Thanks again Bobby! A day in the garage that would have been stressful if I was on my own was just the opposite - a lot of fun. I'm still waiting for somebody to recognize you from the first time you were on the channel though... 😄
Its great to see someone tackling big stuff with little experience for once. Normally people are so good, it's kinda unrelatable. Your first engine build is nerve wracking, much less on a 20k engine. Good job, keep it up!
Thanks! Hopefully the channel will inspire some less experienced folks to jump in and try stuff. The learning side of it is just as rewarding as the work that gets done.
Brake bleed advice guy back again! I've been blowing through all your videos and its really a joy to watch. Glad to see you have a friend with more experience(its way less nerve racking working on someone elses car than your own). Keep it up man! You're almost there to hear those bald eagles scream again.
Oil eater is my degreaser of choice, it can be diluted anywhere from 2-10:1 with water and still work quite well. If you’re planning on cleaning more parts than just those from Goldie, I would recommend a parts washer with mineral spirits. They do wonders, there’s a good reason they’re called parts washers lol. For any bare aluminum, I would recommend an acid wash to get the brightness back. Truckers swear by various products, but all are a cocktail of various blends of acids, the most common that I’ve seen is muriatic acid. Be sure to use the proper dilution with any acid product. If you do use one, make sure you have gloves, eye protection and good ventilation, as with any strong chemical.
Hey there josh! Im mohammad writing you all the way from Saudi Arabia and i just wanted to thank you for reviving my love for this car. I owned a 2006 C6Z back in 2014 and ended up selling it early 2017 and i loved the car! Had a H/C/I setup and managed to bring some good performance out of it and enjoyed it to say the least! Ever since then ive been hesitant, but watching your videos was the trigger i needed lol, ended up getting a 2013 anniversary edition C6Z just a couple of days ago and while its only been a couple of days im already overwhelmed with joy owning it again! Got you partly to thank for that, and this time around heading your direction in mods focusing on the longevity of the motor and track usage. Thanks man, i wanted to email you this but couldnt find a way to do so, let me know of thats possible would love to send pictures and updates thag might help as well
Hi Mohammed! It is so nice to hear that my little project had a positive influence on someone thousands of miles away! I'll add a contact email to my channel page now.
Hi Josh, another "while you're in there" option is to replace the power steering fluid reservoir - the OEM plastic reservoirs commonly crack at the seam and create a mess, so you'll likely have to replace it sometime soon anyway. Summit sells an aluminum one - I had mine powder coated semi-gloss black. Cheap upgrade. Keep up the great content!
Josh love the videos, almost want to have a ZO6 like yours so I can do some upgrades on it also. I was actually in the market for one a while ago and was talked into buying a boat instead by my mother in law. Never use the boat. It just sits. Btw Josh, to avoid people showing up at your house for autographs when you're famous, cover your car tags and motorcycle tags. I saw the tag on your bike at the end of the video. Just in case you want a little Op-Sec, my friend. Can't wait to see Goldie Athena go to war with those GT3's
from my experience being OCD with car maintenance a tick performance remote clutch bleeder is a no brainer cheap easy to install keeps your clutch fluid clean.
Great update, Josh! As the weather turns warmer in the Northeast, my mind turns to my first track event, in two weeks. Spent the day in the garage getting the car ready. Looking forward to seeing you hit the track in Goldie soon! Remember to tell us about when Josie ate a chocolate cake. 😮
I buy Mean Green at Walmart. A gallon in the kitchen cleaners section is cheap / Gunk de-greaser in Walmart automotive is great, but allow it to stay on around 20 minutes / can't wait to see you finish the Kay-tech swap project
Nice build! For cleaning dirty under carriage/suspension parts, I use a 3M Scotch pad with warm dawn dish soap and seperately Chemical Guys green degreaser with an exterior brush to agitate.
Totally agree with you on that drilling part, anything that requires drilling or cutting freaks me out. I installed a new catback on one of my friends’ car and it required you to cut the factory one. Was very hesitant to do so but everything worked out in the end. Nice video man, can’t wait to see it all come together!
Nice update Josh. Cool 'Catch Can' Scotty what a Dude. Nice wholehearted thing to have done. Also Cool Mechanical Mate BOBBY aka 'Bobby Darin' 'If I were a carpenter" Can your Bobby sing too ? Became a hit song when sung by Bobby Darin , lets change to (If I were a Mechanic :). Sounded like a good teacher/trainer, guiding you and letting you figure some bits out by doing it incorrectly first whilst not causing damage. I thought for a moment you were going to assemble the rest of the engine yourself 100% , with no professional experienced engine builder to guide you. I was about to send an Emergency Message lol 'DON'T DO IT' Not with $20k approx at stake! Was worried it was going to be a 'Bridge Too Far' :) If it was a $200.00 dollar engine , no worries, give it a go if no one will help. Was able to relax, when you mentioned your generous Buddy was helping out, I was able to breathe again :) Woohoo , a few steps closer to 'Stab Date ' lol.....Must be an American thing lol Stabbing it in :)
Nice update, keep at it. Good decision to add the bushings and catch can to the rebuild. Added a catch to both my z28 and my zl1. Started keeping oil out of the intake immediately!
Good job, I hope you get to see the motor running soon [: I usually use purple power, a detailing brush, and a pressure washer or hose to wash dirty car parts. Also, tub o towels is a great product. The wipes cut through grease, remove tar, and anything else unpleasant, while still being able to wash your hands with a nice lemony scent. I always have some in my garage c:
Dude! I recently did a full suspension upgrade on my s197 and had my good friend who is more experienced and has a lift and all the tools, it made for a great success. Like you, I’m not as experienced and thus not super confident, not sure what’s next, very similar to your comments. This is fun to watch your build!
Legend has it that Bobby was actually born an engine, but he decided to join the human world for the food and opposable thumbs... I'd feel a lot better with an engine guardian angel watching over me as well!
Thanks! They've been very sporadic. Now that I've got the parts on hand I can dial in my production process for the videos and get them out more consistently until we get this thing back on track and go hunt some GT3s! 😁
U must also change out the bearings in the torque tube. I just did a similar build on my c6 z06 which is been babied all it life and only has 10k miles on it. To my shock all three bearings in the torque tube needed to be replaced. I promise since you race your car they probably need to be changed as well. They are costly though but must be swapped out.
A number of people recommend Purple Power for cleaning but just be aware that the manufacturer advises against using it on aluminum or stainless steel parts.
74th…. Yes! I really do love this series, Josh. I’m sitting here in my garage comfortably sitting next to my Z06 watching this video. You’re so fortunate to have someone like Bobby to come lend a hand and spread some insight. Happy to see it coming together and looking forward to the next one. So how did that little scrappy Josie eat an entire chocolate cake ?
Haha! Josie discovered that she could jump up on a garbage can to gain access to a kitchen counter and helped herself to the cake she found there. To be fair she only ate about 2/3 of it, she looked like an over-stuffed sausage for a couple days afterwards. The look on her face said, “I regret nothing.”
regarding the cleaning solution, one thing that really helped me with really oily parts is first applying some diesel and then blastin everything wiith brake cleaner. comes right off. also, i'm not sure if this is a regional product, but the "magic wheel cleaner" from koch chemie is RIDICULOUSLY good at removing tar and other asphalt-related stuff. just needs to sit on the affected area for some time.
If everything is clean, the clearances and torques are correct, and the valvetrain geometry is right, you're in good shape. Go slowly and double check everything.
For cleaning the grimey parts, the yellow degreaser from harbor freight is the best ive ever used. Its about as effective as gasoline, without the danger. Best thing ive used, and Ive tried it all. Use with a big acid brush (the ones with clear bristles)
You got it. I commended when this started because I did my own air cooled Porsche engine rebuild and knew you would get to this and do it right. You do not have to be a mechanic to do assembly. You have to be methodical, follow instructions, be patient, and above all be CLEAN. You got all of that in spades my friend. When I did my engine bits cleaning, I used a harbor freight parts cleaner filled with Oil Eater from Amazon. The local family dollar had Purple Power cheap and I probably used 10 of those alone with cases of brake cleaner. Between all of them it got the job done. Keep up the good work! For the next steps do you have a 100% handle on your compression ratio? That's a fun part of the project if you plan on DIY'ing that process.
I remember that comment! I don't have 100% handle on anything, much less compression ratio. I believe Katech spec'd it between 11.0 and 12.0 and I guess I just assumed it would be a product of the valvetrain components and timing in the tune?
@@JoshVanVeld This is a good place to put your OCD to good use. Things like the deck height, valve clearance, cam timing, etc is all important now and will have an impact on what kind of engine you want and what kind of gas you intend to run. When I did my Porsche I went as far as to measure my piston dome height and combustion chamber volume myself with a buret so I had my compression ratio down to the 100th of a PSI. On the Porsche I set the deck height with a base gasket, but you will set it with the head gasket thickness itself. Any machine work on the deck or head causes tolerance stacking so your combustion chamber will be smaller if your heads were resurfaced. It's good to know exactly what engine you're building in this regard, but there's lots of information in this so dip your toe in before you jump into the water. I don't know the specifics on a Zo6 but in general with my other Corvettes, the ECU will pull timing advance if detonation is detected and if you are sky high with compression, this could make you go slower. It can be a .5 sec in the 1/4 mile or more if it's really bad. Hope this helps!
I think you're making a good move by rebuilding the torque tube bushings now, you would really be kicking yourself in the ass if you waited and happened to really need to replace them this or next winter. Also, theoretically, you won't need to make too many mods this winter since you're doing a lot to Goldie right now, so you'll want to try to plan it so you're ordering parts in November or December, and then you're doing the maintenance, modifying, and repairing in January, February, and early March so when it warms up in late March and April, you're having fun daily driving and doing events.
Neither of my c6z’s dropped a valve. But one got a set of heads at 66,000 miles and my second one currently has 89,000 miles on it and I’ve currently got the heads off of it. I’m cleaning the piston tops before I put these WCCH ported and milled heads on. I also live in GA! My current z is also velocity yellow! 🤣
Small world! My buddy had one with 90k miles and stock heads that died due to a lifter failure. Looking back I wish I had investigated the wobble test, apparently there is a way you can check for wear in the valve guides to determine whether your heads need attention.
I like to tell myself that if the LS7 was bulletproof from the factory the C6Z would be worth double what it is now and the heads issue is why they're such a bargain :)
Josh, 3 things to consider adding: 1- Mamo ported Air Force Intake and 103 TB (this is much easier with the engine out). 2- Track Spec hood vents for heat and to reduce front lift (I have these on my Z) 3- this is the most important! Find a GOOD tuner. Who can STREET and dyno tune your new setup My Z06 was on display at the Corvette Museum for a year. I’m pretty anal about the part selection.
Thanks! We’ve got some solid tuners in the area. That’s cool that they had your car on display! I haven’t been up there yet but I’d like to check it out.
Man I really do love your series, and unfortunately looks like I hurt my gen V lt1 and will need a new shortblock lmao so looks like ill be headed down a similar journey as you
Dang that's a bummer! The harder we push these things the more likely things are to go wrong it seems. Not that surprising, but until something goes wrong it's easy to assume that life is nothing but sunshine and roses :)
I see some videos of LS7 rods wearing out. Somehow the titanium of the rods is wearing out before the rod bearings? Large end. Nonetheless, what a sweet build.
I have heard that too, it's related to the coating on the rods. I talked to Katech about it and they said with regular oil changes it shouldn't be an issue. Thanks!
Looking good Josh. I did look at those Monster clutche you are planning to install. Can't wait for you to test it once its all together and report on how that clutch is, ie good street clutch, light pedal, no chatter, good release still a good extra heavy duty clutch too. When I was on the Monster site, saw they had a steel (precision) clutch alignment tool. Did you get one of those ? To get the engine with clutch lined up and back in the car its tough to get the input shaft (torque tube side) to line up with the engine and clutch together. What helps is having the clutch discs dead on concentric with each other and the pilot bearing in the crank. Thus the input shaft will side fully into the clutch once you get the engine lined up. Since the steel input alignment (dummy) shaft is an option on that clutch, that would mean they supply only the plastic molded dummy shafts and they are not as good a tool as the steel one.
You will probably get a lot of opinions over cleaning materials. People get passionate about it. I’ve adopted a product list that works very well for me so I will share. Actually, I know I picked the right woman to be my wife because she even had an opinion about simple green’s use as an engine cleaning agent. I thought Purple Stuff was better, so that was one of our first disagreements…lol. For degreasing engine and drive line related parts and spaces using water, I use Purple Stuff cut at 50%. It’s non alkaline and won’t etch or destroy finishes. Perfect when using a pressure washer and even better when agitating using a brush. If I’m under the car doing “dry cleaning”, I use brake clean, scotch brite pads and (plumbers, non grit) handi wipes, plumbers use them so they have to be good. Perfect for cleaning and rust prevention, paint prep. I use Zep Alum to clean FORGED suspension components but keep it away from cast parts. Simple Green is an excellent detergent that I use for interior cleaning or spaces that I want to be less invasive. You can use it in more demanding applications but it just doesn’t perform as well in more challenging applications. I can give super good advice on cleaning, protecting and maintaining leather and plastics if you are interested. Love seeing the progress and keep up the content sharing! (I edited my mistakes made using my phone)
Haha I love the story about your wife. Several people have mentioned power washing the engine bay - how do you ensure that water isn’t going where it shouldn’t with harnesses unplugged and lines and hoses exposed?
@@JoshVanVeld Great question. I will use two methods, one is physically protecting it using zip lock bags or equivalent...think plastic bag and rubber bands, and the other is purposefully directing the water away from the sensitive parts. The deal is, most of those components are made with an expectation that there will be SOME kind of exposure to the elements but just try not to focus the water onto the parts. I've done this for so long and I've had great success. You will also want to have WD40, compressed air (I'll even use a leaf blower for this!) and even electrical cleaning spray at your disposal to remove any accidental moisture when you go to finish the work. Your example of drilling and grinding parts, I agree, causes stress and ultimately over complicates tasks. We many times miss the obvious. But this is about learning and gaining wisdom. LOL. I'm doing it now with welding parts onto my Camaro. I over analyze EVERYTHING! Beer doesn't help! LOL
Josh,I have part numbers for the torque tube bearings if you need them. I bought them off ebay ALOT CHEAPER than ordering from the dealer or one of the suppliers that sell kits.
Copy and pasted from my post on corvette forum. I'll post it on the fɓ page also . I found some part numbers for the bearings if anyone in the future needs them,this is for my 2009 c6 z06, the parts are listed as followed in brands and how any you would need for the torque tube rebuild. qty 1 NSK 6007DDU 62MM OD-35MM ID- 14MM WIDTH SKF 6007 2RSJEM Timken 9107PP Qty 2 NSK 6008DDU 68MM OD- 40MM ID- 15MM WIDTH SKF 6008 2RSJEM Timken 9108PP I actually scored a pair of the front for $15.00 And a pair of the skf 6008 bearings for 15.00 also, from a gentleman selling lots of industrial bearings he was trying to move.
On the mighty mouse catch can, make sure you plumb it correctly. I have one on my Z06 and when I got the car it was not plumbed correctly. Also on a personal note, I don't think catch cans are worth while and actually do anything to help.. well.. anything. If OEM manufactures design a crank case ventilation system that lasts 300k miles (who cares if some of it is for emissions), maybe some oil in the intake isn't a big deal and trusting a small company that has never done decades of RnD (unlike GM or Toyota), to build an adequate design to fulfill or exceed OEM requirements I think isn't smart.
I'm not an expert obviously but I generally figured that the main reason you'd never see a catch can on a factory car is because regular folks can't be bothered to check and empty them regularly. I try to be careful about avoiding stuff that doesn't have a proven track record but I haven't heard any people call into question whether catch cans offer a benefit as long as they're installed properly. Now I'm curious about whether factory-built race cars (like Porsche ClubSport cars) have them.
If you haven't put the heads on yet, you should find out if those are standard LS7 lifters or the Caddy lifters. If they're standard LS7s I feel like a dumbass trying to "correct" Katech but there's a reason they used the Caddy lifters in all the race cars.
It's not as clean as it looks - the high-contrast flake hides dirt. Normally I do keep it clean by mopping it with a product called Zep which is a ph-neutral cleaner. I try to keep it swept and then mop it once a season or so, but I haven't been able to get the Corvette out of the garage in almost a year so that's hampered my cleaning efforts.
Cleaning parts , 100 dollar electric power washer from wallmart , or siphon blow gun and diesel , or whatever you like , gas is explosive , but it cleans in a pinch, but its messy
Hey Josh, found out my LS7 block is cracked this week. GM does not make the bare block anymore, looking for a bare block. I will reach out to Katech, curious if you have any sources as well.
Bummer! If you're willing to go with a refurbished used block like I am you might find something on Facebook marketplace although it's hard to be confident in what you find. I believe somebody said the guy who runs the Scraplife Garage RU-vid channel can source used motors. I imagine the guys at Katech migiht be able to point you in the right direction even if they don't have one handy.
There's always fear when putting together any engine, especially one so expensive. But man, you got the shortblock pre assembled, everything else is just a matter of following proper torque specifications, and that motor will run as intended. No need to worry.
Josh, how long does the editing component take to deliver say this 12.43 long clip? Guessing it is a huge time investment, to get the 12 or so minutes.
You've made the mistake of asking me about RU-vid and it's a barely-hidden secret that I'm as interested in making videos as a hobby as I am in working on cars, so buckle up! 🤣 I feel like I've kind of dialed in my formula for the most part in terms of what kind of videos I make and lately I've been trying to get more efficient with the process and technique. Filming adds time to the wrenching process because you need to think about how you're capturing what you're doing in a way that the audience can see it and also doesn't get boring to watch. I'm still not great about that, but it's largely a matter of not forgetting that you're filming, even if you run into a snag. So in this case I had probably three hours worth of footage and I do an initial pass just to cut that down to maybe 15 or 20 minutes using Adobe Premiere. I've gotten pretty good at that part and I can move through it relatively quickly. I'd say maybe 3-4 hours for that first pass. Then the relatively hard part is adding the voiceover. I probably spent four hours on that yesterday morning. What works for me is to divide the video into scenes or chapters and think of what I want to talk about so that you're not just watching me fasten bolts. There is the technical side where I might need to explain what I'm working on or why, or there might be a more abstract theme such as the value of having someone experienced help you in the garage. As I do that I'll also think of little jokes or unrelated stuff that happened (like the dog getting stuck in the car) and try to work that in. I think I still have room to improve in terms of staying on topic about the project vs. going off on tangents. So I'm writing little essays for each scene as I go and the trick is to get it to line up with what you're seeing on screen as naturally as possible. I've started to learn how many words per minute I speak at (around 160) so if a scene is two minutes long that tells me roughly what my word limit is. Then I record it and as I do I tend to get a better sense of what's working or not, so then I do an editing pass and re-record it. I've learned not to re-record it more than once or twice because I'll wear out my voice in the process. By the time I've recorded and edited the voice-over, I'm usually itching to get it done but I've got the finish line in sight so that boosts my energy. I do a final edit pass trying to trim out any remaining fat and then I throw in some music (I'd like to do a better job with the music side because it feels slapped together) and then I do some basic color correction. Export. Done. I would say this video took me a total of 10-12 hours but I don't keep close track of the time I spend on it.
@@JoshVanVeld Wow, that's why your videos are way better than mine, you put in 3X more film and storytelling into it compared to me. 🤣🤣 It's on my other channel, but for reference, my camshaft and cam bearings replacement is around 42 minutes from 2 hours of filming. I still need to do 25 or so minutes of voiceover.
@@homer23422000 Holy crap. Lately I’ve been doing shorter videos in part because it takes me so long to edit long ones that it feels like too much work. I find that I learn from the editing process - for instance I’ve heard everything Bobby told me and seen all my mistakes at least 4-5x because of the editing process.
@@JoshVanVeld I make my videos long because I do more of a step by step tutorial style compared to most creators' highlights and maybe storytelling style.
Just to let you know, a motor refers to electric. Ie Electric motor vs Gasoline Engine. I know motor is misused all the time but that doesn’t make it correct.
Tell that to Motortrend, Motörhead, and Motorcycle. How language is actually used is what defines it, not whatever a particular book says. Trust me; I have to resist adding an extra space at the end of every sentence because that’s what I learned from the AP Style Guide.
Zep purple degreaser works great. It's a Engine, not motor, and the cylinders are Pistons. Learned using Chilton or Haynes manuals back in the early 80's and making mistakes; no Bobbies or internet forums for help.
