The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The HiPo Shop Making a "Super 3100" - 1950 3100

When I started out to "overhaul" my 1950 3100 I really didn't have a HIPO setup in mind but I did want a bit more power than the stock 6 cylinder provided.

One thing led to another (as they tend to do in these things) and I have ended up with a 550 HP 560 pounds of torque street machine. I pulled a 350 out of a junked Chevy van had it bored and fluxed, put flat top pistons, a crane 3/4 cam and vortec heads on it. Added to that is a Weiand 142 blower and 750 Edelbrock street performer carb pushing exhaust out of Hooker headers. For mufflers, I chose Flowmaster 50 series with Delta Flow technology to make riding in the truck on long trips a pleasure.

I wanted some tunes so I mounted 10" subs behind the seats with 6" speakers under the seats. The system includes a DVD player, XM radio as well as a GPS system. Powering the sound is an 1100 watt Alpine unit under the passenger seat. Everything is stealthed so you have no idea when you get in that it has such a powerful stereo so I really surprise some people.

Protecting the truck is a Viper security system with remote. Any shaking of the truck, opening of doors or hood sets off the system. So far, the only miscreant I have apprehended is myself though

The stock gas tank was replaced with an under bed unit from an early Chevy car and works fine.

This gradual upgrade and continuing mod road has led to some interesting changes to accommodate the extra power and enhance the handling of the truck.

The front end needed a good bit of help so I went to Fat Man Fabrications in Fort Mill, just outside of Charlotte where I live. Fat Man's is not a really famous rod builder (although they are known) but I can tell you that what they do there is nothing short of miraculous. They have a great 4 link front end kit that bolts up extremely well. I also added the power rack and pinion steering option they offer. The result is truly amazing. The truck handles GREAT. The coil over shocks in the kit are adjustable and I was able to lower the truck down to the White walls which gives it a great street look.

Working with Fat Man's, I added a rear sway bar (the front sway bar was part of the Fat Man's kit) and had them relocate the shocks from the stock set up (mounted to the leaf springs) to a great setup using fabricated mounts to set the shock at exactly the right angle and lift locations (they way they should have been originally), mounted to the axle. I went with air shocks to allow me to adjust ride height and quality easily. The truck is actually a daily driver and I use it for the usual stuff you would associate with using a truck and that includes hauling loads occasionally (VERY carefully).

I changed the 2:73 gears in the rear (an old '72 Camaro Z28) to 3:23 and the truck really came to life. While power off the line is great, I'm not beaten up on the road with high revs at 70 (I'm turning 2700 at 70) so the 3:23's were perfect for my application.

I found and installed a solid T350 with a shift kit incorporated (3 speed). When I decide to break the rear wheels loose, it burns the tires through first and second with AUTHORITY.

I tapped in to the NASCAR network for a fantastic cooling system. One of the guys who builds racing radiators took my old stock radiator and built me an exact duplicate in aluminum incorporating two high output cooling fans. As a result, on the hottest day with AC on, I can idle for extended periods without crossing the 190 degree barrier.

Some detailed work on the interior by a Mexican friend of mine who has been doing custom rod interiors for about 20 years resulted in a clean and well appointed grey leather interior including padded dash and custom panels for the doors, kick panels and headliner.

For tires and wheels, I chose a simple approach with chrome smoothies, baby moon hubcaps and wide whitewalls from Diamond Back tires in South Carolina.

The end result is a street cruiser with all of the panache of the old school exterior with up to date modern performance equal to the latest muscle cars.

It's really fun to have some guy in a Honda (with the usual HiPo stuff (i.e. coffee can exhaust, spoiler that is out of place, poorly installed body kit etc.) pull up beside me at a light and try to leave me. In every case, the old Stovebolt has blown their doors off handily. and taught them a bit of respect for their elders.

A word of advice to anyone who is contemplating (or now into) going down this road....

If you are going to get help on your truck, get PROFESSIONALS like Fat Man Fabrications. They do awesome work and they do it with surprisingly less cost than many others I have encountered during this "odyssey".

Any work that I can't do myself I now automatically take to Fat Man's and they ALWAYS do great work and GUARANTEE it. I have not had a single complaint in any of the work they have done.

Good luck on your project and I hope that you will end up enjoying it as much as I enjoy my 3100.

Check out the picture:

This one ... This one

550 ponies,now thats what I call a nicely powered truck.

Sounds very cool! Congrats on your truck. BTW, Fatman is in Mint Hill, not Fort Mill. (Those sound pretty close!!) Yes, they have a very cool shop and I enjoyed my tour prior to purchasing thier IFS for my '59.

Post some pics of your truck so if I see you at a stoplight I will let you go on. Even if I am in my turbo car!!

I had a 550 h.p. 400 small block engine in a 1966 El Camino years ago, it was a blast to drive. Back tires were a problem, they usually only lasted a couple months (if that), and it used a bunch of gas, but of course it was only about $.75 a gallon, so no problem. Have fun with your 3100!

Very nice Dave!.....Just need to see the rest of the truck now

550 HP, Sounds like a recipe for fun! Burning 'Ricers' must be a great laugh!

Look forward to more

Jock.

Yeah, get that camera clicking!

550 hp seems a stretch for a Wieand 142 on a 350. They advertise a boost of about 100 hp. I think 400, or maybe even 450 is realistic, but 550 sounds suspicious.

Did you actually put it on a dyno? Or is that an estimate?
Please be careful with manufacturer's claims for hp gains. For example, spark plug companies that claim a 25 hp gain are usually lucky to see an improvement of 1 or 2 hp. K&N claims 10% gains, but you might actually only see about a 5 hp improvement. Headers gain a lot, but it's usually in the 25 hp range, not nearly what they advertise. And when you add everything together, they are almost never exclusive, meaning, its more of a package improvement. Instead of seeing a 120 hp improvement by adding all the manufacturer's claims individually, you might only see a total of a 25 to 35 hp improvement from the combined effect of all of them.

Another good indicator of true horsepower is the trap speed at the end of a quarter mile. Not so much the elapsed time. That has too many variables, such as traction, reaction time, tire size and gear ratio. But the trap speed rarely lies. There are programs you can enter your trap speed and the vehicle's weight with you in it, and it will tell you how much hp it took to acheive that.

A friend of mine has a 350 with a 142 blower on his truck, and it feels real good. So I have no doubt you've got a sweet motor there...

Sounds to me like you had a bad case of the "might-as-wells". The truck looks awesome. Bring it up to the Mooresville Cruise-in some time (first Saturdays of the month) when the weather gets better. We need more hot-rod trucks up here.

You are correct. The orignal was an estimate since I did not have access to a dyno (estimate based on MFR claims). I gave the car to two former NASCAR mechanics (now working at a tuner shop) and they worked on it for a week and then dynoed it. I now have the papers that show 400 RWH and 417 pounds of torque. I changed the carb to a Holley Dbl Pumper, and put a full flow air cleaner on it so the blower can breath better. 0-60 is a bit over 5.5 seconds and when the turbo 350 shifts from second to 3rd (at around 60 mph) the tires break loose and it kicks sideways. Not too bad for an old Stovebolt.

At the GoodGuys Southeastern Nationals a couple of weeks ago, she won the Rodder's Pick trophy. First time I showed the truck and she won a trophy, was I surprised!

O-60 in 5.5 seconds? Man, that will blow your dentures out the window.

The bed had a 1/4 inch diamond plate steel sheet welded in to it. I did not want to cut it out so a wood bed was not possible (tried that...a mess and a disaster) so I treated the bed with Herculiner and had it covered in diamond plate aluminum. It is holding up VERY nicely.

I also replaced the bucket seats with a Teas Designs bench made for the truck. MUCH MORE COMFORTABLE..

Finally, a look at the engine compartment and (sorry, could not resist) a picture of her FIRST trophy.

You're mmmphmph Right!

I guess you lost the dentures and I lost my eyes. Where are those pics?

Would love to!

You are absolutely correct. "Might as well itis" has nearly broke me.

I am still working on a few things to be corrected but having a tough time getting something done.

I need to replace the oil pan but the engine has to come out to do that. I have a gas leak that needs fixing (minor, only leaks a little when I fill it up) and the starter gives a terrible noise once in a while (Fat Man's thinks its a cracked flywheel but I am not so sure. I think it is a shim issue). Once these things are corrected, I have it FINISHED.

Ran out of money and now trying to find someone who will trade some parts for the work (I have a couple of thousand dollars worth of hipo stuff)

I'd do it but don't have the equipment (or the time for that matter).

Thank you for sharing.

Good looking truck done right!

Nice, very nice!

Thanks so much guys.

Two things that make it all worthwhile. 1 is the acknowledgment of my peers (you guys). The other is the smile that always comes across the face of those who see it.

BTW, She is going to be in the Charlotte Thanksgiving Day parade carrying some kids who have cancer. Some are recovering some are terminal. It is in support of Drumstrong (www.drumstrong.org).

A while back, I saw a news report on TV about a '52 Chevy truck that got stolen. It was being prepared for the parade to carry the kids and promote DrumStrong. My wife and I looked at each other and came to the same conclusion, "we gotta help!"

I contacted the DrumStrong folks and they were overjoyed. My truck does not have a hitch on it to pull a float but it will be carrying some of the kids and flying the banners for the organization. It's a great chance to bring some joy to these kids which is one of the main reasons I built the truck in the first place.

Blue:
That is what we should all be looking to do with our trucks. I'll be happy to do that if I ever finish it. lol

Maybe we could organize a nation-wide "StoveBolt Cruise" to raise money for kids with cancer..?

I know DrumStrong could sure use it and I am sure there are a lot of other great orgs that could too.

I've worked with Speedway Children's Charities and Kids First (A Charlotte based org for homeless kids) before. I'm sure there are many others.

I'm here to say RIGHT NOW that when my Cummins powered Bolt is done, I will be more than willing to be in a parade for kids with Cancer.... In fact, I'll have both a bumper and Gooseneck hitch, so I could pull a monster float with it!!

Awesome...

Now if we could get a couple of thousand more like you...

According to the forum stats,there are 22077 'Bolters, there's some food for thought.......Just imagine that convoy!

YEAH!!!

By the way, I have been trying to come up with an idea for step plates to put on my running boards. I had the traditional Chevy bow tie plates (retro) on for the last year or so but they just did not seem to fit. They also got to looking kind of bad and nothing I could do seemed to polish them back up.

I was looking at my bed (I lined it with diamond plate aluminum after thorough "Herculining") and a light bulb went off..

Why not get my fiend Steve who made my radiator and lined my bed with the aluminum make me some step plates?!


Thanks!

Blue:
You think like I do. If you get out of the "box" and think of every kind of solution you'll come up with a good one. That truck looks awesome and those plates are great looking as well. I believe I'll try that when mine is ready. Did he just cut the diamond plate to shape and then bolt it on?

Yeah, he and I got together and decided to cut the rear ones on the same curve as the fender and I think that adds a nice touch. I also decided to round the ends to give it more of a custom look.

On the front ones, I noticed that in entering the truck, people put their feet on the back side of the step plate or on the running board, missing the plate entirely (my wife actually thought she was not supposed to step on it). Consequently, we decided to make a plate that was about twice as long as the original step plate.

Now getting in or out, the step plate provides coverage.

I am pretty happy with them. Since the bed is covered with the same material, it provides a "continuity" of design and a consistent look.

Thanks for sharing your truck with us and thanks for volenteering to help the kids with their parade to help fight a dreaded cancer disease. I like that idea of thinking out side of the box as so many things have been invented by outside the box thinking.
62Blue
Don

My pleasure Don. Thanks for the kind words.

bluesteel3100... NICE truck. Wow. I'm just down the road from you so maybe we could meet up one day..... and I'll give you and invite to the Southern Stovebolt Reunion that is held in conjuction with the car clubs annual big show....which is the last Saturday in May 2010.

...just FYI the club I belong will make our biggest donation this year to a childrens home/shelter this month. We, and I, are all for helping the children and others that can use the help from families to soup kitchens. ( Ilost a dear loved neice to cancer at 16 after a 3 year battle)

Sounds great. Just let me know the where and I'll do my best to be there.

My heart breaks for your loss. I have lost loved ones as well and know the terrible pain. You are in my prayers.

I started and served as Pres. of a technology group here in Charlotte that donated food and clothing at every monthly meeting. Since we averaged 300-400 people at each meeting, we were averaging about 50 tons per year in donations (over the ten year period) that went to the homeless shelters and food banks. I'm a big believer in helping out those in need.

Other than the swaybar and shock changes, did you leave the rear springs stock. I'm looking at a similar type of build, but was questioning leaving the rear leaf springs or going to a different type of setup, like a 4 link or something. Are you having any problems with spring wrap?

I kept the leaf springs but removed a couple of leafs to bring the rear down to match the front (4 link from Fat Man's is on the truck) in height.

However, I have a bad problem with wheel hop that I am in the process of correcting with Cal Trac bars mounted under the vehicle to stabilize the rear end under hard acceleration. I'll post some pics on the up-fit when it is done

I am also going to put a posi on it to equalize the plant. She has a lot of power and when I hammer it, it goes sideways pretty badly (even at 60 MPH).

Has anyone had issues with Summit Racing and Holley Products?

Over the last few years, in the buildup of my truck, I spent literally thousands on parts from both of them. As a loyal customer, I expected them to stand behind their products and provide good customer service.

However, a Weiand blower I purchased from them developed a leak after less than 1000 miles of normal use and a new Dbl pumper 750 Holley carb (also purchased from Summit) was problematic from the start.

Instead of offering to replace the defective parts, I was referred to Holley by Summit where in the case of the carb, I was offered nothing and in the case of the blower ($2400 bucks by the way) was sent the parts to repair it (requires a shop with a press which I don't have so I have to hire someone to fix it, at my expense).

When I voiced my frustration to Holley and to Summit, I was ignored.

This experience has convinced me NOT to purchase from either of them again.

I was curious as to whether or not anyone else had a similar experience.

Let me know how it works. I have a project truck with a 10 bolt posi hung off the standard leaf springs with some new Cragar wheels and tires. I bought it like this and an picking up where the previous owner left off. It has no drive train as of yet, I'm going with a caddy 500 and a th400 trans.
It rolls fine but when I put the rear end on jack stands I noticed the passenger rear tire binding against the frame on the inside.
I really didn't explore the reason for this yet. I don't know if its just wear in the shackles, improper setback in the rims, or the rear end is not centered properly on the leaf springs.

If it's problematic getting it to plant I may just as well switch over to a different way of mounting the rear end. I may tub the bed for wider rear tires as well.

Will do.

We measured everything last week and next week we'll mount 'em up.

I had the same problem and put on 3/4" wheel spacers. It took care of the issue but I had to grind about 1/4" off the fender supports. Now all sits fine with no rubbing.

Hey guys. My daughter Lori is a photographer and she does a number of photo projects. Right now she is doing a 365 project taking one photo a day with her iphone (it is AMAZING what she gets out of an iphone. I have one and my pics NEVER look that good!).

She took one the other day while she and I were in the truck going to lunch (I didn't even know she took it). Take a look.

Been a while since I posted. Sorry, lots going on...

I now have coil over shocks all around and am very happy with them. No bottoming out and the truck is very level now. Before had air shocks and continual problems.

I had a couple of NASCAR mechanics (that got laid off recently with some sponsor losses happening with the economy) and they dyno tuned the engine and set everything up. Dyno showed 498 HP at the crank with 516 lbs torque. Runs VERY nice and the other day, I blew the doors off an M-3 (he was being a REAL b-hole laughing at the truck and flipping me off at the light). He was so mad he got out and kicked his car.

Adding power door locks (got them from LMC Truck) and new chrome air horns (the stock horn is kinda sad- an idiot in a new dodge truck on I-85 almost hit me the other day. Next time, he will KNOW I'm there).

Driving the truck EVERY day now. In March, things were going so well, I got rid of my car (saved $500 a month) and Ol' Blue is now my MAIN daily driver! I have almost 14000 miles on her and she is going strong!

You really shouldn't be embarrassing those young punks though. lol

Great looking truck ! I would like to see it out run a M3 .My 1953 has vette front and rear suspesion .6.0 with a supercharger from street and performance.Runs 11.20s in the 1/4 .Wife has a new 2010 M3 Shes a ok driver and the car makes her a much better one.Her car is Alpina modified I have no chance of out running it .I still love my truck but the M3 is very refined race car.

Well, I discovered yet one more issue as a result of hiring a guy who, though had the best intentions, had little idea of what he was doing. To some, sadly, the term 'old school' means 'old crap'.

The last area that was left to replace/rework from the one year plus time that he had my truck was the tranny (all other areas have all been replaced, reworked and/or redone by professionals - at huge cost (yes, I paid for my truck overhaul MORE than twice as a result of my ignorance and allowing someone who was completely unqualified work on my truck).

Two weeks ago, that chicken came home to roost and the tranny let go. I called my friends at Fat Man Fabrications and they recommended a hot rod leaning tranny shop locally. The guys at AFFORDABLE TRANSMISSIONS in Charlotte, NC did a fantastic job and were very reasonable. Once they opened the unit up, nearly every part in it was found to be old, worn out and in general, crap. I paid for a new tranny and got a piece of junk. Some of the gears even had deep rust on them that could only have been collected by sitting out in a field somewhere for months on end in the weather! The technician said he had seen less wear on trannys that had 200K miles on them (my truck has 16650 miles since the build completion).

Once again, guys I can't say this often enough....seek out and pay for professionals. IF you want a vehicle that you can drive, depend on and enjoy, don't do what I did and put your trust in someone who is not certified and licensed!

After five years of nightmare, enormous cost and almost endless heartache, I now FINALLY have a vehicle I depend on and drive every day but it was PROFESSIONALS that made it that way, not some fly by night 'old school' guy who claimed (and actually believed) they knew what they are doing.

Nine times out of ten, they don't!