Am I nuts to go back to a 216

If I was going to put a V8 in my 37 it would be a motor that is not what everyone and their brother is using,I want to stand out in the crowd and not get lost in it like 90 percent of the people do and I dont care if the motor I use is not the cheapest one in the world to build. When I open the hood I do not want to see the same motor as everyone else so its going to stay powered by a stovebolt six if it kills me,I am going to think outside the box and would rather have a Studebaker V8 in it instead of a sbc.

 

I might have been a little harsh calling those with that motor morons but I think most that use them are brain dead since GM made other great motors and if everyone would not have played follow the leader the other motors might have gotten more attention and more parts availability,for that reason I refuse to use a sbc and will use GMs other motors in my GM vehicles.

 

I've seen your name in several froums for about 10 years and it seems you have been bitchin about that noisy 235 about that long.Just fix it

 

Good luck with your 37 pickup whichever way you go. 216s can be converted to full-pressure oiling. But I think I like the idea of machining the rods for insert bearings and using aluminum pistons to decrease the reciprocating mass, and keeping the original oiling of the rods...

 

Its just been a couple years I have been complaining about the noisy 235.

 

Instead of listening to all the bad talk about the 216 I would like to try one and see how they are,the 235 will have to be pulled to repair and I dont know if the 235 I picked up is really any good so if I can pick up a sweet running 216 I might drop it in and see how I like it. Maybe I should not have put the foot stomp starter back in as that is what brought up the 216 voices in my head,I would like to pull the 235 apart to see what is wrong but I am afraid it will open a big can of worms and wont be able to go back togather if the noise is related to the sleeved cylinder. I guess its time to shut up and do something.

 

Made a executive decision and on the hunt for a 41-9 tall side cover 235,found out the later 235 crank will fit with a little machining on the block so if I can find one I will use the 56 235 to donate the crank and rods and then I can have a motor that really looks like a 216 but is a full pressure 235. It might take me some time to find one and hope the noisy 235 hangs on for a couple more years as this is the motor I would like to build,if the 235 decides to go I might consider a 216 as a temporary motor to get me by until I can get a converted early 235 built. For now this is the plan but if a running 261 should show up that I cant pass up then plans could change again and its back to a made to look like 216.

 

Sounds like you have a good plan in mind. Now that your mind is made up, I'd like to give you some more to think about.

Is a full pressure 235 or 261 "better" than a 216? Of course, otherwise they would have continued making the splash 235's and 216's. But that being said, I'm glad my grandpa, and my dad didn't think 50 miles was about as far as you dare get away from home with one, and you'd better stay at 50 mph. Our family car was a '50 Chev 4-door. We took a vacation every year, usually from CA to CO or maybe to Yellowstone, 4 people in the car, and pulling an old masonite vacation trailer. Up and over the Rockies, no problem. Over Sonora pass, no problem. Never had to tear the engine down. My high school car was a '49 Fleetline (with a 216) that had dual exhaust and alluminum pistons and a 3:55 rear end out of a later Powerglide car. I made regular trips to L.A., 135 miles one way, usually with a car load of kids heading to the beach. The speedometer often read 65 mph and with the 3:55 gears the car was actually going over 70, hour after hour, with no issues whatever.

Are the later engines better? Yes, but the little 216's have been given a bad rap in my opinion. Another quick story: a friend built up a 261 to go in his '39 coupe. He decided to just burn the existing 216 up then junk it and put the big engine in there. Well, he tried to lunch that motor for 2 years, over used it, abused it, the thing just kept purring along. He finally just pulled it out and gave it to another guy so he could put the 261 in there.

Not saying they are the best engine out there, but I still see a lot of them here in Idaho, doing farm work, just like they did 60 years ago. I could go on but my fingers are tired now.......

 

I found out about a company on the west coast that does full pressure conversions and will be contacting them soon,if I cant find a early tall side cover 235 motor I am going to see if a 216 can be punched to a 235 since I will probably be able to pick up a 216 much easier. I have found a 60 C60 but no one is around when ever I go by and curious to see if it has a 261 but will continue to look for the early block to do the conversion,I have a feeling its going to take me a long time to find the early 235 but will be worth it in the end since it will give me that original motor look. Like I said before I hope I can make the present 235 go until I can get a motor built since I dont want to put a temporary motor in it if I dont have to,I want to get a good motor built and get it over with so I can get in and go with no worries. I wanted to drive it to Flint Michigan for Chevys 100 anniversary and the VCCAs 50th show but I was a little leary and I have no trailer.

 

i have a tall side cover 235 going into my 47 ! it was in an old dirt track car in north dakota. has a 54 crank in it and 261 pistons . full pressure system running off a 228 gmc oil pump . has an early 216 head on it . def has been decked . magnesium rockers. aluminum timings gears the whole bit . all of this so i can run my full set of sharp manifold / covers !!

i have been wanting to do the swap for a while now ... been beatin on that poor 216 and she takes it !!

 

yes---but the 216 is only part of it

 

I have been wondering if I am playing with a full deck sometimes.

 

Sounds like "FLOP" just gave you a good blueprint towards what you want to build. Sounds like a workable plan. Have you ever talked to Langston "The Boss" to pick his brain. He is a wealth of information especially on do's and dont's with the Chevy 6s. Good luck with this project.

 

I will be making some calls over the winter along with trying to find a early 235,I was suprised to hear that 261 pistons could be made to fit the early 235 block. I put out some want adds for the motor and I hope I can find one reasonably close to home and need to get casting numbers as there could be one in a couple old yards around here.

 

Just curious here - but how can you get a 261 piston to work in a 235? The standard bore of a 235 is 3 9/16" and for a 261 it's 3 3/4". That's a 3/16" or .1875" difference. I thought .080" was about as far as you could safely bore a 235. We're talking an overbore here over 3 times that much.

 

I was wondering about that too but Flop says he has one with 261 pistons.

 

just use the 292 if you want to stay stovebolt, good powerful motor and easy to hop up if you feel the need

 

No can do on the newer sixes,I want it to look like I still have a 216 under the hood and there is no way I can get a 216 side cover to fit a 292 like I can with a 235. I may be crazy for doing this but that is what I want to do and its going to get done if it kills me.

 

i dont have the block at my shop its still at the machinist . thats what the pistons measured out to from what i recall . they were like new we honed the cylinders and that was it . my machinist also said that was probably the last bore that the block could take before a sleeve. once i get everything back i will be sure to post pictures and measurements .

 

I cant wait to see pics and measurements,if I do build a early 235 I am not going to take the bore out that much but I am interested in seeing it done in case the voices tell me to do it. I really want to build a early 235 but if a drop in and go 261 would be dangled in front of me then its back to the fake 216 look.

 

in a perfect world i wouldn't want it out that far either, but whats a man to do ? . There was barely any wear on the cylinders and pistons so im going to run it and give it a shot ! Once again all this b/s so i can run a full side cover!!

 

You really dont have to do it to get a full side cover,right now I am trying to prefect the installation of a 216 side cover on the later 235s and possibly a 261 if one would show up. The first one I made is noticable but has fooled some but I want to do it better,the only reason I am thinking about the early 235 is my present 235 has some noises that thick oil as made less noticable so I got problems and with a early 235 I wont have to fake the look. Here are some pics of what I have done so far on the side cover,I recently picked up a 37 cover with the plug wire holders but need a junk head and block to get the area around the plugs a little better then what I have done so far.

 

heres my problem my junkyardjeff. those look good !! takes a good eye to realize whats going on !

 

I have never seen one of those covers before and understand,I am out for a original look and if I would ever find one I could use the finned 216 valve cover on a early 235 but I want no shiny stuff under the hood.

 

I ran mine with no issues, just got a good deal on a 235 and since I was going to a T5 I thought why not. The guy I sold my 216 to is still running it and no issues, and you know, people throw them out all the time. So....if you blow one up, snatch another, you are out having fun, and thats what matters most.

 

I was wondering if a 216 with a overdrive trans would effect the oiling of the rods so I asked the people who know those motors the best which are restorers and have been told on the VCCA forum the 235s oil better at 2500 RPMs or above on the highway,it looks like if I were ever to drop a 216 in my 37 I should avoid using 5th gear since I have 3.55 gears and might run it a little too slow. Full oil pressure on a early 235 is what I hope to do if one can be found but I have the extra 56 235 if all else fails.

 

261.

What are you trying to 'fake' on the 235 and possibly a 261? The look of a crappy 1-barrel carburetor?

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=484313

 

stude he is looking for a full side cover .

 

I think the 261 has the 1 bbl carb too,the only six I seen with a 2 bbl is a 302 GMC.

 

Foolish to use it with todays highways. 235 would be OK but bigger GMC would be best bet. I threw a rod on both 46-216 and 50-235, learned my lesson.