Here is what I currently have. 67 Elky. 350 .30 over with flat tops. 292/480 lunati hyd, 186 double hump heads, RPM performer with a 3310 holley. TB 350 with 2200-2500 stall. 8.25 posi with 4:56 gears. Car weighs 3550 with me in it. Runs 9:00-9:10 in 1/8th mile. Here is my question. I have a compelte 454 in my garage with 781 open chamber oval port heads. motor need complete rebuild.Came out of old tow truck, reportedly just burning oil like crazy. I am wondering if I should build the BB or stroke my SB. I only drive my elky on the street occasionaly, if it is raced, it is on 1/8th mile track 99% of the time. I am trying to determine the pros and cons of each setup. with the BB I would have to change the front springs, radiator and purchase an intake,headers and so forth graemlins/waving.gif . With SB I already have intake and headers, but do not want to spend loads of money fighting my elkys weight. Also was wondering if I went Stroked SB would having my heads worked be cost effective or just go aftermarket. The double humps I have are virgins, and have 2.02/1.60. I hope I have provided enough info for someone to have an informed opinion. I know the old saying "No replacement for displacement", but it seems an 1/8th of a mile is a short distance to get alot of weight moving.

thanks for any input.

Please consider what it will cost to make the SB a 454/468 inch motor and I think you have answered your own question..

pdq67

PS., and if the old 454 truck motor needs a crank, it isn't all that much more to make a 496 motor and make alotta power easy!!!

That's what I did...

I was thinking along the line of a 383 stroker. Also I neglected to state my goal for my elky's performance. I would be more than satisfied with around 7:90-8:00 flat in the 1/8th mile. And still be streetable. I would also like to keep the build cost economical, not cheap, but within limits.

what altitude are you racing at? i'd think with the set up you have that you should be pretty close to the 8.00 flat range. i mean at sea level in good air of course. i'd scrap those gears if you go with a stroker or a big block. too low. only need around a 3.73-4.10 gear for those type engines. no need to pull unnecassary rpm's plus it throws you right past your usable power range which will likely slow you down.
if there's nothing wrong with the motor you have then throw about 125hp shot of juice on it and it will run in the 7's if you hook it good. ;)

Right now, what is your Elky's main purpose? Is this your only car? If so, then you better plan on getting another car to get you around or make some sort of arrangements. What I mean by that is, whether you build that 350 or not, your Elky is gonna outta commision for a good while. Now, getting back to your question. What is your budget like? If you have the money, or are willing to spend well over 4Gs and take your time with the motor, you can easily build that 454 you got. But, if you are like most of us, and don't have the finances to throw all at once, a 383 is a very affordable motor that will get that Elky moving. Look at Pat Kelley, he has a 67 and running mid 7s on a 355 all motor. I know his car/motor is a dedicated strip vehicle and you are looking for a daily driver, but regardless, with a 383 you can easily run low 8s to high 7s on a 383. Obviously with a well build 454/460/468/496, high 7s are no problem, but it'll cost you more...i.e. suspension, extra parts in the engine compartment, rear end may need to be rebuilt to handle that much torque, etc. Keep in mind, mid to low 8s in the 8th mile equate to roughly low 13s and mid to high 12s. If you're looking for mid to low 7s, that's around low 12s to mid to high 11s. As sweet as that sounds, there's a lot of suspension tuning that will have to be done, let alone tuning your motor....the smaller the cubes, the more radical it has to be to go "really fast" whereas the more cubes, the easier it is to "go really fast." Anyways, before I keep rambling on....there are things you gotta take into consideration....finances, the ability to get around without your Elky, proper suspension, fuel system, weight of car, etc. Properly built, just about any motor will perform, but it cannot perform without a properly built vehicle graemlins/thumbsup.gif

Originally posted by LXS:
Right now, what is your Elky's main purpose? Is this your only car? If so, then you better plan on getting another car to get you around or make some sort of arrangements. What I mean by that is, whether you build that 350 or not, your Elky is gonna outta commision for a good while. Now, getting back to your question. What is your budget like? If you have the money, or are willing to spend well over 4Gs and take your time with the motor, you can easily build that 454 you got. But, if you are like most of us, and don't have the finances to throw all at once, a 383 is a very affordable motor that will get that Elky moving. Look at Pat Kelley, he has a 67 and running mid 7s on a 355 all motor. I know his car/motor is a dedicated strip vehicle and you are looking for a daily driver, but regardless, with a 383 you can easily run low 8s to high 7s on a 383. Obviously with a well build 454/460/468/496, high 7s are no problem, but it'll cost you more...i.e. suspension, extra parts in the engine compartment, rear end may need to be rebuilt to handle that much torque, etc. Keep in mind, mid to low 8s in the 8th mile equate to roughly low 13s and mid to high 12s. If you're looking for mid to low 7s, that's around low 12s to mid to high 11s. As sweet as that sounds, there's a lot of suspension tuning that will have to be done, let alone tuning your motor....the smaller the cubes, the more radical it has to be to go "really fast" whereas the more cubes, the easier it is to "go really fast." Anyways, before I keep rambling on....there are things you gotta take into consideration....finances, the ability to get around without your Elky, proper suspension, fuel system, weight of car, etc. Properly built, just about any motor will perform, but it cannot perform without a properly built vehicle graemlins/thumbsup.gif it's as expensive as you want to make it. i had less than $2500 in my 454 and it ran 7.30's all day long 1/8mi on pump gas @3920lbs with nothing more than SSM lower bars and Competition Engineering cheapo drag shocks and 28x9 slicks. that is mid to low 11's 1/4mi. i know not everyone can get the deals i got on parts as most were used, but if your careful and only get what you have to have and nothing more, then it can be done pretty reasonable. it's just a matter of personal preference, IMO. if you want top of the line brand new stuff, then i'd stick with the small blocks since they are cheaper up to a point.
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time is not a main concern. it has been sitting for 2 months while I have stripped the body down to bare metal and fixed all rust. I should have it painted and back on the road again in a week or so. I was concerned about the post that mentioned my current combo should be good for 8 flat in 8th. I know I could treak a little and run race fuel and get some 8.90's but I seriously have doubts that there is a low 8 in the current set-up. I drive to the track and race it the way it is (remove air cleaner). Car is very consistant. I don't want to go "break something every weekend fast" I just want a streetable 7:90-8:00 set-up. My brother does the whole 6 second 8th mile stuff. It may be just me but when he started going quicker than 7:50's he started having alot of breakage. his car is set up very well.

P.S. I am on a "wife over your shoulder budget". I built the current SB for around $2200.00 total motor and trans.lots of used "brother-in-law" deals.

also her is the website for my local track.
http://abilenedragstrip.com/
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i think there is alot more left in your combo now. my 71 is 200lbs heavier, had same cam, 4.10 gears, and it ran 8.50's in terrible air and i never really tried to tune it much as i only raced in a few big payout bracket races when i had the 355 in it. i would max out the combo you have first and see if it is good enough before you go spending lotsa cash on another engine. you might find out that the little 350 is more stout than you realized. ;)

I have been tempted to tinker with the timing. I run super unleaded+booster or occasionaly VP fuel. I am currently running between 32-34 degrees total. I have no detonation problems.I think I am running about 10:1 comp. graemlins/clonk.gif

For your set up and what you're running, you don't need race fuel. Just mess with your timing and carb, and you'll see results. IMHO, if you're looking for something with decent torque, and don't have the finances to build a BB or to buy the extras to adapt, then go with a 383. Or, if you're looking for something exceptionally reliable and great with gas milage, build yourself a stout lil 355, using forged parts, and squeeze a good 150-200 shot graemlins/thumbsup.gif easy 7s :D

i ran my total timing at 38 degrees, and that motor was pretty sensitive to just a 2 degree variance. i wouldn't even think of running only 32 degrees with what you have unlesss you were spraying it. every motor is different though, so it's just trial and error thing that you'll have to see for yourself what works the best.

Build a mild stroker BB with Scat parts. You already have the BB and a decent set of heads. Get the Scat cast 4.25 crank, a set of good rods(LS6s from Sallee Chev are $350) and a good set of pistons SRPs and work the heads.
Price list(what I got going on for next winter):

Crank: $300
Rods: $350
Pistons: $600
Rings: $175
LUNATI/UD cam: $230
Machine work to block: ~$500
Valve job and some mild bowl work: $575

When I am done I'll have a close to 600HP BB that runs nicley on pumpgas :cool:

Ditto Ace on the 496 motor!!

pdq67

I like small blocks... I love em even more after all the hassles with this BBC swap. But if you want to make big power for cheap you can't beat a Big Block. Heck even a 2 bolt main 454 with arp studs will take 1000hp. The same can't be said for stock small block castings. To take that kinda power reliabily you need to shell out big money for an aftermarket block which is why I went big block in my chevelle.

but it doesn't take big power to run a 7.90 in the 1/8mi. with 4.56 gears the right convertor cam, and heads, a 355 can easily accomplish that in his car. and still be ok to drive on the street. it's not just the price of rebuilding the 454, you're likley going to need front springs, headers, different exhaust, possibly a different carb, and then you'll surely find the weakest link in your drivetrain before too long, especially if it's hooking. i've been down that road before, and that's one reason why i'm running a small block now. ;)

You stated the motor was out of a tow truck. Check if it is a tall deck block, that may cause problems with hood clearance. Trade the 454 for a 400 sb and build that on the cheap. It will take less cash to go through the sb then build and swap the bb IMHO.

The cost of a SBC to BBC swap is the determining factor for me. Yeah, you can make more power with a BBC cheaper, but the cost of the swap outweighs any savings in the motor build IMO.

I think you could build a pretty hot 383 using your existing 350 block pretty cheap and can easily get the kind of performance you are wanting.

My Camaro weighs 3580 race weight and goes 7.2-7.3's in the 1/8th with a pump gas 383. Its plenty streetable for my tastes (still have power steering, power brakes, and can idle in traffic), but might be a little on the ragged edge for a daily driver.

Originally posted by pdq67:
Ditto Ace on the 496 motor!!

pdq67 Yup !! :D