[Custom10]

OK so we have all been there. You just got you first car and if most of us can remember back that far we can for the most part agree that at the time it just was not fast enough for us. Call this a product of society or a result of youthful testosterone gone amok or witnessing a big brother doing an awesome burn out as he left you in the dust and smoke on your two wheeler 4 years prior. Whatever the case it is a common affiliation for building a faster car that most young guys and some young gals for that matter possess. I am not about to bash young people or paint everyone of them with the same brush. Bear with me here young man and let me explain. It happens to old crows like me too. It just makes me shake my head when I read about someone who has some extra cash and runs out and puts an 800cfm double pumper on there stock 305 or installs a 320 duration cam in the same motor and then gets on here and asks why they have such a dog of a motor. This is made easier these days by having a huge inventory of parts available for anyone with a web browser, credit card and a shipping address. Also in this ?I want it now? world it seems that patience and planning are out the window. Eventually we all learn from our mistakes and become better at what ever it is we do or have done. So lets hear it?what are some of the ill-advised, useless or ridiculous things you did to your first hotrod/car in the name of speed. Maybe a fledgling hot-rodder will read this and take note, if we save just one person some time and money we can all feel OK about that. I guess that is one reason this forum is here in the first place. Well me first then? I was 17, bolted on a nitrous plate to my basically stock 307 which I had in a 68 Belair 4 door, yep a real gem of a sled, we gave it a 150 shot?once! It actually broke the block when a/the rods went south and stopped everything in a heartbeat. Maybe it is just me that did it all wrong back when?lol

[TucsonJay]

A little research before you do something is good too!

I had a 409/409 '62 Biscayne. The Z-11 cam from the '63 427 race motor seemed like a natural for that engine, to me. Well when it ran...it REALLY ran!!!

The problem was I kept wrecking the valve train. After pinning the rocker studs, because I pulled a couple of them loose, it developed a nasty habit of busting moly pushrods! Eventually, out of frustration, I put a stock solid lifter can in, and traded the motor off! The guy put it into a '63 ragtop, and never had another problem.

Years later I was reading an article on 409s, only to find that the early hipo heads had shorter springs, and if you did not cut the seats deeper, you would bottom out the springs!!!

[39 OLDROD]

OH lord have I ever done more then my fair share of DUMB things .BUT this is a little story of a friend of mine back about 1960 or so . Big DADDY had come through with his blown HEMI and it was so fast we did't have Enif stopping room BUT he had been paid to show so he made a run (one) anyway, stopped about five rows over in a fellows tobacco patch. now I had a friend who JUST had to have one of them blowers for his chevy. motor so he bought one and he got in all installed so we all gettered to see him start her up. No body told us he would NEED blower rods. Any body ever see a motor cave in all eight rods at once

OLDROD

[TucsonJay]

[QUOTE=39 OLDROD]OH lord have I ever done more then my fair share of DUMB things. OLDROD QUOTE]

We won't even talk about my first wife! That was really dumb! {:-(

[skull]

l had a 65 impala in 1982. had one of those cheappy al's parts store genirac shifters, no reverse lock-out. with the 350/2 speed, l could hit 60 in first. one day l was showing off got to 60 went to shift into second and went straight into reveres and BLAMEEEEOOOOOEE. the whole car jumped about a foot in the air, then coasted to a stop. put in park, went to get out and it started to roll.
on inspection after removing the tranny, part of the input shaft was stuck in the torque converter, one chunk fell out on the ground. final talley, l broke the input shaft into 3 pieces.

Later

[39 OLDROD]

Originally Posted by Custom10

OK so we have all been there. You just got you first car and if most of us can remember back that far we can for the most part agree that at the time it just was not fast enough for us. Call this a product of society or a result of youthful testosterone gone amok or witnessing a big brother doing an awesome burn out as he left you in the dust and smoke on your two wheeler 4 years prior. Whatever the case it is a common affiliation for building a faster car that most young guys and some young gals for that matter possess. I am not about to bash young people or paint everyone of them with the same brush. Bear with me here young man and let me explain. It happens to old crows like me too. It just makes me shake my head when I read about someone who has some extra cash and runs out and puts an 800cfm double pumper on there stock 305 or installs a 320 duration cam in the same motor and then gets on here and asks why they have such a dog of a motor. This is made easier these days by having a huge inventory of parts available for anyone with a web browser, credit card and a shipping address. Also in this ?I want it now? world it seems that patience and planning are out the window. Eventually we all learn from our mistakes and become better at what ever it is we do or have done. So lets hear it?what are some of the ill-advised, useless or ridiculous things you did to your first hotrod/car in the name of speed. Maybe a fledgling hot-rodder will read this and take note, if we save just one person some time and money we can all feel OK about that. I guess that is one reason this forum is here in the first place. Well me first then? I was 17, bolted on a nitrous plate to my basically stock 307 which I had in a 68 Belair 4 door, yep a real gem of a sled, we gave it a 150 shot?once! It actually broke the block when a/the rods went south and stopped everything in a heartbeat. Maybe it is just me that did it all wrong back when?lol

The probable is that the test come's before the lesson

OLDROD

[Custom10]

your right on oldrod! first is the test.

[cr55]

A bad experience seems to be the lesson that sticks with you the most! A Friend wanted to make his 58 Vette a little quicker, he installed solid lifters on his hydraulic cam so he could twist it further! Not a long life span... ...CR