Posted by Brian in Oregon on Monday, October 23, 2000 at 21:47:53:
In Reply to: Re: Steak on a hamburger budget posted by Brian in Oregon on Monday, October 23, 2000 at 18:36:58:
Here are parts you supply and what Ray supplies and their approx costs. The prices I post for helitool are subject to change, so consult Ray for firm prices. Obviously some of these prices, like used parts, fluctuate widely. The example shown are what these items cost me.
You supply:
$350 - Good used early 70's 318
$100 - Flywheel
$100 - Cast iron truck bellhousing (non-hyd)
$ 50 - Truck oil pan (rear sump)
$ ? - Rear sump pickup tube
$ 25 - One center dump exh manifold
$ ? - 61-68 Dodge 318 pressure plate
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$625 not counting ? marked items (which I have not bought yet). Also, the 318 is in excellent condition and does not need rebuilding.
Ray's kit:
$310 for M37 318 engine kit
$250 for M37 NP420 trans kit
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$560
Together, this includes the motor mounts, throttle linkage assembly, hoses, clamps, rear mounts, adaptor plate, modified clutch disc, misc bellhousing conversion parts, templates for minor frame mods, etc.
Now you need a disc brake conversion on the front axle (double if you want to do the rear axle as well):
You supply:
$110 - Pair of GMC 3/4 ton rotors
$130 - Pair of GMC 3/4 ton calipers
$ 60 - One Chevy 1 ton master cylinder
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$220 (prices vary widely on above two items - this is an average)
$475 - Helitool disc brake kit for one axle.
Includes modifying the hubs, caliper mounting bracket (replaces backing plate), spacer (replaces brake drum), new bearing races, all hoses and fittings.
Add a $100 deposit for hubs unless you ship him yours in advance.
Shipping of the brake kit is $65 to the East Coast. I don't know what shipping costs for the engine/trans kit.
So you can see you'll be into a 318 V-8 w/NP420 and disc brakes on the front axle somewhere between $1500 and $2000 depending on how well you do at keeping costs down on the used parts. The actual total of above including shipping of brake parts, not including deposit, and not including shipping of engine kit or exh manifold or pressure plate is $1880. My motor came with start, PS pump, carb and alternator, BTW. It's a turn key engine.
By comparison, a total rebuild on the original flathead is $1800 - $2000, and does not include the pressure plate or clutch disc.
$1880 is a lot, but on the other hand I will be able to do 55 mph and sustain that even in mountain passes, whereas the 230 in my area is known for crawling down to 30-35 in the passes, and won't get over 45 mph anywhere else.
Of course, it is not original, so there's that factor to consider. (Please note that using Ray's kit, there is very little change to the M37 frame and none to the body/firewall. That means you can restore it with a minimum of repair - one slight notch in frame for exh and one on frame mounted trans mount.) For me it will be a far more useful truck with the 318 and disc brakes.