My "Official" Stepside Restoration Thread and LS Swap 2021

[Chevy305]

My birthday is Monday so I have some kid free garage time today and so might as well dust the cob webs off the LS swap project and test fire it on the stand! Hopefully I don't burn the place down!





Well I had a few issues to start with. I realized that the ECM fuel pump trigger is actually 12V+ not a ground like I thought. Quick swap some pins on my relay panel and the fuel pump primes and runs when cranking. However it's not injecting fuel. My HP Tuners scanner shows that it's commanding fuel but I get nothing. I have 12v at every injector. Is it possible that all 8 injectors are frozen? It will fire on starting fluid so I know I have spark. I have also removed VATS in the ECM.

 

[Chevy305]

Update since my last post

I figured out the injector issue, I think all of them were clogged or seized. I replaced all of them with some 50lb flex fuel injectors from a 6.2L and it fired and ran on the engine stand successfully!

 

[Chevy305]

Now I'm finally pulling the trigger on getting this engine into the truck! Such a long time coming life and young kids make large projects like this take a long time.

So I got engine off the stand and onto my chain fall to get the clutch installed.





Then down through the trap door it comes






I got to work on disassembly of the current 350. I have the whole topside disconnected, tomorrow will be rolling around disconnecting the bottom stuff and hopefully pulling it.

 

[Chevy305]

350 is out!

 

[Blue85]

I thought it was a 355? I'm fascinated with your attic workshop. Your trust in the rafters is admirable. Man, the lengths people will go to to eliminate V-belts....

 

[76zimmer]

I thought it was a 383.

 

[KirsL]

Nice to see some progress.

Should be a screamer with the LS.

 

[83ChevyK5Blazer]

So what is the 355 going into?

 

[Chevy305]

I thought it was a 355? I'm fascinated with your attic workshop. Your trust in the rafters is admirable. Man, the lengths people will go to to eliminate V-belts....

You're right the engine is a 355.
The previous owner had a wood shop up there and he used the trap door I imagine to get equipment or long boards upstairs. But I didn't like how flimsy the hoist attachment was so I sistered up the 2x4 supports and through bolted everything. The LS is definitely the heaviest thing I've had on the hoist. Small blocks are probably the limit for this. Not going to trust it to a 6bt Cummins or something like that.

So what is the 355 going into?

Nothing of mine, sold it on FB marketplace. I honestly have no use for it as it's too rowdy to go in my plow truck. Although it could be fun I'd just have to keep the RPMs up.

 

[Babaganoosh]

You're right the engine is a 355.
The previous owner had a wood shop up there and he used the trap door I imagine to get equipment or long boards upstairs. But I didn't like how flimsy the hoist attachment was so I sistered up the 2x4 supports and through bolted everything. The LS is definitely the heaviest thing I've had on the hoist. Small blocks are probably the limit for this. Not going to trust it to a 6bt Cummins or something like that.



Nothing of mine, sold it on FB marketplace. I honestly have no use for it as it's too rowdy to go in my plow truck. Although it could be fun I'd just have to keep the RPMs up.

Clutch kicks? I’m in also I’m glad to see this thread back

 

[folkenheath]

Update since my last post

I figured out the injector issue, I think all of them were clogged or seized. I replaced all of them with some 50lb flex fuel injectors from a 6.2L and it fired and ran on the engine stand successfully!

Hey Glenn, that's crazy, all 8 injectors went bad at the same time! I wonder if the fuel in them gummed up, dried out, and they are stuck shut? I've never heard of that, you were right, I figured 1 or 2 was possible, but not all 8. I know you bought that TBSS intake manifold from my father, did he sell it to you cheap enough we're good? Or you want a partial refund? It came off a running vehicle so we're shocked the injectors are bad especially all 8 at the same time, that just seems statistically improbable, but it obviously happened, sorry about that, I wish I knew how.

 

[Chevy305]

Clutch kicks? I’m in also I’m glad to see this thread back

Hey Glenn, that's crazy, all 8 injectors went bad at the same time! I wonder if the fuel in them gummed up, dried out, and they are stuck shut? I've never heard of that, you were right, I figured 1 or 2 was possible, but not all 8. I know you bought that TBSS intake manifold from my father, did he sell it to you cheap enough we're good? Or you want a partial refund? It came off a running vehicle so we're shocked the injectors are bad especially all 8 at the same time, that just seems statistically improbable, but it obviously happened, sorry about that, I wish I knew how.

Heath, you are way too nice! But there's no telling why the injectors failed and it sat for awhile before I put it to use anyway. Plus I was going to upgrade the injectors soon enough anyway. I'm really not worried at all about it.

 

[folkenheath]

Sounds good, just making sure you are Happy Glenn. I think we thought we were doing you a favor leaving the injectors in it, but it may have caused you more headache than it helped. Sorry about that.

Glad you got it running, and Happy Birthday!

 

[Babaganoosh]

I had the same thing happen to mine when I first went to fire it, we used a portable swap cooler with vice grips to offset the fan with the injectors in a sea foam bath. It actually agitated them loose. The injectors still work today…

 

[max 02]

HBD!

 

[Chevy305]

Sounds good, just making sure you are Happy Glenn. I think we thought we were doing you a favor leaving the injectors in it, but it may have caused you more headache than it helped. Sorry about that.

Glad you got it running, and Happy Birthday!

It didn't really set me back. It took a ton of time to get me to this point anyway.

 

[Chevy305]

So hit a set back. Input shaft seal was leaking on my nv4500 so I had to source one locally. I knew there was a slight leak in the bell housing and just assumed it was the rear main seal. However this explains why only the pressure plate side of the clutch disk was all gummy with oil.




So I had my NV4500 rebuilt somewhere around 2016 or 17 and it appears the guy who did it was a little generous with the RTV and it balled up in the oil supply port blocking nearly 90% of it. Luckily the input bearing still appears to be in good shape.

 

[Chevy305]

More progress today



Engine is bolted up to the bell housing however just sitting on a block of wood between the pan and engine cross member. Unfortunately the engine for some strange reason is sitting about an inch back from where it should be. I can barely get a finger in between the back of the head and the firewall. The transmission and transfer case haven't moved at all and are still bolted to their cross member. The engine mounts are about an inch off too so It looks like I'll be shifting the whole assembly forward about an inch then. The good news is that I've already got some extra holes in the frame at the transmission cross member from some previous configurations so hopefully those will work.

 

[Fastereddie]

More progress today

View attachment 442953

Engine is bolted up to the bell housing however just sitting on a block of wood between the pan and engine cross member. Unfortunately the engine for some strange reason is sitting about an inch back from where it should be. I can barely get a finger in between the back of the head and the firewall. The transmission and transfer case haven't moved at all and are still bolted to their cross member. The engine mounts are about an inch off too so It looks like I'll be shifting the whole assembly forward about an inch then. The good news is that I've already got some extra holes in the frame at the transmission cross member from some previous configurations so hopefully those will work.

View attachment 442954

When we did the genV swap in @Desert_K5 rig, we moved the trans forward 2 inches. A lot easier to work on the rear of the engine area.

 

[CharlesC83]

Really like the build progress, and the quality of your work. And the attic engine room is rad. I'd of been singing a song as I lowered that 5.3 down on the chain to the garage....not sure what I'd sing but it would happen. Probably about ls swap the whole world or something

I used to work in a transmission shop, I remember learning to take my pick and make sure the bearing retainer oil hole was clear of rtv when the rtv was still wet, before the lid went on.

Anyway, looking good!