FEATURE
Photography BY THE AUTHORicknames are a common way of acknowledging a person’s individuality. Many of these are derived from our given names, as a shortened or modified substitute, and usually designed to catch an ear, adding color to a somewhat typically bland or phonetically arduous nameplate.
A lot of that disruption that David found himself entangled in was later centered around the vehicles he commanded. “I’ve owned over 300 cars in my life, as many as nine at a time,” David mentions. “Of course, there were definitely some heavy hitters in my stash. My ’70 Boss 429 would cause a stir wherever I got on it. I would tear up the pavement with it on command.”
As he matured, David settled into everyday life and the daily grind, but the love of muscle cars and hot rods never left him. Back in the day I owned some hairy rides, the latest was a ’23 Ford RPU. I armed it with a nasty 383ci stroker powerplant, which made the lightweight fiberglass ride a powerful pickup,” David says. “I drove the snot out of that thing and enjoyed every minute of owning it.”
David’s current ride came to him through a web-based marketplace. “I saw an ad for a ’66 Nova for sale or trade,” David says. “I contacted the owner and asked if he would be interested in doing a straight-up trade for my pickup. He wasn’t too far away from me, so we decided to check out each other’s rides. At first sight I thought the Nova was just OK, but when he fired up that supercharged 355, it blew me away! After that, we made the deal.”
Why a Nova? “When I was a kid, my sister’s boyfriend (now brother-in-law) had a ’66 Nova. It was jacked up in the back, had a tunnel ram with a pair of Holley 390s. It also had ‘Novacaine’ painted on the quarter-panels,” David reminisces. “That car cemented my love for the compact Chevy.”
The first thing David did was realign the front engine cradle to get the Big Al’s Toy Box–built blown small-block back in the correct position. From there, floorpans needed to be fabricated as the previous owner just riveted in some sheetmetal in the rear seat area. David fabricated new pans and Conklin welded them in. Being an old racer, the rear framerails had twisted over time and one was 1 inch shorter than the other. With the ’rails handled, Conklin, familiar with automotive geometry, then recalculated the position of the rearend and got it squared away.
David went on to make new spring eye mounts and the boys even rebuilt the frame connectors to keep this ride even-steven. Next, the guys worked on putting in the straight axle up front. “I sourced a heavy-duty gasser axle from Speedway Motors and we installed it along with some ’49-54 Chevy spindles and period-correct Twisty shocks,” David says. “Out back, we added Monroe air shocks and a set of Jeep Cherokee leaf springs with the Chevy 10-bolt to get the rear suspension roughed in.”
The Nova sat way too low up front, so they decided to make up some 3-inch riser blocks out of billet aluminum to level the car. The 6-foot-6-inch homemade ladder bars were added next. David built them out of 1-inch square stock and Conklin did the honor of tying them all together.
With wiring next on the to-do list, David ordered a complete Hot Rod harness from Speedway Motors. Conklin’s son, Brian, stepped in to help with the process. While this was happening, David started working on the body performing all the necessary metalwork in preparation for paint.
Circling back to the engine, the small-block was put together with stellar components, including a forged Callies crank, Carrillo forged H-beam rods and Mahle dished 8:1 compression forged pistons. Victor Jr. heads top the cylinders, and that Weiand 6-71 Supercharger pushes out a healthy 10 pounds of boost. A set of Patriot headers send spent fuel to a stainless exhaust David built, then topped it all off with a pair of NASCAR-style mufflers.
I want to thank all involved with the build,” David announces. “That includes Rich and Rita Conklin for all their help and support, Brian Conklin, Matt Ziegler and Steve Cannizzo for help with the wiring, Mike Attanasio at Glascar for the glass, and Glenn Yuengling for his amazing artistry. But I mostly want to thank my wonderful wife for her faith and confidence in me to build a car starting with just one bolt.”
Vehicle: ’66 Chevy Nova
Type: Chevrolet small-block
Block: Cast-iron
Displacement: 355 ci
Compression Ratio: 8.0:1
Bore: 4.030
Stroke: 3.480
Cylinder Heads: Victor Jr. 64 cc
Rotating Assembly: Callies forged crank, Carrillo H-beam rods, Mahle dished hypereutectic pistons
Valvetrain: Manley valves, hydraulic lifters
Camshaft: Lunati hydraulic
Induction: Weiand 6-71 Supercharger
Ignition: MSD Blaster 2 coil, PerTronix Stand Alone distributor
Exhaust: Patriot headers, 3-inch exhaust, Walker mufflers
Output: 650 hp
Transmission: M21 four speed
Rear Axle: GM 10-bolt with 3.73 gears
Front Suspension: Speedway “Zero Drop” straight axle, Chevy ’49-54 spindles, ’70s GM Twisty shocks, aluminum block risers
Rear Suspension: ’95 Jeep Cherokee leaf springs, Monroe air shocks, owner-built 6-foot-6-inch ladder bars
Brakes: GM intermediate calipers with 9-inch rotor front, GM stock drums rear
Wheels: Radir Tri-Ribb 15×6 front, 15×10 rear
Tires: Firestone Deluxe Champion 6.40-15 front, Radir Pie Crust Dragster slicks 10.0×15
Upholstery: By owner
Material: Vinyl
Seats: ’69 Chevy El Camino
Steering: Moon steering wheel
Shifter: Hurst
Dash: Original
Gauges: Autogage tach, Bosch three-gauge pod
Bodywork: Owner
Paint By: Rich Conklin
Paint: ’68 GM Riviera White
Hood: Stock, cut to fit the supercharger
Extras: Moon Gas Tank (radiator overflow)