Above 1200 Sq/FT Blackbyrds Basement

[Blackbyrd]

It actually came as a 2 pack and I don't think I jave a use for the 2nd one if you are interested?

Thanks! I saw a few people on ls1 tech make a set of the fender close outs years ago making them isn't hard but attaching them is a bit more of the challenge. I wanted to hide the mounting points so that was more of a challenge. I made a tab to use one of the inner fender bolts the rest is done with magnets. The lower airbox cover I'm not as happy with, I wish id spent more time with it. I think I could have made it wider and hid more of the windshield washer tank? Probably stuff most people won't notice.

I like a really clean engine bay with minimal wiring and plumbing visible. I hope to pull off a similar look on the 2nd gen.

 

[madison069]

Let me think about the mirror when I get some garage time. One of my issues has been making sure I get past the garage door enough but not too far since I back my truck into the garage. Need to see if I have a spot that will allow me to mount it and still see the garage door and truck.

 

[Blackbyrd]

Sounds like you may want the 2 pack haha! It came from Amazon. I actually used magnets to stick it to the garage trac frame.

 

[Blackbyrd]

Its not always about the cars.... I love being a beach bum

For the past 8 years, me the wife and kiddo sneak off in June to an island in the pan handle of Florida called St George. Head over to appilachicola, eat fresh seafood till I pop, and visit some hidden gems of great atmosphere and beer (if i havnt said this before imma beer snob). I've brought my parents with us and the inlaws to share this place as my father and father inlaw both love oysters. My father was raised in Dothan Al and from the stories I've heard practically lived at Hunts. Apple didn't fall far from the tree, and I was even able to get my son to like them.

There's nothing particularly special about this place except that's what makes it special. No chain restaurants, no college spring break hang outs. Just houses close to a beach to stay at. All families looking to unplug and spend time with their families. Mine havnt been able to make it the last 2 years. Hoping we can make it work one more time, before Brock gets to old to wanna hang out in the pool and beach with us. We aren't far from the water and its become a bit of a tradition to arrive and just go jump in the ocean. This year I added to that tradition by dead sprinting from that pier under the deck all the way to the water. My son is 9 and me at 42 could still outrun him hahaha though likely not for much longer.

I know I said in an earlier post "build a life you don't need a vacation from" but that doesn't mean don't take a trip and build memories or gain experiences. I wouldn't trade a thing in the world for the opportunity to have my close family all in one house on the beach as chaotic as it can be. I'll have those memories forever, and so will my son.

 

[southalabama]

Its not always about the cars.... I love being a beach bum

For the past 8 years, me the wife and kiddo sneak off in June to an island in the pan handle of Florida called St George. Head over to appilachicola, eat fresh seafood till I pop, and visit some hidden gems of great atmosphere and beer (if i havnt said this before imma beer snob). I've brought my parents with us and the inlaws to share this place as my father and father inlaw both love oysters. My father was raised in Dothan Al and from the stories I've heard practically lived at Hunts. Apple didn't fall far from the tree, and I was even able to get my son to like them.

There's nothing particularly special about this place except that's what makes it special. No chain restaurants, no college spring break hang outs. Just houses close to a beach to stay at. All families looking to unplug and spend time with their families. Mine havnt been able to make it the last 2 years. Hoping we can make it work one more time, before Brock gets to old to wanna hang out in the pool and beach with us. We aren't far from the water and its become a bit of a tradition to arrive and just go jump in the ocean. This year I added to that tradition by dead sprinting from that pier under the deck all the way to the water. My son is 9 and me at 42 could still outrun him hahaha though likely not for much longer.

I know I said in an earlier post "build a life you don't need a vacation from" but that doesn't mean don't take a trip and build memories or gain experiences. I wouldn't trade a thing in the world for the opportunity to have my close family all in one house on the beach as chaotic as it can be. I'll have those memories forever, and so will my son.

I’m an hour north of Pensacola. While we have closer oysters it’s worth a bit of a drive for Apalachicola oysters.

 

[Blackbyrd]

Absolutely!

 

[Xti04]

My first family vacation with my wife after we got married was to St. George. Amazing place down there. I have wanted to go back for years but its been near impossible to get everyone back on the same page about going.

 

[Blackbyrd]

I did a thing..... im tempted to make a video short reenactment of the events that lead to this purchase......

Happy father's day to me!

 

[OutlawDrifter]

Did it have to do with that National Bourbon Day ?!

 

[Blackbyrd]

Did it have to do with that National Bourbon Day ?!

Hahahaha it did not! If I hadnt already bought it that probably would have!

I bought it before we left for vacation.

I was using my old crappy one cause it set lower and the damn wheel came off when I set on it. Dumped my 240lbs *** right onto the concrete..... expletives were shared.

 

[madison069]

It does look nice! That might be a purchase I make after I get a lift. Currently I use one of those old metal stools that rolls when you're off of it, but when you step or sit on it, the wheels go up inside and the seat becomes stable. Nice but would be nice to roll without having to stand up each time.

 

[Blackbyrd]

That actually sounds like a good option @madison069

This has the lock parts for 2 of the casters but I didn't put then on. I was shocked at how much bigger it was then what I was replacing. I'll have to get a side by side before I trash the other one.

One of the selling features for me was that the seat cushion is detachable. So you can pop it off and take a knee on it or hunker down and set on it while its on the floor. I'd been doing this woth some.of those gardening pads lately.

 

[madison069]

That actually sounds like a good option @madison069

This has the lock parts for 2 of the casters but I didn't put then on. I was shocked at how much bigger it was then what I was replacing. I'll have to get a side by side before I trash the other one.

One of the selling features for me was that the seat cushion is detachable. So you can pop it off and take a knee on it or hunker down and set on it while its on the floor. I'd been doing this woth some.of those gardening pads lately.

I got an old couch cushion for the kneeling on the floor option, it also comfy when laying or rolling off the floor too. I try not to think of how many butts has been on that cushion….

 

[cccoltsicehockey]

I got an old couch cushion for the kneeling on the floor option, it also comfy when laying or rolling off the floor too. I try not to think of how many butts has been on that cushion….

When I retire bed pillows they become knee savers in the garage.

 

[Blackbyrd]

Quite a bit larger than the standard go to.

 

[gearhead1960]

Nice looking… if I didn’t have this one….i would look at yours. Picked it up an Estate Sale years ago and has been good. No idea what brand it is, but have seen it on GJ also in other garages….

 

[Blackbyrd]

I've never seen one like that, I like that it has the lower back support. Looks good and sturdy too.

It makes me think of those medical office/dr stools but more industrial

 

[zmotorsports]

Nice looking… if I didn’t have this one….i would look at yours. Picked it up an Estate Sale years ago and has been good. No idea what brand it is, but have seen it on GJ also in other garages….

It might be a Snap-on. I have had mine for about 20-years and then upgraded to a Vyper a couple of years ago.

Here is my old Snap-on that looks similar to yours. I know they were offered in both rigid and adjustable like mine.

 

[Blackbyrd]

I've been really wrapped up in a project at work and that's kind of drained me a bit so I've not touched the split bumper since before the beach trip.

First up, the truck made it to Clarksville and back again (with huskys in tow) after giving me a ton of headaches! Spent 3 days diagnosing why the radiator fans were coming on randomly and fully draining the battery. First I thought the battery had a bad cell cause id noticed some other issues. Turns out there was corrosion in the ecm connector. Cleaned that out and guages started working correctly! Check engine light for knock sensor low circuit voltage went away! Embarrassed how long it took to track it down, took it to Clarksville to visit the inlaws and bum his lift to install some bilstein shocks. Totally different truck, brakes were good, bushings and ball joints were good...... somehow the shocks were the originals....

So id been fighting this damn abs delete since I put fluid in it and went to bleed it. Bench bleed was the 4th attempt, and I had the buddy who originally helped me build the car come by with his son and help me bleed them again for the 5th time and it took. I jokingly told him "Veronica" just missed you hahaha.

Still need dial in the proportioning valve a bit more, but brakes are feeling good. Good enough to take her to cars and coffee for the first time this year. Shes been torn apart since the fuel leak i found late last year. She drove the best she has in a while, I put some heat wrap on the clutch line, since its always had issues under hard acceleration heating up the fluid. It was super consistent. Close out panels looked really good out in the sun, really makes the core support look old though haha.... If I had my way id pull the motor and repaint the engine bay...... but I teter between something thats to nice to drive and something I just wanna beat on.

Now the bad, had a clunking sound on the drive home, my heart sank at first. It was rotational though like a wheel was loose. Havnt had time to get under it since I've been ******* with yard work. Im guessing one of my fancy an fuel line clamps I put in came loose and started bumping the drive shaft fell apart cause it quit after I pulled over to check if a wheel was lose. Something flew out from under it about a mile from the house. Projects are never done.

 

[madison069]

You’re right, projects are never done. I’ve been busy with so much stuff, I haven’t driven the camaro since July 4th.

The engine bay looks clean and slick!

 

[OutlawDrifter]

Yes, but you got the car out, got to enjoy it, and it didn't come home on a trailer! You sandbagged me on the engine pic this weekend

 

[Blackbyrd]

Why whatever do you mean hahahhaha

 

[zmotorsports]

You’re right, projects are never done. I’ve been busy with so much stuff, I haven’t driven the camaro since July 4th.

You've gotten me beat. I told myself I was going to slow down this summer and the wife and I were going to put more miles on the Camaro, but so far the summer is getting away from us and I keep adding more to my "to do" list in the shop.

 

[Blackbyrd]

Well it maybe back to parked status after that... the clunking was my wheels... it seems my rear studs combined with the lugnuts (new) are just shy of fully seating the rim by a few thousands of an inch....

I almost never found it. I jacked the car up in the rear and put the e brake on and could rock the wheel back and forth just enough to get a very low clunk.... I had to cut them down to begin with so guess I need to take a bit more. I dont really want deeper lugs as they already stick out a bit.... still have to decide.


Also I apparently cursed myself talking about painting the engine bay, cause I found a brake fluid leak. Not sure the source but the p valve is wet and so is the frame rails and part of the inner wheel well..... I think I cleaned the worst of it before it did too much damage, but the top of the rail bubbled up. I saw the fluid last night on the floor and thought it was oil cause of the location.

So now I get to figure out why/where im leaking fluid. I'd like to tell my self I just missed it when I disconnected the lines for the bench bleed, but that was 2 weeks ago and there was no fluid on the floor where the car was setting and its now in a different spot. So.... this should be fun.

 

[madison069]

Well it maybe back to parked status after that... the clunking was my wheels... it seems my rear studs combined with the lugnuts (new) are just shy of fully seating the rim by a few thousands of an inch....

I almost never found it. I jacked the car up in the rear and put the e brake on and could rock the wheel back and forth just enough to get a very low clunk.... I had to cut them down to begin with so guess I need to take a bit more. I dont really want deeper lugs as they already stick out a bit.... still have to decide.


Also I apparently cursed myself talking about painting the engine bay, cause I found a brake fluid leak. Not sure the source but the p valve is wet and so is the frame rails and part of the inner wheel well..... I think I cleaned the worst of it before it did too much damage, but the top of the rail bubbled up. I saw the fluid last night on the floor and thought it was oil cause of the location.

So now I get to figure out why/where im leaking fluid. I'd like to tell my self I just missed it when I disconnected the lines for the bench bleed, but that was 2 weeks ago and there was no fluid on the floor where the car was setting and its now in a different spot. So.... this should be fun.

Maybe change the wheel studs for shorter ones?

I hear ya on the brake fluid and the damage. I got a few spots on the camaro that rippled around the brake reservoir, so I guess brake fluid got on to it. I’ve toyed with the idea of pulling the engine out of the camaro to do some engine bay cleaning. Need to finish other projects and enjoy the camaro while it’s drivable though.

 

[Blackbyrd]

Maybe change the wheel studs for shorter ones?

I hear ya on the brake fluid and the damage. I got a few spots on the camaro that rippled around the brake reservoir, so I guess brake fluid got on to it. I’ve toyed with the idea of pulling the engine out of the camaro to do some engine bay cleaning. Need to finish other projects and enjoy the camaro while it’s drivable though.

Im running spacers so the stockers are too short and the next length up doesnt get enough thread engagement to make me happy. The next size up was too long hence the cut down. Literally needs 2 threads removed to solve the issue...

Yeah in hindsight I wish id prepped painted the engine bay when I swapped out the v6 and k member, but I was young and in a hurry.... which is why I dont have ac anymore either.... another thing id like to fix.

 

[OutlawDrifter]

.... which is why I dont have ac anymore either.... another thing id like to fix.

Because racecar...I rolled mine for about 7yrs after the LS swap with no AC. Never again , too big of a whimp!

 

[Blackbyrd]

Because racecar...I rolled mine for about 7yrs after the LS swap with no AC. Never again , too big of a whimp!

My father in law gave me some much hell a few years ago......

"How's that extra 5 hp feeling" he said to me middle of august

 

[madison069]

Yea, I spent the coins to install the vintage air kit in my camaro. No way we would be comfortable in the camaro when riding around.

 

[zmotorsports]

Just a thought since you are removing the ABS brake option, you may want to look into using DOT 5 brake fluid. I know it doesn't work well with ABS systems and can give a bit "softer" pedal feel than DOT 3 or DOT 4, but when I was building street rods and show cars, I used it solely because if the event of ever having a drip, it wouldn't damage the paint. Granted those were very time-consuming projects to repair paint in those rare instances but seeing as how I spent so much time prepping, painting and clear coating those chassis, it was worth the little extra expense to avoid having paint damage. Just a thought, but there are some downsides to DOT 5, but they are negligible compared to how time consuming and expensive paint rework can be.

 

[Blackbyrd]

Thanks for the recommendation! I was unaware dot5 wasn't paint caustic!

@madison069 thats what i want to do with mine. The stock air box eats up engine may real estate. They havnt got to 4th gens yet, but im guessing the universal would work woth some tweaks.

I think I've Identified my issue, there's a small metal line going from the master to the P valve i think that fitting before the master needs another turn. Nothing leaked during the bleed period but I adjusted the valve to be more front heavy, so all the pressure was building before the P valve.

 

[Bob Heine]

Thanks for the recommendation! I was unaware dot5 wasn't paint caustic!

Adam, I put DOT 5 brake fluid in my '72 Corvette and it does not harm old paint. It does do a really good job preventing paint from sticking so do the engine bay refresh before you switch. According to the Artificial Intelligence search engine:
"DOT 5 brake fluid is primarily made of silicone-based compounds, specifically polydimethylsiloxane. It also includes performance additives like Tributylphosphate. Unlike DOT 3, 4, and 5.1 fluids, DOT 5 is not glycol-based and is not compatible with them."

That last bit about "not compatible" is significant because it means either replacing or disassembling the master cylinder, calipers and carefully blowing out all the brake lines. Once you have a pristine all DOT 5 filled system, don't let it sit for long periods if you live in a swamp like I do. All those glycol-based fluids are fantastic water absorbers but the silicone-based fluid is like oil and the water stays separate. A little condensate will find its way to the lowest point in the system, typically your calipers. Because of the location of the bleeder valves, that water happily sits in the bottom even after you bleed all the air out. You need to take the calipers apart to get that water out. My all stainless brake lines and stainless sleeved calipers gave no clue water in the back of the calipers was causing them to rust. My brakes should work fine because the calipers are sleeved but if the calipers heat up to 212°F during a spirited autocross or track event, there could be a real spongy pedal, way spongier than the DOT 5 already is. I don't know how often the brake calipers need to be opened up with DOT 5 but it's not 'never'.

To be fair, DOT 5 would be a great solution in dry climates. Because I live in a South Florida swamp environment, my garage is subject to temperature and humidity swings almost every day. I run the garage A-C most days, dropping the temperature 20 degrees pretty quickly but dropping the humidity much more slowly. If we didn't have 28 human anchors living nearby, moving back to Douglas, Arizona would be a solution...

...as would spending $1,729.28 (plus tax and shipping) for Wilwood forged aluminum 6-piston front calipers and 4-piston rear calipers.

 

[Blackbyrd]

Man i wish id dug into this before hand. The kit included all new lines from master to calipers. So they were clean. I'd been wanting to do big brakes on it since the ironblock and extra horsepower has altered brake performance.

A new master would have been nothing at that point haha. Too far in now, but I'll be keeping this in mind for the 71 camaro for sure.

Im getting ready to buy the last of the suspension for that project and rear brakes. My goal for the year is to complete all the last sheet metal projects and get the suspension under it.

 

[Blackbyrd]

@cccoltsicehockey


Followed your recommendation... also a small glimpse at my sense of humor......

 

[OutlawDrifter]

How much 710 does that thing hold?!

 

[Blackbyrd]

How much 710 does that thing hold?!

5 gallons sir

 

[Blackbyrd]

Im yet again...... working on the brakes of this 4th gen......
This was a pain, but both fittings after the master on the rear brake line were a smidge loose. So its all tightened up, I've got to put the line clamps back in on the underside but pretty easy fix compared to some of the other stuff I've done.

 

[madison069]

Brakes, simple job most of the time until you have to deal with the lines at the master cylinder to proportion valve and then it can be a pain when you’re in the rust belt. One leak, you might as well plan to replace them all cause they others will leak when you’re done fixing the initial leak.

 

[Hooterville]

Nice looking… if I didn’t have this one….i would look at yours. Picked it up an Estate Sale years ago and has been good. No idea what brand it is, but have seen it on GJ also in other garages….

FYI: Craftsman Creeper Seat 51108 Mechanics High-Rise, 480 lbs. capacity. Mine is made by Michigan Seat Co. for Craftsman.

 

[Hooterville]

FYI: Craftsman Creeper Seat 51108 Mechanics High-Rise, 480 lbs. capacity. Mine is made by Michigan Seat Co. for Craftsman.