Thread: A log of my updates on my '32 Brookville highboy

Tweet

I started posting about my Brookville roadster in the "New Members Sign In" section here Newb Nick from Narb but I thought I should start my own build log thread ...especially since I was polluting "deckofficer" Bob's thread with my B.S. Thanks for your patience, Bob.

So here goes and I'll keep it updated as things change:

Knowing I wanted more power I swapped out the burned out rear diff for a Detroit True Trac. My fabrication buddy made some additional bars for the rear to keep it stable under hard acceleration and cornering.



The ZZ4 just did not have enough overkill potential for my taste so I sold that and got this Dart block / Dart Pro1 heads 427 "SBC". Haven't driven with this motor yet but I hope to do that very soon. After I send the obligatory pics and vids to Tri Star, I'll almost certainly replace the valve covers with some other kind, maybe finned, not sure yet.





I have new tires that I've never driven on yet so I'm anxious to see how it rides on my M&H 275/55-16 drag radial rears and 185/75-15 radial front runners. I got these so I can start off having some semblance of straight line traction. As I burn off all the rubber on the drag radials I'll be thinking about getting a set of tires that carries the more traditional look of a '32 even though mine is not traditional at all; maybe taller thinner Excelsiors, or maybe just a taller radial of some kind (I'm not likely to revert to bias ply) ...still thinking about future tire options.

Sanderson shipped me the wrong headers earlier this week but yesterday the correct ones arrived so they're in process of installation now. So it turns out I have to modify the oil pan since there is bit of a clearance issue, see below; but that should all be done this weekend. We're done rebuilding my TH350 with all the best parts from Jake's Performance and I'm impressed with their trans parts and service; hopefully I won't blow up this trans too quickly but it seems very solid.





I feel lucky that the headers cleared the steering so nothing needs to be modified on that side:



The old exhaust was a bit constricted and not mandrel formed with a couple of kinks I didn't like so I trashed it and am going with a custom dual 2-1/2" SS setup with two Magnaflow mufflers. Will post pics when I get home later.

In the meantime my custom fabrication buddy is making bomber seats for me. I didn't get an updated picture today but they're really appealing to me as they near completion. They will have some padding for my old butt. Here's an early pic from a couple weeks ago:

Very, very nice! With that much horsepower in that Car it should be a rocket! You are doing some amazing craftsmanship there, keep it up.

Jake built the Trans in my Car too, and he is an upstanding, great guy (and he builds a stout Transmission to boot)-

Love it!

^ thanks. Your comments are especially satisfying considering all you've done with your own amazing car. It sort of tickles me to hear you call this a "rocket" in comparison to your Saturn V ...maybe mine is more like a big firecracker compared to yours.

Thank you, but I think you are doing an absolutely stellar job! Yours will be lighter. so I'm not convinced on the Saturn thing-at any rate, it looks great!

I've always like '29-32's, and yours is turning out especially nice (as I LOVE high performance stuff!)-

As for power, I think Pat McCarthy has us all beat with his '60-

Hi and thanks Nick for starting your thread as I too will be keen to see how the little mouse screams when you step on it's tail. Will you run side panels with the hood as I thing that would have people wondering exactly what do you have hidden in there ? I like the new seats too and will they allow you to sit lower into the car ? Now I will jump in before Bob does and mention that you do have room for a third pedal to make driving even more fun but realize that you have already rebuild the trans. But imagine 5 or 6 gears to play with, wow , what fun .

Whiplash, I think I remember you mentioning how you like it with the side panels when I first posted a picture with them on. Yes I still have those and they still fit. I also like it with the engine panels on, so they will be going on and off to change it up. I was really surprised how much extra room I have with the bomber seats. With the previous bench seat I was OK for space once I got in (tilt wheel) and I don't have to drive "arms straight out" anyway, but with the bomber I have several inches of additional leg room, and more space all around, and I can decide how low or up raised I want to sit and then secure it that way; we're building the seat bases now which we'll tweak for my comfort. So I'm very happy with how the bombers are looking and feeling so far. I think when I get the local upholstery genius done with the padding they will also be comfortable even for multi-hour drives.

Don't think I haven't oogled many'a 5 and 6 speed trans for this car and considered my options. Maybe in the future I'll do that, but I'm sort of going down this automatic road just to experience how it is at this level. But I do love a manual transmission and my other "fun" car is a 6 speed stick and I usually poke fun at the guys who have that car with an automatic. Operating the 6 speed becomes second nature and I don't even think of it as it happens, even on the track (roadcourses) where I abuse it the worst with my margin heel-toe downshifting and rev matching, and in spite of the fact that I have a "touchy" triple disc clutch in that other car rated to hold 1000hp so it's not exactly a breeze to modulate, along with a lightweight flywheel and that Getrag V160 6 speed is by nature a bit balky and rattley compared to something like a buttery trans Porsche, although I love that trans and it takes all the abuse I throw at it. Yep, maybe some day in the hot rod.

As the roadster is finishing up pretty soon, at least for now so I can get back to driving it, I'm going to have HotRod Jen do some pinstriping on it. Just some subtle touches, like some art on the dash, maybe the radiator shell, trunk lid. I'm going to talk to her and ask for her artistic opinion and then let her loose. She's very talented and you can look her up and see her work on Facebook (which I really don't like but it's good for this kind of thing). Just prior to last Christmas the folks at Wayne Speed Shop in S. Amboy, NJ had a Toys for Tots meet and collected tons of toys and donations for kids and families in that area and some people donated stuff to raffle off with all proceeds going to the kids handled thru the U.S. Marine Corps. attachment in that area. Anyway, Jen painted this panel which I had to have so I put in the high bid and now it's mine. But you can probably appreciate that she's a talented artist:

Nick - looking great. Almost makes me wonder how much a well resized 351 would do for my '31.....and maybe that strange internal noise in the 5.0 would go away easier. Naaaaaaaahhhhhhh (Hmmmmm)

Thanks, Dave. What internal noise? Valve tap? A little knock?

Reading your post makes me imagine sugar plum fairies dancing around a massaged 351 Windsor and then a cute one gets into the hot rod with you and blasts off into the sunset. Or if your wife has a problem with that, you can just say "thank you, ma'am"

Nick,

As much as I would have liked you to continue to post to the thread I started (it gave the thread good traction), your build deserves its own thread. When I had the 383 sbc I almost replaced my exhaust for smaller diameter because that would have added more to the low rpm grunt. I'm glad I didn't now that the 427 is in place because my 2.5" is about perfect for it, and I see your running the same for your 427. Your specs said yours is about 25 HP more than mine at 526 HP, so you are in for a wild ride. The more I drive mine, the more I get used to just how much road I need to see ahead of me to pass slower traffic on my 2 lane mountain roads. I know you have mentioned a manual trans maybe in the future, and I'm sure impressed with whatever ride you have that uses a 3 disc clutch. I have a Caddy CTS-V with the 6 speed manual and a 2 disc clutch and love the "Toyota" light clutch action that is connecting 556 HP to the wheels. I have considered a 2 disc for the Track-T. About what might push you over the edge for a manual is, unless addressed in the TH-350's build, unwanted downshifts. I'm guessing your 32 tips the scales at something less than 2400 lbs (1090 kg), and your enjoying a cruise at say 30~40 mph (49~66 kpm), top gear, then romp it. If the auto drops to 1st gear, your certain to just smoke the tires. In a manual, you choose what gear and it stays there no matter what your vacuum is doing. Can they build your TH-350 so that you have a choice of if it will downshift or not?

Originally Posted by Hot Rod Nick

Thanks, Dave. What internal noise? Valve tap? A little knock?

Reading your post makes me imagine sugar plum fairies dancing around a massaged 351 Windsor and then a cute one gets into the hot rod with you and blasts off into the sunset. Or if your wife has a problem with that, you can just say "thank you, ma'am"

I wish it was a valve train noise. I spent a fair amount of time chasing it last season and so far no results. Oil pressure is right where a Ford motor runs and where it has always been so I drove it with the idea that it would 'go or blow'. There is a thread somewhere here describing my "research" and now that the honey do for the winter is about 90% the engine will be dissected.

Uhhhh the honey in a 351 powered '31 A roadster would thoroughly upset my wife.

Good luck with finding the noise gremlin, Dave. I hope you get it sorted out in time for our NE nice weather coming soon.

Bob, your input in my thread is highly appreciated. You can get a TH350 or any automatic with a manual valve body that requires you to shift into the gear you want but I didn't go that route on this one. We've done some tweaking on the trans to target proper shifting behavior but almost certainly it will require further adjustment after I hit the road and see how it actually shifts up and down. Are you saying your CTS-V has a Toyota clutch? If so, I had no idea. Or are you just making the Toyota comment since I have a Toyota listed in my cars? My 6 speed car is a '95 Toyota Supra that I've had for over 12 years, bought it with barely any miles and factory fresh stock but have moded it over the years to my taste ...mostly mechanical mods other than a carbon fiber front lip to better scoop air to my radiator and intercooler, plus it incorporates two scoops for front brake ducting. The 6 sp in that car is a super heavy duty design that I've come to love but of course with over 700hp I had to go with a more serious clutch and since it's a Japanese car a couple of the best clutches are Japanese (U.S. made Tilton is too rich for me and not sure how durable it is for a lot of street use) so I have an O.S. Giken R3C triple and I really like it; I also swapped out the stock Torsen diff for a Giken Superlock (1.5 way) and that made a big difference in the stability of the car while accelerating, braking hard especially if I'm also sort of turning at the same time. Here's a couple gratuitous shots of the Supra at track days at Pocono, Watkins Glen, New Jersey Motorsports Park, and a shot of the "somewhat unique" twin turbo setup I have on it for the last few years...it works great but I have to say I have a soft spot for how this DOHC 3 liter inline 6 looks with this turbo setup.

Wow, that is just plain nasty. I now feel like a goof telling you to beware of the power of your new 427 in the '32 on a forced downshift. You are already dialed into the 3 lbs per hp realm, nothing I can teach you, more like you offering me some advice. Nice thing about turbos is due to their linear power production, driveline components that can live with 500 hp from a positive displacement blower engine, have an easier life behind a 700 hp turbo engine.

The Toyota clutch reference was only for how light pedal pressure is on my V, not the maker of the clutch. It always amazes me when you increase clutch surface area by going to a 2 or 3 disc set up, to be able to hook up 600~750 hp, you don't increase pedal pressure to hold those ponies. In the old days of high hp, you would have some rather strong left leg muscles depressing a pressure plate on a single disc clutch that could hold. How times have changed.

Oh don't be so self condescending, Bob. I enjoy all your comments and every time I come on here there's stuff I learn from you and others. And the roadster still has a "better" power to weight ratio since Supras are "pigs" with weight around 3500 lbs.

The lower pedal effort on a multi plate clutch is one of the features my aging legs appreciate the most. In fact, the previous triple plate I had was even significantly lower pedal effort which I loved, but that one had a notorious reputation of being very difficult to drive. I had it for 80,000 miles so I learned how to handle it.

I just can't do automatics. The dealer I bought the CTS-V from said it was one of 5 Vs they got for the entire year and it wouldn't sell because it was the only one with a manual. Later that dealer told me GM only made 194 CTS-V with the manual for that year. I know in this type of car the auto would be faster off the line and to 60 mph, but I bought the stick for the good price from the dealer and the low production numbers. I only put less than 3000 miles a year on it, always dry roads and mostly trips. Trip type mileage makes for a very good example of a survivor car 25 years down the road. Even my Ford F350 4X4 crew cab diesel dually is a stick.