolled in a two year welding program at Vincennes University. It's a decent program but unfortunately it's geared more towards pipe and structural welding, which is a lot different than motorsports welding.

The engine is an all aluminum 509" big Chevy. The trans is still a question and the rear is a full floater 9".

Front will be 18x11 w/ 315s and the rear will be 18x12 w/ 335s.

Thanks Greg! How have you been doing?

Thanks! I'm not sure if the tool idea was ingenious but it did save me some money!

As promised, it’s time for the rear suspension. When I started this project my original plan was to get the rear frame kit from ABC Performance so I could stuff 335s out back. After thinking about it for a while I decided that if I’m going to go through all this work I wanted to try something different. During my dealings with Ron Sutton while I was at Ridetech, I learned about his suspension kits, specifically his offset three-link. After some discussion and numerous emails, a big ol brown box showed up on my door step with this stuff in it…

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4669/...13f06a38_b.jpg10015 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

After having cut the front end apart with a 4 ½” grinder, I broke down and bought this Eastwood plasma cutter. It was relatively cheap, has a better warranty than the big names, and it works awesome! So far it has been able to cut ¼” plate without the slightest hiccup. Highly recommended if you’re in the market for a plasma cutter.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4749/...2cfbf791_b.jpg10020 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With the old 9” in place, I located the stock rear axle centerline using a good old fashioned plumb bob. (I added the red line to show the plane I was using)

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4763/...07764f47_b.jpg00012.1 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With the centerline marked, I removed all the rear suspension and started measuring for the new parts.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4670/...750a4205_b.jpg10027 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Wanting to keep the body mount, I was able to do some fancy cutting thanks to the plasma!

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4622/...40648317_b.jpg10028 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4743/...2c6f55fd_b.jpg10029 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With all my cuts made, the engine hoist made quick work of getting the old stuff out of the way.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4750/...5ab9cb8e_b.jpg10030 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The first thing I did was get the new crossmember tacked in place so I could start fitting the new rear frame rails. After spending too much time trying to get these rails in the proper position…

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4743/...966e9428_b.jpg10031 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

…I got in contact with Ron and he sent me a new set of rails that were a better fit for me. He’ll probably chime in with more details, but I think these are now the standard rails in his rear kits. A couple of cool features is the holes for the watts link crossmember and sway bar tube are already in place, and there’s a line cut to locate the axle center line.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4616/...2e558b90_b.jpg10032 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4763/...29a37c1f_b.jpg10033.1 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The next step was getting the new rear end housing in place so I could locate the suspension brackets.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4628/...8bc188b7_b.jpg10033 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Here the watts link crossmember and sway bar tube are tacked in.
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4625/...4763d371_b.jpg10034 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Lower shock mounts tacked in.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4720/...b47e032a_b.jpg10035 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Third link tacked in.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4723/...af62e147_b.jpg10036 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4763/...2c4300c9_b.jpg10037 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Driver side watts bracket tacked on.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4765/...6721be6b_b.jpg10038 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

It’s slowly starting to take shape. You can see in this photo the back brace is tacked to the rear housing. Down the road you’ll see I had to modify it to clear the coil overs.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4662/...7634cef6_b.jpg10039 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

From this angle you can see there’s about ½” of space between the back of the rear end housing and the watts a-frame.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4753/...f261c02f_b.jpg10040 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

I made these gussets to help reinforce the joint between the rear frame rails and crossmember.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4621/...872e4c3c_b.jpg10041.1 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4619/...885db293_b.jpg10041.2 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4619/...271567cb_b.jpg10042 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

At this point just about everything is welded in permanently except for the housing brackets.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4756/...b140d7c9_b.jpg10043 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4765/...c6ef6818_b.jpg10044 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

I added this rear crossmember which I cut from the original frame rails that Ron sent me.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4651/...a77fd41e_b.jpg10045 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With all that done, it was time to connect the original frame horns to the new rails. They didn’t turn out quite as pretty as I imagined them, but they’re pretty sturdy and put both bumpers where they should be.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4612/...d583b051_b.jpg10046.1 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4746/...d668bdf3_b.jpg10046.2 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4653/...18cc9f0d_b.jpg10046.3 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

I tried to make both sides as similar as possible.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4699/...0b888d97_b.jpg10046.4 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4607/...da32cb5d_b.jpg10046.5 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The bumper fits nice and doesn’t bounce around!

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4626/...8a4325d6_b.jpg10054 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Here’s the front…

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4768/...38372544_b.jpg10046.6 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4713/...bf3ec7ce_b.jpg10046.7 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4705/...ce49f1a4_b.jpg10046.8 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4745/...94d8904d_b.jpg10046.9 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

And then I made a pair of boxing plates and welded them in. (For some reason this is the only picture I took)

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4668/...20f8514c_b.jpg10046.91 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The next big hurdle was permanently welding the suspension brackets to the rear end housing.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4770/...9487f9b9_b.jpg10046 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Here you can see how I shortened the back brace to clear the coil overs.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4605/...71bde122_b.jpg10047 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4628/...3c410dd8_b.jpg10048 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With all the brackets welded on, I made a trip to Moser and had them weld on the Baer floater ends and cut axles for me.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4661/...e5e8d4d2_b.jpg10049 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4675/...34d93450_b.jpg10053 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4767/...4e54935a_b.jpg10050 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

I also picked up some gear oil and axle seals.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4612/...2a63b793_b.jpg10051 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

And some Redline grease for the axle bearings.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4665/...2de6e346_b.jpg10052 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With everything welded, I put the housing back in to see how it all fits.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4703/...057f60b2_b.jpg10055 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Here’s the Ridetech coil over with a spring in place.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4695/...43a31435_b.jpg10056.1 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4605/...3d2ca074_b.jpg10056.2 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Plenty of room!

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4604/...76060155_b.jpg10056 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With the rear wheels and tires in place, the track width is 72” just like it was before. With these little 10” wide wheels and 295 tires, there’s 7 ½” between the inner side wall and the frame rail so I have lots of room to fit a 12” wide wheel with 335s!

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4723/...a4387cb8_b.jpg10058 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4717/...cc7bb52d_b.jpg10059.1 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

A while back I came across a set of Jake’s Rod Shop C6 tubular arms being sold by Jon (Jtomas801) here on Lateral-G. The price was right and I liked the way the lower arm was designed for a coil over vs the factory arm which requires a weak (IMO) trunnion to mount a coil over.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4615/...8df8cf0e_b.jpg10059 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4657/...e05bd837_b.jpg10060 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4715/...7ef93310_b.jpg10061 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Here’s the Jake’s Rod Shop arms mounted along with the new Ridetech Track 1 C7 hubs.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4715/...0d6a3baa_b.jpg10063 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Now things are starting to get fun! Just to help me visualize things, I put my P-Ayr mock-up engine in place. In this position, it’s about 12” rearward of the stock location. The plan is to get the engine behind the front axle centerline.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4719/...0ab4b596_b.jpg10062 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4768/...1a51cdc8_b.jpg10064 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

For the most part the front suspension is all in place. I did a quick check of the alignment and I have 5* of caster on both sides, -1.5* of camber on one side and -1.4* of camber on the other. Not too bad as a starting point.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4720/...7cfe993b_b.jpg10065 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4606/...be41cc3a_b.jpg10066 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

It’s finally starting to look like a real chassis!

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4713/...7daf9773_b.jpg10067 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Now you’re all up to date. I still have a few little things I need to get done on the frame but the next big step is test fitting the body. Due to the rear suspension, I’m going to have to cut out some sections of the rear seat area and trunk floor. Before I can do that, I have to get the interior stripped. To get myself motivated, I took the rear wheels off the Z06 and put them on the frame to see how some big meats would fit…

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4740/...cb6211d4_b.jpg10072 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4614/...02d5b35a_b.jpg10073 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4700/...4072a663_b.jpg10074 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4768/...11d390b1_b.jpg10075 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4617/...96324e74_b.jpg10070 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4699/...1394ef88_b.jpg10071 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The Z06 rear wheels are obviously too wide for the front and they have too much backspace. However, they actually turn quite a bit so that tells me 11” wheels (with the proper backspacing) and 315s will fit! They fit great out back but again, due to the offset, they actually narrow the rear track width by 2".

Well played Sir!!!


Smart choice going with the de-coupled 3 link !! While I haven't driven a car with that setup - my new race car (Sutton Track Warrior) will have that. I'm hoping for some major mechanical grip.

Impressive work Herb, nice job.

Think you'll have to notch your front crossmember for the pulleys/balancer?

Thanks Greg! I didn't get the de-coupled 3 link, just the offset 3 link. IIRC, Ron said I could always upgrade to the de-coupled version down the road.

Thanks Wayne!

Most likely no. The engine is sitting lower than it will when it's actually in place.

nice work, Herb. Glad to see you're still making progress on the build. Love the Chevelle. As I said in the other thread, it's just got a great mean look to it. Good luck!

Thanks Trey! Progress has been and still is slow but if I keep at it, eventually, it'll be done! :thumbsup:

Hey, so thats where those a-arms went! lol. Nice work so far Herb, I like how you reused the frame horns front and back, great idea. Keep up the great work!

Thanks,
Jon

Yep, that's where they went! Thanks!

Last week I got my freshly ported AFR heads, Holley intake, and custom solid roller cam from Straub Technologies. :ups:

The short block has been together for a while but it consists of a Brodix aluminum block, a Scat lightweight 4340 crank, Scat 4340 6.535" H-beam rods, Diamond pistons with ceramic coating on top and DFL on the skirts. The rod and main bearings are also coated with DFL. ARP main and head studs finish it off.

A couple of pics of these beautiful pistons.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4659/...209afddb_b.jpg10083 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4668/...7a64a653_b.jpg10084 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The rotating assembly.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4719/...190317a3_b.jpg10086 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The full short block ready to go.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4621/...204a9a86_b.jpg10085 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The AFR 305 heads that are now so much more.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4759/...39530079_b.jpg10087 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4651/...5b330268_b.jpg10088 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Intake port.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4748/...f417ce43_b.jpg10089 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Exhaust port.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4699/...a12f23a2_b.jpg10090 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The intake system is this Holley HP EFI.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4602/...269d83e9_b.jpg10100 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Fortunately I sent the intake along with the heads to be port matched... and the ports were off to one side enough that they required epoxy to bring them back in line.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4753/...8fecc1b5_b.jpg10094 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Here is it mocked up. :evil:

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4767/...ae5a9d1b_b.jpg10092 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

I'm waiting for a few more parts to arrive and then it's on to actual assembly time.

Very nice Herb !

Looks like art to me!
If that doesn't stir some emotions it should be mancard reassessment time.:morepower
Any power estimates?

Thanks!

Thanks! The goal was 800 hp at the flywheel and according to the calculations it should exceed it by a bit. So, we'll see what happens.

Herb, if I weren’t so invested in my new 434” ls build, I would build exactly what your doing there. Very nicely done sir!
I have a good friend who completed a Brodix build last year for his 70’ Chevelle. It’s a 632” that makes 904 to the tire on pump gas, and well over a grand on race gas. Drives great on the street, and doesn’t overheat.

Thanks Scott! I really like the LS engine, but since this car is a real SS396, it had to have a big block! :thumbsup:

Can't wait to see what this monster does. I've heard of some great numbers out of the 509 and other 4" stroke builds over the years so i'm sure this one won't disappoint either.

Those ti intake valves? nice

You have head flow specs you are willing to share? Scott also had my vintage Dart 320 heads so I'd be curious how they compare to the AFRs. I would've liked to have gone with a newer design as well but given I had these and they were practically new I couldn't see not using them.

I can't wait to see what it does either! I have the head flow specs and "good" ports flow just over 400 cfm and the "bad" ports flow just under 400 cfm. Combined with the solid roller that Straub spec'd, it should move some air!

Not much too update other than picking up another piece of the puzzle from Bowler Transmissions. Once I get a bellhousing I’ll be able to mock up the engine and trans location.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4773/...d8294717_b.jpgT001 by Yelcamino, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4794/...514c630f_b.jpgT002 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Chassis is looking great, Herb. I'm doing a similar set-up on the rear of my '66, but I'm doing mine on a very strict budget and building most of the brackets, etc myself. I'll probably have to enlist Ron's help with the front as it will be a blend of stock mounting points and other GM components. Thanks for sharing all your work pics!

Thanks Ric! :thumbsup:

Just a few small updates...

On the engine, I got the cam installed, degreed it (ended up 2* retarded), and checked piston to valve clearance (.120" intake, .160" exhaust). I also installed the rocker stands but I'm going to wait until I get closer to starting the engine before I install the rest of the valve train. No sense putting the valve springs under stress while it sits on the stand.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/819/2...b382c0dd_b.jpg10101 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/799/4...ef14a360_b.jpg10104 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4771/...68b2fab1_b.jpg10105 by Yelcamino, on Flickr


Next was a big step forward on this project... separating the body from the chassis! Now that this is done, there's no going back!

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/795/4...4a651deb_b.jpg10083 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

I finally got the nerve to start cutting on the Chevelle. There isn’t much original left on this car other than the main body, but I was still fretting cutting it up because of this…

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/819/4...0f9e1b9d_b.jpg10095 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

In the end, my inner Roadkill rose to the occasion and I busted out the sawsall and plasma cutter! The first cut is always the hardest, but once that was done, it was a free for all!

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/806/2...9f4cc64e_b.jpg10084 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With the trunk cut out, the next step was the first test fit.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/813/4...60d2e024_b.jpg10085 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Of course, once it got close to the frame, I saw a bunch of other stuff in the way, so I cut some more.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/785/2...3e365eb4_b.jpg10086 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

After that second round of cuts everything looked good and I started to lower it down until the rockers hit the frame supports (in the red lines, two on each side). Back up it went and off they came.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/790/2...2be730e3_b.jpg10087 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

And just like that she fits! As I stared at it, the rear looked really low, so I went out the El Camino and took some measurements to compare. Keep in mind, the chassis is level to the frame table so there’s no rake at all. Compared to the El Camino, the front of the Chevelle is about an inch lower, but the rear is 3-1/2 inches lower! Talk about mind blown! I never realized the El Camino had so much rake to it.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/899/4...d59605aa_b.jpg10089 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

This view is from the front. Next step is to finish cutting out the floor and tunnel so I can put the new floor supports in.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/809/2...8d285410_b.jpg10090 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Engine compartment looks good. I have to remove the heater box and most of the firewall if I want to move the engine back as far as I originally planned.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/884/4...9a828666_b.jpg10091 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The Ron Sutton 3-link looks happy.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/799/2...ea46b599_b.jpg10092 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Imagine this view with 315’s tucked in there!

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/901/4...7e113828_b.jpg10093 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

I will always have a soft spot for a '66 Chevelle(maybe some day I will also have a garage spot for one) so i can imagine how hard it was to make the first cut, but after seeing it dropped on the frame assured me that it was the right move. Looking nasty!
:superhack:

Yeah, like I said, once I started :superhack: it was easy to keep going!

Thanks!