Team Chevelle banner
Cancel
Create thread New Garage Forums

377...383...or 400 for drag racing

Jump to Latest
1 - 17 of 17 Posts
S

SSchevy400

· Registered
Joined
·
71 Posts
Discussion starter · #1 ·
Ok hey guys...I'm moving up to a solid roller cam and was wondering what you all think i should build since i have to pretty much tear my motor appart for new rods anyway.

Rigt now i have a 400 block with a 350 crank...its .060 over yields 383 cubes (377)

I have a 350 block that is .030 over in my garage that is ready for a build...i could make a 383 out of it...
or

use the 400 block and make a 408.....

The cam i'm going with is Harolds(lunati's)...
Lunati 501D3LUN, 310/314 at .020, 279/283 at .050, .640"/.640" lift, 106 LSA


Car is a 70 nova, 3050 lbs w/o driver
getting a cage this winter
th350
12bolt 4.56's moving up to a 5.38 with a spool

what would i gain/lose with any of these combos. I know the 377 should be better for the drags because of the unshrouding of the valves with the big bore/short stroke. But would it be easier to build a 400?
Just curious what you guys would think.
Ed
 
#2 ·
I will let you know how my 383 runs after the solid roller (501C2LUN), single plane intake swap. Right now I am in the mid 12's...

Just so ya know... I am getting killed by a guy in a full bodied 55 Chevy with a 454 SMALL Block. The thing is making crazy power. He is in the mid 11's
 
#3 ·
Ed,

I have built a number of 383 and they are great engines, tons of low end. But the 408 sounds like the way to go in your case. A healthy 400 is an awesome sb, plus you have the extra cubes. I think the 501D3 would fit real well with the 408, better than the 383. Add the light body you have, plus the gears, and a solid 408 and you got a one heck of a combo. Now, if you can just get it to hook..... that's my .02 cents.

Fred.
 
Save
Like Like
#5 ·
Ed,

Depends on what you want. If you want to go as fast as possible, then build the largest cubic inch engine as you can. If you build a 408, you might want to rethink the 5.38's ... unless you are going to be using real good parts. I dont know what kind of crankshaft you have, but I would not want to be spinning a stock GM one 7500 rpm, which is probably where you will be with that much gear.
If you want consistancy, I would also go with the 400, but keep it a bit more conservative. Maybe even stick with the 4.56's
 
Save
Like Like
Discussion starter · #6 ·
hey all and thanks for the replys....
Bill, the 5.38's were UDharolds Idea with that cam and my 383....hes telling me low 10's with it. Soooo i know my car will not be 100% complete ready for 10's at all anytime soon....But i am gettin the cam and i was thinking that the 400 would be harder to hook out of the hole, where as a 377 would be more top end less low end. Or i was thinking about stickin with the 377 and just having a high/fast rev motor.

This is my combo now...
400block .060 over
3.48 stroke
brodix race rite 200's 2.08 valves
solid cam 288 advertised 259@.050, 550lift 106grind
holley strip dominator with 800 dp
th350
4500 stall....
12 bolt 4.56's

maybe with my light car...i should just use the 377 with the new cam. wouldnt it be harder to hook the 408 than the 377? or am i insane
 
#7 ·
Ed,
That car should be a piece of cake to hook up. My 67 Camaro drag car I had was almost identical except I had a 355 in it. Stock front end except for a et of Moroso springs and Koni shocks, Harwood back half kit with multi leaf springs and Lakewood slapper bars. Harwood slider kit pn the rear. Dana 60 with 5.13 gears ... no spool, just posi. I built the car in my garage in 1978 and it went down the 1/4 mile about 3300 times before I sold it. Left with the wheels up about 6 inches and would hook up in a sand box. 14x32 slicks. Ran 10.70's at about 128 mph. Hooked and went straight from the minute I buit it. The guy that I sold it to put a 406 in it and it hooked so good it twisted the Dana 60 axle tubes ! With modern technology, hooking should not be an issue.
 
Save
Like Like
#8 ·
Those cyl heads are too small for a high winding 377/400 to make great power a Track1 with the bowls done will be a better hp deal for you.
 
Save
Like Like
Discussion starter · #9 ·
1968 hot rod said:
Those cyl heads are too small for a high winding 377/400 to make great power a Track1 with the bowls done will be a better hp deal for you.
Click to expand...
Great....:(
 
#10 ·
Are those race rites with the cnc chambers? I never looked at the numbers on the 2.08 valved ones, but the numbers on the 2.05's looked nice and the bgger ones should help matters. Although something larger would be nice, those heads wont be slouches and Id use em if you got em(at least for now). Also, Id rather them be on a 400+ engine so you can keep the revs down just a tad. More motor is good in the first place, plus, that will help those heads out cause they wont need to run the air through them quite as quicky if you can help to keep the revs down a tad(by using a larger motor that wont need to spin quite as high....even if its just a couple hundred rpm).

Id also not even touch your gears til you run it first. If your current rear end/gears can take the power you will run through em, run it as is for the time being cause with the right converter, I dont think 4.56's are real far off the mark in a 408 built the way you have specd so Id give it a go before you swap.

What kind of numbers are you running now with the 259 camshaft in the current motor? Id have to say that youve got a pretty wicked small block and Id figure now you have the potential to be running as fast as low 11's as is.....surely around mid to high 11's.

Also, whether its a 408 or 377 or 383 in the end, you need to build that thing right. Its gonna want to spin with that kind of a cam, and if you gear it all the way up to 5.38's, its probably gonna spin too fast for you to keep track of sometimes and you want it built right. If its a production block, you want to pull out all the stops........nothing cast has any business in that motor if you can help it. As far as hooking, them novas seem to do good at the track without much effort. With good springs all around, good tires, stiff subframe and a cage and some cal tracks you oughta be able to yank em.
 
Discussion starter · #11 ·
nah, they are not the cnc ones. My builder for some reason deals with someone from brodix...(this is what i'm told). The brodix guy tell him that if you inlarge them from 200cc's to 215/220cc's....and use 2.08 valves instead of 2.05's. They will flow better, as long as you do some more work around tghe valve to unshroud... so my builder does this for all the racerites he sells. i have the flow number around here somewhere and they were better than out of the box...so maybe he knows what hes talking about.?? i dunno. The cam i have now put about 400 to the rear wheels last time i had it dyno'd on a trailer dyno about a month ago. I know hes gonna talk me into the 377 cause i have all the parts...just need new rods...these pinks are scaring me now :) haha.
 
#12 ·
i can see why harrold wanted the 538s because your motor is a rpm motor.if i was building a drag race motor it would be the 383 or the 400 for the torke .get the car moving and the rest will come.if you are running 32 inch tires the 538s may work well in the 1/8th mile with .the 400 or the 383 [350v400 crank].i run 456s with 28 inch slicks in my nova and cross the line at 64 or 65 hundred in the 1/8th mile.if you like the high winding motor just keep what you have .as for as making a nova hook thats not hard at all gm did a pretty good job with weight distribution on that one .they just forgot the full frame.
 
Save
Like Like
#13 ·
at 3500lbs the longer stroke will help...but a .060 over stock 400 block is a ticking time bomb... .040 is pushing a gm 400 block. Have it sonic checked b4 you spend a lot of money. Look for thrust side thickness of .200" ideally, but thats is doubtful.
 
Discussion starter · #14 ·
Yea its 3050lbs...not 3500....Builder checked the block and said it was good for a .060 over. I'll prolly keep the 377 since i have everything for it. i'll get the pistons flycut, and see how she does...thanks guys
Ed
 
#17 ·
small_block_chev said:
454 small block? WTF? How is that done?
Click to expand...

Aftermarket block with a raised cam to clear the additional stroke. It's been done for years with the GM Rocket block and now a few other raised-cam blocks exist too.

World Products sells them as crate motors now too.

Scotch~!
 
1 - 17 of 17 Posts
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
About this Discussion
16 Replies
12 Participants
Last post:
Scotch
Team Chevelle
posts
5.3M
members
131K
Since
1998
A forum community dedicated to Chevrolet Chevelle owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about restorations, builds, performance, modifications, classifieds, troubleshooting, maintenance, and more!
Full Forum Listing
Explore Our Forums
Bench Racing Performance Engine Chevelle Tech Body Shop