Re: need help deciding something

by 77malibu77 Tue May 18, 2010 9:04 pm

bigredlaguna wrote:If the bores are in good shape, you can reuse your pistons. It is entirely dependent upon how much wear your engine has. Only the machinist can tell you.

i get what your saying, if i end up getting the motor bored out i will need wider pistons but if it is in good shape right now then i can keep them but what about all the push rods and valves

by bigredlaguna Tue May 18, 2010 9:05 pm

It is a .454 inch lift cam for a small block chevy.

by 77malibu77 Tue May 18, 2010 9:06 pm

ok so your saying if this was just going to be driven on the weekends that cam would be perfect for torque and what i am looking for, i see on that page that it does improve torque

by bigredlaguna Tue May 18, 2010 9:14 pm

77malibu77 wrote:
bigredlaguna wrote:If the bores are in good shape, you can reuse your pistons. It is entirely dependent upon how much wear your engine has. Only the machinist can tell you.

i get what your saying, if i end up getting the motor bored out i will need wider pistons but if it is in good shape right now then i can keep them but what about all the push rods and valves

Again, that is something that your machinist will have to measure for you.

One thing you can check for yourself is the straightness of the pushrods. Use a straightedge to make sure you have a table top or some other surface that is absolutely straight. Shine a light towards you and roll the pushrod on the table. If any light shines between the surface and the rod, it is bent.

by 77malibu77 Tue May 18, 2010 9:22 pm

k thx alot i appreciate any help you have to offer Thumbs up

by The Dude Wed May 19, 2010 10:13 am

On the camshaft, I say go for it. It's small enough to keep you out of trouble if you do a stock rebuild, yet big enough to bump your power. It might give a slight lope at idle, but nothing major. The Crane Cam I have on the shelf is one size smaller & either would be what you are looking for in a daily driven ride built for low end. I do want to point out that you said this was a motor from an 80's model dump truck, so double check those heads. Unless he went out & bought another set, they aren't double humps. I'd even go as far to say that they are junk heads if they are factory 80's model castings. OTOH, if they are from a 90's model truck you should be looking at one of two castings, Vortec or Swirl Port. Get the numbers from the back of the block & the heads (located between the rocker arms towards the middle). If you can't read them, some degreaser & a wire brush will clean the area.

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 11:21 am

k thx
ill look next time i walk over to his house (he is only a house away from mine lol)

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 11:22 am

oh rago its not a dump truck
its from a 1974 tow truck
what would these heads be?

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 11:43 am

*76 tow truck, and the only number we found so far is 364434 on the heads

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 12:08 pm

he said it says 434 with the double hump symbol next to it

by The Dude Wed May 19, 2010 12:11 pm

The casting # is actually probably 354434. 364434 does not exist. It's a thin casting 267 & 305 head, probably one of the worst out there. I bet that's a 305 motor & if so, it ain't worth $50. Walk away calmly........ unless you like underpowered pigs that aren't worth the money you put into them. I just pulled that exact motor from my 76 & the performance was miserable.

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 12:17 pm

lol ok i will go look at the numbers myself and if i do see a 5 instead of a 6 ill tell him no deal

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 12:19 pm

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 1:04 pm

ok so i got this number off the block itself

355909

and the number that was on the heads was 364434 i looked myself so let me search around first

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 1:09 pm

yeah i looked up that number first thing that came up was 305 so yeah that is a 305 motor lol glad i checked the numbers well i was going too before i gave him the money anyways
i wasnt going to buy it until 6 months from now anyway lol

by The Dude Wed May 19, 2010 1:28 pm

.... OR a 267. Barf

Either way the motor is too small to worry about wasting money on. I almost convinced myself into building my 305 with ported HO heads, a decent cam, & around 10:1 compression but when I plugged the numbers into a simulation program it wasn't going to be enough to justify the cost. 300 hp for something that would have gave about 400 hp in a 350. No thanks...... I realize DD isn't real life, but it can give good comparisons & can be helpful for setting up timing, gears, etc.

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 1:43 pm

plus it would look to small for our cars
but i guess the hunt will still be on after i move my 350 to my malibu and go from there

by The Dude Wed May 19, 2010 1:51 pm

????? Look too small ??????? externally all Chevy small blocks are the same size.

by 74Malibu383 Wed May 19, 2010 1:53 pm

I couldn't type fast enough.....

The external size, mounting points, and all other measurements regarding fit are exactly the same. Only the casting numbers and internal measurements would be different.

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 1:54 pm

well i am thinking about going witha 400 those are not the same size

by 74Malibu383 Wed May 19, 2010 1:55 pm

The Piston Return Springs are. Twisted Evil

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 1:57 pm

by The Dude Wed May 19, 2010 2:07 pm

74Malibu383 wrote:The Piston Return Springs are.

He's back! LMAO..... don't forget to check your blinker fluid while you are under the hood looking for piston return springs.

Yes 400's are the EXACT same size dimension wise. They just have siamesed bores & shorter rods to accommodate the longer stroke & larger bore. The heads require steam holes also. Everything else bolts up & is the same.......

by 77malibu77 Wed May 19, 2010 2:10 pm

hahaha i know theres no such thing as piston return springs and there is no such thing as blinker fluid lmao

and i didnt know they wer;e the same 2 i knew they were small blocks though....

by 74Malibu383 Wed May 19, 2010 2:31 pm

In all honesty though, just make sure you're being safe. If you plan on adding power and going faster, make sure you can stop that beast.

I would personally recommend crossdrilled brake lines. They'll ensure your brake fluid doesn't get too hot.

by Sponsored content