Joe Newbie, 20 Builds a "Stocker"' in 2023

[Mark Yacavone]

Joe Newbie (NB) lives in Phoenix and works at a Chevy dealer. He's gone down the track at Wild Horse a few times on Friday nights. He has a fair amount of hand tools, but not much else. He's not married and lives with a couple of his buddies.

Mr. Veteran Racer (VR) lives down the street from NB. NB hears VR's Stocker running all the time and loves the sound of it. He stops by VR's place one day, and strikes up a conversation. He tells VR he'd like to build a Stocker too, and would VR help steer him in the right direction, VR says sure...

NB comes from a family that never raced anything, and really don't have a clue what he's talking about. He's got no usable parts on hand to use on his new project.
(this is a semi- autobiographical story )

NB finds a 66 Bel Aire 4 dr, with a 283 , 220 horse engine and a PG trans. Surprisingly good shape for the year.

That's the setup here..Let's follow along.
TBC

[David Lee]

plenty of pics please

[Mark Yacavone]

Joe (NB) and his buddies take the engine and trans out of the 66 on the weekend.
He's got it in the back of his pickup truck. He brings it over to VR's place and asks him how he should proceed with the tear down and rebuilding.
VR> You've got to have a known Stocker builder do your engine and break it in on his dyno.
NB> But I want to build it myself. Ya, know, for the experience. I only want to run a couple tenths under the index , for now
VR> Look, kid . There are a couple of fast P/SA cars out here. You need to run 6-7 under anyway, if you want to survive a heads up run. If not you're gonna have a bad day.
NB> I want to do this on a budget...So much a week out of my paycheck..Like that.

So NB takes the heads and intake off... I can use these, right?
VR> No. 520 and 896 heads are okay, but you've got to find some 520 T heads. They're better
NB> It's the right intake anyway, right?
VR> Nope. You need the 459 300 horse intake.
NV> How come that's legal?
VR> I don't know.It just is...

NB begins taking the short block apart...
NB> I can use there rods, with some forged TRW approved pistons from Summit, right?
VR> Nope. Throw them away. You've got to find the lightest approved after-market rods so you can get your weights down to the minimum . Then you've got to order some CP or Venolia pistons. You can use any weight pin as long as the total is right, with the rings added in. BTW, you need to run over to Total Seal and order some thin millimeter rings with gas ported spacers, back cut seconds, and low tension oil rings.

NB> I can use this cast crank , can't I?
VR> Well, you can, but by the time we trim the counterweights down , index and offset ground the stroke, re-do the mains, you might as well get an aftermarket crank from somebody that know what he's doing.
VR> BTW, I wouldn't use that block either.You need a Dart approved block.
NB> But I don't see a small bore, small main Dart listed.
VR> That's okay .We'll just have all eight sleeved and use bearing spacers.
NB> Is that legal?
VR> KID, it says they're legal for small block applications. Who cares? There's no tech anyway ;-)
BTW, while you're throwing away the block, heads, intake, crank, might as well throw away the damper, oil pan, oil pump, timing cover , sprockets, chain , cam, lifters, push rod, rockers, springs, retainers, studs, head bolts. You won't be needing any of that junk either..You can keep the valve covers...

TBC

[Billy Nees]

Originally Posted by Mark Yacavone

Joe Newbie (NB) lives in Phoenix and works at a Chevy dealer. He's gone down the track at Wild Horse a few times on Friday nights. He has a fair amount of hand tools, but not much else. He's not married and lives with a couple of his buddies.

Mr. Veteran Racer (VR) lives down the street from NB. NB hears VR's Stocker running all the time and loves the sound of it. He stops by VR's place one day, and strikes up a conversation. He tells VR he'd like to build a Stocker too, and would VR help steer him in the right direction, VR says...

Not to ruin your story line and I hope that you continue with it but this IS a fictional story, am I correct? After all, this IS 2023 not 1973. I see it going one of three ways...

1. sure kid, here's my engine builders number, my trans builders number and my chassis shops number. Be ready to give them a big down payment and wait a year or two.

2. sure kid, but you can't be competitive in a "slow" car. Sell that ugly old POS to a collector or a street-rodder and get a big-block 60s-70s musclecar. See 1.

3. get off my lawn or I'll call a cop!

[Woodfin]

I think it is a good story. Us old, experienced racers can easily lose sight of where we came from. I am curious about the direction of this story. It is my hope the new racer can be encouraged and coached, because, you never know, he could be a winner.

[Mark Yacavone]

(we continue with our satirical fairy tale)

NB gazes back into his truck bed. Well, I got a distributor anyway LOL..
VR> Nope.Put that in the scrap pile too. Nobody uses points anymore. You need an MSD distributor, 6AL ignition box with 2 step limiter , MSD coil, brake pressure switch, and pressure gauge for inside the car. You won't be able to cut a good light in that big, heavy car, without all that stuff. This ain't bracket racing. They won't let you deep stage either ..Only the Pro's can do that.

VR> While we're talking electronics, you'll need an electric water pump that bolts to the front of the engine, a gear reduction starter, a mini alternator, and an aluminum pulley to drive it..Oh. and aluminum radiators are legal now too.
So throw away all that ancient original stuff.

By now NB is wondering what he's got himself into..
Atleast I've got the PG trans..
VR> Sell that to a bracket racer..You need a metric 200 3 speed, metric converter, and an SFI approved flex plate. You're talking 2, 3 ,4 , maybe 5 grand for the trans, depending on options, plus 1200 + for the converter and flex plate. Of course you need a good 3 speed shifter too.

NB> How come the 3 speed is legal?
VR> Well, the guys that had to run PGs complained to NHRA, because all the new car guys had 3 speeds and they didn't so they just said okay.
That's the same with a lot of this stuff. Guys wanted these after market parts for their own agenda, so they bent NHRA's ear until they got what they wanted. The guys that didn't need 'em didn't protest , but instead went out and bought all this stuff too. I figure they let all this stuff in so they could shake 'em down for contingency money, racer than paying out much themselves, to the racers. Now they even charge you for the manufacturer's decal, so you can claim someone else's money..

By now, NB's head is spinning...

TBC

[Mark Yacavone]

I'll be back tonight. I actually have to finish installing my own MSD with rev limiter today ;-)

[rick winchester]

Wow what kind of downers are you on ? I know you are just tossing **** to the wall to see if it sticks.At least half of the things VR wanted are not even needed period. The combo you picked will run a half second under with 283 hp /stock rods/ cast pistons stock block/ 459 intake Yac Blue Streak con. and one of your low buck turbo 200 trans. All the other things needed are required no matter what combo you build . I would hope that if a newbie came to me for advice I could help them get going without breaking the bank. Get it running and enjoy racing then make it fast as time and money allows . Rick .

[Mike Pearson]

I have been racing my car for almost 46 years. I do everything on it. I don’t have an engine guy or a transmission guy or chassis guy. My stuff is slow but is an awesome race car. I have won on the NHRA division level and IHRA pro am level against some world champion drivers. So it can be done. I have even won class 4 times for a total of 5 Wally’s right now I run .4 too .5 under. My goal when I go to the track is to cut a good light and run the dial. If I get a heads up I just race the same way. I have had a few lately and went home early. That’s just part of the game. I accept it and move on. At the last 2 races I lost by a total margin of .005.
I enjoy the racing win or loose.

[Mark Yacavone]

Originally Posted by rick winchester

Wow what kind of downers are you on ? I know you are just tossing **** to the wall to see if it sticks.At least half of the things VR wanted are not even needed period. The combo you picked will run a half second under with 283 hp /stock rods/ cast pistons stock block/ 459 intake Yac Blue Streak con. and one of your low buck turbo 200 trans. All the other things needed are required no matter what combo you build . I would hope that if a newbie came to me for advice I could help them get going without breaking the bank. Get it running and enjoy racing then make it fast as time and money allows . Rick .

Rick,
Easy, buddy... I'll get to my point here..
You've got to imagine VR as your most common type of racer in 2023, as I see it.
He's not a Billy Nees type, or even an MY.
I picked this combo for a reason, and I'm not even half way through it...
Let it play out, and I'll even sharpshoot my own thread.