Does anyone know how much a stock 305 block weighs? i plan on swapping my 305 out to an aluminium 350 bored/stroked to 383. does anyone know how much weight this would save? thanks for your help.

A naked SBC block is about 185 lbs or so. An aluminum one would be about 60-65 lbs less.

Good luck finding one, since Chevrolet never made one. The only way to get such a thing is from Donovan or the like. Bring your wheelbarrow full of $$$$$$

I think you miss understood him because chevy does make a 350 aluminum block its called a LS1

sure they did, but its not a traditional SBC..........see what we're saying

ok......

i found a cheap 4.6 cadillac engine its all aluminum DOHC if you bored it out maybe you could have a 5.0 all aluminum DOHC that would be cool

Just a rant

The LS1 is not a small block. It doesn't share one common part with the SBC in our cars.

RB is right, the General never made an aluminum block, but they did make an aluminum big block, the ZL1.

The LS1 is not 350CI. Its 346.

really??? what kind of bore and stroke does a LS1 have??

i was planning on using an LS1 block. i can still bore/stroke that into a 383, right??

PS, i don't want to turn this into a bitchfest...

that would awsome a all AL stroker 383

Now going from memory here, and we all know how good that is, didn't the ZR1 use an aluminum SBC? Again, maybe I'll go look it up Oh wait, I think it used an LT1 motor....so technically a gen 2 sbc....

Ok, it used an LT5 which is made of aluminum. So yeah, a Gen2 SBC....

Pretty sure the Lt5 is completely different block than an LT1, I doubt the parts are interchangeable but i'm not 100% sure.

I think GM makes a 427 cu in alluminum sbc, I think it's similar to the LS1 blocks though.

Also, are there any bow tie blocks made of aluminum?

check this out

http://www.popularhotrodding.com/eng...05em_boredls1/

I think all of you saying that chevy never made an aluminum engine are "missing the point". LS6--It is a V-8, it is made by chevy, it is a small block, and it is an engine. It doesn't matter if it shares a part with the older gen engines; its still good-old-fashioned american muscle and can be made to be as good or better than any early gen engines that I have seen. "Not a traditional SBC", IMO!

That is exactly the attitude that lead to the demise of the very cars we come here to promote.

the ZL1 motor out of a 68or69 camaro was all alumin,alumin heads, block, and intake. and that was a traditional sbc made by gm

are you for real??

Youth is wasted on the young.

The ZL1 didn't come in Camaros. It was an over-the-counter crate motor. And it was a big block. And, it's not the kind of thing that you just find laying around, waiting for somebody to come up and try to get a deal on. But of course I'm sure I'll be told that money is no object here.

If you had said up front that you wanted to swap in a LS1, everybody would have known what you were asking. Instead, massive confusion was the result.

If you want a LS1, go get one. You can stroke one if you want to. I don't think it strokes to a 383, AFAIK it ends up usually being some other CID. But it can be done.

A traditional small block 350, the kind that has never been offered by GM in aluminum, is what can be turned into a 383 with common off-the-shelf parts. Not the LS1.

You should do some research and see what fits your needs. Keep in mind that the LS1 motors are nowhere near a direct bolt-in to these cars.

Yes Youth is Wasted on the Young but Not all old men are wise!!!

Well strangely enough the ZL-1 came factory from Norwood Ohio and were delivered to Fred Gibbs Chevrolet with the All Aluminum 427's in them. All 50 came from Norwood with the Aluminum 427.

Later, Garrett

And RB83L69 I know you know your stuff, but I am a 1st Generation Camaro Maniac. In particular Yenko COPO and ZL-1 Camaro's. But I will welcome any debate on the topic .

soooooooooo much misinformation in this thread...................

Ok...Camaros DID come with ZL-1 engines from the factory and they WERE Big Blocks; unfortunatly only 69 were made and they were sold for $7000. The ZL-1 that is currently being sold is only available over the counter and they are limited to 250 as a turn key engine and cost $25000. Ya know, for senior members with so many posts, I would think you would give out better info than that. Makes me wonder how many others you have miss-led.

And those 50 or 69 big-block cars made in one lot 35 years ago that were not a RPO but rather were essentially dealer conversions done at the factory has ...... how much connection with the subject of this post? After all, they mean so much to the overall business or hobby of buying and working on cars, and in particular to the matter of aluminum 350 blocks. You ever see one of those cars? I haven't either, though I've seen some pics, probably the same as you have. Something like that is so rare and so unlikely to be for sale or otherwise available, it doesn't matter in the real world of our hobby, except as a minor footnote to a historical oddity.

So feel free to think whatever you want to about "miss-leading" people; I'd prefer to remain concerned with the practical and useful, things that people can actually apply to what they're doing.

This one sure has taken a left turn down the dirt road and into the weeds.

The original facts remain; the question was about an aluminum 350 block to swap for a 305 and turn into a 383. The answer remains, there is no such thing available from GM, although there are some available from aftermarket sources. There is however the LS1, which is not a 350 strictly speaking but is close, and is not the same kind of motor as a 305; and which can be stroked somewhat like a 350 can. Those are the relevant facts. The ZL-1 has essentially nothing whatsoever to do with the matter at hand, and especially not picking at people over how many of them were in that one famous lot.

There were 69 Camaros and 2 Corvettes made in 1969 with the ZL-1 big block.

And yes, an LS1 can be stroked to 383ci. There are 383 kits out there to do it.

Although it's a mistake to get in on this kind of arguing, if you want an aluminum small block Chevy, go to your favorite Chevy dealer and order p/n 10185075. This particular block is a wet-sump design.

If you want to build a large displacement aluminum SBC, go to your favorite Chevy dealer and order block p/n 24502495. This block is for a dry sump only.

you took the words out of my mouth. $4,000 though.

As for Yak's orginal question.

the LS1 is a completly diffefernt motor compared to a 350, NOTHING about it is the same. So don't plan on just using the block and putting on regular SBC Cylinder heads, or throwing a carb on there, cause it won't work.

Has Anybody ever used these guys CN Blocks

They sell "typical" sbc and bbc blocks that are compatible with the parts that have been mentioned above.

a funny thing happened to me this morning, i was flipping through a lingenfelter catalog, and i found a 383 lt-1. it has a 4.030 bore and a 3.750 stroke. as well as a LS1 and LS6 with a 3.900 bore and 4.00 stroke. Do those numbers make sence? If so, will i be able to use a regular stoker kit? thanks.

That 4" stroke LS1 isn't a 383... maybe that crank is for the Lingenfelter 427 LS1 cars? I betcha it is.

BTW... those ZL1 Camaros and Corvettes in '69 were built by the factory, but they were special-order COPO (central office production order) cars, just like the regular iron-block 427/430hp Camaros were in '69. The only "official" big block for the Camaro was still the 396.

Basically, they were factory built race cars. There was an RPO for the ZL1 package, but it wasn't advertised (like the L88 for the Corvette was not advertised) because they weren't meant for the street, they had far more HP than advertised (which could get them in trouble like it did Chrysler with the Hemi) and they didn't want 16 year old kids buying a 600hp Camaro or Corvette because it was a torpedo on wheels. They were also not very streetable. They (ZL1 and L88) didn't like to idle below 1,200 rpm, they were a real b*tch to start cold, they were built to run on race gas (12.5:1 CR) and had solid lifters, which require almost weekly adjustment.

well... from what i understand... you can turn a LS1 into a 382 stroker... or a 382 all bore motor... cause they are sleved... and the 382 all bored are making more power from what i understand from some really good friends...

and yes the LS1 isn't like any other SBC... its actually based off of the BBC and the SBFord motor...

I believe Dart also makes an aluminum block that is Chevy Gen1 SB compatible.

GM does sale aluminum blocks last time I checked.

And didn't a few of the 92 Firehawk's come with aluminum blocks??

Wow! What a strange direction this thread took! GM Performance Parts sells a GEN 1 aluminum block. There are about two different part numbers in a wet sump configuration. Last time I checked...and it has been sometime... the blocks were about $4000. This link to Flatlander racing has some information on them.
http://www.flatlanderracing.com/blocksgmsb1.html#6
The blocks weigh about 90 lbs, so your weight savings will be about 75 lbs.

The LS1 has no overbore capability, as I understand. The displacement would have to come from the crank. Lunati and Crower both make LS1 cranks to reach the 383 displacement.

If you want a bigger engine, and you've got $6,000 lying around, you could always pick up one of those C5-R 427 blocks. I understand that the external dimensions are identical.

Why would anyone refer to an argument about whether the LS1 is an sbc or not a "bitchfest?" Had you called it "ridiculous" I would have to agree, but a "bitchfest?"

This is almost as bad as that argument about NOS awhile back.

i don't know who told you that... but that is totally wrong... they can be bored up to a certain point on the stock sleeves... and then if they want to go bigger you have to remove the existing sleeve, bore it and install a new bigger sleeve... then bore that to the specified bore...

Chris89GTA,
The hands on experience I have with the LS1 you could fit on the head of a pin but...according to the School of Automotive Machinists, the '97 - '98 liners are so thin, when you take in account core shift, they can only be bored .005". The '99 and later blocks can only go .010".

GM considers the liners nonreplaceable and will not honor any warranty with motors that have thier liners replaced. SAM has developed a method to replace the liners but it requires machining out the existing sleeves and using a specially developed method for replacement. Automotive machine shops can not perform this operation without instruction. Now you might be thinking of the race block (Part Number 12480030) which does have replaceable pressed in sleeves but the production block does not.

You can't bore a sleeve.

LS 1's can be resleeved to a 408.

Rotating assemblies for LS1's are 5000 grand.

They are small blocks.

They are aluminum.

They are 115 pound lighter than "standard" smallblocks.

Aluminum after market blocks are oil leaking nightmares...trust me.

How fast do you want to go?

How much do you want to spend?

If you want to go fast and have a LOT of money and really want a smallblock...I suggest finding a good machine shop tell them you want to go fast and you want a Rocket block. Then you can build a BIG inch (over 460) small block.

Stop arguing everyone.....You are harshing my mellow.

What he said

Actually, you can bore and stroke an LS-1 block upto 450 ci with the right crank and sleeves pressed in it. MTI made a 450ci LS-1 by siamesing the sleeves into the block and using a custom stroker crank and rods.

an aftermarket aluminum SBC block will cost a LOT more bare than an LS1 with full harness and ECU. If you want the weight savings, get an LS1, they seem to be fast in those 4th gens

been boring sleeves for years dude .....how do you think we machinist fix a cracked cylinder.........bore cracked cylinder to the oversize of sleeve press it in cylinder ...bore sleeve to correct piston to wall clearance

GM doesnt recommend boring the sleeves on most LS1's at all, because they are THIN. People should check out the stuff first before they can say it can be done with no problems. IIRC the max I've ever seen is .020, which isnt worth the trouble.

It is obvious to me a few in this thread have never even seen their own engine block much less an LS1.

It never ceases to amaze me how many people think their Gen 1 or LT1 heads, etc will just bolt right on an LS1 block, or vice versa.

And before everybody that posted replies "hey I know they don't interchange I was just saying...." Let me just say you can tell who does and does not know what they are talking about.

I would not think there are many LS1s out there going the bore route but it actually suprised me...more people out there getting displacement by boring those liners than you might think.

i always thought that GM does cheap stuff like keep thing the same so it will be cheaper to produce

They did, and still do. The 1stgen small block Chevy was basically unchanged from 1955 to 1986, and almost all parts will interchange from '55 - '95 (?).

Yea that is what i was thinking

AMEN TO THAT!

Also i have found that someone on this board has done that. They do bolt on its just the coolants flow in a diffrent direction and he fixed that problem

that was LT1(GEN 2 SBC) heads on a Gen1 SBC..............LS1 is a totally diff. animal



also, that GMPP Alm. SBC PN# 10185075 , is a 2 peice rear main block that comes w/ a rough finished borethat measures 4.118" that can be finish honed to 4.125"

wow.. this thread is really filled with useless crap... heh.

id comment on what was said, but i donno where to begin.