'66 valve cover casting flaw - judging - NCRS Discussion Boards

'66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

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  • Daniel J.
    Very Frequent User
    • July 29, 2007
    • 158

    '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

    I just had my '66 judged and the issue came up about that the casting flaw on the value cover. My car is VIN 14,216 / engine built Jan 29, 1966 and has the casting flaw. I know what the JG states "appears at approximately VIN 17,000 (march 1966)". I have been watching other cars on auctions & other web sales and have seen a few others aroud my VIN that have the flaw. My question is...how close to VIN 17,000 is "approximately" ? I am preparing for regionals and want to determine how many other "66 cars that are known to be original have the flaw and are prior to VIN 17,000. Thanks, Dan
  • John D.
    Very Frequent User
    • June 30, 1991
    • 875

    #2
    Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

    daniel,

    I have a 67 built in early September 66 that has one cover with the flaw and one without and the issue was my car was too late not to have the flaw on both so I got the deduct.

    It's important to note the crack in the production mold used for service parts got more pronounced over time so it's fairly easy to tell later covers particularly in the "O" in Corvette which has a lot of flash in it...

    Comment

    • William C.
      NCRS Past President
      • May 31, 1975
      • 6037

      #3
      Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

      There is really more to it than "when did it start". For example, the early examples have a flaw that was barely noticable, and as the tooling deterioriated over time later over-the-counter parts had flash so bad that the "O" in Corvette was filled. Not typical of factory production would include the date of the build relative to the severity of the flaw, with special attention to any effect (including the obvious removal of flash) from the "o"
      Bill Clupper #618

      Comment

      • Loren L.
        Extremely Frequent Poster
        • April 30, 1976
        • 4104

        #4
        Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

        Well, the red on white L76/79 CV with A/C that spun the B-J counter at 150+ in January had 2 casting flaw valve covers -obviously available much earlier than we thought.........

        Comment

        • Rich G.
          Extremely Frequent Poster
          • August 31, 2002
          • 1397

          #5
          Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

          My 66 13251 St. Louis car, F07 trim tag, Jan 20 engine assy does not have the flaw. 44 years is a long time. I can't say that's the way it was built.

          Rich
          1966 L79 Convertible. Milano Maroon
          1968 L71 Coupe. Rally Red (Sold 6/21)
          1963 Corvair Monza Convertible

          Comment

          • Stuart F.
            Expired
            • August 31, 1996
            • 4676

            #6
            Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

            My 63 L-76 has two with the casting flaws, but I have a good excuse in that I blew the originals off with a crankcase explosion in 1971.

            On a related subject, has anyone tried to use a Dremel on these flaws with any success? I might try.

            Stu Fox

            Comment

            • Daniel J.
              Very Frequent User
              • July 29, 2007
              • 158

              #7
              Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

              Thanks for the insight gentlemen...It helps shed new light on my issue.

              Comment

              • Chris E.
                Extremely Frequent Poster
                • November 3, 2006
                • 1326

                #8
                Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

                Originally posted by John Daly (19684)
                daniel,

                I have a 67 built in early September 66 that has one cover with the flaw and one without and the issue was my car was too late not to have the flaw on both so I got the deduct.

                It's important to note the crack in the production mold used for service parts got more pronounced over time so it's fairly easy to tell later covers particularly in the "O" in Corvette which has a lot of flash in it...
                John, me too! My very early 67 (vin 183) has one with and one WITHOUT. I too took a deduct. However, the car has been in the family for 37 years and has never had the valve covers replaced during that time. Further, when we disassembled the engine, it had never had a valve job. So what is the likelihood that my valve covers are original to the car? Pretty high, I think.

                PLUS, the 67 TIM/JG says that early cars may or may not have the casting flaw.

                What VIN is your car???
                Chris Enstrom
                North Central Chapter Judging Chairman
                1967 Rally Red convertible, 327/350, 4 speed, Duntov @ Hampton in 2013, Founders @ KC in 2014, family owned since 1973
                2011 Z06, red/red

                Comment

                • Jim D.
                  Extremely Frequent Poster
                  • June 30, 1985
                  • 2884

                  #9
                  Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

                  Chris, Too bad you got a deduction on a known ORIGINAL car. Unfortunately, it happens all the time. I guess the judges know better.

                  Comment

                  • Chris E.
                    Extremely Frequent Poster
                    • November 3, 2006
                    • 1326

                    #10
                    Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

                    Originally posted by Jim Durham (8797)
                    Chris, Too bad you got a deduction on a known ORIGINAL car. Unfortunately, it happens all the time. I guess the judges know better.
                    That was at a chapter, my first time out. I didn't really care what the judges found with the car. In fact, I wanted them to find EVERYTHING. I'm headed for Duntov with this car, so I wanted a list that was as complete as possible. My first regional is in a couple weeks and I think I'm ready.

                    At the chapter, it was only a 1 point deduct, and I wasn't going to grouse over 1 point when I knew the covers had been on the car longer than I've been alive.
                    Chris Enstrom
                    North Central Chapter Judging Chairman
                    1967 Rally Red convertible, 327/350, 4 speed, Duntov @ Hampton in 2013, Founders @ KC in 2014, family owned since 1973
                    2011 Z06, red/red

                    Comment

                    • Gary B.
                      Extremely Frequent Poster
                      • February 1, 1997
                      • 7019

                      #11
                      Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

                      Originally posted by Chris Enstrom (46481)
                      LUS, the 67 TIM/JG says that early cars may or may not have the casting flaw.
                      Chris,

                      My July build date '66 has one cover with the flaw and one without, but, of course, there's no way to prove they are original, even though I've talked with all previous owners of my car and no one ever changed one of the covers.

                      It's very interesting that you say the '67 IM&JG allows for w/ or w/o the flaw, because the latest edition of the '66 TIM&JG makes no such statement. With that statement in the '67 TIM&JG, what was the judges justification for taking a deduct? The flaw was too prominent, suggesting a later date of manufacturer?

                      Gary

                      Comment

                      • Chris E.
                        Extremely Frequent Poster
                        • November 3, 2006
                        • 1326

                        #12
                        Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

                        They just said "both covers should have the flaw". At the time, I didn't realize the exact language in the JG.
                        Chris Enstrom
                        North Central Chapter Judging Chairman
                        1967 Rally Red convertible, 327/350, 4 speed, Duntov @ Hampton in 2013, Founders @ KC in 2014, family owned since 1973
                        2011 Z06, red/red

                        Comment

                        • Gary B.
                          Extremely Frequent Poster
                          • February 1, 1997
                          • 7019

                          #13
                          '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

                          I sure wish the '66 TIM&JG said the same thing, because armed with the TIM&JG, I'd sure as heck use what I believe to be my originals. But absent that language, there's no hope.

                          Gary

                          Comment

                          • John D.
                            Very Frequent User
                            • June 30, 1991
                            • 875

                            #14
                            Re: '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

                            Here's the RH valve cover on my 67 with an engine assembly date of Sept 15 1966. The LH side has no crack. I can only speak for the last twenty years of ownership though.

                            Crack is faint as compared to the later repros.............

                            john
                            Attached Files

                            Comment

                            • Gary B.
                              Extremely Frequent Poster
                              • February 1, 1997
                              • 7019

                              #15
                              '66 valve cover casting flaw - judging

                              John,

                              With July build date '66 I can go back to day 1 of ownership and no owner changed the covers. My covers are exactly like yours; a faint casting seam on one cover; no seam on the other. But the '66 TIM&JG has no provision for this possibility, so I bought two used covers and had then restored by John DeGregory who did a great job on them and these are the ones I'll use for judging. It's a shame to lose the original history.

                              Gary

                              Comment

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