401 Info needed , dual quad linkage

[George Bednar]

Am rebuilding a 401 from a 65 Skylark Gran Sport . Have pulled the motor , new pistons , rings , bearings , cam , etc. now being done . Have sent the heads out to be redone .

Now for my questions :

Can I buy a motor manual for the 401 giving all the specs ? Like when I put the heads back on what #'s do I need to set everything properly .

Bought a Buick dual quad set-up and need info ( pictures would help ) as to how to set-up the linkage .

As you can tell I'm new to this .

Thank you for any help you can give me ,

George please respond to fxandhds94@aol.com

[BuickStreet]

George, Your new at this and you already have a dual quad manifold - no fair! What a great start. Who's doing what to your heads?

Buy a workshop (chassis) manual and it will tell you everything you need to know.

[66_Buick_KId]

Hey, i have a 401 myself that needs rebuilding, where did you get your rebuild kit and how much do they set you back?.....if you dont' mind me asking....:beer

[BuickStreet]

Sorry, I should add that the manual will tell you everything you need to know about rebuilding your engine but won't tell you much about the dual quad linkage as it was mostly a dealer installed accessory. There is only one obscure reference to the dual quad setup in my 66 manual. Can't remember where for sure but I think it's in the section that explains the location of the manifold outlet for vacuum for the power booster.

[Mark Ascher]

I think the 65 or 66 factory service manual for a Riviera would have dual quad info.

Mark

[BuickStreet]

My manual is for all 1966 body styles (including Rivs). Not sure about the 65.

[Mark Ascher]

Figures, now I can't find my manuals anywhere. Grrrrrrrrrr.

[n2buick]

Yes, the 65 manual for the full size cars has the info on the dual quad set up. I've had to use it a couple of times. I don't believe it is in the Skylark supplement though.

Jeff

[potopaj]

In terms of linkage, I custom bend my stock single to make it shorter, and used an edelbrock dual quad linkage between the carbs. This is on the offy high rise, but shouldn't be to different than what you want.

here's a pic of what it looks like. lemme know if you want/need a closeup.
http://potopa.homeip.net/images/riv/eng3.jpg

[wildcat2]

This is from the '65 Service Manual.
(I couldn't figure out how to rotate it.)

[BuickStreet]

Jason, boy am I glad you've popped up! I'm about to fit the exact same dual quad setup to my Electra 401. I'd appreciate dozens of close up shots of your engine from every angle you can imagine. Don't post them here but if you could email them to me at bill@buickstreet.com I would really appreciate it. keep them large and don't worry too much about the size as I have broadband. Having said that though, try to keep them under 1mb each and send them in seperate emails.

Are those 750 Carter Competition Series carbs? Are they new or did you rebuild them? I'd love to know how it performs and what size jets ...etc you used. How does it perform? I don't suppose you know the part number for your Offy Intake do you? I noticed on your website that you don't have a lump of hole in your hood how did you go with hood clearance? I have so many questions that we should probably start a new thread.

Kevin, send me the original pic and I'll rotate it for you and take some close up crops so we can all see what the manual says.

Great thread!

[George Bednar]

Alot of this is new to me and I don't know how to reply to each of you . I will figure that out . As a matter of fact I'll work on that right now and see if I can reply to each of you with a thank's and if you don't mind more questions .

I have only owned the car a couple of months . But have already put in the 3.55 posi , sent the steering wheel out to be re-finished , pulled the motor for a rebuild , bought the dual quad set-up , sent the air cleaner out for re-chrome and the carbs to be rebuilt . Now to get it all back together .

Here's a picture from the gentleman I bought it from . If I can get it to work .

Thanks again to all of you ,

George

[George Bednar]

BuickStreet said:George, Your new at this and you already have a dual quad manifold - no fair! What a great start. Who's doing what to your heads?

Buy a workshop (chassis) manual and it will tell you everything you need to know.

Bill ,

Thanks for your reply . The heads are being done by a shop in Auburn Hills . They are very good , usually only do Mopars , but they did the heads on my Road Runner and they came out just fine .

[BuickStreet]

Whata re they going to do to them? Any chance of some flow tests and pics? Pics of Nailhead head porting are pretty slim on the ground. They would come in really handy for more than a few folks I'd say.

You'd be doing a good thing. :grin:

[George Bednar]

BuickStreet said:Whata re they going to do to them? Any chance of some flow tests and pics? Pics of Nailhead head porting are pretty slim on the ground. They would come in really handy for more than a few folks I'd say.

You'd be doing a good thing. :grin:

Do you mean take pictures after they are done before I install them ? I could do that . They are shaving the heads a little , doing the valves and new springs . My son knows far more about this than me . He's the wrench , I'm the helper . I buy the cars , he really helps me put them in #1 shape . Then we both enjoy them .

[BuickStreet]

So you won't be doing any porting or anything like that? That's what I was referring to. Still, any pics of anything Nailhead is a good thing. I'd like to see any pics you care to take George.

[George Bednar]

potopaj said:In terms of linkage, I custom bend my stock single to make it shorter, and used an edelbrock dual quad linkage between the carbs. This is on the offy high rise, but shouldn't be to different than what you want.

here's a pic of what it looks like. lemme know if you want/need a closeup.
http://potopa.homeip.net/images/riv/eng3.jpg

Any closeup's you could send would be great !!!
Thank you for your help .

George

If possible send to fxandhds@aol.com

[George Bednar]

wildcat2 said:This is from the '65 Service Manual.
(I couldn't figure out how to rotate it.)

Thank you so much . This is a great help . Could you send it to my email address so I can print it out at work on Monday ?

Thank you ,
George

fxandhds94@aol.com

[CTX-SLPR]

Howdy,

On the subject of stuff for dual quads, how hard is it to tune such a setup? I will be using my new 65 Riviera GS as a daily driver here in CO but I'm changing stations to OH over the summer and right now the car is setup for IL so it will need a tune up and I don't want to have to keep paying people to tune a car I will hopefully own for the next 10-15 years. Any comments and help will be appreciated. Oh and it has 600 Edelbrcok Performers instead of the orginal Carters, but I still have the orginals. Which is going to be an easier carb to use?

Thanks,

[Dan K]

Hi George,
Would you let us know what you think of the refinished steering wheel, and perhaps post a pic and price? The steering wheels on the 65-66 Skylarks were horribly prone to warping and cracking. I've heard a lot of stories about geting one redone, but you're the first person I have heard actually having one done. Thanks, Dan

[potopaj]

George Bednar said:Any closeup's you could send would be great !!!
Thank you for your help .

George

If possible send to fxandhds@aol.com

They are 2 new carter 500s on there. I am playing with jetting, so I haven't settled on which i like most yet. These like to run on the larger jetting side though. If I had to do it again, I may get 600s, or maybe 650s.

[BuickStreet]

Cool!

Keep 'em coming Jason.

[potopaj]

i sent you an e-mail with a bunch of pics. I forgot that I had to modify the rear bracket for the daul carb linkage. If you look at the picture above you can note that the throttle linkage (the bottom one) is close to the carb linkage. I had to grind alittle out of the bracket to ensure that no binding took place.

I also get questioned on the spring comming off the front carb. It's a safety thing for me. If the link breaks I wanna ensure the front carb will return to closed.

[potopaj]

I started the beast up today. man it feels good to wake up after winter. I put oil in her cylinders before she sleeps, and always worry when I see white smoke in the spring.

Anyway I took a vid of it if anyone is interested. It's at http://potopa.homeip.net/library/riv.mpg

I think this will work.

[BuickStreet]

Sweet!

I noticed that your idling at about 1,000rpm. Is that by choice or won't they idle below that. My 401 currently idles nicely at about 500rpm as the manual suggests. Do you have an aftermarket cam installed? Seems to rev pretty quickly. Nice sound too.

[potopaj]

due to a stage II cam, and new distributer. It will be idling a 700-800 in drive. It's alittle too lumpy at 500.

It's a matter of changing one thing, and having to re-adjust everything else. (notice the tools on the fender.)

Jason.

[BuickStreet]

Stage II cam? Who makes this cam? Do you have the specs? What valve train mods will you make to accomodate this cam change? Done anything else to your heads - like porting, polishing...etc?

What distributor will you be using? Daves Small body HEIs (.com)?

Thanks for sending those pics and the video, they where cool.

[potopaj]

head are ported, mildly polished and port matched intake and exhaust. Valves were removed, new guides put in, 3 way grind on new harded releafes done and assembled using alittle higher rate sping. kenne bell makes the stage II cam. I can't find the specs online, but havem at home.

I'm running petronix II ignition on stock cam with HEI spring sets. I'm testing some stuff out. Which is one reason the idle was on the high side. Alot of tinkering, but it is fun.

Jason

[BuickStreet]

Post those specs when you get 'em. I'd be interested in using your experience to make decisions on my motor when it's time for mods.

You're right about the fun part (check out my new avatar)

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