Hey troops, I see a bunch of 60's Chevy pick ups on our forum. I would love some tips on the proposed swap of the ol 6-shooter and granny geared 4-spd. I am doing the cl***ic 350/350 combo and just wonder about motor mounts, ****** mounts, or any other little ditties some one has experienced that I need a heads up on for this upgrade. Any hints would be awesome. Thanx. ~sololobo~
Having done the swap on a '65 C-10 one piece of advice,forget the 350 Turbo the stock rear in your '66 is probably 4.10 even with 30" tall rear tires at 70 MPH mine was turning 3400 RPM,I swapped to a 700R4 and could cruise at 2400 RPM and picked up about 4-5 MPG.Also the 700R4's lower first gear was much faster out of the hole.Use regular Chevy V8 front mounts and this for the transmission http://www.speedwaymotors.com/Tubular-Transmission-Mount-with-2-Inch-Drop,4219.html and this http://www.speedwaymotors.com/search-91618010.html Pick up some grade 8 bolts at Ace Hardware and bolt it in.You will probably need to modify the drive shaft after the swap,your local driveline shop will tell you how to measure for it before they do the work.
You should be able to bolt the 350 up to the six mounts if it has a 250,the rubber mount is the same as a V8 and all you do is remove the metal part that bolts the rubber mount to the block and it should go right in. I done this on a 67 years ago and did not have to buy much since I retained the 4 speed,the motor will sit back towards the firewall and a fan shroud will be needed and I think thats the way the 63 to 66s came from the factory and the 67 to 72s had the V8 sitting towards the front more then the earlier years.
Here is another option which is better than the "belly ****on" swap (see Pic) Build up your six and swap in a 200R4 overdrive and have something more eye catching and unique.
I spent 10 years modding those 60-66 for other owners. The one truck I hated to give back, was the 65 with a 250 six and a 700r4. I did P/S & P/B column shift, etc. It was a peach to drive. It had a stock 3.73 rear. I was doing mostly all A/T swaps back then, but today I'd be tempted to go OD stick...chasing MPG's Most 63-66 c-10 will have a 3.73 rear. Just a very small amount would have the rare 3.07. 60-62 would likely be 3.90, unless it had the very rare 3.38 option. All but one truck I did got P/S and P/B, as it really makes a huge difference. Don't need discs unless hauling heavy loads on big hills IMO Best trans rear crossmember for A/T is a 63-72 Chevy truck A/T crossmember. When you cut out the old 63-66 side-mount bellhousing crossmember, your side frame rails can twist from the weight of the front cab mounts. The old crossmember gripped the upper and lower flanges of the frame to prevent that, and the 63-72 A/T one does the same thing. Yes, some just bolt a new crossmember to the bottom flange, but it is not as good IMO. That A/T crossmember is also good for a muncie 4 speed, and maybe a modern stick OD that uses a tail housing rear mount.
Thanx for the replies and info. Gonna do the belly ****on swap for now, you know, run what ya brung! Really appreciate it guys. ~sololobo~
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