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New toy - 1953 Bel-Air sedan

14K views 149 replies 20 participants last post by  GT_80 
#1 ·
I had been looking for a while to get a new project car as I haven't had one in 2 years. It's not that I don't have ANY projects because I have several tractor resto/upgrades going on currently, but the car projects are something I want to do with my kids too. I had been looking at 2wd S10's, Novas, and basically enything that had a good body and was around $1000-1500.

I had found a 1986 S10 that the body had been off, frame was painted, all new bushings, springs, and better rear end, was already set up for a V8, and was pretty straigh, rust had been 'fixed' already, but it was a 2 seater, and I really wanted something for the family.

I found a 2 door 1975ish Chevy Nova 2 door, straight 6, TH350 car, and my dad had looked at it a couple years ago, and said it had no rust and was solid, however, the paint looked good and the car was toast. Its gonna be reclaimed by the earth soon... Rockers were gone, leaf spring mounts were rotting off, floors were junk, trunk pan was junk, front control arms were paper thin... It was a turd, and had whole dead mice in the interior. NASTY.

After that one dropped off my possible list, I started looking at other novas, malibu's, caprice's, impala SS's, and couldn't find anything I wanted. Found a couple ratty vette's that had been sitting for 10+ years, so I know the frames would be junk...

Then I came upon an ad on Facebook Marketplace, and it was 1953 Bel-Air sedan, and didn't look too bad. Guy wanted $1300 for it, and after messaging back and forth several times, I find out the guy builds tube chassis frames and suspensions for all kinds of stuff including my cousins mud truck, and the guy said if I show up with $1000 cash and my trailer that would buy the Bel-Air. My wife said "If it's a bel-air or a Vette you can buy it" so the whole family piled in my truck and we went to look at the car.

The trunk pan is rotted, but not too badly, the floors need a little help, but they're fixable. The car looks like at least 2 people worked on body work on it over the years. Some of the body work was done well, some was done realllllly poorly. It came with just about all the chrome, has both bumpers, all the glass (couple windows are cracked though)

So what is my plan with this car? Kind of a hot-rod barn find patina look roadkill style build. So what will it be? a 1953 Sedan with a 305HO from a Monte Carlo in it, I have a 2 speed powerglide for it, and I need to get a rear end. It still has the original rear end with torque tube in it that won't work with the trans I have, so I am looking for a S10 4x4 rear axle from like a 2000's S10 and I think I have found one for a good price with springs, but it's 2 hours each way from me... I plan to maybe either put 2 bench seats in it from S10's or something similar, or I may put 4 racing bucket seats in. I guess it all depends on what I find that strikes my fancy on any given day.

It will be a very cool cruiser, not a speed demon, probably will ride like crap as I plan to raise the rear up about 3" and I will probably leave the front suspension in for now. The front springs are super stiff, but hey even in 1953 they had a sway bar! So it's legit...

anyway, here are some pics for starters...

I already have the whole nose off, the trunk lid off, and I am starting on ripping the rear end out of it too.
 

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#2 ·
I also emailed Rustoleum to see if they would sponsor me for paint on this car, as I buy a lot of their paint anyway, and I plan to use it on this one as I did on my C10 many years ago.

We'll see if they get back to me...

I go my old sweet ansen sprint style wheels back from my cousin too, I had those on my hotrod C10 and my sonoma, and on my caprice too. So I have had these for a long time, and they are perfect for this build.

The car came with the fender skirts too, but I don't plan to use them. I may keep them, I may sell them, not sure.
 

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#3 ·
heres a few more pics

I had made a comment to a buddy of mine that it looked like they put bondo on with a spatula, and they did... It was in the car...
 

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#5 ·
That looks like it will be a fair bit of fun! Wheels look really good on it. I am curious though, why a 2-speed instead of something like a TH400? I've only ever driven one 2-speed car and it probably wasn't a good example (the whole car was pretty worn out), but it wasn't something I would have considered choosing.
 
#9 ·
the 2 speed was available, and inexpensive. Fluid inside was still clean and sweet not burnt. The final gear in a Powerglide is 1:1 just the same as a TH350 or TH400, so highway cruising will be fine, just won't get off the line as fast. I'm not worried, easy enough to change if I hate it.

I got a rear end from a 1979 trans am with 3.08 gears, drums look new, brake shoes look new, hardware is still gold in color, and the brake lines and one wheel cylinder are new (although the line is crushed from the guy removing the rear end). I got a set of leaf springs from a 2003 ish S10 pickup, they look very new- still have the part numbers painted on them- they may actually be replacements.

Next I have to get wider spring perches and weld them on the frame so the newer springs will fit because the original ones were 2" wide, and the new ones are 2.5" wide (3" at the bushings).

I Need to get different motor mounts too for the frame and the motor.

Its slowly coming together.
 
#7 ·
I love the lines on these rides. I've often envisioned making one a poor man's two door. Great stance............those rear "fenders" are just classic!

Nice score, congrats!
 
#10 ·
Looks like it'll buff up nice eventually James!..one of my late friends had a nice '50 Chevy with the original 235 straight six & 3 on the tree..

The PowerGlide is a rugged transmission,rail dragsters used them,so did circle track dirt racers,granted their not as quick off the line as a TH350 or 400 is,but they do have the lowest first gear ratio out of them too,believe it or not..
I've owned several of them and used to travel hundreds of miles at a time in the cars that had them,and never had a bit of trouble with any of them..they all had a cool whine in park or neutral,I recall..

I have a 70's vintage Th350 short tail that came with a 307 V8 I bought a few months back,I don't know if its any good,but the fluid in it is clean and doesn't smell burnt--it does have a small hunk of the bellhousing missing though ,it appears the dipstick tube jammed against it when the engine was hoisted out,and it lost the bolt hole above the dowel pin,but I think it would not even be missed if you went to use it..
If I knew it was "good" I'd be tempted to put in place of the 700r4 in my 4x4 Suburban,it'll bolt in if you use a spacer on the tail..



I kept a TH350 with a lock up converter for a spare for my van,that came from a '86 G-10,it has the 9" tail housing ..been sitting a long time now,worked good before I pulled it,not sure if it would now though..

I saved a TH400 from a '74 Monte Carlo I had ,that had a 454 factory,been holding onto it in case the one in my plow truck craps out,its a short tail,but I'm pretty sure the output shaft is a tad too long to bolt right up to the transfer case,it would probably have to be swapped for the 4x4 version..

I have an extra 3rd seat for my '85 Suburban that might fit that car,if your interested too..

You can buy new spring perches for the rear axle at speed shops,also I have seen them for trailers at Tractor Supply too,that might work..
 

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#12 ·
Robert, stinks that TH350 got dinged up- it may be ok for a easy drive now and then, I wouldn't put it in anything I was gonna thrash on...

Rick, I got trans dapt motor mounts for the 53 coming. it slides over the frame, and you drill 3 holes per side, and it bolts on, and you can weld it as well. I will probably just bolt it with three 3/8" grade 8 bolts per side to hold it on, and it should be fine.

I got a whole lot of work done this week. trunk pan s almost all fixed, I got the brake booster and master cylinder bolted in the to the frame, got the factory rear end out (for sale cheap with springs and everthing if anyone needs one), got my new spring mount parts in and working on mocking them up, and I ordered all the parts I need for my motor assembly- The block was a little disappointing because my buddy that I got it from, I knew had a bit of work done to it years ago, and it was done by a few guys in their teens- so the lower end was put together by a shop, so the bearings and everything are fine, but the heads had 2 different brand bolts holding them on, the motor has a 280H comp cam in it with stock valve springs, so I am replacing those, new keepers and locks, new pushrods (cause I didn't have any), and should be a decent motor.

The lower cyl walls have some visible scoring, but not enough to catch your finger on, so I plan to just run it for now- It is a 305, and I don't want to bore it out, as that adds much more money onto it. My buddy that I got it from has a 350 in pieces I can have, but it would be the same deal, I would need better pistons, and the cyl to be gone through, so that adds $700+ easy to any build. My plan on this build is to try to put it together for under $3500 total cost, and I think I can pull it off. I sold one of my tractors to help pay for it, and I have another for sale, maybe one more after that.

heres some more pics...
 

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#13 ·
heres a few more pics... despite the scoring (again I say minor minor) the lower end of this motor is immaculate. I'm super excited to get this thing back together once I get the rest of my parts in
 

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#14 ·
Not knowing much about complete motor vehicle engine rebuilding you said the cylinder walls had minor scoring and you were going to run it for now; does that mean you are going to hone them or leave as is? Just curious as this is a very interesting project. Thanks and good luck with it.
 
#17 ·
I am not taking the pistons out and honing. I plan to re-assemble as is. For the record, it is not the right or recommended way to put a motor together.

I saw this motor run, and helped pull it out of the car it was in. Had great compression in all cylinders, and I know the bearings in the lower end have less than 4000 miles on them, so I am willing to take a risk on the light scoring thats in there, also I am rebuilding the heads with new springs, keepers, locks, rocker balls and lock nuts, and all new pushrods and lifters as a few of the lifters were tarnished as well. Most of the issues in this motor were due to it sitting for several years after being built on a stand, and not turned over regularly. You can get tarnishing, rust, rings stuck etc if you don't keep it filled with oil and turn it over regularly. I usually put oil in the spark plug holes so there is some on top of the pistons which will help it stay in nice shape even if it sits for a long time.

this is a video of the motor running.


Yes we had a weiand 142 blower on a 305 with a non-blow through carb :) it was FUN to drive
 
#18 ·
Thanks Rick! Yeah, I have been working like 2-3 hours at a time, a couple days a week to try and juggle family life and work. I hope to have it driving before the winter- not be done, but at least move under it's own power.
 
#19 ·
I really like 305's- don't know why everyone gives them such a bad rap... In the 80's GM used some cams with soft metal, and some oil pumps that tended to get weak, and the cams would go bad, and then oil pressure would drop, and you could spin connecting rod bearings... I've seen the same thing happen with 350's in the era. These actually were decent motors- 56 or 58CC heads, flat top pistons, about a 9.5:1 compression ratio, and with a decent cam and some minor headwork, easily can get over 300HP, and use less fuel because a smaller displacement. I will take all the free 305's people dont want :) I like doing stuff with things other people hate. Thats why I love Onans so much.
 
#20 ·
The 307's had the same "bad reputation" too James,but 90% of the ones everyone called "junk" only suffered from flat cam lobes,and 350's were so readily available then used for cheap money,most guys just scrapped the 307's..

I owned several of them,and had no issues at all with them once a new cam was installed..one I had was in a '68 Caprice Estate Wagon that had only 65,000 miles ,but the cam had several dead lobes..

I put a Sealed Power cam in it that was close to the same specs as a Duntov 30/30 can GM used in many high performance small blocks and the thing ran sweet..it had a Powerglide,and 3:08 gears,so no burnouts were possible though..it would wind up to 65 mph in low though!..

My '81 G-10 van has a 307 from a '73 Chevelle in it I bought for $100,did nothing but put a new timing chain & steel gears in it,and put it in..it runs good,but it always has smoked a little at higher RPMs..with 2:73 gears,it does not see high RPMS very often though!..that engine was the last year for a 307,and it has EGR,was rated at 115 HP,I think the 250 six I removed had more HP and torque,but I like the V8 better..

Now I have two more I bought cheap--paid $80 for the "unknown running condition" 1971 one with the TH350,and another supposedly "nice runner" 1970 one for $140,but I'm lacking most of the pulleys and only the '71 had exhaust manifolds,and they are the "ram horns" that wont work in my later GM trucks..
I have yet to try firing either one up ,I'm hoping they wont turn out to be junk,or have bad cam lobes..

The 305's cylinder heads are small chambers and a lot of guys put them on other small blocks to boost the compression ratio,and low end torque..small valves meant they were limited at high RPM's but for street use,they were great..one of the strongest small blocks I ever drove was a 400 small block with 305 heads,it was in a '69 C-10 pickup with 3:73 gears--it could chirp the tires going into second gear at a fast idle almost efforlessly,it was hard not to squeak them!..

Does that Trans-Dapt motor mount use the holes on the front of the block for the motor mounts instead of the brackets on the sides,like most 55-57 Chevy's did ?...those bolt holes on the passenger side go into the fuel pump push rod area,so be careful not to use bolts that are too long,and you will want to dip them in indian head gasket shellac to seal the threads,so no oil will ooze out of them..
We sold a few factory '57 Chevy engine mount brackets at the junkyard,I think Trans-Dapt copied the factory ones,but GM's were beefier..

As for that TH350,yeah,it sucks some doofus busted the bell housing--but if it worked OK,I think I'd risk using it as-is--years ago I blew a TH350 to pieces in a '67 Impala,and had NO money,but my friend had a TH350 from a Buick he removed to upgrade to a TH400,and said I could take it--I was going to look for an adapter,but my older brother told me 4 out of the six bolts will line up to a chevy block,only the two upper bolts were different bolt spacing..
I installed it with only 4 bolts,and drove that car thousands of miles with no issues,but the 283 V8 in it was pretty tired and it had 3:08 gears,so I wasn't going around doing hole shots with it !..you never would have known it was "missing" two bolts..

My big concern with the missing chunk is the dowel pin area lost its full circle on that side--if both dowel pin areas were intact I'd have no fears using it as-is..it still would probably "live" even the way it is though...only "fix" for that would be to chop up a junk Th350 bell housing and try tig welding in a patch,or cut the bell off and use a blow shield ,but that would cost more than a good used TH350 probably..
I'm reluctant to install that TH350 in anything,then find out its a P-O-S though..
If I were younger I would..
 
#23 ·
The 307's had the same "bad reputation" too James,but 90% of the ones everyone called "junk" only suffered from flat cam lobes,and 350's were so readily available then used for cheap money,most guys just scrapped the 307's..

I owned several of them,and had no issues at all with them once a new cam was installed..one I had was in a '68 Caprice Estate Wagon that had only 65,000 miles ,but the cam had several dead lobes..

I put a Sealed Power cam in it that was close to the same specs as a Duntov 30/30 can GM used in many high performance small blocks and the thing ran sweet..it had a Powerglide,and 3:08 gears,so no burnouts were possible though..it would wind up to 65 mph in low though!..

My '81 G-10 van has a 307 from a '73 Chevelle in it I bought for $100,did nothing but put a new timing chain & steel gears in it,and put it in..it runs good,but it always has smoked a little at higher RPMs..with 2:73 gears,it does not see high RPMS very often though!..that engine was the last year for a 307,and it has EGR,was rated at 115 HP,I think the 250 six I removed had more HP and torque,but I like the V8 better..
I like the little 307 as well. Before I sold my 80 C10, I put a 307 in that- I got the long block for $50- it was in bad shape too - the water jackets in the heads were literally rotted through into the intake runners. I junked those heads, stripped it, honed the cylinders, put in brand new rings (those pistons were a true flattop), put all new bearings, new cam bearings, Edelbrock performer cam and lifters, 305 heads (i think they were the 416 were 64cc chambers), I think it had a edelbrock performer intake, and a 600 cfm holley on it when I sold it. That motor had plenty of power. I had my street/strip built TH350 (which I wish I kept) and 4.10's behind it- I could chirp the tires in 2nd and sometimes 3rd if I romped on it. That motor drove for about 6 years before the guy said it croaked- I had about $300 in that whole build including the block- and I am sure it was something the guy did to kill it- although, it always sounded like one lifter was sticking after the rpm came down from a hard romp...
 
#22 ·
I know the bottom end in this motor is good, was assembled by a reputable shop locally several years ago. Even "just putting this motor together" i am still spending close to $400 in valve springs, pushrods, timing set, lifters, pulleys, etc and that's not even getting to the exhaust yet... If I got a 350, the cost would be well over $1000 because I would have to have the block cleaned, I would hone it myself, and put all new bearings in, but a new cam, but flattop pistons... Last 350 I built cost about $1500 all said and done, and I did everything on it except installing the pistons because I don't have the press or oven for that.

I have a friend offer me a dis-assembled 350 that I will probably take, but I know it will cost me a fair amount to put it together anyway... Theres no way im putting 20cc dished pistons and smog 350 heads back on a motor...
 
#24 ·
Heres the video of my 307 in my C10 right before I sold it.

 
#25 ·
This was the same truck before- it had a 4 bolt main 350, 10.3:1 compression, 305HO heads (same as I am putting in my 205), crane energizer .500 lift cam, professional products crosswind intake manifold, demon 750 double pumper, roller rockers... This was my first full build motor.

 
#26 ·
Here are some pics of the heads I'm using on the new 305. I bought these several years ago off Ebay as rebuildable 305HO heads. One of the two has the bronze guides, the other does not, which stinks, but the guides are tight, valves are straight, and theyre pretty clean.

The heads I took off the motor, I am soooo glad I didn't just jam them back on... both heads had the guides reamed out, and they both had oversized valve stems, one of the heads had the guides knurled to tighten it up further, and the valves were still sloppy in the guides. They had been burning a lot of oil, the exh valves were pretty crudded up, the valve springs all had spacers under them, and the springs had been so compressed they actually crushed the spacers, the springs had definitely been binding up... None of the valves looked bent, but I can't use them now because they're oversized... I may just jam these heads back together and save them to be reguided, or maybe just sell them for $100 as rebuildable.

This is my basement workshop for now :) My wife complained about the WD40 smell, but I like it :D
 

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#27 ·
For some reason the videos wont show up on my computer,this forum has some glitch I guess lately,all I see is the text ,and a blank white page under it..
(MTF is the only site I have this issue with too)..

I wouldn't worry too much about that minor scoring,several good running engines I had to pull the oil pan off of, to replace the timing chain or oil pump had some scoring showing at the skirt area on the cylinders,as long as its not up where the rings make contact and it has decent compression,and didn't smoke,it will probably be OK..the scratches might even hold oil and improve lubrication...

I've had only one 305,one I put in a '79 C-10 from an '86 G-10 van,and the longer stroke does make them feel more powerful at low rpm compared to the 307 and 283's..the 307 was basically a stroked 283,GM put the large journal 327 crank in a block with the same bore as a 283 to create the 307..the short stroke engines love to rev and wind up high,but lack the guts at low end,unless you run low rear end gears..

I've seen a few 305's that ran pretty strong in some Monte Carlo SS and Pontiac Firebirds,the "HO" versions were pretty peppy..a friends sister had an '86 Monte Carlo SS and it got stolen,and the vandals did reverse to drive hole shots with it until the torque converter snout had the tangs shear off that drives the front pump!..then they removed the air cleaner,and dumped a bunch of BB's and coins down the carb,and some of the dimes and pennies made it past the valves..
The engine wouldn't even spin over when they found the car--her brother had it towed home and he pulled the engine & trans out and took the heads off,and was surprised to see BB's in nearly every cylinder,and the coins!--but the cylinders and pistons were not damaged,the bores were perfect,and the pistons just had some dings in their tops..a few valves had dimes stuck under the heads,so they probably stalled it before any real damage was done..
He re-assembled it with new gaskets after cleaning out all the BB shot and coins,and it ran just as nice as it did before!..he just put a used torque converter he had from another trans he had lying around,and was surprised the rest of the trans seemed OK,it still shifted firm and didn't slip..

My older brother had a '77 Monte Carlo with a 305 that went 180,000 miles without ANY work ever being done to it other than oil changes and tune ups..still had the original water pump,fuel pump,carb never had to be touched either..

Finally it started popping back thru the carb,a cam lobe went flat--GM had a recall on some small blocks for defective cams and his car was on the list!--so GM reimbursed him for the cost of the parts & labor..he did the job himself,as he worked at a Chevy dealer back then,but I sold him the parts,from the store I worked at..list price of course!..:D
 
#28 ·
Yeah, I sent pics of the cylinder walls to my engine guy, and he said most people mistake scoring as a big problem. He said it's very normal especially in non-coated piston motors. he said a brand new assembled motor, when you turn it over by hand can score the cyl walls like mine. Theres still good cross hatching, and I know the compression was good- should be better with better heads on it now.

Getting harder to find small blocks for decent prices...
 
#29 · (Edited)
Good find and project. Looks like your making great progress.
If only that rear came out of a 1/2 ton pickup I'd definitely be interested. Probably has the lower gear ratio, perhaps a coveted 3:55.
Looking forward to updates.

re. replacement SBC's. Yep , folks are real proud of them anymore. I've got nearly $1k over the original purchase price on a good running 350 in just the necessities and replacements for failed or problematic parts. Waterpump, VC's, exh manifolds, fuel pump, air cleaner, plug wires, starter and intake manifold to name a few.
Costs add up real quick.
As long as the internals are good,a good running engine, any engine is good.

As an FYI I've got alittle over 2K in a rebuilt 54 235 L6 sitting in a corner awaiting a 49 216 to fail. I had a few folks questioning why a 235 and not a SBC and I would tell them it's not in my plans for that project.
 
#30 ·
In my area it is rare to see any Chevy V8 with a carburetor for sale any more,and the few you do see on craigslist or at salvage yards are usually priced at $500 & up ,more if they ran well or "will run" once freshened up..

Makes me regret not hoarding all the ones I had in the past,I sold a good running 400 small block I had in a '77 GMC for 8 years that came from a '78 K-10 Suburban ,for $150 back when I had no income ,and my mom's health was failing and I couldn't go work away from home...sold a few 350 engines with 4 bolt mains "complete" for $200--$350,to friends and others in need who like me,were not "well off" and couldn't afford salvage yard prices..

I also had a 250 straight six with a 3 speed manual trans given to me,that a shop nearby yanked out of a "grandpa's truck" that only had 42,000 original miles on them,to make room for a spiced up 350..it was an integral head version with the 2 bbl,not the best one GM ever made,but I had 2 others in a '81 G-10 van and a '79 C-10 pickup that both ran good with well over 100,000 miles on them..

I was planning to use that six in one of my trucks,but a friend who runs a cranberry bog's repair shop came over one day and asked if I'd take $200 for both,they use 250 sixes on their bog pumps and they are getting scarce around here--I was tired of tripping over it and it hogging space in my garage,so I sold it..and immediately regretted it a few weeks later,when a nice C-10 pickup with a blown up 250 six & three on the tree was offered to me for $350,I should have bought it anyways,but I already had too many vehicles..could have plopped that engine right in it and had a nice summer driver..

You can still find parts pretty cheap for old small blocks,but it usually requires a 2 day wait and payment in advance at most local parts stores..I find it depressing they are now becoming "antiques" and considered "obsolete"..I'm not that keen on the new LS engines and all the computerized crap you must deal with to install one in an old vehicle,if they were a direct bolt in fit like '55-87 Chevy V8 were ,it wouldn't be so bad,but I see you must buy motor mount adapter plates due to them being in different spots,the exhaust manifolds are a pain to find the correct ones to fit in an older chassis,I don't think its worth all that effort and expense..sadly everyone seems bent on "LS-ing" everything now..
 
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