Here is what $5000 buys you.

[Kern Dog]

J I G S A W runs!

Woooooo!
It was difficult to get it to start. The carburetor and distributor were not new. This low deck B series distributor is electronic and the only one that I have. I did test it by connecting the wire plug and spinning the shaft with the distributor out of the engine. It did send spark to the plugs.
The carburetor though....It looks fine but it occurred to me that THIS one was on my 75 Power Wagon and pulled off because it wouldn't idle.
I was trying to do a "first fire" on an engine with a few unknown parts.
Lucky for me, the cam and lifters are used but the lifters were put back in the same places. Some extended cranking wasn't going to wipe the cam.
I'd get a backfire through the carburetor or the tailpipes. It had me confused. I verified TDC and #1 firing order and stabbed the distributor. I cranked it to advance some or retard some....Nothing was working.
THEN I looked at the distributor cap. I had the firing order WRONG. I had it clockwise like a A-LA -Magnum series, not Counterclockwise for the B/RB series. I don't think that I have made this mistake in several years, if ever.
Boom...It started right up and blew a backfire and black smoke through the exhaust! It wouldn't stay running though.
It was then that I remembered that this carburetor was the one that I had shelved a few years ago.
I grabbed a Carter 4 barrel that a FBBO member sent me a couple of years ago. I bolted it on and ran a temporary fuel line just to get it to start and run. The Carter has no provision to attach the transmission kickdown button that is needed for the cable kickdown setup.
It started up and ran great! It idles smoother than I expected and it runs quieter too. The exhaust is quiet but does cackle a bit under throttle. No valvetrain noise, no exhaust leaks but....Whoa....The valve covers were pissing oil! They are cast aluminum and the gaskets are Moroso blue silicone with steel cores. The valve cover gasket rails are flat and straight. I suspect that I just didn't have the bolts tight enough.
I pulled each valve cover and cleaned the oil film from the gaskets, then bolted them back down. The lower-outer corners have studs but the holes in the valve covers do allow some movement. I did like I do with the MP VCs in Ginger....Hold the valve covers UP close to the intake while tightening the bolts. This aligns the gasket rails so the bottom edges sit evenly on the heads.
I'll know tomorrow if the oil leaks are gone.
I'm happy that it runs though!

[chargervert]

Congrats KD Nice work! It never gets old hearing them fire up for the first time!

[Kern Dog]

Thanks, Pete!

The transmission works. Power steering does too. I filled the reservoir twice....I think the steering chuck was dry!
The alternator runs at a discharge but I didn't know if it was good or not when I bolted it on. I never tested it. I may buy a rebuilt one.
The gauges don't read except the Tach and Ammeter. The speedometer should work. The dash lights are dead. Maybe the panel dimmer is bad?
I found a loose gallery plug at the back of the block near the bellhousing flange. It opposes the oil pressure sending unit. That was causing the massive oil stream, not the valve covers.
It was 11:45 and as I was tinkering out in the shop, the Wife came out sporting "that look" that they get sometimes. One dog of ours barks every time I start the Red car and apparently, he is just as entertained by the exhaust tone of THIS car.


I had to come back inside. More tomorrow though!

[ACUDANUT]

KD, 

[Kern Dog]

Yesterday it ran, today it also drives!
I replaced the alternator and the ammeter now shows a charge at idle. The Carter carburetor was pulled and a Holley 750 was cleaned up and put on. I had to reroute the fuel line to match the right side fuel inlet.
I backed it out of the shop and made two loops in the backyard and was ready to take it on the road through the neighborhood....When fwoooosh! Steam came up at the front of the car. Son of a bitch.
The lower radiator hose slipped off of the water pump housing. I usually use water only when I get a fresh engine up and running. I'd rather not lose anti-freeze to a leak so I wait to see if the system is leak free before I pour in the Prestone. Good thing. I put the hose back on, filled it with water and let it run, Ho harm done.
I'm not sure what I will do with the car once the various small details are addressed. I might register and insure it so I can legally drive it. I may take some small trips around town to make sure it is reliable before considering anything out of town.
The rear window still needs to be installed but I need to prime and paint the window channel before I can do that. There are some trim clips to replace as well. I bought a set when I bought the rear window.

[Kern Dog]

It is a mixed bag to report. The engine runs great, sounds great and performs great...But I have some valve cover leaks to attend to. For some reason, these blue Moroso gaskets don't seal well.
* The speedometer doesn't move. The cable spins, there is a 34 tooth speedo pinion in place and the cable is pressed to the back of the speedo.
* The tach is acting weird. It is dead most of the time but when it does come alive, it holds at idle but drops to zero when I rev the throttle.
* The gas gauge hasn't budged even with 5 gallons in the tank.
* The temp gauge is dead too. I grounded the purple wire to the temp sender and the gauge didn't move.
* The oil pressure gauge is dead.
The cluster is from the red car, Ginger. I pulled it because the temp and oil pressure gauges were not working consistently. The gas gauge worked though.
I have no front sway bar yet but I did take it out in the neighborhood. It feels remarkably stable. The steering is responsive, the brakes are great. I did 2 burnouts. It sounds great under throttle!

There isn't any pressure to fix all of these problems right now. I wanted to get it running and driving and I met that goal. I have a mechanical oil pressure gauge I can put in. I would rather have all the factory gauges working though. I have 2 other clusters that I can try but the faces of the gauges are badly faded. If they work, vinyl overlays could be used until I decide to upgrade.
I have to stop the valve cover leaks though. I can't stand to drive a car that leaves a stream of smoke like a crop duster!

[70 sublime]

With all the gauges having issues I wonder if it has something to do with the voltage limiter on the back of the cluster ?

[Kern Dog]

That is a great suggestion.

[darbgnik]

My personal experience is the aluminum valve covers don't like factory heads. I tried rubber gaskets on mine, leaked. Moroso blues, leaked. Moroso blue gaskets and ton of ultra black, sealed.....

I think the factory head likes steel covers that conform?

[moparstuart]

Use the RIGHT STUFF sealer  stuff is a Miracle Worker   

[Kern Dog]

Use the RIGHT STUFF sealer  stuff is a Miracle Worker   

Heh heh heh....

[Kern Dog]

I went to my local NAPA store and checked on the black fibrous valve cover gaskets. I like the Fel Pro 1612. They couldn't get them so I called Summit.

I did finally upload a video of the car running!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgOA9MQKCrE&ab_channel=GregoryKern

[Kern Dog]

Here is the video I shot on the day that I brought it home.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62fOW9oRiKI&ab_channel=GregoryKern

[John Milner]

Your car looks great.  They are very fun to drive they way yours is now.  I have found myself dealing with Summit more and more as parts stores in my area never have anything in stock for my Mopar.  I had good luck with those 1612 gaskets sealing on some aluminum valve covers on my 440.

[moparstuart]

Love the felpro  fiber filled valve cover gaskets  they dont crush.  Have them on the Superbird and the 68 charger  .  That and the Right stuff have solved my leaks that were constant  .   

[BDF]

Good job KD, Let the good times roll!

[Kern Dog]

I had a few successes today!
The Fel Pro valve cover gaskets arrived and I put them in using The Right Stuff sealant. It looks like the leaks there are gone.
I got the speedometer working. The cable just wasn't pushed onto the speedometer "snout" quite enough.
The gas gauge works!
The ground strap on the fuel line wasn't making a good enough connection. It is now. The gauge reads just like it did when I had this cluster in Ginger....With about 4-4 1/2 gallons in the tank, the gauge reads empty. Oooof. These damn aftermarket fuel sending units! At least it works like it did before and with it reading lower than the actual amount, it serves as a warning of getting fuel well before it is needed. The other way would be a LOT worse. Who here hasn't ran out of gas in total disbelief....I KNOW that I have more gas than this!
The tachometer works now. THAT is a funny thing...
I watched over this past week at how the tach would sometimes work and most times did not. Today it was intermittent. It worked at idle sometimes but would flicker or drop to zero when I revved it up. I noticed that the ammeter flickered at amount the same rate as the tach would flicker....Related?
Yeah.
I had the wires on the coil reversed. The blue field wire from the alternator is supposed to go to coil positive. I had it on the negative.


The black with yellow tracer was on the positive.
This is why the ammeter and tach were acting the same...I had them on the negative terminal.
Now the tach works.

[tan top]

  great stuff KD  , makes for interesting reading ! thanks for sharing 

[darbgnik]

I had a few successes today!
The Fel Pro valve cover gaskets arrived and I put them in using The Right Stuff sealant. It looks like the leaks there are gone.

Simple fixes, for sure.

Who here hasn't ran out of gas in total disbelief....I KNOW that I have more gas than this!

Only time my 70 has ever left me stranded...... a few taps revealed an empty tank.

[TexasStroker]

Very nice...it has come a long way since you first picked it up!

[Kern Dog]

Thank you everyone.
The oil pressure and temperature gauges are still dead. I swapped in another cluster but every gauge in it was dead. Maybe that voltage limiter was bad in the second cluster. I'm barely above novice level on electrical stuff. If I knew how to test these gauges out of the car, it sure would help!
This engine starts and runs great. I set the timing to 19 degrees initial but didn't see where it is for total timing. Months ago, I welded the slots in the distributor to the point where it should have about half of the amount of centrifugal advance as a stock unit. I've read that they had something between  26 to 28 degrees of mechanical/centrifugal advance so approximately 13-14 degrees would put my total around 33 degrees. I'm at 9.2 compression with iron heads so this should be a safe number for 91 octane.....I hope.

[HANDM]

Use a 9 volt battery to individually test the gauges, they'll sweep as soon as you connect it. Don't leave it hooked up longer than a half second though or you can fry em

[ACUDANUT]

KD, at least throw some Flat black primer that beast. !! Loved watching it get back on the road. 

[Kern Dog]

Ha....Part of the appeal to me is that it looks fresh from a field!

[orange383]

Ha....Part of the appeal to me is that it looks fresh from a field!

I agree. It looks great as it is and is unique. Paint it black and it will look the same as any other black '70 charger out there!