Its Official

skline · skline's Garage

The Chalon I have been working on the last few years, has just fired up for the first time. At 11:10, I turned the key and it came to life. The timing is still off, but it was very responsive. I think I have air in the system also, the hoses never got even warm and yet the engine went up to 210 before I shut it off. I am going to play with it a little more and try it again. But it sounds incredible. I couldnt be more happy with how it sounds.

SteveStromberg · 10-16-2004, 12:48 PM

Scott Raise the front end up in the air to bleed out the air from the cooling system. This will get all of the air pockets out.

skline · skline's Garage

I would but there is nowhere in the front to release the air, the only fill is in the enging compartment. My overflow tank is working right now. It bleeds in and out like it is supposed to. I didnt have enough antifreeze in it. I have almost 5 gallons in it now and it seems to be working much better, The oil leak from the filter is my big concern at this point. I did the break in and the temp seemed to stay right around 190. Here is a picture of the gauge panel right before I shut it down. 20 minutes at about 2500 RPM's, all the new burning off the engine smelled bad and smoked for most of it. It sure is responsive, and it sounds really good. I like it.

914GT · 10-16-2004, 05:12 PM

Great news. You're making progress. It really helps to have a petcock valve on top of the radiator to bleed the air. I'm not so sure you'll be able to force the air pocket out without it. Today I removed my headers and insulated them with 50' of 2" wrap. Also I installed a 3/8" insulating spacer between the carb and intake. I hope this gets my carb temp way down, it was just too hot in traffic and was on verge of vapor lock even with the engine running right at 180. Do you have any plans to to that?

skline · skline's Garage

Well, I will have to get the other things worked out and then I will drive it locally to get the feel of everything. I am running ceramic coated headers and hopefully I wont have to wrap them. They look so nice in there. Time will tell. Thanks for the tip on bleeding the radiator.

SteveStromberg · 05:42 PM

The Black 283 that Rod Simpson did while I was At ***** one of the problems was that there wasnt a bleeder up front. Rod Moded the set up to have a bleeder installed. He put a coupler that had a bleeder in the top hose. This allowed all the air to be removed.
The coating really cuts down on the heat.
Test drive it by my house if you are out driving around.

skline · skline's Garage

I dont think I will be driving it till maybe next week. There are no current tags on the car. I also have some suspension and brake work to do before it is road worthy. You could come by tomorrow if you want. I will be here working on it all day.

SteveStromberg · 10-16-2004, 07:59 PM

I will stop by.

914GT · 10-16-2004, 09:05 PM

On that oil leak - there are about 4 places that can leak and drip oil off the filter. First, check your gasket at the rear of the valve cover. It might have slipped off and left a gap , or maybe the bolts need snugging down. If that's not it, check for leaks at the top galley where you probably have your oil pressure sender. Then there's the other galley plug down on the side of the block next to the filter. The absolute worst is the deck plug just slightly under the head at the back of the block. If that leaks your head has to come back off to get at it.

skline · skline's Garage

Well, I know it is not the head or the valve cover, it is coming from the oil filter or the oil filter base. I will be crawling under it today to look closely at it. Here is a link to the video that Joe and I shot yesterday. If anyone is interested in hearing it run.

V8 Chalon

skline · skline's Garage

Oil leak fixed, the plate that the filter spins onto was not very tight. I removed it, cleaned it very good and then put a ring of silicone around the base of it and reinstalled it. Put the filter back on and walla, no more leak. I am happy now.