Damn it man. I have a '69 (rust free) Firebird convertible project in the shop. It is in line behind a dozen plus trucks and boats, but after subscribing to this channel I will probably have to move it to #2 or #3. I just gotta get the new house finished and doors on the new shop.
@@VinylVillageGarage It's a really clean car. Should be fun. I bought my first car, a '69 Firebird convertible, for $550 from a friend's father on 09-22-1978. Within two years I added a '70 Trans Am and a '70 Formula to the flock and had several more pass through my hands that I resold. My mom's back yard looked like a used Pontiac car lot. Good times.
Great tips on the Pontiac vs other engines. Now I’ve got some info on what to check out on our 326. I don’t really know much about engines, so thank you for sharing all of your information.
I also had a tab on the fuel pump eccentric break. Ended up going through 20 or 30 cheap auto zone electric fuel pumps before i fixed it 😂. I always put on a new one after that
Nice content. Great informations. I never opened my windage tray holes but will consider it. About those #46 heads that are on the 400, They have great flowing numbers and some are small valves and some are big valves. Small valves are great and have greater velocity at lower RPM for daily driving and street performance under 400hp. Who drives at 5500 rpm on the streets anyway? My 66' 389ci 4bbl 325hp-425fp as #92 smallest valves with a 066 camshaft and it takes my 4400lbs starchief executive to over 130mph anytime. Torque is what you want to rip tires and fast take off or just going to the store. 400 hp is good do drive to the track. Hahahaha. Your have a great knowledge and prepared well. Keep them coming!
I do love my Pontiac engines and this engine is perfect for this car. won’t ever see a drag strip but plenty of cruise in and shows. I am certain it still put you in the seat and sound great when hitting the loud pedal.
Jon, I can hear my dad going over all the "pay attention to this" tips that he always shared as we work on our '61 Catalina and '64 Bonneville wagon engine projects.Man, did I every bend some pushrods! He would have loved your videos as we always worked on our Pontiacs in a very small two-car garage.
lol. Well you make me feel better about bending pushrods, I keep a stack around because I seem to use them up. Sounds like would definitely got along with your pops I love my Pontiacs for sure
Jon,I think your engine is currently set up with number 6 up to fire with the dots towards each other . If it's like Chevrolet turn one more 360 clockwise and set in the distributor and point the button to one on the cap. If those Pontiac's are like Chevy the top and bottom dots will both be up when #1 is ready to fire . Set the gears and chain on dots together then one more 360 to set in distributor. Disregard if Pontiacs are not the same.
I really don’t know, I have always dropped the distributor in after verifying #1 TDC. like in the video as long as the marks and centerline are lined up good to go for me. I suppose on the next one I will leave the cover off and check the dot location on #1 TDC
You are correct, if he is at TDC for #1, and the timing marks are as shown (6:00 on cam gear, 12:00 on crank gear) the engine will be 180 out and will not fire. The correct orientation (per service manual) for TDC #1 is for the cam gear timing dot to be at 12:00 and the crank gear timing dot also at 12:00. The way it is shown in the video is correct for TDC of #6. The fix is simply to install the distributor with the rotor pointing towards #6 plug wire (with crank at TDC #6), and all is good.
@@darbikrash1Thanks for commenting! Your description is very good. In our high perf engines we all do everything exactly the same way every time. When we button up an engine and walk away no one else has to guess which way to point the rotor for first fire up as back firing and fire balls hitting the ceiling are dangerous and can be very costly to to the engine or crew.
@@Chevchild 100% agree. Although pointing the distributor towards #6 will allow the engine to fire and run normally, the next guy that pulls the distributor will not be so lucky. Standard procedure when the distributor is out is to set it to #1, this will not run the way it is currently set up. Better to pull the timing gear off and reset the timing marks as described.
@darbikrash1 or just turn the crankshaft 360 degrees no need to remove the chain. Again that is why it doesn’t matter as long as two things have occurred. First The timing dots on the gears and the center line of cam and crankshaft are lined up in a straight line and second install the distributor pointing toward Cyl 1 on the cap when at TDC #1 cylinder it how it was from the factory.
Great info! I only wish I had this information when I rebuilt my 400 in the 80's. It also answers some overheating issues that were never really solved. Thanks
I have not experienced many overheating issues with my Pontiacs I have heard of a lot people that have. Maybe these few things I shared made the difference
Very good information on this video! Great work on the bolt hole repair! I am about to assemble an engine and some of the threads may need to be cleaned up a little. Now I will pay close attention to the depth of the thread holes as to not cause myself this problem.
I missed that hole being damaged the first time I looked at it. It’s a good practice before or after the trip to the machine shop to chase all the threaded holes to remove debris and inspect for damage.
I’ve had really good luck the copper RTV. I had an intake water gasket leak on an Old’s 305 when I was in college. I shoved that RTV in and it not only help the 3 hr drive home, but it lasted 3-4 weeks after as my dad used it as his daily when I took his car. Great video! Does one need to be worried about those rockers not being spotless clean?
Coming along nicely, just wondering once you get to final stage under the hood, being this is going to be a 69 T/A are you going to put all the Ram Air pans and air tubes on ? See a lot of clones where they don't go the extra mile to finish it off right, I mean if you're ( not you ) going to go to that length to try and make it look like one, then why not go all the way and do it right ? I know there's an expense with doing the pans and tubes, but.... Lol
Yup already have the pans and collecting all the little lines and fittings needed to make it work. Interesting how the “kits” don’t really have all you need to make it work.
@@VinylVillageGarage That's interesting that you didn't get everything you needed. Had, just sold it in Feb. a real 69' T/A, funny thing, wasn't even thinking about selling and one night Dave Hall from Restore A Muscle Car sends me a text asking if I still had it and do I want to sell, bought it from him in 2017 and had to restore it. Then a few nights later get another text from another well known Pontiac guru asking same thing. Kinda going the long way here Lol, But anyway the car was missing the pans, order repo kit from Firebird Central... came with everything needed.
@@joesacheli8731the kit was missing Vacuum lines and grommets, vacuum switch, crank Case vent filter and tube, bolts to attach ram air pan to hood, heat riser stove pipe, even the vacuum doors don’t come attached. The pictures for Firebird central looked the same but next time I will call them and confirm what the “kit comes with if it’s complete I will get it from them
I have to ask, I want to get a 69 firebird to restore, I just finished a 72. I live in northeast Indiana, where do you find your cars? I find rusty cars , missing parts, and they want 8000!
No doubt the asking price has gone up, plus it’s a total mess. To answer the question since doing RUclips they find me now which has been a nice benefit for sure. I have that 1969 400 4spd car I would part with but it’s a major project and unfortunately the original block is very rough and potentially junk. It’s a back burner project. I have $4,000 into it at this point. I have a steering column that goes with it but no transmission or pedals.
Yeah it’s still available. The parts from the drip rail around the back of the car are nice. The small pot metal pieces that are chrome plated are discolored as you can see in the video. Would polish up a little but not perfectly. The drip rail moulding isn’t good on the drivers side and passenger side is missing. How close to Indianapolis are you?
Awesome to see you doing all the work!! You are the total Bird builder. Thanks for sharing.
You bet
Great information. Excellent description on the engine assembly. Thank you.
Very welcome, thanks for watching
Damn it man. I have a '69 (rust free) Firebird convertible project in the shop. It is in line behind a dozen plus trucks and boats, but after subscribing to this channel I will probably have to move it to #2 or #3. I just gotta get the new house finished and doors on the new shop.
I would not be mad at all if you moved the bird up the line, especially being a 1969 convertible.
@@VinylVillageGarage It's a really clean car. Should be fun. I bought my first car, a '69 Firebird convertible, for $550 from a friend's father on 09-22-1978. Within two years I added a '70 Trans Am and a '70 Formula to the flock and had several more pass through my hands that I resold. My mom's back yard looked like a used Pontiac car lot. Good times.
Jon , thanks for sharing this great video with us.
My pleasure!
Polly locks definitely a nice upgrade got them on my 670 heads along with some Hartland Sharp rollers.
Yes they are!
Good video.
Thank you.
Great job jon 💪😎
Thanks!
Another awesome video!
Thanks again!
On my first car a gold 71 formula. I actually had a rocker ball split in half. I thought i had a cam go down. But on teardown i found that. Got lucky
Wow. I haven’t seen that happen yet. I suppose anything is possible
Engine assembly- love this part of a build!! Great work as always
I don’t mind engine work, a lot of little things to keep straight, like inspect and clean all threaded holes before assembly 😁😉
John very good informational vlog for sure!! Keep up the fantastic work!!!👍🏽
Will do!
Great tips on the Pontiac vs other engines. Now I’ve got some info on what to check out on our 326. I don’t really know much about engines, so thank you for sharing all of your information.
Any time!
I also had a tab on the fuel pump eccentric break. Ended up going through 20 or 30 cheap auto zone electric fuel pumps before i fixed it 😂. I always put on a new one after that
Well you have had some interesting engine issues that I can’t say I seen before. Good to know of course because it could happen again
Good content and tips.....thanks👍
No problem 👍
Nice content. Great informations.
I never opened my windage tray holes but will consider it. About those #46 heads that are on the 400, They have great flowing numbers and some are small valves and some are big valves. Small valves are great and have greater velocity at lower RPM for daily driving and street performance under 400hp. Who drives at 5500 rpm on the streets anyway?
My 66' 389ci 4bbl 325hp-425fp as #92 smallest valves with a 066 camshaft and it takes my 4400lbs starchief executive to over 130mph anytime.
Torque is what you want to rip tires and fast take off or just going to the store. 400 hp is good do drive to the track. Hahahaha.
Your have a great knowledge and prepared well. Keep them coming!
I do love my Pontiac engines and this engine is perfect for this car. won’t ever see a drag strip but plenty of cruise in and shows. I am certain it still put you in the seat and sound great when hitting the loud pedal.
Great video, brother nothing like a PONTIAC
Pontiacs are definitely special to me too
Jon, I can hear my dad going over all the "pay attention to this" tips that he always shared as we work on our '61 Catalina and '64 Bonneville wagon engine projects.Man, did I every bend some pushrods! He would have loved your videos as we always worked on our Pontiacs in a very small two-car garage.
lol. Well you make me feel better about bending pushrods, I keep a stack around because I seem to use them up. Sounds like would definitely got along with your pops I love my Pontiacs for sure
Jon,I think your engine is currently set up with number 6 up to fire with the dots towards each other . If it's like Chevrolet turn one more 360 clockwise and set in the distributor and point the button to one on the cap. If those Pontiac's are like Chevy the top and bottom dots will both be up when #1 is ready to fire . Set the gears and chain on dots together then one more 360 to set in distributor. Disregard if Pontiacs are not the same.
I really don’t know, I have always dropped the distributor in after verifying #1 TDC. like in the video as long as the marks and centerline are lined up good to go for me. I suppose on the next one I will leave the cover off and check the dot location on #1 TDC
You are correct, if he is at TDC for #1, and the timing marks are as shown (6:00 on cam gear, 12:00 on crank gear) the engine will be 180 out and will not fire. The correct orientation (per service manual) for TDC #1 is for the cam gear timing dot to be at 12:00 and the crank gear timing dot also at 12:00. The way it is shown in the video is correct for TDC of #6. The fix is simply to install the distributor with the rotor pointing towards #6 plug wire (with crank at TDC #6), and all is good.
@@darbikrash1Thanks for commenting! Your description is very good. In our high perf engines we all do everything exactly the same way every time. When we button up an engine and walk away no one else has to guess which way to point the rotor for first fire up as back firing and fire balls hitting the ceiling are dangerous and can be very costly to to the engine or crew.
@@Chevchild 100% agree. Although pointing the distributor towards #6 will allow the engine to fire and run normally, the next guy that pulls the distributor will not be so lucky. Standard procedure when the distributor is out is to set it to #1, this will not run the way it is currently set up. Better to pull the timing gear off and reset the timing marks as described.
@darbikrash1 or just turn the crankshaft 360 degrees no need to remove the chain. Again that is why it doesn’t matter as long as two things have occurred. First The timing dots on the gears and the center line of cam and crankshaft are lined up in a straight line and second install the distributor pointing toward Cyl 1 on the cap when at TDC #1 cylinder it how it was from the factory.
Great info! I only wish I had this information when I rebuilt my 400 in the 80's. It also answers some overheating issues that were never really solved. Thanks
I have not experienced many overheating issues with my Pontiacs I have heard of a lot people that have. Maybe these few things I shared made the difference
I would go big valve heads with melling 041 ram air 4 cam at a minimum. make it scream.
If it was my car I would used a set of #16 heads I have. I have two sets that need a home.
hell ya
Thanks
Very informative. I too had to make my old 400 adjustable valve train, due to a Summit 2801 cam. I used Chevy rocker arm setup to make it adjustable.
Most engines I assemble need adjustable valve train it was nice to go old school on at least one more.
@@VinylVillageGarage
I can appreciate what once was. I was there now, I am going with a L92 aluminum 6.2L from junkyard 2007 Escalade.
Very good information on this video! Great work on the bolt hole repair! I am about to assemble an engine and some of the threads may need to be cleaned up a little. Now I will pay close attention to the depth of the thread holes as to not cause myself this problem.
I missed that hole being damaged the first time I looked at it. It’s a good practice before or after the trip to the machine shop to chase all the threaded holes to remove debris and inspect for damage.
I’ve had really good luck the copper RTV. I had an intake water gasket leak on an Old’s 305 when I was in college. I shoved that RTV in and it not only help the 3 hr drive home, but it lasted 3-4 weeks after as my dad used it as his daily when I took his car. Great video! Does one need to be worried about those rockers not being spotless clean?
That copper rtv stuff is quite durable had a coworker use it as the exhaust catalytic converter gasket and it surprisingly survived for over a year.
👍👍👍👍
Thank you
Coming along nicely, just wondering once you get to final stage under the hood, being this is going to be a 69 T/A are you going to put all the Ram Air pans and air tubes on ? See a lot of clones where they don't go the extra mile to finish it off right, I mean if you're ( not you ) going to go to that length to try and make it look like one, then why not go all the way and do it right ? I know there's an expense with doing the pans and tubes, but.... Lol
Yup already have the pans and collecting all the little lines and fittings needed to make it work. Interesting how the “kits” don’t really have all you need to make it work.
@@VinylVillageGarage That's interesting that you didn't get everything you needed. Had, just sold it in Feb. a real 69' T/A, funny thing, wasn't even thinking about selling and one night Dave Hall from Restore A Muscle Car sends me a text asking if I still had it and do I want to sell, bought it from him in 2017 and had to restore it. Then a few nights later get another text from another well known Pontiac guru asking same thing. Kinda going the long way here Lol, But anyway the car was missing the pans, order repo kit from Firebird Central... came with everything needed.
@@joesacheli8731the kit was missing
Vacuum lines and grommets, vacuum switch, crank Case vent filter and tube, bolts to attach ram air pan to hood, heat riser stove pipe, even the vacuum doors don’t come attached. The pictures for Firebird central looked the same but next time I will call them and confirm what the “kit comes with if it’s complete I will get it from them
I have to ask, I want to get a 69 firebird to restore, I just finished a 72. I live in northeast Indiana, where do you find your cars? I find rusty cars , missing parts, and they want 8000!
No doubt the asking price has gone up, plus it’s a total mess. To answer the question since doing RUclips they find me now which has been a nice benefit for sure. I have that 1969 400 4spd car I would part with but it’s a major project and unfortunately the original block is very rough and potentially junk. It’s a back burner project. I have $4,000 into it at this point. I have a steering column that goes with it but no transmission or pedals.
@@VinylVillageGarage Thanks for the reply, I will keep it in mind, I remember that car.
What number heads
1969 #46 small valve high compression heads.
Jon, please I’m interested in the GTO chrome for the vinyl top
Yeah it’s still available. The parts from the drip rail around the back of the car are nice. The small pot metal pieces that are chrome plated are discolored as you can see in the video. Would polish up a little but not perfectly. The drip rail moulding isn’t good on the drivers side and passenger side is missing. How close to Indianapolis are you?
@@VinylVillageGarage brother I’m in Georgia, but I have a friend in Indy
Joe could pick this up for me, I’m sure we can work out the details. I’m restoring a 68 GTO, but I’ll not rest until I find a 69 bird.
Thanks brother
@@donsag1 this week I will see about getting the trim off without damage. The screws are very rusty. My email vinylvillagegarage@gmail.com
DON'T you ever put a Chevy engine on a Pontiac..... that is sacrifice
👍