Will84

Just installed 383. I have 2 problems:

Problem 1
When it was first cranked (cold) it started fine, but it wouldn't idle good. After it was shut off... we haven't been able to crank it again.

We noticed:
Seems to rev fine when it's running. There is spark coming out of the optispark vent tube, up to the elbow... which is really wierd because it's a rubber hose (condensation maybe).

Any ideas?

Problem 2
Something doesn't look right about the crankshaft hub. It appears to be wobbling while the motor is turning over. We pressed it on as far as it would go. The accessories seem to line up correctly. Just something doesn't seem right.

Are there different types of hubs and balancers for LT1's?... or are they common for all?

Injuneer

There are different hub lengths for the engines with and without the crank position sensor. There are also different hub lengths for Corvettes vs. F-Bodies. What damper are you using? Stocker.....? Is it possible the outer metal ring is wobbling because the rubber ring that holds the inner and outer halves together is broken?

ejfagala

Injuneer,
I know you are one of the smartest people on this forum but the F-body and Y-body hubs are the same it is the B-body that is longer. I have a corvette and have installed two f-body motors into corvettes and have a B-body hub in the closet so I am fairly confident in this. For the basic question though you are absolutly correct that there are difernt hubs for the Ltx motors. Mabey you where thinking of the damper assy's because they are definatly difernt between the F-boy and the Y-body's

Will84

I'm using the stock damper. I did buy a new hub though. I ordered it from GMpartsdirect with a p/n that I got from shoebox's listing... so I'm fairly sure that I got the right one. It may just be in my head. You know how when something goes wrong, everything just doesn't seem right.

My major concern is the ignition. It cranked up fine at first. I noticed a water leak. I turned off the car, fixed the leak , bled the brakes and did a few other things. When I went back to start the car again... nothing. Could the Opti have shorted out or something? Is there any way to test it? I put screw driver in one of the wire boots and I do have a spark. It seems to be a very weak spark though. I've done a search for all of the "tell-tale" signs of opti failure... but I'm not sure if that's my problem.

Thanks guys.

Injuneer

I may be wrong on the stock Y-Body... I was just going from my experience using the ATI dampers, where they have different part #'s for the F-Body LT1 hub (916047) and the Y-body LT1 hub (916096), while using the same shell on both body lines. That's why I asked if he was using a stock damper.

I don't claim to be "one of the smartest people on this forum", and I don't claim to have never made an error (I've made many ), or try to put down people who do make an error. I just try to share my knowledge with others and help them, and I'm more than happy to ackowledge an error..... not sure why you had to turn this into some kind of a negative put down.

turbo_Z

If youre running a cam from Comp and didnt check the dowel length then it may be too long. I had this problem, my buddy had this problem... MANY other people have reported the same. Those of us who caught it early just trimmed it down but those who didnt ended up breaking their optispark. The long dowel puts too much pressure on the opti and basically binds its up.

Will84

I've got the LE2 cam. I will do some research on the dowel length. If anybody knows any good links to previous threads, let me know.

Thanks

turbo_Z

I think the LE cams would be alright. A buddy of mine ordered a Brett Bauer cam andt he dowel was fine but the XE230/236 he had before that was way too long.

Z95m6

Nah i had to trim mine down a little. Comp never does anything right. You can always plan on that.