BUILD THREAD JRP's '87 Regal Thread

[MrSony]

Things went about as smooth as they could have over the rental property this morning. Took me about 5 hours to finish up the plumbing and clean up my mess. It's no longer an urgent matter, and I'm just glad to have it taken care of.
I didn't bother starting on the chicken coop today, that may be a job for next week.

But I actually did accomplish a few things for the Regal. I got both of the alternator brackets painted and a more thorough coat of paint on the power steering pump parts. The pump is ready to be reassembled and installed and the alternator is ready to go on. I have to get some hardware but that's no big deal. It may seem like a small step but now I can get the accessories on as well as all the belts and pulleys.

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I also posted a wanted ad on V8Buick for some cast aluminum valve covers. If no one responds by next week I'll just buy them from TA.

Here's the chickens. Started with 5, 4 wound up being roosters (my luck) so i had to give away 3 roosters. Now I've got one rooster and one pullet. I'm going to get two or three more pullets after I get a coop built.

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Member those ebay covers I linked? They say Buick on them, the TA covers no longer do, just TA performance. They still look neat, but the Buick ones look dope...er.

Electronics, Cars, Fashion, Collectibles & More | eBay

Buy & sell electronics, cars, clothes, collectibles & more on eBay, the world's online marketplace. Top brands, low prices & free shipping on many items.

rover.ebay.com

Have to drill out oil fill and breather holes. Remember, Buick 350s have the PCV in the intake, and the oil fill and crank case vent are both in the driver's valve cover in '70+ applications.

 

[joesregalproject]

Member those ebay covers I linked? They say Buick on them, the TA covers no longer do, just TA performance. They still look neat, but the Buick ones look dope...er.

Electronics, Cars, Fashion, Collectibles & More | eBay

Buy & sell electronics, cars, clothes, collectibles & more on eBay, the world's online marketplace. Top brands, low prices & free shipping on many items.

rover.ebay.com

Have to drill out oil fill and breather holes. Remember, Buick 350s have the PCV in the intake, and the oil fill and crank case vent are both in the driver's valve cover in '70+ applications.

I honestly forgot about those. They look pretty good too.

I tinkered around this morning. I put the power steering pump and the alternator on. I still have to go back and double check that everything is tight.

 

[MrSony]

Neat.
Question: did you have your guy surface the exhaust ports on the heads and/or the manifolds? Buick never used gaskets, so they gotta be flat or you'll crack them. or if you look at em weird. fart too hard. identify them by the wrong pronouns. I got some of them remflex graphite gaskets. Pretty dope. Not reusable. Expensive at ~$40 a pop, but I'd get 2 sets. DiecastMuscleCars.com can hook you up with factory style bolts, or just make sure you get bolts that are at least 1/8 longer than all your stock bolts. Gotta go in as deep as the bolt is round and you'll be good. Only the top row of holes aren't blind, so you can get away with some extra length ( ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ) on those.

engine is really shaping up. little bits here and there, next thing you know you'll be wondering how fast it is from here to there, how much HP it makes to the ground, etc. You'll be surprised just how grunty it is around town.

 

[joesregalproject]

Neat.
Question: did you have your guy surface the exhaust ports on the heads and/or the manifolds? Buick never used gaskets, so they gotta be flat or you'll crack them. or if you look at em weird. fart too hard. identify them by the wrong pronouns. I got some of them remflex graphite gaskets. Pretty dope. Not reusable. Expensive at ~$40 a pop, but I'd get 2 sets. DiecastMuscleCars.com can hook you up with factory style bolts, or just make sure you get bolts that are at least 1/8 longer than all your stock bolts. Gotta go in as deep as the bolt is round and you'll be good. Only the top row of holes aren't blind, so you can get away with some extra length ( ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ) on those.

engine is really shaping up. little bits here and there, next thing you know you'll be wondering how fast it is from here to there, how much HP it makes to the ground, etc. You'll be surprised just how grunty it is around town.

The head side has been resurfaced, the manifold side hasn't. I'm sure Bob would have no problem making a quick pass on the manifolds with the mill to true them up. I haven't closely inspected the manifolds for cracks yet but I'm pretty sure I can make one good set from the two pairs. I have to get them bead blasted and I'm going to coat them with slip plate. I may still use the Remflex gaskets to be safe.

Bit by bit it's coming along. I'm trying to put together a list of exactly what needs done to get it in the car and turn the key. I'll probably have an update with that soon.

 

[MrSony]

Also: do use a 350 starter. A v6 starter will work fine, but they tend to explode. :/
Also read a 90s LT1 starter fits but you gotta buy some bolts. Look it up on v8buick.

 

[joesregalproject]

I'm just going to get a new V8 starter. I have a core.

I decided I'm going to get picky about hardware and ordered a set of ARP water pump and timing cover bolts. I also got factory style power steering bolts and alternator bolts from diecastmusclecars.com. Eventually I'll order the exhaust manifold bolts from them too. I put the crank pulley into my Evapo-Rust and I'll let it soak a couple days then paint it.

 

[joesregalproject]

My ARP bolts came in the mail today. I love ARP stuff. I haven't heard anything from diecast muscle cars yet. Hopefully he gets my stuff out in the mail soon.

 

[MrSony]

My ARP bolts came in the mail today. I love ARP stuff. I haven't heard anything from diecast muscle cars yet. Hopefully he gets my stuff out in the mail soon.

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With my TA cover the bolt holes that weren't blind were, so I had to get shorter bolts. Be weary of that.

 

[joesregalproject]

With my TA cover the bolt holes that weren't blind were, so I had to get shorter bolts. Be weary of that.

Bob made my timing cover extra special so I don't have to worry about it 😉

I heard from Todd at diecast muscle cars and he said my order is shipped.

 

[joesregalproject]

My bolts from diecast muscle cars came today so I spent some time installing them. I did the alternator bracket bolts, power steering bolts and the fuel pump bolts. I used the ARP kit for the water pump. I'm not going to replace all the timing cover bolts since they are already painted and they are the original grade 8s anyways. So I have a few spare ARP bolts for whatever odds and ends I might need them for. I think it looks much better. I'm sure I've said it before but janky and/or mismatched hardware is a peeve of mine.