For years, I've been contemplating a sheetmetal intake for my race 304. No one made a 304 4bbl (the Ismail's do now) so I thought I should build a sheetmetal tunnel ram for it.

Blair Howze kept encouraging me.. and then one day said "I'm coming up to help" to kick me in the tail to get going on it.

I managed to overheat the engine a bit in Powell, and it was a bit due for an overhaul anyhow, so when the head gasket went in Powell, that really clinched it.

It also turns out I was about ready to drop a few valves from floating them at 6300rpm for all these years.



Engine Tear-down and rebuild

If your oil comes out like this, it's time to overhaul it - or at least put a hood on it and change the oil.



I stripped and powder-coated a bunch of the parts this time, including using some new chrome powder.






I also added a new 90amp alternator while I had it out..



I had the heads flow-benched while it was apart.. these should be pretty accurate HP/torque numbers out of this little 304..

Pictures

For years I'd been fighting wheel hop problems off and on on the racer, and for almost as long I had been wanting to build a ladder bar.. well, I finally did.

Two hunks of 1.75x.120 DOM, some plate, a bushing or two, some tractor heims from Murdoch's..

If you've ever wanted to know what the inside of a SAW 2.5x16 remote-reservoir shock looks like...

Look here

During the Winter Baja, I once again broke the hard lines going from the master cylinder to the proportioning valve.

This time, I finally installed flexible lines.

We decided to head up to Polson and pay the Skyliners a visit for the Cruisin by the Bay car show.

Rob and Cindy St.Clair was gracious enough to put us up for the night and we had a great time.




Leonard Nelson of Black Eagle and his 454 CJ-7


Rob St.Clair's Jeepster.

With some time left over while in Moab, I went in search of Potato Salad Hill, hoping maybe someone would be foolin' around - no such luck, but I did find it.

I was also advised, by my wife, that I shouldn't attempt it - we still had another 700 miles to get home.



Potato Salad Hill is in the background.

Arches Pictures

While in Moab, we visited the Hole n' Rock to take Joleigh to the small zoo, and then visited Arches National Park.

..and since we were in Moab, we had to do at least a little Wheeling!

We headed out to Bull Canyon.

Bull Canyon is out by Gemini Bridges - it's actually UNDER Gemini.



My tires kept getting jammed into the body and stopping forward progress - glad I had the Hilift along.




Saw a small lizard..

After RMIHR and UFWDA and Colorado National Monument.. we cruised over to one of our favorite stops, Moab, Utah.

The drive in from Frisco is always beautiful.








We stopped in at the Moab Diner for lunch.. and Joleigh thought it would be fun to feed Daddy her grilled cheese sandwich..